Life in Bendigo.

Trev · Wed Sep 14, 2022 8:45 pm

Murray wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 4:01 am Canola was bred in Canada, hence Can Ola, from rape seed plants. Canola oil is different and better than traditional rape seed oil.
A lot of it is genetically modified these days, but so is everything.
It's like when you read that a food contains "modified corn starch". It was the corn that was modified, not the starch.

I use Rape seed in my mix, it was one of the seeds that Des Coulter always used.
Believe it or not it is now primarily grown in this country for bio fuels rather than its feed value.

Trev · Wed Sep 14, 2022 8:52 pm

Good update Murray and good to see you are well in the mix after two races, it is frustrating when birds don't trap but in my experience young hens in a fast race often mess about trapping. Hopefully she will behave next time out

Sorry to hear you have lost some of your more reliable birds and have been hit with injuries, hopefully some will return and that the injured ones recover quickly

Good luck with the rest of the season and I look forward to hearing how it goes.
All the best.

Murray · Fri Sep 16, 2022 6:45 am

It's going to be a bit wet this weekend, with pretty much a tail wind. Racing is on Sunday again, it may be a slightly better day
It was threatening rain and thunderstorms today, so I finished work and took a dozen of them out for a toss before it set in properly. It was raining a little bit when I let them go and raining quite good when I got home. They were 5 minutes behind me, and I have lost another one. A little red hen. I don't know why.
After a fly around the loft for a while they drifted in, except for two hens which sat out and got absolutely soaked when the storm came through. When the weather cleared I fed the birds and they came in, none the worse for wear.
I still have pigeons which are not fit to go after another week of rest. Some have been pretty banged up. Maybe another week will see them recover. Maybe.
I will probably send 4 cocks and 4 hens tomorrow night.

Fri Sep 16, 2022 7:36 am

Good luck again this weekend. That’s a shame you lost the red hen. Had she had a race? They do enjoy a good bath in the rain, more so than in the baths.

Fri Sep 16, 2022 10:31 am

Good luck Murray for the weekend

Murray · Fri Sep 16, 2022 10:10 pm

Andy wrote: ↑Fri Sep 16, 2022 7:36 am Good luck again this weekend. That’s a shame you lost the red hen. Had she had a race? They do enjoy a good bath in the rain, more so than in the baths.

No, Andy, it was a little late bred off one of the red Thon'e boys.
She had been tossed a few times and I was going to race her in a week or two. Her nest mate came home fine. But he's a blur bar. Reds seem to struggle to survive here.

Murray · Sat Sep 17, 2022 4:22 am

It's raining hard and the forecast is no good, so tomorrow's race is put back to Monday morning. It should be clear with light winds by then.
I am pleased because some of the ones I picked out to go were having their first race, or coming back after being lost or injured. With a bad day they would only end up lost again.
They all had a short toss yesterday and came through a shower well. Just to switch them on again.
If it clears a bit latter I will get them out for a fly.

Trev · Sat Sep 17, 2022 9:20 am

Murray wrote: ↑Fri Sep 16, 2022 10:10 pm
Andy wrote: ↑Fri Sep 16, 2022 7:36 am Good luck again this weekend. That’s a shame you lost the red hen. Had she had a race? They do enjoy a good bath in the rain, more so than in the baths.
No, Andy, it was a little late bred off one of the red Thon'e boys.
She had been tossed a few times and I was going to race her in a week or two. Her nest mate came home fine. But he's a blur bar. Reds seem to struggle to survive here.

Sounds like the birds did ok considering the conditions, a good little trainer for them.
Shame about the little hen, its the same over here these days, the reds and pieds don't seem to last long, I think the hawks seem to pick them off first. It's a shame for you as a lot of the traditional Thones are reds aren't they !!!
I hope those carrying injuries recover soon mate.
All the best for Monday

Trev · Sat Sep 17, 2022 9:20 am

Murray wrote: ↑Sat Sep 17, 2022 4:22 am It's raining hard and the forecast is no good, so tomorrow's race is put back to Monday morning. It should be clear with light winds by then.
I am pleased because some of the ones I picked out to go were having their first race, or coming back after being lost or injured. With a bad day they would only end up lost again.
They all had a short toss yesterday and came through a shower well. Just to switch them on again.
If it clears a bit latter I will get them out for a fly.

Good luck mate

Murray · Tue Sep 20, 2022 11:37 am

Not as good as I wanted, again.

I have a two year old cock bird who had one race last year. The race was a bit of a disaster, and he arrived home in a box. Many didn't.
So I set him up for the sprint series, gave him a nest box and a mate, and sent him to the first two races. He was not very impressive in either,

, but when his hen laid a new pair of eggs, and he arrived home from a toss on Friday and dived in the trap, I was pleased.

On Sunday night I handed him to a bloke to mark him. He commented on how good the pigeon felt. I told him I thought the pigeon could win.

Imagine my disappointment when my clock pigeon was one returned from the race a fortnight ago, having it's first go, was 10 minutes off the winner, and the dark cock did not arrive.

This morning I was hoping he would be back. No.

I had written him off as another one that isn't much good. Then this afternoon Catherine called me. He had arrived home and she had put him away. When I got home I found he had a bad injury on his chest. He's been chased into something. Must have been yesterday, as the wound was forming a scab. A bit of first aid, and he will be okay.
How quickly we write them off if they fail to make us look good. The pigeon still might not be much good, but it isn't his fault.
One has to wonder how hard it was to get home to his family after suffering that injury?