Double
Widowhood- Part Three
By
John Marles, Sylvan Lofts
The last point I
discussed was just prior to training the old birds for racing. It is imperative
that the young birds be weaned as soon as possible. Only then will we see the
dramatic boost in health that we are looking for. I will have all of my young
birds out of the loft three weeks prior to the first race. The old birds will
have been exercising for at least three to four weeks before I actually begin to
train them. For me this training for the first Old Bird race takes place at a
minimum of three weeks prior to the first race. Normally, I will take just the
Cock birds because the hens have either just been separated or are ready to be
separated that week. My practice is to go only about 16 or 20 miles on a very
nice day. At this time of the year you certainly do not want to hurt the pigeons
by over extending their muscles. Also, if the weather is too cold I will
consider taking them out later or wait until the next day. This caution comes
from experience. I well remember jumping the gun one year due to my excitement
at playing widowhood and getting the widowers out for a club toss on a rather
dubious day. The weather turned for the worse, I felt that the trucker being an
experienced pigeon flyer would bring them back. Needless to say, the day turned
out disastrous and even my earliest arrivals were cold and wet. All form was
lost in the loft and it took a long time before it started to return. Armed with
this vivid memory of twenty years ago, I now proceed slowly and carefully with a
little more thought to the oncoming race season.
After the separated
hens have been on their own for a week to recuperate, I will include them on all
tosses. Each time they return, they are allowed to go back to their nest and
then I carefully return them to their own section. In the three week training
period, I will try to toss both sexes at least thirteen to fifteen times. The
emphasis is not on distance, but rather repetitions. Most of the tosses will be
from 30 to 40 miles with only a few further than this. Of course I will continue
with the exercise around the loft and adjust the training according to my
observations. For instance, if the flying exercise time around the loft drops
off dramatically then I will discontinue training and exercising until I find
out what is wrong. Sometimes it's just a couple of day’s rest that they need and
they are back to their normal exercise time. They should be constantly moving in
the sky, darting here and there, landing momentarily and then off again. Thirty
minutes at this time of the year is more than enough. I try to keep the birds to
a routine so as not to upset their internal clock. Therefore, if I toss in the
morning, then I will exercise them at their normal time in the evening.
Since I do not have a
partner, training is a little more difficult. After crating both the hens and
cocks in separate baskets, I then make sure that the only trap open is where the
nest boxes are kept. On occasions I will allow the hens into this section first
by letting them go a shorter distance. I don't feel that it is critical. If I am
fortunate enough to be at home when they arrive, then I will allow them in the
open doors. It is a sight to see them pitch from the air and swish into their
box. Over the last 20 years that I have flown widowhood, I have seldom been home
when they arrived, but I can assure you that it has not adversely affected my
results. Usually, by the time I return home the cocks and hens are in their
respective nest boxes and are crouched over the bowl. At this time, I carefully
remove the hen to her own section which is right next door. There is a solid
partition between the sections and the hens loft is fitted with perches only
while on the cock side there are only nest boxes. Once the hen is removed I turn
the bowl over and close off the half section which contains the bowl. I like the
birds to calm down and rest for it is the resting phase which is one of the most
important factors in racing double widowhood. Some fanciers spoil this
particular time by returning to the loft too many times or keeping the hens
beside the cocks without a slid partition or allowing the sexes together too
often for too long. Try at all costs to avoid these situations. If it is a
particularly nice day then set a warm bath inside for both of the sexes as this
tends to help calm them down and rest. After the birds have been trained for
their targeted thirteen or fifteen tosses then they should be race ready. Our fist race is about 130 miles which
is anywhere from a two and a half hour flight to three hours. If your first race
is longer, then I would definitely increase the number of tosses because you
want to make sure that they handle the time on the wing without hurting
themselves for the rest of the year.
Medication
We will all readily
agree that medicating is often a double edged sword. How much are you giving up
in the way of natural resistance and good healthy bacteria in order to achieve
the desired effect on unwanted bacteria? Over the years I have had the
opportunity to experiment using different amounts of medication varying from
using nothing to a fixed weekly programme. From experience my worst year ever
was when I decided to treat the birds very naturally. (homoeopathically).
