256 C AX ARIES AND CaGE-BiRDS. 



must not be too persistently followed up, lest the fixing of a non-crcstcd form of head lead 

 to a short supply of Coppy forms when such cultivated Plainheads are mated for crest-breeding, 

 all of which, however, is just so much a b c application of the elementary principles of pedigree- 

 breeding. 



Another matter to which we may advert very briefly is the policy of occasionally pairing 

 two Coppies, and also of occasional departures from mating strictly in obedience to colour 

 rules, i.e., buff with yellow, and the contrary. The latter needs no further remark than that 

 it sometimes becomes necessary, and can be done with manifest benefit. The pairing of two 

 crests is a matter on which much has been said, but little of actual experience detailed. 

 The theory of the thing is fully explained on page 128, and this also is a step in crest- 

 breeding which can be taken with confidence, subject to such subsequent management as we 

 explained in that place. 



In respect to sundry details pertaining to the breeding-room something may be said. The 

 size of the birds will suggest the use of commodious cages and roomy nest-boxes; and with all these 

 erect and comparatively loose-feathered Canaries it is advisable to shorten the tail, and also to keep 

 a look-out for soiled or matted feather in the region of the vent. Many breeders make it an 

 invariable custom to clip away the long fluffy feather from this part, and with beneficial effect. It 

 is a common plan, also, in some of the large breeding districts, and one which we believe to be 

 pretty general throughout, to pair one cock with two hens, in separate cages, but not to allow him 

 to assist in the work of rearing the young. We know this to be the practice of several very 

 successful breeders, who maintain, and not without reason, that by adopting this plan his vigour 

 remains unimpaired for a longer period than when he is burdened with family duties, which he is 

 only too assiduous in discharging. It seems at first sight to be " saving at the tap and wasting at 

 the bung," for it must put an additional strain on the hen ; but the experience of those who adopt 

 the system appears to be strongly in its favour. Other breeders have all the hen's duty performed 

 by deputy, keeping a supply of reliable nurses, who either sit the nests from the beginning, or, being 

 timed to " chip " coincidently with the Coppy hens, receive the young ones as soon as hatched. 

 This system, also, which appertains to general management, though here we refer to it as special, is 

 open to consideration as to whether the rest so afforded to the Coppy hen is not fully counterbalanced 

 by the additional drain on the system from over egg-producing. Both plans seem to be departures 

 from a natural course of procedure, but we submit them as established customs which the breeder 

 can adopt or reject as his judgment may dictate. From reliable sources we are assured that in the 

 long-run breeding hens suffer less from egg-producing than fromi the disorders which so frequently 

 attend them during the period of incubation and rearing the young, and at all events are, when 

 released from nursing duties, freed from the distressing symptoms attending "sweating," which at 

 once impairs a hen's health and is almost invariably fatal to the young. 



The cage in which a Coppy should be shown differs in no material respect from that used for 

 the Yorkshire, except that it is usual to have the woodwork on which the wire structure is reared 

 made much deeper — not less than three inches at least — and the whole is supported on turned legs 

 about two inches high. Fashion also orders that the seed shall be furnished from the outside, in a 

 hopper accessible through two seed-holes. The top of the cage is never arched, but the wires meet 

 in a wooden knob in the centre, similar to that seen in Fig. 56, to which is attached a stout wire 

 ring, which is of use for other purposes than simply carrying the cage. When being sent to a 

 show, it is usual to put each cage in a bag, and pack them in sets of four, passing a light wooden 

 rod through the rings, to which it is fastened with string. Such a package is light, and requires 

 no additional covering. It is at once seen how fragile is the whole and what are its contents, 



