Pascal
Lanneau Veterinarian - Some Breeding Tips!
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Dear pigeon fancier,
The
racing period is a very important period
for all pigeon fanciers, but don’t
neglect the breeding season.
During this period the future champions
are bred, the basics for the next generation!!!
In
this edition of “Het Duivengazetse”
I want to talk a bit more about the breeding
season and some items that are important
to keep in mind, before and during the
breeding season.
Health check-up.
Super
health is a need for super breeding.
Don’t
make any mistake before and during the
breeding season!!!
Make sure your pigeons are healthy and
in an optimum condition when the breeding
season starts.
A
routine check –up is therefor very
important.
Make sure these tests are done minimum
1.5 month before you start breeding, so
you can treat properly if necessary.
It is very important that the treatment
is the right one. So an exact diagnosis
is necessary, and beneath this, also a
reliable advice concerning the use of
the correct medicine and exact medical
support is a must. Some medicines are
harmful giving it just before the breeding
period (eg some worm tablet are very dangerous
during this period, the fertility is much
lower, and the eggshell formation can
be very disturbed, so you have much lesser
babies than you should have.)
Dropping
analysis
Let analyzing the droppings searching
for parasites like coccidiosis, and worms
are very important.
Also a bacteriological culture is very
useful, especially for the battle against
paratyphus.
Be careful for the attack of a slumbering
paratyphus that especially during the
breeding period could be very hard!! Look
out if you have some babies that don’t
grow like they should do, if you have
some pigeons that become thinner, that
aren’t able to fly anymore, that
are limping,… All this could be
signs of paratyphus!!!
Swab
analysis
A special remark concerning the trichomoniasis
is certainly necessary!!!
Tricho is a very important and dangerous
disease during the breeding period. Many
problems during this period are related
to the presence of trichomoniasis in the
pigeons. A good treatment against tricho
is therefor a must because the youngsters
could die from this disease. The parasite
can cause canker in the stock birds, forming
nodules with the help of fe injuries in
the outline of the crop or the first compartment
of the stomach. These nodules can cause
severe problems with breathing, so you
think the pigeon has respiratory problems,
but this isn’t true.
When you see a pigeon that looks not so
fine during the breeding season, think
always on tricho!!!
Food that contains grains with large diameter
or abrasive grains or grit can cause damage
and then the formation of nodules due
to tricho is very common.
A
swab analysis is very useful to know the
status of your flock concerning tricho,
but remind always that the quantity of
tricho always increases during the hatching
off the eggs, and it remains high just
till the youngsters are 10 days old.
When
you did a routine analysis, you need the
right treatments, and a vet specialized
in pigeon medicine is the best advisor!!
The
right treatment is very important, so
you don’t have problems with the
fertility, the eggshell forming, the youngsters,…
In order to prevent such problems make
sure you have the right advice concerning
the right medicine at the right time,
and second, do those treatments 1 –1.5
month before starting pairing up!! Some
medication can also be given when the
pigeons are on their eggs and no chicks
have hatched.
Watch
out if you give treatments in the water
when the pigeons have youngsters (fe if
the youngsters have canker).
If the youngsters receive crop milk from
their parents, the youngsters will receive
almost no medication at all, because it
is already digested by the parents.
When you have youngsters that receive
grains already, they will receive the
full quantity of the medication, but pay
attention!!!
A youngster from 10 days old can eat 4
times more than an adult pigeon, and their
weight is four times lesser, so they could
get overdosed with the drug for 16 times!!!
Individual treatment is for this reason
very recommended!!
General
check-up
Take your pigeons in your hands, so you
can check the general condition of the
pigeon.
Watch the feathers, looking for lice,
that can be a very great disturbance during
breeding, which can give parents that
are abandoning the nests, so the eggs
will not hatch or when there are already
babies they will die from the cold or
due to a lack of feed. When you look the
feathers, you can also see if the pigeons
ended their moulting period. It is best
that the last feather is renewed, so the
pigeons can focus them on the breeding
period.
