Pigeon drop basket that pigeons can load into while in the loft

[LamarshFish]

I am now at the stage of training my homers to do drops. I want to buy a drop basket to do this. I am familiar with a technique that some use where they train their birds to actually load into their drop basket in the loft (i.e., place the basket in the loft and the birds just load up into it and you can then take it away, rather than grabbing birds and manually placing them into the basket one by one). The training involves keeping the basket in the loft for some time and feeding them in the basket so they get used to it, and so they become accustomed to having to go into the basket in order to eat.

Since my loft is small and I cannot really even get inside it conveniently, hand loading my birds will prove to be inconvenient and difficult, so I want to give this method a try.

I am looking at some aluminum baskets online, and I notice that the top hatch for them is somewhat small, and I wonder whether it is too small to use this method (i.e., too small for birds to want to load into themselves), and whether I need a basket with a much larger top hatch?

Here's a link to one of the baskets for reference, http://www.jedds.com/shop/aluminum-1-5-inch-on-center-side-door/?attribute_size=19+x+15+x+10.5+(Apprx+10+birds)

 

[biophiliac]

I like this one...
http://www.jedds.com/shop/training-basket-w-water-tray/

Roomier is better IMO. Esp if you're going to train them by feeding in the basket.? I have heard it is especially important to teach them to drink in the basket. If they drink before flying they are less likely to stop on the way home looking for water. Any more good outings with yours?

out of stock : ( ... Xlarge 30 x 10 x 16 is in stock.

 

[LamarshFish]

I like this one...
http://www.jedds.com/shop/training-basket-w-water-tray/

Roomier is better IMO. Esp if you're going to train them by feeding in the basket.? I have heard it is especially important to teach them to drink in the basket. If they drink before flying they are less likely to stop on the way home looking for water. Any more good outings with yours?

out of stock : ( ... Xlarge 30 x 10 x 16 is in stock.

I saw that one, the problem is that it will not fit in the 23" door opening of my small loft. For water, I was planning on rigging up something for them to drink while traveling, for the reason you mentioned.

I currently have 11 birds, and I have been consistently letting them out and they are consistently returning and trapping back into the loft. Some days they are gone all day long, and other days they all trap back in within an hour. For the most part, when they are out, they are hanging on my roof, my neighbor's garage (he doesn't seem to mind, and thinks they're cool) or the power lines above my loft), but they will disappear completely out of sight for 5 minutes sometimes, and sometimes much longer. I'd imagine they are out routing the area, downloading all the images to make them great homers. Anyways, I think my days of frequent losses are over, so long as I do the drop training properly. I, of course, expect the normal losses that are unavoidable, such as those to birds of prey and such.... But, essentially with these 11 birds I have currently, I think my loft is finally started. When they are out now, they almost always stay together.

A bit of advice I will offer you in starting your loft, that I learned the hard way, is to try to buy as many squeakers as possible, and let them all out together, at least until you are fully confident they are settled and homed into your loft. That said, I'd try to start with 15-20 squeakers if you can. It think this reduces the possibility of the losses I was experiencing before. Those first few times they get confident and take a lap around the neighborhood, it may be one or two birds that leads the group outwards, but another one or two birds that leads them home. When they are out and about in groups of two or three, I think the chances of them finding their way home on these very first explorations are much less.

 

[biophiliac]

Quote: when they are out now, they almost always stay together.

that is good news

15 or 20??? I'll think about that.

 

[LamarshFish]

Quote: when they are out now, they almost always stay together.

that is good news

15 or 20??? I'll think about that.

I can just say that 6 did not work well for me at all. When I had 13 but only let out 8, I still had a few losses. But once all remaining 11 started leaving the loft all together, things started clicking.

So, I'd say avoid letting out much less than 12, which is why I recommended actually starting with 15+ squeakers, because if you do have some losses for any reason, you still have enough birds to fly and not worry about more losses.

This is not just anecdotal, but I've also read about this concept in a few books.

 

[biophiliac]

Sure, it makes a lot of sense. You do want a nice sized kit to fly together, there seems to be a critical mass required for proper flock dynamics. Just my luck I wouldn't lose many and they'd start breeding like .... PIGEONS! and I'd be overrun.

PS Whats the best pigeon book you have read so far?

 

[LamarshFish]

there seems to be a critical mass required for proper flock dynamics

I think this is exactly right.... I wouldn't worry about over breeding, if you get to the point where you don't want anymore all you have to do is replace their eggs with wooden ones.

Most guys around here who I know with pigeons go into the fall with X amount of birds, and by the spring they only have about 60-75% of that amount, due to fly aways and birds of prey, etc. Then the spring and summer is heavy breeding, and the cycle repeats itself. If you don't incur those kinds of losses, ceasing the actual reproduction isn't hard. Essentially, while losses aren't so much in your control, breeding can be.

 

[biophiliac]

Sort of 'Rube Goldberg' method ... but ingenious in a way?