Border Chat

Hi T. F.
Hope you will consider letting our letters be the beginning of border chat. If you want, I could remove your identity or you could select another name if you do not want to be identified.
I mailed the two books in one global priority package to the Irish Border Fancy Canary Club at 30 Rockfield Avenue, Perrystown, Dublin 12, Ireland. I did not put a name on it because I was unable to read the name of the person who sent me a letter acknowledging the other two books and kindly sending my the Golden Jubilee Year Handbook 1996. I also sent some canary pellets to England at the same time and they arrived last Sunday.
My husband wants to know what or where is Pimloco or a variation there of? It is from the song "Dublin in the Rare Old Time".
I am anxious to hear from Darren since I specifically ask which advice he implemented. He told me he couldn't resist feeding egg food prior to pairing. I know he fed less of it prior to breeding however than he did in the past. His reason then was other people were doing it and not having trouble. Most of his border friends had bad breeding years this season however.
The first thing that I found which helped dead in the shell was adding 3 drops of vanodine to 1/2 gallon of water. But I still had some.
I noticed that the more special the pair, the less birds I hatched. I started looking at how I treated special birds different. One special pair in particular on two consecutive clutches had six fertile eggs but not one hatched although they were all well formed chicks. I was just sick, after all had I not given them lots of everything. At the same time, the ones I cared less about were not being feed egg food during incubation and yet they were hatching every chick. I stopped feeding all birds during the incubation period and immediately I decreased the number of dead in the shell.
I noticed that sometimes the eggs didn't hatch because the nest was too deep so I corrected that when needed. I also noticed that the ones still having trouble were hens setting without a cock in the cage. Typically the ones whose fertile did not hatch had either deserted the eggs or were off the nest way too much.
I have done experiments with hemp. In one experiment, excellent breeding cocks, were overfed hemp till they refused to mate with a hen who had squatted and was calling to him. A little will make birds more active but a lot sedates them. I started feeding these hens soaked hemp about 1/2 teaspoon per bird and this resulted in them setting tightly on the nest and corrected some of the problem.
Lastly, I discovered my hatching trick. If the eggs do not hatch by noon on the 14th day, I move them to a hen whose abdomen and eggs feel hot. I did controlled experiments where only 1/2 of the eggs were moved and over and over the moved eggs hatched while the ones left under the original hen did not hatch. Now I have not had a fertile egg not hatch in over 5 years. Before that time, I too just thought a few dead in the shell was to be expected.
Your egg food appears to be balanced and is high protein and high carbohydrate. On what day do you think the chicks would be big enough for a closed band?Since you don't close band this may be hard to estimate. How quickly do they completely feather? Have you had any nests where when the chicks were five to seven days old they looked really red and proceeded to die even though they were well feed with egg food?
Linda

Thursday, 3 Sep 1998
Good evening Linda,
I hope this letter finds you all well.
Pimlico !! is from this song alright but is an area over the south side of the city near Christchurch cathedral.
Hemp - With the amount of this seed that I use I have never seen the birds sedated, so I wonder if it is of the same quality as yours ? Does the seed that you use sprout ? (Try boiling for about 16min. - it should crack open and show the seed sprout) Sometimes I get hemp which does not sprout and I would consider this ''bad''seed. I believe the seed is sprayed with some chemical to prevent it's propagation for illegal purposes. I get my hemp from Haiths in the U.K. and this seems to be a good source of quality seed but the quantity again does not seem to cause sedation.
I do move eggs as you would on the fourteenth day but on the thirteenth day of incubation I do float the eggs in a cup of warm water, I can tell then if the chicks are alive in the shell ( the egg moves in the water), they will normally then hatch the next day. Having said this I do still find some dead in shell on the thirteenth day.
When I used to close ring it was on the seventh day. They are feathered by the seventeenth day and hoping to the side of the nest, three weeks and they are out of the nest. When I see them pecking at the food hoppers I will wean them off. I f the hen is going to nest again before the youngsters are eating I will put a slide in with holes at the bottom - youngsters on side of the cage and I can run the cock back with the hen and usually both hen and cock birds will feed the young though the holes in the slide. This prevents the youngsters from upsetting the hen when she is nesting again.
I must admit I have never had this ''red chick'' complaint and hadn't heard of it until you mentioned it.
Having spent the day cleaning out cages I was wondering what you used under your birds - sawdust or some other form of bedding ?
Yours in the fancy,
T. F.

