29 



cobs, charred in this way, make an excellent charcoal for 

 pigeons. 



HOW TO FEED. 



Pigeons should never be fed in hoppers. They should 

 be fed twice every day. In summer, feed at 7:30 a. m. 

 and at 4:30 p. m. In winter, feed an hour later in the 

 morning and an hour earlier in the evening. Of course, 

 these hours may be varied, but the feeding should be 

 done at the same hour every day, morning and evening, 

 as the birds soon become accustomed to the feeding hours 

 and if not fed on time become very restless. 



FEED TROUGHS. 



Feed troughs should be ten inches wide, six feet long 

 and three inches deep. These are easily made and are 

 much better than any of the automatic hoppers on the 

 market. Where the feed is given in hoppers, the birds 

 will first eat the kind they like best and waste much of the 

 rest of the feed. 



MIXTURES RECOMMENDED. 



For the morning feed, mix equal parts of w^heat, cracked 

 corn and Canada peas. Give three quarts of this mixture 

 to each fifty pairs of birds. 



For the evening feed, kafBr corn, cracked corn, millet 

 and Canada peas, equal parts. Give three quarts to each 

 fifty pairs of birds. 



Every third day, substitute hemp seed for the millet, or 

 feed a little less of the regular ration and throw a handful 

 or two of hemp seed on the floor as recommended above. 

 If broken rice can be bought cheaply, a small feed of this 

 mav be substituted for one of the feeds of hemp seed each 



