170 FANCY PIGEONS, 



Make and Shape. — Althoiigli differing mucli in size, all tlie 

 Fantails I liave ever seen, excepting one pair, were of the same 

 formation in head and beak, viz., the common type. Cocks are 

 rather coarser in head than hens. The head is long, narrow, 

 and flat, the beak long and slender. The beak wattle should 

 be small, and there should be very little eye wattle. Smooth 

 legs are necessary in the show Fantail, and nearly all fanciers 

 prefer smooth heads. When the head is crested, the crest is 

 generally a neat peak, and I never saw a shell-crested one. 

 I do not dislike a peak crest on a good Fantail, though it 

 necessarily takes from the rounded outline of the head and 

 neck. I once saw a pair of white Fantails with rather round 

 heads, and shorter and thicker beaks than usual, but they were 

 not good birds otherwise. I believe they were imported from 

 the Continent. Except for the flights, tail, and legs, the shape 

 of the Fantail should be as round, compact, and close-feathered 

 as possible. It should look like a pigeon pressed into the shape 

 of a ball. A peculiarity generally found in the best Shakers is 

 the split breast, an indentation running up the middle of it, 

 which is most apparent in birds of good carriage. The legs 

 should be moderately long. They are seldom too long, but 

 often too short. 



Carriage. — The carriage of a first-class shaking Fantail is 

 something wonderful to behold. The head is thrown back till 

 it rests at the root of the tail, the crown of the head being far 

 below the level of the breast. The head sometimes goes 

 through the tail, which is a great fault. Some birds have an 

 up and down motion in their necks, the head leaving its 

 position against the tail, and returning to it by a succession of 

 strokes. I dislike this style, and prefer the head to remain 

 fixed in position, while the whole body of the bird is in a 

 constant state of agitation. A good one is unable to walk 

 forward while in action, but has to turn its tail in the direction 

 it wishes to go, when it backs with a dancing style of move- 

 ment. It will occasionally make three or four complete turns 