Hi T. F.,
I have no idea about the differences in the hemp I use and the one you are feeding. Boiling the seed would probably make it stronger just like smoking.
I have a canary breeder friend who was in line for a promotion at one of the aircraft companies here in Wichita. As part of the process, he was required to take a drug test. This was of no concern to him because he had never smoked marijuana (hemp) or used any illegal drugs nor did he even know anyone who did. He was shocked when the laboratory reported finding marijuana metabolities in his urine. He demanded a retest but on three consecutive days he tested positive. The laboratory technologist tended to believe Jim but could not explain their positive findings. Knowing that I was both a laboratorian and a canary breeder, they called me to see if I had any ideas. I told them to ask him if he happened to eat bird seed. Sure enough what started out to be the taste test to determine if rape seed tasted nutty and not bitter indicating it was safe to feed the birds led to a habit of munching a little canary mix as he took care of the birds. The seeds he was eating included hemp!! We have done experiments in our clinical laboratory where we tested before and after someone ate one poppy seed muffin and sure enough even one poppy seed muffin can also be detected in the urine.
The seed I get here sometimes says it is from China. In the US, it is sold as sterile hemp. In fact, it is only aged. As seed ages, it looses the ability to germinate so this satisfies the government that it will not germinate and thus be used for illegal purpose.
It is fairly dusty, so I wash it well and then cover it with water and put it in the refrigerator. I change the water daily and after a few days about 20% sprout. When I train my rollers for song competition, I give them three sprouted hemp seeds a day. This brings them along in song but does not push them. If one lags behind, I feed him four or five hemp seeds for couple days until he starts singing more.
It is important to stop feeding hemp several days before a show because in small quantities it makes the birds nervous. This does not totally get rid of the effect of hemp because the active ingredient is stored in the fat and can take at least four to six weeks to metabolize. Cocks that are feed hemp may get very aggressive. I did some experiments with Norwich, which are normally very laid back. They became so aggressive that they tried to kill other males.
The sitting hens that I feed the 1/2 teaspoon hemp are alone in the cage. Some hens do not want to sit if the cock has been moved to another cage. They are flighty and anxious to get off the nest. They have not been fed hemp prior to sitting but within 24 hours of giving them the hemp they just sit on the nest sedated. I correlate the effect with the amount of active ingredient feed. Some makes them more active, a lot sedates. I also do not feed any more hemp to her after the chicks hatch.
When the chicks are banded is a rough indication of the growth rate and is related to the amount of protein in the diet. I like my chicks to grow at a fast rate so that I normally band on the fifth day and could not get the band on by the seventh day. If you overdue the protein, when the hen feeds a lot of egg food but not other foods, you can get diarrhea, dehydration, and die even though they were growing well. The first sign is the skin color. When the skin looks red, trouble is imminent. The vent can also become sealed. I feed greens and high carbohydrate foods like dry oats after banding to balance the diet and prevent this problem.
I use a commercial corn cob bedding in my cages. I do not put water inside the cage, rather I use tube waterers and outside bathes to prevent it from getting wet. Aspergillus (fungus) could become a problem when it gets wet. I have not had any problems.
Please send me your address. I would like to mail you a complimentary copy of my book. I am also forwarding you a copy of my last letter to Darren which will soon be on my web page.
Linda

Thursday, 17 Sep 1998
Good evening Linda,
I used to order the Cage and Aviary magazine myself - but delivery was very irratic and there were very few border articles so I cancelled it and now just buy it every now and again. I get the border journal every quarter and am looking forward to reading your article.
Getting back to hemp .....why is it that boiling the seed makes it stronger?
Having the two sheds, I would like to put one shed onto your ''feeding & breeding'' program - principally the yorkies. Would it be possible for you to send details of your feeding program to implement completely - some of the items in your letters to Darren I have not heard of here but I'm sure there is an alternative if you could give me a breakdown of there ingredients and there purpose.
We have our first show this weekend - The Young Stock Show. Quite a few of the birds are still molting but I will have six ready to show. Will contact you at the weekend to let you know how the show went ! Has your show season started yet ? are your birds molting at this time ? Is there anything special you give them to hurry up the molt ?
Yours in the fancy