Likewise the other extreme does not work either and those lofts who are heavy
medicators soon succumb to the stress of over medicating. Where does this leave
us?- in the middle. “All things in moderation." During the first week of training, I
generally treat against trichomoniasis for five days with either Emtryl or
Ridzol. Make sure that they receive the right amount - one teaspoon per gallon
for the entire five day period. Thanks to the training of Dr.G. Chalmers, I am
now able to check faecal samples for either worms or coccidiosis. Neither has
been a problem in the past as I watch very carefully for any changes in the
loft. If the droppings on your birds were off then I would strongly suggest
seeking a reputable Pigeon vet to give you advice.
If
the widowers are exercising freely and are training well then this is the extent
of the medication I administer before the first race. However, if the birds are
not willingly exercising prior to the first race then you have problems. A sure
sign of a respiratory problem is if during training, as soon as the birds are
released, they circle and circle and circle. Also, if you are lucky enough to be
present as the trainers are landing then observe very closely and look for the
following tell tale signs. Upon arrival do they open their beaks wide, almost as
if they are yawning? Do they rub
their nostrils (beak) on their wings? If the weather is cool, do they land with
their beaks open and panting? If you answered yes to any of these then you may
certainly have a respiratory problem. What should you do? For the next ten days
I would rest the birds and place them on a medication programme consisting of an
anti-tricho drug, Emtryl or Flagyl or Ridzol etc. plus an anti-respiratory drug
combination ( Tylosin and Doxycycline). Make sure you use an anti-tricho drug
that you have not used yet this year. Trichomoniasis is an opportunistic
bacterium and quite often waits for a little stress on the birds and then it
opens the door for a secondary infection such as respiratory.
Once we start racing
we will discuss which medications to use and how. Hopefully, your birds will
really look the part and be ready for the competitions ahead. If you have been
conscientious with the training, cleaning, keeping smaller numbers and observing
the birds daily they should look good.
Handling
of the Widowhood Hens
As has been mentioned
earlier I like to separate the hens when the young birds are about eighteen to
twenty days old. If the hens happen to lay before this let them sit for two to
three days then remove the eggs, bowl and the hen. You do not want these birds
to start moulting. Our 11 week season is short enough when you consider the
length of time that you keep them so make sure they compete with as full a wing
as possible.
The widowhood
hen section should contain only perches and preferably some kind of mechanism
(like a screen door) to enclose the hens once they are on the perches. Why? As I
see it the only problem with racing widow hens, is that they love to mate to
each other. After four, five or six weeks (sometimes sooner) the hens will start
to mate. I have heard of or have seen many, many, different methods that have
been put into practice to stop this. For me, the one that works is to close them
in once they are on their perches. My perches are about 12 x 12 and I have a 2 x
1 screened frame which closes over the perches and keeps each bird in its own
separate perch. In the morning when my time is very limited, the hens will not
be exercised, but they will be let out on the floor for a light, cereal feed (
barley, rice, wheat and white milo ) a drink and then back up onto their
perches. At this time I will close the screen door over the birds. Next, I hang
a dark curtain over this 2 x 1 frame so that the hens can not see out. Now I can
give my widowhood cocks their exercise and I do not have to worry about the
sexes seeing each other. The widowers are generally out for about 30 minutes in
the beginning of the year. Be careful if the weather is not conducive to good
form then keep them in. Some widowhood fliers allow their cocks only out once a
day and they compete very well. This exercise could also take place in the
afternoon, it really does not matter. Once the widowers are back in the loft
then take the curtain away from the hens’ side. Now, try and leave both sexes
alone for the next eight hours. This is the time of the day when I feel that the
widowers get an edge on their competition by merely resting and
sunning....absolute bliss.
I had hoped to discuss
feeding, but I will incorporate that into the next article. I leave you with
this thought...Some people try to find ways to eliminate their
competition....Why not try eliminating one factor in your own loft that
might be keeping you from beating the competition-- numbers!! By reducing your
numbers the health, form and race results of your loft will improve
considerably. ....Till next time... All the Best...and if I can be of any
assistance please do not hesitate to write or
call....