214 



THE PRACTICAL PIGEON KEEPER. 



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more than the heaviest pigeon, or rather, enough to a little 

 more than balance the pigeon at the other end. Hence the 

 pigeon alights and finds the stage secure; but if a cat alights 

 the board at once tips up and lets her down. If there is a 

 series of bolting-wires, necessitating a wide stage, it must be 

 divided into strips or sections, and each piece balanced sepa- 

 rately. All entrances should be painted in some conspicuous 

 manner. It is often better to have no outside cage or area, 

 but to have it inside the loft instead. 



The loft must be divisible into at least two divisions, arranged 

 so that either at pleasure can have access to the area or entrance. 

 This is easily managed, as shown in Fig. 36, where be are the 

 e two compartments 



divided by the parti- 

 tion, d d, and entered 

 by separate doors, h h. 

 The partition may be 

 of wire, boarded up a 

 foot or so from the 

 floor. Near the front 

 of the loft the parti- 

 tion forks, as at f g, 

 and a door turning at 

 the point of the fork 

 will give either side 

 access to the entrance, 

 e. By this arrange- 

 ment imported birds can be confined while the young ones fly, 

 or old and young flown separately, &c. If space permits, it is 

 very desirable to have also some large breeding-pens in which 

 particular birds can be confined at pleasure. 



The selection of breeding stock in this class of pigeons is a 

 very simple affair. The principle is this: Given a dozen birds, 

 the progeny of one good pair. In training some of these will 



Fig. 36. 



