The Disadvantages of Flock Feeding
(Internet Published) Jan 2001
The usual way that Pigeons are fed, is to either throw down a measured
amount of grain to the loft floor and let the pigeons scramble for it.
Otherwise, a long trough is used to keep the grain off the unhygienic floor.
I am talking about pigeons that are flown as a flock or a kit just for
pleasure. For contests, concert performances, marathon times, the subject
becomes far more complicated. Most men fly Tipplers and Rollers for their
pleasure with no ambitions about entering contests. In fact only about a
dozen man in the USA are contest motivated, in spite of the fact that
thousands of bands are issued each year by USA Tipplers clubs.
Sometimes men prefer to fly Tipplers in a large kit of about 20 for
pleasure, and Rollers too are essentially large kit performing pigeons of
not less than 20 birds. When a kit or flock of these pigeons exceeds about
50 in number it may become unwieldy and superfluous, so why keep what we do
not need? However the daily feed need never exceed one ounce per day per
pigeon. I am talking about flying not breeding.
Now - One ounce per day, per pigeon, thrown down for a scramble or into a
long trough may or may not work out. Occasionally I find that one or two
specimens do not get their fair share during the scramble. Such specimens
may be slow peckers or, more likely, inefficient feeders, which find
difficult in picking up and swallowing grains. Such specimens become to look
deprived and always seem to be hungry. Taken into the hands after the feed
these specimens on examination will reveal, by a touch to their crops, that
they have swallowed less than other specimens of a more robust appearance.
Such specimens look poor. When placed on the floor on their own, I have
observed that they make 3 attempts to pick up and swallow grains of feed.
The action of the tongue or the manipulation of grain seems to be defective.
Such specimens will go into a state of malnutrition. It is essential that
these unsuccessful peckers be given extra attention and allowed access to
extra feed. Otherwise they will deteriorate.
This is not the only problem. These specimens being perpetually hungry and
desperate for food always resort to foraging around and pecking at
everything. They peck in the damp corners trying to find nutrition of some
kind. The result is that they pick up roundworm or hair-worm eggs and
quickly become worm egg factories themselves, which progressively will
contaminate the whole flock.
I would never breed from such specimens as these, although with a little
extra care, they may be excellent kit pigeons and remarkable acrobats in the
sky.
Therefore it is a case of knowing your birds and observing them. The truth
is plain to see if only time is taken to look for it ~ It is written "Seek
and ye shall find". If we don't look or seek we will discover nothing. Then
of course, we descend into apathy, which is the most despicable of all human
vices.