The Road Runner
Feathered World Sept 1995
One of my six-month-old cocks was hit by a partition door, due to a gale.
His left wing had a clean break, just above the central joint. I decided to
try to repair the break. My only other experience was with a hen that had
probably been hit by a missile from a high powered catapult during flight.
Her wing was smashed and she was also injured in her fall. It is very
fortunate that I never saw the culprit.
In spite of his broken wing, this young cock still wanted his share of feed.
I had, of course, to tape up his wing and place him in a small box. Next day
I contacted Richard Cottrill, whose opinion I value, and by chance I met
Ernest Pickering of Darnall, Sheffield, who is one of the best-known and
resected racing fanciers. Both of these friends held out no hope. However,
Ernest said that bathing with hot cumfrey tea could possibly help but, he
said he would not be able to stand the strain of use as a flying/ performing
pigeon and that there was not much hope for this cock.
I collected some cumfrey leaves - it grows wild nearby, and I treated the
break each day for a week just as Ernest had suggested. From the day after
the accident and advice, his wing had to be completely immobilised in order
to allow the break to mend. The broken bone had not penetrated the skin. I
had some thin soft fuse wire so I wrapped tightly the end flight feather of
the left wing, very close to the base. I then passed the wire over the back.
of my patient and secured the right wing in the same way. Therefore both
wings were secured in the closed position.
I knew that the patient would struggle against the wiring up' so for eight
days after his twice daily feeds, I placed him in a small box with sawdust
on the floor. This kept him very still and quiet - good? After eight days
the break had welded, but was obviously very painful. He could still not fly
at all-but he certainly did learn how to run. I had to catch him twice every
day in order to force him to exercise his wings. Without such exercise the
joint and sinews etc would have developed a permanent stiffness and he would
never have flown again.
I have only had one 'Patient' in fifty-five years' experience and 1 hope
that I never have another. To escape capture he would run and I never knew
that a pigeon could run so fast. By lobbing him to fly - twenty-flue feet to
the loft - in unbalanced flight, and gradually increasing the distance each
day, he could fly back to the loft, from 200 yards, by 21 October. His
flying was pathetic because he laboured on his left wing.
After each of his twice daily forced exercise I sprayed his affected wing
break with cumfrey water. On 25 October he did his first few laps and tried
to keep up with my kit at 150 feet. By 31 October he was making a definite
effort to keep up with my kit, but he still had the wobbling flight and the
strain proved too much after ten minutes. He could' at this time, fly up to
his usual perch, four-and-a-half feet from the loft float. His moult
arrested until 12 October and then continued normally.
On 1 November he did forty minutes with my* kit before cutting out and
dropping, obviously in some discomfort. He still had the unbalanced wobble,
but he was trying to hold in the kit and was seen to tumble, even if not
vigorously. By 25 November he was flying and performing normally. I had
continued to spray the break area twice each day and he was flown twice each
day.
He is a favourite now - 1 call him 'Road Runner because of his temporary
fast-running caper. Two experiences of broken wings in my lifetime; I hope
not to have another. Broken legs - I've had two patients, two of which had
to have their rings cut off, because the swelling cut off all the blood
supply to the foot. Simply by taping up the break with Elastoplast the
broken legs were soon repaired. In any case, fm keeping flyers not dancers!
A broken wing is more of a problem. However, if it is a clean break, l have
proved that 1 can repair it. The repair is easy if the wings are immobilised
as explained. The forced exercise is absolutely essential. I will not try to
claim absolute success for marathon flying with Tipplers - nor yet with
racing pigeons. I have no idea how a repaired wing would affect the correct
spin in Roller pigeons. In all cases I do not believe that a badly-smashed
wing can be treated. A simple, clean break is all that I know about.