T. F.

Good evening T. F.,
I have consulted with two toxicologist specialists independently about the effect of boiling on the hemp. Hemp (marijuana) belongs to a group of substances called cannabinoids whose main active psychoactive ingredient is called THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol). Reported effects on cannabinoid use in humans include a sense of relaxation and well-being with mild euphoria and relief of anxiety. Since THC is lipid soluble, it accumulates in body fat. It is gradually released into the circulation, and is detectable for up to 30 days after the last dose. Both of these toxicologist believe that boiling the hemp will at least partly inactivate the THC or change it chemically to the extent of decreasing its effect. I was incorrect in thinking it might make it stronger. The reason for heating it is so the user can inhale it which does enhance the effect. I stand corrected. This goes along with what you said of not noticing the same effect when you feed the boiled hemp. The way I use it, the seed is soaked in water in the refrigerator and 1/2 teaspoon is feed to the single mother hens from the time the male is taken out of the cage until the day the first egg hatches. It can reverse a flighty hen and calm her down enough that she just sits on the eggs!
Several things can be done to encourage a quick molt. Scientific studies reported at the first International Pet Bird Nutrition Symposium in Germany last fall reported on controlled studies that showed that feeding sulfur containing amino acids will shorten the time it takes to complete the molt. An excellent source for these amino acids is sunflower chips. In colder climates in US, it is common to feed wild birds (goldfinches) sunflower chips. Wild bird seed shops commonly carry a fine grade hulled raw sunflower seed. It is also found in health food stores here. Sunflower is high in protein so it is important to feed small quantities. By watching the color of the feet you can avoid over feeding it. The feet will turn reddish when too much protein is fed.
It is also good to feed bee pollen at least twice a week. Try your independent health food stores for bee pollen. When the birds are about 80% through the molt, start increasing carbohydrates. An easy way is a saltine cracker or dry old fashioned oats like you use to make oatmeal cereal. I like to get the birds onto the saltine crackers because it is easy to carry some along to the shows and it will help prevent soft molt. If you feed seed, add additional canary seed and drop the amount of canola rape.
When the birds are almost done, add 3 drops vanodine to the water and a capful of liquid B vitamins to 1/2 gallon of water. This will tighten them up especially the loose feathers along the under line and thighs. Liquid B is available at health food stores or if you can not get them use a multiple B complex and dissolve in water. The water should be yellow. You can not overdose on B vitamins as the excess is excreted.
I will begin writing about care for each season like my information to Darren and keep you posted.
Best of Luck in the Shows. I judge my first one type and color the third weekend in October in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Our roller competition begins the end of November.

Linda

Sunday, 4 Oct 1998
Dear Linda,
Sorry for not being in touch sooner, our system has been down. Many thanks for the pollen, it arrived on Thursday just after finding a health shop that sells small jars of it. How exactly do you feed it to the canaries? I'm still feeding them soft food during the molt - can I just add it to this and in what quantity?Or would you suggest feeding small amounts in 'finger' drawers?
It is actually oat husks we put in the bottom of our show cages not complete oats. I find it a little annoying as they are so light they are inclined to blow into the seed drawer and the bird can't get at the seed. To make sure the birds aren't left without seed I usually put a handful of mixed seed in with the husks.
I have to say I have never seen or heard of the complaint mentioned by P.W. Where does he actually mention this problem as I can't seem to find it on the 'canary' page or in your literature?
We don't have any problems with the lettuce here, as I buy it directly from the greengrocer when I run out of my own stock. I do however have to be wary of the chickweed I collect - ensuring that the farmer has not sprayed.
I am in a lucky situation that my friend grows cabbage for supermarkets and there is always an abundant supply of chickweed among this and he let's me know if it has been sprayed. I am feeding the birds homegrown chicory at the moment, once a week.
You have mentioned using olive oil for your birds - is this for a specific reason or just your own preference, myself I use cod liver oil.

