With a new budgerigar show season fast approaching, our thoughts must
now turn to show preparation. Most serious breeders will be now
finishing off the breeding season, pairs will be split leaving the cages
empty and after cleaning ready for the prospective show team.
Our first task is to select the young birds (current year bred) we
consider having potential for the show team. Any that look like they
have the required attributes to make a show bird need to be caged up for
a week or so in the stock cages, this will allow them to gain a little
weight, and also become a little steadier.
Do not worry about feather condition at this time, although it is a
good idea to remove any broken flight or tail feathers, the reason being
they will not moult out until later in the year, and if not removed the
exhibit will be eliminated from showing for the whole year.
These main feathers take approximately 6 to 8 weeks to regrow, so as
you can see we need to act now.
Leave the selected birds to settle for a week of so, and keep an eye on
them to ensure that non are being bullied, a few treats will be welcome;
millet sprays and tonic seed will help. It is important not to
overcrowd, and it may be better to keep the sexes separate.
Once they have settled it will be time to start the process of
attempting to get them into show condition. The first step is to spray
them regularly, the first spray needs to be with hot water with a little
plume spray or similar added, this would remove the initial grime and
dirt. A hand spray with a fine mist is ideal for this process. Really
soak the birds so it is difficult to recognise their colour; it is
beneficial to do this as early in the day as possible to ensure they
have adequate time to dry properly before roosting.
Spraying is carried out in an all wire cage, and old pet cage is ideal,
this will allow all of the bird to be sprayed. Continue spraying on
alternate days with just cold water from now, this will encourage the
birds to preen and in time bring their feathers into pristine
condition.Wash the head area with baby shampoo being careful to avoid contact
with the eyes, any head feathers that are showing pink quills will need
careful consideration, it is important to let nature take its course
with these as any early intervention will result in them bleeding and
staining the head. A soft toothbrush is ideal for the washing process, brush away from the cere, when completed replace them in the stock cage to dry naturally.
Both processes of spraying and head washing need to be continued right
up to show time, with the last spray taking place approximately 2/3 days
before the show.
All birds will not come into condition at the same time so it is best
to leave the de-spotting exercise to the week of the show, if you are
very new to the hobby it would be a good idea to seek advice from a more
experienced fancier to show you the ropes with regard to de-spotting,
one mistake will mean all your weeks of preparation will be wasted. Spot
feathers can take up to four weeks to re-grow.
Most exhibits are required to have six evenly spaced spots with the
exception of the red eye varieties and recessive pieds. It is best by
removing the flecks and smaller spots first; you will see the 4 main
spots and 2 smaller cheek patch spots. All the others need to be
removed; some people use their fingers for this but most prefer to use a
good pair of tweezers. Time is important here, do not rush this exercise
and if the bird shows signs of stress, place it back in the stock cage
and complete later.
The whole process of bringing the young birds into show condition can
take up to six weeks, the adults take less time, three or four weeks but
remember flights and tail feathers take the same time to grow in both
young and adult birds.
It is very important to keep the stock cages clean throughout, it would
be counter productive to keep washing your show team, just to place them
back in a dirty cage.
Just prior to your first show you my find the exhibit is in perfect
feather but with just a few quills in the head area, as long as these
quills are not pink they can be opened by brushing with a dry tooth
brush or by rubbing off the wax covering with your finger nail. As
mentioned earlier be aware of the pink quills, they are best left
alone.I can tell you from my experiences of judging many of the Countries top
shows, that if your exhibits are not in condition they will be penalised
by the judges, you may have the best budgie in the show hall, but
without proper preparation it may as well stay at home.
After the show place your exhibits back in their original cage and let
them settle again, they will most likely be stressed from their efforts
of the day, make sure they have fresh water and plenty of grit
available. It is important to carry on with the spraying in the
following weeks in an attempt to hold condition for future shows, do not
put birds you intend to keep showing in the main flights, this will
induce a moult. Inevitably nature will kick in somewhere along the line
and your exhibits will go out of conditions, this is the time to give
them a rest.
Make sure your show cages are in tiptop condition, freshly painted if
necessary, with just plain seed in the bottom. Only new style budgerigar
cages are allowed on the show bench by the Budgerigar Society, so if you
have any old style ones either convert them or use them in your bird
room.
A properly prepared show bird.
Good luck for the coming show season, if you get beat, take it on the
chin and congratulate those who have beat you, hopefully they will
congratulate you when your turn come around. Ask the judges if you have
any queries as to where your exhibit was placed, they will be only to
pleased to explain their placings.
