36 CANARIES 



of exercise, and thus increase their bodily strength and 

 muscular development. The show birds should be put 

 in the flights as soon as the show is finished. 



When Winter Has Passed. 



When winter has passed and February draws near, the 

 active work of preparing for the breeding season takes 

 place. The room and all the breeding cages and appliances 

 must be thoroughly cleansed. The breeding cages should 

 be removed to the yard or garden and thoroughly washed 

 and scrubbed with soap and water. Carbolic soap should 

 be used, or else some disinfectant mixed with the water. 

 All the dirt having been removed the cages should be 

 well rinsed with clean hot water, rubbed dry, and if the 

 weather is favourable, allowed to hang in the open air 

 for a day or two. They should be finally dried off by 

 being placed in the kitchen, or some other room with a 

 fire, for a few hours or a night. Some may need re- 

 painting, that should be done before they are returned 

 to the bird-room. 



Cleanse the Walls and Ceiling. 



In cleansing the room, the ceiling and walls should be 

 swept and rubbed down and white-washed, distempered, 

 or painted, as the case may be. A white hme-washed 

 ceiling, and walls painted or distempered a nice warm, 

 bright blue makes a bird-room look clean and cool. Here 

 also it may be said that blue is the best colour for the 

 insides of the cages, the outsides being black. The floor 

 of the room should be covered with linoleum. This 

 properly fitted permits of no cracks for seed to fall through 

 into the intervening space between the floor and the 

 ceihng of the room underneath, and thus attract mice. 



When should the Birds Be Mated ? 



This is a much discussed question. There are those 

 who mate up their birds round about St. Valentine's 

 Day. This is a bit too early. Nothing is gained by 

 too early breeding, and the man who waits till the second 

 week in March will invariably meet with better success 

 than he who starts too early. If the birds are put together 

 about the loth or 12th of March, they will settle down, 



