274 Rearing of Pigeons for Market. [aug., 



signs of decay are sterility, careless and insufficient feeding of 

 the young, and the rearing of only one bird in a nest. When 

 these things occur two or three times with the same pair of birds, 

 it is time to get rid of them should they be two or three years 

 old or upwards, or to re-mate them if they are young birds. 

 If both cock and hen are mated to different birds, it frequently 

 happens that both are fertile and profitable breeders. 



Unmated Birds in the Loft. — The mischief which may be 

 wrought by an unmated bird in the breeding loft is incalculable. 

 If it be acock, he enters the nests of other birds, and fights with 

 the rightful owners, throwing eggs and young birds on to the 

 floor, where they become chilled, and sometimes driving away 

 a weaker cock and taking possession of his mate. Indeed, one 

 odd cock will upset the tranquillity of a whole loft, and cause 

 more mischief than one would imagine. Odd hens are also 

 a nuisance, for they lay infertile eggs in nests which are not 

 their own, and cause dissention by hatching when and where 

 they are not wanted. 



Feeding the Stock Birds. — When pigeons have liberty, as in 

 a state of nature, to fly where they will and choose their own food,, 

 they cover a very large area of ground and consume a great 

 variety of food. In the spring they consume grain and seeds 

 which have been newly sown ; later on they devour cabbage, 

 lettuce, carrots, gooseberries, and small fruit of all kinds ; and 

 in the autumn they turn their attention to the ripe crops of corn 

 and help themselves liberally. With this free life and great 

 variety of food it is not surprising that the birds thrive well and 

 rear many nests of healthy squabs, but the question for the 

 squab-raiser is how he can feed his birds when confined in 

 close quarters so that they will yield equally good results. 

 The answer is : Let him copy nature by feeding a variety of 

 foods. I do not say that he should go so far as to feed small 

 fruit, for it would hardly be economical to do so, but he must 

 not stick persistently to one or two kinds of grain or meal 

 Large, coarse, husky grains must be avoided, because they are 

 injurious to the very young pigeons, and it must be remembered 

 that young pigeons cannot pick for themselves until they are 

 over five weeks old, and that they are consequently dependent 

 upon the parent birds, and the foods which are given to the 



