First flight

[sourland]

Keystonepaul is picking up 25 on Thursday morning.

Another 25+ are still available.

 

[sourland]

Well, I'm in a good spell right now. My resident Cooper's male moved away in late May. I've been letting my birds free loft since 6/14 without any serious attacks. A bumbling redtail gave a couple of clumsy tries early on but was unsuccessful. Wish it could be like this year round. Pigeons all over the back yard bathing in the containers that I have put out for them. Spontaneous flights into the air with much wing clapping, diving and cavorting-- they love to fly. The rollers that still remain are just starting to kit up and in a week or so I will limit their free time and start training. I watched the crosses enjoying an early morning flight and 4 different birds were doing single or double flips. Nothing makes a "pigeon guy" happier than a flock of birds in the air. Keystone Paul picked up a kit + a month ago. I haven't heard if he has started flying them yet.

 

[laughingdog]

well had first flight of two of my supposed "rollers", and they do not roll.. the older one just took straight off after a half circle and was gone for maybe a couple days possibly due to storms, though the one squeaker was only gone the day and did make it back at dark, barely after he and my whatever the other squeaker id already had taken off somewere.

 

[sourland]

The redtail mentioned earlier has turned into a great educator. A couple of times every day he or his mate make an attempt at the free lofting roller/homer crosses. They have become very wary and scan the sky for the redtails continually. At the first sign of the hawks either they take to the air or return to the lofts. Let the rollers out at 5 PM and after .5 hours of flying they came in. Just as I was about to whistle them in and feed them, all the pigeons, crosses and rollers, took to the air. An adult Cooper's made a pretty good attempt at capturing one of them, but all successfully eluded it. These redtails are doing a great job of making my pigeons more hawk savvy. I remain fully aware that when more Cooper's return my free lofting days are done, but right now I'm loving it.

 

[laughingdog]

anyone here try or consider using remote Ariel toys to detour hawks from an area, like pros do?

 

[sourland]

The rollers have been put on restricted, controlled flight times and are kitting well. They are starting to tail ride, and several are doing single flips. No long, fast, deep rolling yet, but that is coming. These are all '10 birds that were never flown so they are slow developing. Hopefully I can get them into the roll before I have to lock them down. Still haven't heard from KeystonePaul the fellow BYCer that I gave 25+ birds to. Hope his are starting to perform.

 

[Rollerman]

Quote:
I'm jealous, I only have a two week period that I can fly mine in!Usually its in august or sept. Rest of the year the coopers are fulltime residents. Makes it hard to sell your birds as great flyers when you can't fly them!lolThank goodness I like to watch them in their loft and large flight pen.

 

[laughingdog]

so one two occasions two of my four "rollers" each got out and flew right off for day of two with older one, and and just the day with squeaker (these dont do any acrobatics at all by the way..). both times i sent my one out to try to bring them back and it didnt work.. anyway, arnt they supposed to fly around and amuse me with watching them staying close and doing tricks, as two look to at least have roller in them, though description was said to maybe be tumbler (bought them at the local flea market cause different looking than most homers and few birm rollers have there on occasion. the one, whatever he is, will stick close and fly for hours, just soaring high and gliding low, and doing all sorts of maneuvers, even flipped at least a couple times. possible the others even though two are still squeakers, are going straight back to their loft, as came home and not hungry at all (the squeakers)?

 

[sourland]

Laughingdog: Most families of rollers have poor homing instinct; therefore, I'm guessing that your birds are just getting lost. Did you use a settling cage to accustom them to your loft? One where they can get on top of the loft with a 360 degree view has worked best for me. With rollers there is a great degree of difference in performance--from birds that do one or two tumbles to birds that roll down and injure themselves, to those that roll frequently for short distances, to those that roll infrequently for greater distances, to any combinations of performance. The birds that I originally got rolled somewhat infrequently but were fast and deep. In my first crop of young birds there was one hen that was very frequent in her rolling but only rolled 10 or 15 ft. I used her as a basis and greatly increased the roll frequency in my birds. 4 or 5 years ago, I just about gave up and gave away all my good stock--keeping only 2 or 3 pairs. Last year I raised a lot of young birds but did not fly them because of the hawks. The birds that I am working now should have been trained last year so I don't know whether or not they will come into the roll before lock up. The bottom line is that for maximum performance you must breed and train the birds. It's a pretty complicated deal, andI don't have enough time to get them figured out.

It's taken me long enough to figure out my dogs.

 

[laughingdog]

well i live in a decent sized set of identical complexes (that mine looks differant from all animals and plants and pond even etc), and they can only see from my balcony, up and out towards the wood line of the farms, and fields etc. the "rollers" never been settled (dont seem as though they ever were flew until i got them and theyve been trying to learn by watching and starting to flap like mine does, though he flies circles around all four of them, and when first tried to work with them tossing up, they just fell like stones and stood there looking funny at me and then running around in open, and flipping when id corner), kept inside to be trained to calm to me and area sounds as neighbors love to make all sorts of party sounds, shooting, fireworks, dogs and machines constantly etc.. so the two "rollers" that got out, i sent the one hoping itd have greater homing instinct and was raised up to just flying from egg here, so would bring the new ones back and it does, so far, but now seeming the two are sick, the first to get out and older, sneezing, and the squeaker, fluffed, cold, and not eating. my other kind was not wanting to fly for me this morn, but was over cast and he just would come immediately back and acting tired when would flush him. also he wouldnt come down off the roof last night till real late after dark, even flushing to me when would clap, as he knows now he isnt supposed to roost/rest on the other apartments. could being gone off way out of sight all day and with bad storms just have tired them out and making them not so active, or thinking they got into something as were not acting hungry just tired. think at least one has wet poop now, or was just water dripping off them from rain, as their feet were ice cold last night.

id forgot something.. they taken off at exactly the same time in morn at eleven something, and came back at exactly seven something each of the two times.. any significance, maybe old owner's schedule for something?