Second try releasing my homers--wondering whether to tie or soap wings

[LamarshFish]

I think I will make my second attempt at letting my homers out. Current loft has 7 homers--4of which have been in my loft for about 2 months (let out once), and 3 new ones which have only been in my loft for two weeks.

I hear folks pin, tape or soap wings so as to prevent strong or far away flying on initial releases (an issue I experienced first hand the last time I released, when 2 of the 3 birds I let out did not return). If I tried any of these methods, I think I'd opt to use the soap water method. However, I know that any of these processes will stress my birds out. So, on the one hand, I know it will prevent them from going far, but on the other hand I am concerned it will stress them and possibly prevent them from returning.

Any thoughts as to this dilemma? Should I just let them out, or make sure I put soap water on their wings first even though I know that will stress them?

Oh, and one additional inquiry: I plan on letting them out tomorrow late afternoon, and withholding their evening meal tonight, and morning meal tomorrow. I will release them and see what happens. At some point I will blow the dinner whistle and shake the can and put their dinner in the loft, but I'd love some input as to how long I should wait after letting them out before offering their dinner....

 

[Hokum Coco]

I think I will make my second attempt at letting my homers out.

I would let the two month residents out. I would hold off on the new arrivals until they have been in the loft for 2 months also.

 

[LamarshFish]

I would let the two month residents out. I would hold off on the new arrivals until they have been in the loft for 2 months also.

Thanks! You don't think handling the younger squeakers to keep them from exiting (I will have to grab each one and lock them in the aviary) will stress them too much, do you?

Maybe when I feed them after the others are let out, the younger squeakers eating will make the older squeakers want to come back in even more?

 

[LamarshFish]

Well 3 out of five is still not what we were hoping for. Putting feed down might not have been the best decision
As a reward I always have peanuts on the landing platform for my early arrivals on a pigeon toss.

Hope things improve for you today backyard buddy.

Thanks! Yes, I think sprinkling feed, even though it was just a little, cause some to just peck around for a while, and expect food in the grass and not back in the loft. I had peanuts on the landing platform as well, which got eaten by the others.

 

[jak2002003]

Hi. Sorry to hear you are having so much trouble with you birds. I can't understand what is the issue causing them to not return!

My loft is also under a lot of trees (for shade). No problems with them finding it.

I also never trained my birds at all.. they just know to come and go through the door. I only call them in at night to feed them and then shut them up to protect them from predators.

I have moved house 3 times with them also.. and still not lost any. I only kept them in the new place at least 2 weeks before I let them out.

Maybe one of your neighbors has pigeons and they are getting in with that new flock. Even if they were with the zoo ones.. I would think they would fly back and forth to the loft and zoo... as they are used to roosting in the loft.

I advise you to keep them all penned up now and breed at least one set of young of each pair. Then wait till the young are independent before simply opening the door and letting them go about their usual stuff... the young will go back in to feed and roost for sure.

 

[LamarshFish]

There would be little point letting one out at a time... in my opinion... because they will just do the same as the previous ones... stay around a while and not go back in.. then disappear.

Don't feel too impatient.. they will soon breed and each pair will have 2 young.. so you will have lots of birds soon.. then you can release the lot in one go.. just by opening the door once they young ones are grown and feeding themselves. Also by that time the adults will have new eggs and nests... so even less likely to fly the coop.

I am still trying to decide if I want to lock my birds in until they breed. But I do have a few new developments to announce:

(1) I picked up 8 new squeakers last night, and almost all of them are considerably young, almost full feathers but lots of baby down fuzzies on them. They are nice birds--2 silver bars, 1 black, 2 blue bars and 3 blue checks. The black one is very cool, I have been always wanting one. I now have 13 total, including my 5 older birds that are about 3 months old.

(2) In addition to building a landing board off my front door to my loft, which was simply a bob door with a predator door that doubles as a small (like 12"x12") landing platform, I am now making a very major renovation to my loft by removing my aviary and cutting it in half vertically (so it is half the height), and building a bob door that sits on top the aviary such that the aviary will then be the landing platform. My aviary was too tall anyways, and my birds never used the upper portion anyhow. Below is a picture of my loft currently, before modifications, so you get an idea of what I'm doing. That aviary on the left will be only half the height, with a bob door installed on the top, left side of the loft, with that large aviary roof serving as the landing platform.

