Winter Treatment of Foreign Birds.



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WINTER TREATMENT OF FOREIGN


BIRDS.


By Gerald Rattigan.


I have just read Dr. Lovell-Keays’ interesting article on the

above subject and should like to offer a few remarks upon it.


To begin with, I must frankly state that I do not at all agree

with his deductions ; and his experience, as will appear hereafter, is

utterly opposed to mine. His first contention, that birds do better

and live longer in cages than in aviaries, is an extremely sweeping

statement, to say the least of it, and one open to a good deal of

criticism. In one respect no doubt it is true enough, that is to say,

that if it were intended to exhibit a bird it would undoubtedly be

the wisest and safest plan to cage it up separately, though at the

same time I have personally successfully shown birds, both British

and foreign, taken about a week or ten days before the Show straight

from flying loose in an aviary.


There is of course always an element of danger to birds of a

mixed series flying loose together in a limited space ; but when

suitable cover is provided and dangerous species and individuals are

eliminated at once from the association of weaker species, this

danger is not a very serious one.


The casualties that result in a carefully associated mixed

collection are almost entirely confined to young birds that have

just left the nest, a few such as this it is almost impossible to

prevent, entirely owing to their own indiscretions and folly. They

appear to have no sense of danger and will frequently fly bang into

another bird’s nest, promptly paying the penalty. Apart from these

occasional accidents, however, I see no reason whatever why a bird

should not live just as long in a well looked after aviary as in a cage.

Certain species indeed, in my experience at all events, do far better

and live much longer in large aviaries than in cages, in which latter

they frequently soon succumb.


As an example of this type of bird, I will take the Parrot-

finches. These are extremely nervous birds, and more often than

not fret themselves to death in a cage within a few weeks or even

days of their being placed in it, though they may have lived for