T. F.

Sunday, 4 Oct 1998
Hi T. F.,
Feed the bee pollen to the males using the small size finger drawers one to two times a week. It is a great conditioner. You will notice a dramatic increase in singing. When you see that, back it up to once a week. You can also feed it a couple times a week to any bird lagging behind in the molt.
Sorry to hear it is just the oat husks in the bottom of the show cages. Cut oats would have been a great idea. I am still feeding my young egg food but I will be stopping soon when they have finished the molt. I am increasing carbohydrate and decreasing the protein in the egg food to finish off the molt. They get saltine crackers too.
The letter from P.W. is at the end of Border Chat. He described a problem where the birds lose all the feathers under the beak and in spite of treating for mites the feathers never come back. It is supposedly fairly common in England. I am sure it is a nutritional problem so I sent him a couple of shipments of pellets. I think the problem may be that they do not seem to be able to get good greens. Glad to hear that is not a problem in Ireland. I think chickweed is the best for bringing the birds into full breeding condition. It seems a couple weeks of chickweek with its seeds in the doe stage and the birds reach peak condition. Especially if there are a few aphids on them too.
I use olive oil now because I want to get the rollers fat before they go into the show cages. It is important that they not go into breeding condition. In roller competition, it is best to keep the males in adolescent boy song. Therefore, I do not want to use anything fortified with vitamin E. During breeding season, I use a fortified wheat germ oil or a fortified cod liver oil. In type birds, it is likewise important to hold the birds development back so they do not go into breeding condition and lose their confirmation.
Do you use any soy bean products to condition the hens for breeding? My daughter is touring England and Ireland the next two weeks. She flew to London on Saturday. My husband wants to know what is a milk star? He heard it in a Irish childrens lullaby. He reads the Irish Times on the internet. He loves the funny weather reports and the view of the Connell bridge.
Linda

Chat With P. W.

Dear Linda,
I noticed several birds now that have lost all the feathers under their beak and even though they have gone through the molt these feathers never come back in. I have tried treating them for mites but it didn't help.
P. W.

Dear P. W.,
I suspect that the feather loss is due to a nutritional deficiency. A good way to find out is to select a couple of the heavier birds with the problem and convert them to a pelleted diet. Pellets are a complete diet containing the necessary nutrients for optimal health.
My favorite pellet is Mazuri - Purina PMI small bird maintenance #56A6. They also have a breeder formula #56A7. For a source near you call 1 800 227-8941.
Put the birds in the same cage because it is easier to convert them to eating pellets in groups. On day 1 and 2 in the morning offer fresh pellets and late in the afternoon refill their seed dish with 1/2 of the normal seed mix.
Offer a small amount of one extra from the following list: bee pollen, egg food, couscous, saltine cracker, fine grade sunflower chips (available at wild bird shops, seed without husk), niger, greens such as romaine lettuce, spinach or broccoli, and frozen corn or corn on the cob. If possible, offer the extra around noon. If not possible offer in the morning.
Day 3 and 4 offer a few fresh pellets on top of old ones, give one extra and late in the afternoon offer 1/4 of the normal seed mix. On days 5 and 6 follow the same scheme but offer even less normal seed mix. On day 7 and 8 repeat but give a saltine cracker and use small amount of sunflower chips instead of normal seed mix. Day 9 dump the seed dish and refill with pellets. Continue to offer pellets at all times and one extra. Pellets should be 90% or more of the birds diet. During molt, I use sunflower chips and niger often to make sure the birds have good feather luster.
Watch the feet and as soon as the bird starts eating pellets you will immediately notice the feet get a glow and look healthier. If the birds are reluctant to eat the pellets, you can moisten them and add to egg food. It they are resistant to switching, slow the process a bit and offer more of the extras but not more of the normal seed mix (example 2 saltine crackers). As soon as the first bird eats the pellets, the others will follow. If they start eating the pellets earlier, just move them forward in the process. I often have the birds converted in 6 to 7 days.
I like my birds to be familiar with eating saltine crackers because they are handy to carry with me when I take them to bird shows. It has the advantage of being high carbohydrate. High carbohydrate will help keep show birds from going into a soft molt. Liquid vitamin B will also help prevent soft molt.
Do not over feed carbohydrates if you are showing type birds because it can cause them to lose confirmation. I limit crackers to once a week for rollers during the training period because I want them to sing a soft high quality song. Daily is ok for color bred and other song canaries.
Linda

