Good practice/training.

[Andy]

This morning for the second Wednesday morning running I let my birds out just after 7.00. In the mornings I let them all out together, old and young. They were having a good fly while I went to have some breakfast. When I went back out to clean out and get them in there were 2 batches in the sky. Mine and a much larger batch of probably trainers flying around. Mine soon went up and joined the large batch. It was cloudy and the others seemed in no hurry to disappear. After a few minutes mine started to pull out and soon they split into 2 batches. After cleaning out several of mine had come down but the batch was still going around with the odd ones of mine pulling out from time to time. I called mine in and all were there. The other batch had by this time cleared. I had all mine in and no strays. So I think a good bit of experience for both lots. It may have been different if the large batch had already been racing home but then mine probably wouldn’t have joined them anyway. I am not far from Wincanton race course so they may have been liberated from there. May have been a midweek race. I have often thought that clashing is just an excuse for losses. To me this shows that birds with any sense won’t be pulled away by other birds.

[Buster121]

They will learn something from it for sure

[MIL]

Midweek racing in the Mids is never further than Bath Walcot

[Devo1956]

Could you not phone the racecourse Andy, and get dates of liberation? I think you were lucky not to loose some youngsters, a good education for them.

[NeilA]

I think clashing does mean lose of ybs if the size of teams is vastly different say 500 v 50
Could I ask why your ybs are out with old birds Andy that’s a big no for me just be interested in your view as what benefits the ybs get

[NeilA]

We get midweek libs here on a Wednesday from Lincolnshire i believe .
I do try to avoid training when I know they are there luckily they are early by mid day and I never train to 4pm anyway

[Andy]

I think clashing does mean lose of ybs if the size of teams is vastly different say 500 v 50
Could I ask why your ybs are out with old birds Andy that’s a big no for me just be interested in your view as what benefits the ybs get

I don’t mind mine getting in with others. I have around 30 birds when all out together, I would say there were around 100 in the other batch.
Neil, I let all mine out together because of the time I have available. I only have around an hour and a half in the mornings before opening the shop and if lucky an hour or so after work so it just makes things a lot easier. I do realise that the old birds would probably stop the young birds ranging but the young birds do keep the old birds flying. When trapping them they do all generally go back into their respective lofts. If I was retired I would prefer to have them out separately. Maybe in a couple of years. They were flown separately when I had them on widowhood. But since I re-paired I have been letting them all out together twice a day.

[NeilA]

Can’t you have the ybs up 45 min take the flying sign down then have the old birds out ?
I leave for work 720 home 545 ybs out first light soon as I am home trained
Totally get your way is different to mine but your sprinting now in my view that’s discipline and routine

[king]

I think clashing does mean lose of ybs if the size of teams is vastly different say 500 v 50
Could I ask why your ybs are out with old birds Andy that’s a big no for me just be interested in your view as what benefits the ybs get

I think you may lose a few if your birds are on their early tosses, but once given a few chucks joining with another pack shouldn't be a problem. Your birds should break from them, after all they have too when racing. I recall taking my birds to Retford some 45 miles. I had around 25. When I got to the training point I rested the birds a while and then released them. They flew across the fields and to my horror a flock of around 700 birds came from nowhere. My birds were swallowed up my the pack. And to make it worse they were heading in the opposite direction. I got in the car and headed home. After a couple of hours 20 arrived and the other 5 came split. How far they were pulled is anybody's guess. It's happen a few times over the years, often they bring extra birds with them when they return.

As for old birds and YBs out together, I never did this when racing as I wanted the YBs to range. But since I stopped racing I've only bred 2 or 3 YBs for myself each year. And since I no longer have a YB loft they are in with the old birds. This year I've just 2 YBs and they go out with the old birds on open hole for around 3 hours a day, everyday. A couple of Saturdays ago race birds were flying over the loft and the 2 YBs went missing. I got the old birds in at around 3pm and the 2 YBs were not back. I noticed then both on the loft at 5pm.

[NeilA]

Your not racing though king so it’s totally different to Andy and myself who are sprint racing even you didn’t mix your ybs with old birds when racing
I still say ybs just starting to get going can be lost if larges Libs / teams hit them , yes they may be ok but surely it’s best to avoid them
Andy’s are just going out he hasn’t trained so there not established in a month or so it’s different