1^0 



CANARIES, HYBRIDS, AND BRITISH BIRDS 



Useful 

 Cocks. 



sit again, it is anything hut pleasant to 

 her to have four great youngsters, perliaps 

 bigger than herselT. sitting in the nest 

 witii lier, or even on top of her, as 

 they will do. Some mothers will ])ut 

 up with it. but such cases usually end 

 in the clutch of eggs being " addled," if 

 they are not broken when being cleaned. 

 The plan recommended as a remedy 

 for plucking should also be adopted 

 with forsaken nestlings for 

 Mhicli no iVjster - mother can 

 be found, \\here the cock bird 

 has been assisting to rear the brood. 

 He will keep at it like a Trojan, to 

 all ap|)carances liking the job. AVorth 

 his weight in gold is a. good cock bird 

 of this descri])tion, and if very fond of 

 his bairns he will attend to them through 

 the wires of the nursery and at the same 

 time drive the hen — which has been left 

 in the cage with him — oil to nest again, 

 giving her a good " hiding " now and then 

 for deserting her young and not helping 

 him to rear them. Such cases are most 

 interesting to watch, though it is much 

 better not to be troubled with them. Such 

 a good-natiu'cd cock bird may also be 

 turni-d into a " (liyiit " with the young 

 birds, ami he will keep his eye on them, 

 and will always " ken his ain bairns." 

 He will, however, not only look after his 

 own, but any that ma\ not be quite aljle 

 to look alter themselves in the flight, even 

 though he may have never seen them 

 before. It is very amusing to see the 

 performance when the cock has been 

 away for a while. ;ind the >onng arc 

 Inuigry. 'I'hcy pounce upon him in a 

 body, ^uul drive him into a corner, or 

 })erha])s he retreats thither on strategic 

 grounds ; and <'nsconccd I here. sup- 

 ])ortc<l on his tail on strictly seientilic 

 jirinciplcs, taking care to kee|) his centre 

 of gravity well within his base, he 

 dispenses his charities to th(> clamorous 

 applicants, giving each his lair share, aiul 

 never, in any circumstances, losing his 

 temper. 



The mischievous practice of ])lucking is 

 not confined to the hen, for we have known 



a few cock birds guilty of the practice, and 

 they ha\e usiudly, though not always, 



learnt thewrctched habit from 

 Cocks as ^ ^ J J 



Pluckers. 



the same jjrecaution must 



be taken, with this difference : if plucking 

 is going on, and it is thought that the hen 

 is not the culprit and she is a good feeder, 

 remove the cock bird, and let the hen rear 

 the brood by herself until they leave the 

 nest, then place them in the nursery, and 

 return the cock to the hen. In many such 

 cases he will again I'csnmc his duties and 

 assist to feed the young imtil they are 

 able to look after themselves. 



Again, this mischievous habit of pluck- 

 ing is not {)cculiar to the ])arents. but is 



frequently indulged in by 

 Young Birds ^.j^^ ^^^^^j', ,jj,.j^ among 

 and Plucking. , " , , , 



themselves when turned 



into the llight cage in groups. With them 

 it takes, if possible, an even worse form, 

 inasnuich as they do not content them- 

 selves with ])lucking the small feathers, 

 for which they have no use, but make 

 the strouL;' (|uills of the wings and tail the 

 object of their attack. Anyone whose 

 acquaintance with feathers has been of 

 even the most su])erlieial character will 

 have noticed that when the stronger quills 

 are growing they arc full of licjuid. and if 

 accidentally drawn, the blood lollows in 

 considerable quantity, \\hen the (]uili 

 becomes matured, this ceases to be the 

 case. It is when the young birds are first 

 turned into the Might, and before the 

 wings and tail and stronger feathers of 

 the wing-coverts arc gro>vn their full length, 

 thai llic |)crseciitiou is c.-irricd on. The 

 mode of action is bcaufifully simple. A 

 bird may be ol)servctl (piictly seatetl at 

 the end of a ixfch. close to tlu- bai'k of 

 the cage; he is a bird of a I'cliring dis- 

 j)osition and mi'dilatiNc turn of mind, is 

 very young, and the |)ro|>rietor of about 

 one inch of tail. Some of his companions 

 are older, and \crscd in the ways of a 

 wicked world by at least fourteen days 

 more experience. One of tluin sidles u|) 

 to him in an insimiating sort of way, 

 betokening mischief, and looks him over in 