Food
& Supplements - Food
Be
sure you give a good quality food to the
pigeons, containing a lot of protein and
energy, because this is what the youngsters
need when they are growing!! Peas and
beans, soya beans, cowpeas have a high
level of protein, and your breeding mix
should consist of at least 40 % of these
grains.
Corn contains a high level of energy,
but due to his form, it can make some
damage in the throat, that can cause nodules
from canker.
Good quality food means that the food
is not very old, and not given ad lib,
but every day fresh, because if the food
is to old, it may contain many bacteria,
and this will harm the development of
the youngsters. Secondly, old food will
loose much of its high level of proteins.
Check the smell of the food before giving
it to the pigeons, and a thing worth knowing,
normally will 90-100% of food the sprout
after 48 – 98 hours when you have
good quality food.
Some
pigeon fancier have some problems with
a couple of pigeons, or a whole flock
for breeding properly. It is not always
the pigeon that is ill, but now and then
the fancier make some mistakes during
the breeding period.
Some supplements are during the breeding
period of very great importance, and are
necessary to give, others can give some
stimulation when the pigeons have some
problems for mating, pairing and breeding
Grit
Grit
is a source of the very important Calcium,
that is necessary especially during this
period of the year!!
First
of all, the egg shell has to be formed
in the body of the hen. The gland who
does this need very much Calcium in order
to have a well formed egg. When there
is a lack of Calcium, the shell can be
very rough or to soft, or sometimes there
is no shell at all. It is not necessary
to tell that there won’t be any
babies if this occurs.
Second,
for the expulsion of the egg, the hen
needs muscle activity, and this process
needs also Calcium.
Third,
the hen and cock make crop milk to feed
their babies, and this milk contains a
lot of Calcium.
When
there is a lack of Calcium, it is possible
that the hen doesn’t lay her egg,
or that the hen isn’t able to walk
or fly any more.
Giving
supplements of Calcium and vitamin D3
are very good in order to prevent a lack
of Calcium.
Supplements
& other natural remedies
Products
that contains much Selenium, Vitamin E
(eg wheatgerm oil),.. will stimulate the
libido and fertility of the pigeon. You
can give this as a cure of 1 week, followed
by 2 – 3 days a week. Be careful
not to overdose Selenium.
When
pigeons are pairing and breeding there
is a great demand for multimineral ,and
trace elements. It is the best to give
this ad lib.
In
some cases of infertility an injection
with products that stimulate the fertility
in the hen and/or cock will be necessary.
Cocks that had the last year not filled
all the eggs, but now and then some, will
respond better than those who are the
last years completely infertile.
Before
doing this injections, try to pair those
pigeons later in the year, because the
natural stimulation of the increasing
daylength and the increasing temperature
are then also present.
Let problem pigeons mating in a box, separated
from the others, so they have more time
to mate, and they are more convenient
without having to watch the more virile
pigeons.
Conclusion:
Make sure the pigeons are healthy
Give them the appropriate food
Give them grit, vitamins and trace elements
In one of the following editions I will
talk some more about the possible problems
you can have with the youngsters from
day 1 …
Don’t
hesitate to contact me for further info:©
Pascal Lanneau Veterinarian
Kerkstraat 21 8552 Moen Belgium
Phone: 0032 56 649143 Fax: 0032 56 774577
e-mail: pascallanneau@skynet.be
A small note concerning the analyzing
of the droppings:
Examining
droppings for parasites can be done on
fresh droppings from one day.
Do you want also a bacterial culture,
than it is better to take some droppings
from as much as pigeons that are in that
loft (with a max from 30-35, like I described
in the paper concerning paratyphus) for
5 days!!
In
this way you will have a very exact picture
of the health state of your lofts.
Sending
droppings is no problem at all. You receive
the day of receipt the results of the
parasitological examination and after
5 days the results of the bacteriologic
cultures, eventually later also the antibiogram.
Be
sure the droppings don’t become
to dry, put them in a closed box or a
plastic bag.
Pascal Lanneau Veterinarian:
Emai
l- pascallanneau@skynet.be |