38 
The Illustrated Book of Plgeons. 
dying altogether ; while if it lives, it is stunted and weakened, and very likely grows up with a 
crooked breast-bone, and imparts a weakly constitution to its progeny in turn. To prevent this, 
some “ dummy ” eggs should be kept at hand ; and as soon as the first egg is laid it should be 
taken away, and the “ dummy ” substituted until the second is laid, when both may be given to 
the birds, and will be hatched nearly at the same time. For these dummies the eggs of common 
pigeons answer well, and may be boiled hard to prevent their breaking ; but as pigeons never 
eat their eggs as fowls do, a breakage is of little moment. Some fanciers use dummies made of 
ivory or bone. 
Such small hens as we have been speaking of are not of nearly the same value for breeding 
purposes as a fine large bird ; for even when — as is the case of Barbs and most Toys — great size 
is a defect for the show-pen, the strength of constitution denoted by size (as a rule) is of the 
greatest importance. Small weakly hens are often very troublesome with their first eggs, and if 
the owner is a beginner, and does not see the signs of distress, frequently perish ; but with proper 
care this may be avoided. A young hen should always be watched after going to nest ; and if 
she appears evidently ill and weak, and cannot lay her egg, she should be taken in the hand, 
and a few drops of oil dropped from a bottle into the vent, or a quill-feather from one of the birds 
be dipped in the oil and introduced a little way, turning it gently round a few times. The hen 
should then be placed where the cock cannot reach her ; the best plan being to return her to her 
own selected breeding-box and shut the cock out ; well supplying the whole box with sawdust, 
in order that the egg may not break, even if the hen lays it when not in the nest-pan. The oil 
will generally cause the egg to be laid without difficulty ; but in bad cases a capsule of castor-oil 
should be given internally as well. Should even this treatment fail to enable the hen to get rid of 
the egg, there is still one chance left ; take the hen and hold her lower parts in water as warm as 
she can bear without pain, or in the steam from boiling water. If this does not effect the purpose, 
the case must be regarded as hopeless. In the event of the egg being laid, the second will 
usually follow without difficulty ; but the hen should be kept from the cock for at least a week 
afterwards, in order to recruit her strength ; for loving as her mate may be at other times, it is most 
singular that, when in such a weak state as we are now speaking of, he will often peck at her 
so fearfully, in his anxiety to drive her to nest, as in some cases to lay the brain bare. In the case 
of small weakly hens, therefore, the owner should always be on the watch to guard against this 
when necessary. 
About the end of August the sexes should be separated. We are aware that many young 
birds are bred in September ; but as a rule, these young ones very seldom survive many seasons, 
owing to its being always so late in the year before they begin to moult. Very few seem to have 
noticed this ; but we have seen so many birds die when moulting in the winter months, that we 
have frequently made inquiries, and have almost always found that they had been bred late in the 
season. The parents are also somewhat weakened, as already mentioned ; so that all considerations 
alike should lead the pigeon-fancier to be content with a breeding-season beginning and ending 
within moderate limits. 
On the eighteenth day from the laying of the last egg the young ones should hatch ; and if 
the first egg has been taken away as we recommended, at about the same time. The fertility of 
the eggs can be detected after about a week, in the usual manner, by examining them with the aid 
of transmitted light, when the barren ones appear clear, and those hatching more or less opaque. 
All operations of this kind, and all approaches to the birds for the purpose of shifting the young, &c., 
should be performed without taking the light near the birds, but the eggs or young ones taken 
away almost in darkness. It often assists hatching very greatly, especially in dry weather, to dip 