 

[LamarshFish]

I opened the door yesterday to let them out. As expected, my 4 older squeakers each exited. I wanted to keep my 3 younger squeakers in because they have only been in my loft for just shy of 3 weeks, and would serve to attract the others back in, but one of them (my silver/red ash bar) managed to sneak out. The other 2 young ones did not want to leave. Once I saw the 2 young ones did not want to leave, I turned the bob door down so as to keep them in side.

I let them out around 2pm because I wanted extra time for them to explore and not have darkness come on too fast, which is what I think partially attributed to my two losses on my last try about a month ago. After about an hour of them being out, I filled up the food tray, blew the whistle and shook the can. The 5 birds I let out did not respond. I had sprinkled just a small amount of feed outside the loft, and my 5 I let out were sort of feeding and pecking around the ground. They spent most of the first few hours out around the loft, on the roof of the loft, and on the phone wires above my loft.

At about 4:30, 2.5 hours in, #3, one of my favorite and most tame birds, trapped in, leaving 4 remaining.

At about 7, #7, my one silver, the one young bird that was let out with the older ones, kept hanging on the roof of the loft, and then started climbing on the aviary appearing to want in, so I walked over (this bird loves me and eats from my hand) and sort of coaxed it towards the landing platform and trap. It looks in towards the trap and I walked a bit closer and it trapped in.

Around dusk, I could see two of my birds, #2 and #6 hanging around the loft. They then did something unexpected, and got down on my lawn and started walking towards where my fiancé and I were sitting at our picnic table eating dinner, and appeared to begin begging. They got so close that I could have probably grabbed one, but left them alone. They eventually went back to the phone wire above the loft, then flew off somewhere I could not see about an hour before dark. They did not return that night, and it is now morning and they are not in the loft. I think it's strange they wanted to hang with us so close, but then did not trap. I am slightly concerned they did not know how to get in, however, both have been trained to go in and out of the door and also use the bobs...

The one remaining bird, #4, I could not see for quite some time during the evening when I was hanging out there, but when I went to check the loft just before dark #4 had trapped at some point when I was not looking.

So, I let five birds out and three trapped back in, and two are at large. I do not see the missing birds around my house. I am hoping they return, and I have confidence they will. These two birds hung around the loft almost all day, and they did take a few laps around the neighborhood, but returned each time to the loft and hung on the roof or power lines above the loft. I fed my birds this morning and blew the whistle and shook the can. I will do the same this evening.

 

[Hokum Coco]

So, I let five birds out and three trapped back in, and two are at large.

Well 3 out of five is still not what we were hoping for. Putting feed down might not have been the best decision
As a reward I always have peanuts on the landing platform for my early arrivals on a pigeon toss.

Hope things improve for you today backyard buddy.

 

[LamarshFish]

Well 3 out of five is still not what we were hoping for. Putting feed down might not have been the best decision
As a reward I always have peanuts on the landing platform for my early arrivals on a pigeon toss.

Hope things improve for you today backyard buddy.

There is one thing that happened with my recent losses that differs significantly from my losses a month or so ago, and that is the fact that the two birds that went missing this time hung around my loft all afternoon and evening. They'd take a few laps around the neighborhood and disappear for 20-30 mins, but always would return to the loft's roof or power lines above it. Then, close to dusk, they were begging and hanging out next to the picnic table where my fiance and I were eating dinner, which is only about 30 feet from the loft. It was at this point where they flew up to the power lines, then flew on the roof of my house right at dusk, and I never saw them again.

I am wondering the chances they will return. The two birds I lost a month ago essentially picked up and took off right off the bat, and didn't hang around much. They messed around in trees and power lines near my backyard for maybe a half hour, then were gone. Those two birds were never tamed. The two birds I recently lost were eating from my hand.

 

[Hokum Coco]

I am wondering the chances they will return.

I had one return months after it being released I am not sure how long. It was captured by a soldier at a kit flying exhibition and returned to me by way of the band on it's leg. I had two return to me just a few days ago after a release they were not prepared for 3 days after the fact (that turned out to be my own stupidity.). Really your guess as as good as anybodies in this case. Do you think your loft location could be part of the problem? Poor visibility from your house and surrounding roof tops?