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Chat With George McGinnes

Monday, 05 Oct 1998
Hi Linda,
You ask what I currently feed?Ce De with added egg.I plan to breed early April, at present I'm on natural light about 12 hrs, when it goes down to 11 hrs, I'll turn the lights on again and hold at 11maybe Dec. cut to 10 and harden their rations, I like to try and imitate nature a bit in the tough diet dept and no heat until breeding then up to around 55 to 60 degrees. Didn't work too good the past couple of years, just terrible fertility.I keep the birds outside and have ample light intensity when the hours are longer.
You then ask do I show, I do, and judge. Did the National a few times, can't get my old head around the new colours, I do Type.
Linda we know each other, well perhaps I know you more than you know me.
For over 50 yrs it has always been as I did back in Scotland, feed a little of the diet early to get the hen used to it, guess that is passe.I got into your page on Friday for the first time I guess I need to go back to your book.yip it's autographed one of your first editions, you approach things from sound basics, that is why I would like to try your fertility method.
Some years ago when I was home in Scotland I visited an old Irishman friend in the borders and he gave the feeding hens a 1/4 of a boiled egg I asked him how often he changed it during the day, said he "what do you mean change it, when it's finished I give her more".
It is many years since I last used Petamine. I think it will be many more before I use it again with our Canadian dollar valued at a little more than half of yours, so no one up here wants to stock or buy it, guess I'll have to look for a substitute.
Just thinking Linda, that old Irishman I mentioned earlier used to feed a real black mixture 3 parts rape to 1 canary, said the oil was good for the birds and give them "a wee bit of hemp".
This year has been a total screw up I have young birds that have thrown wing and tail flights, I know they weren't pulled, they were single caged.
Just got back from Ottawa, I judged type numbers are down all over up here this year, our club show is this weekend, I wonder.
I type with my middle finger only and times my head goes along with it, and so it goes until I hear from you on your fertility method, bird wise that is.
Regards
George

Mon, 5 Oct 1998
Hi George,
Of course, I remember you from the nationals. Your letter is very interesting? Would you mind if I put it on my web site? Do you mind having your name used? Or would you agree if anonymous? It would fit in border chat.
You are very right to darken the birds down before breeding season. If this is not done the canary can be refractory to light and not respond as well to light stimulation.
I like CeDe very much because it is different than other egg food bases in that it is very high in carbohydrate. It should not be given prior to young hatching because high carbohydrate will push the hen to lay eggs before they are in full breeding condition.
The old Irishman border breeder has a good point. I too use a quarter of a hard boiled egg for the hen to feed her babies. I have found that the hen who feeds the hard boiled egg yolk need feed very little for the chicks to grow at a terrific rate. They are banded by 5 days. At that time, I offer greens too. I do have egg food available but find initially the hens prefer the hard boiled egg. Hard boiled egg, once a week, is a good conditioner for breeding.
Petamine is expensive but I think I am on to why it works for me. It is not available in England or Ireland just US and Canada. It is a high protein food and has the usually vitamins and minerals plus one of its main ingredients is soybean meal. I was reading some scientific literature evaluating hens preference for complexity in a cocks song. The experiment counted the number of times the hen solicited mating as the way to determine her song preference. I was thinking this was a difficult experiment until I discovered they were using estradiol implants. In patients with breast cancer, they are increasing estradiol production by blocking some of the estrogen receptors. This is accomplished through their diet which is high in soya products. They eat tofu and an asian fermented soybean product called miso. I am still looking for the half life of estrogen but I think about 20 days before breeding is about the right time to feed the hen soybean products. If she will solicit mating, that will correct most problems. Ironically, before I used petamine, I added soya grits or soya flour to my egg food!! I usually do not put my ideas out till they are tested but I need breeders like yourself to help with the experiment.
Linda

Tuesday, 06 Oct 1998
Hi Linda,
use my name if you wish. So essentially then is that the experiment that I am going to put into effect uses soya. You know Linda a few years ago I used to use the firm tofu in my soft food mix, I had no plan like your scientific understanding, just that I figured that it would be beneficial because of the high protein content. Kellogg has the instrumentation to calibrate the balanced percentages, I don't.
Some years ago I remember reading that soya bean meal had some toxin that necessitated the soya being slightly toasted before feeding, I spread it on a tray and then put it under the broiler, mixed it in with my soft food. Do you have an approximate proportion of soya for a mix Linda? I'm seriously considering mixing my own again using the cornbread as a base. I have no worry on too high a protein as far as feeding the young, as I believe as with babies they utilize what they need and expel the excess. Protein in, protein out.
Good luck at the shows
Regards
George

Thursday, 8 Oct 1998
Hi George,
Did you have soft tofu or the firm tofu? Did you break it up in a food process? I went soya shopping and bought a number of products including tofu, yellow miso (fermented soybean), soy protein powder, soybean complete nutrition drinks, and soya grits. I still want some dry soya milk to use in the cornbread. I am going to experiment with couscous and soya and see if I can get a good mix for prebreeding. I want a high protein feed for prebreeding as high carbohydrate will push egg laying.
Most the products listed toasted soybean as the ingredient. I will check more about that.
Soybean contains all essential amino acids except methionine. Therefore, it needs to be feed with other grains or egg. You can overdo protein. To make sure you don't watch the feet. Make sure they do not turn red. If they do, immediately back down the protein with carbohydrates and lettuce. Failure to do so will cause them to favor a foot and eventually get gout. The chicks get diarrhea and have sealed vents and can die of dehydration about 7 days of age (skin has a distinct red color).
Linda

Fri, 09 Oct 1998
Hi Linda, as I told you previously our club show is this week-end, I went down to help them set up. The colour breeders had made arrangements to have the two Dutch judges who had judged at a Detroit show last week, do the colour bred at our show. Interesting talking to them, are you ready?
Quote: "You people are way behind the times over here," he then proceeded to tell me what they have been doing for years over in Europe. The birds are wintered at 10 hrs, hens and cocks kept separate, cocks are then brought in and put straight on 15 hrs light, after they have had that treatment for 3 weeks the hens are brought in, and after another 3 weeks of that treatment making a total of 6 for the cocks and 3 for the hens, they are paired. They said jumping the lights up like that won't put them into the moult, lessening the hours will put them into the moult. Here is the strangest thing in the conversation,"don't feed the white of the boiled egg just the yolk". I always thought and still do that an egg was a complete thing ie. yolk and white a must. One of them in particular was adamant that there was no available protein in the white. For your digestion.
No doubt reply will be interesting.
Regards
George

Sun, 11 Oct 1998
Hi George,
Thanks for sharing the interesting discussion you had with the Dutch judges. The wintering the birds at 10 hours is most likely the reason for their success. It is critical that birds have a rest period prior to breeding. Let me explain, in the Northern hemisphere (mid and high latitudes), light is the primary factor in inducing sexual activity. Lengthening photoperiods (day length) elevates LH secretion, which is the primary reproductive hormone in responsive birds.
The photoresponsive mechanism is very sensitive. In order to respond to light, the birds must experience a rest period following a long light exposure to allow the photoreceptive system to reactivate and once again be responsive to increasing day length. This is because after a period of long daylight hours, birds become refractory (insensitive) to photostimulation (light stimulation). Keeping birds on ten hours of day length prior to breeding season will assure they will have the hormone response when they are exposed to increased light.
Following the molt and periods of decreasing daylight hours (fall), breeding season starts again with the increase daylight hours in the late winter and early spring. In my aviary, the day length lengths with the sun but when the first day of summer comes, I turn off the artificial lights and keep them in dim light and on natural day length until breeding.
The second part of their recommendation was to bring the cocks into condition prior to the hens. This is the way it happens in a nature because the cocks are more sensitive to light changes. In cocks, high LH levels promote testosterone production. Testosterone levels dramatically increase even 24 hours after exposure to longer days. I like to bring the males into condition before the hens also.
They recommended immediately changing light exposure from 10 to 15 hours. This probably because they are going from 10 straight to 15 which is not the same as gradual increase to 15 hours. I have never tried their method. I have tried going from 11.5 to 14 rapidly 30 minutes every 3 days. The males were fine but the hens wanted to lay but not mate. What works for me is 30 minutes every 3 days for males to 14.5 hours and 30 minutes every week for hens.
One of my concerns would be aggression because of high testosterone production. Sometimes this happens when I sell a male and the breeder has the birds suddenly on more daylight hours. Perhaps that is why they recommend doing the male first. I imagine they must be careful not to feed stimulating food. Did they have any feeding recommendations?
As far as the egg, the white of the egg is albumin a major body protein but the yolk is the more nutritious part. I feed quartered hard-boiled eggs with shell. The birds usually eat only the yolk. Pure egg yolk is an excellent breeding conditioner. I advocate using egg yolk as a conditioner but not egg food because carbohydrates stimulate egg laying but not mating.
Linda

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Last modified: October 13, 1998

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