UkPigeonRacing

Hi again - more questions, sorry!

What’s the thinking on nest boxes these days. All I could ever afford was Dandynests back in the day and recycling them at that, which didn’t ever seem to be the healthiest!

Anyway, I bought some plastic ones up at Doncaster and some nest pads, but now that it’s getting to that time I don’t know whether there’s upside and downsides to those? Also nest box grates so the nest bowl is off the wooden base, any parasite treatments in the next box, any particular flooring in the stock loft like pea straw vs other materials?

As ever, any advice gratefully received.

PeteDerby wrote: ↑Mon Dec 09, 2024 4:21 pm Hi again - more questions, sorry!

What’s the thinking on nest boxes these days. All I could ever afford was Dandynests back in the day and recycling them at that, which didn’t ever seem to be the healthiest!

Anyway, I bought some plastic ones up at Doncaster and some nest pads, but now that it’s getting to that time I don’t know whether there’s upside and downsides to those? Also nest box grates so the nest bowl is off the wooden base, any parasite treatments in the next box, any particular flooring in the stock loft like pea straw vs other materials?

As ever, any advice gratefully received.

I am sure you will get different views on this subject Pete, I used the clay bowls with a nest felt and some deep straw. Under the bowl I used a beer mat, which had been soaked in Creosote. I think it is all down what you would like to spend on floor dressing, there are so many you could choose from.

I've never used plastic bowels. I always use clay bowels with a nest felt. I glue the felt with a blub of bostik to stop it moving and press the felt to the shape of the bowl. Then put a handful of shavings in. Never needed to lift the bowl up. When finished with just rip the felt out and wash and use again. Got nest bowls here that are 30+ years old.
As for nesting materials, I use straw from the pet shop. It's medicated so has no bugs on it.

I use plastic nest bowls and nest felts. Like quite a few things i do it a little bit differently.

I have a heap of nest bowls. This year I got another dozen online from China. I put about half a dozen sheets of newspaper in each box and a nest bowl and felt with a handful of straw. When I put the rings on babies I put them in a clean bowl and change the paper. Then every morning I do what's required, take out some soiled paper, or pick op the droppings, or put in a clean bowl or whatever.
The soiled bowls I blast out with the hose and leave them out to dry and the nest felts can be washed out quite a few times before they disintegrate.
Many times I've changed a nest box, put clean newspaper and a clean bowl in, and immediately seen the parents in there stuffing feed into the youngsters. Pigeons like a clean box.
It's just something I like to do.

I use pretty much the same as King
Stick the felt in what ever you use with something like what king says or in my case silicone
Years ago I use to cut cardboard and paint it in creosote but not done that for a long time
Straw wise I use dust free clean barley straw and a few stalks from my lavender I just throw it in so they make there own nest
I’m not keen on newspaper maybe it’s our climate with the damp air and my stock loft is very open

Yes Neil, generally it is dryer here, we certainly don't often get the long periods of wet weather like you blokes do. So newspaper in the nest boxes is useful, it saves having to scrape out boxes. I've got four pairs with youngsters about 14 days old. At that stage where they are eating heaps and the boxes are dirty every morning. I'm putting clean paper in every morning and tipping the bowls upside down and banging them on the floor to knock the droppings out. Put the babies back in the bowl and it's all clean and nice.

Murray wrote: ↑Mon Dec 09, 2024 11:00 pm Yes Neil, generally it is dryer here, we certainly don't often get the long periods of wet weather like you blokes do. So newspaper in the nest boxes is useful, it saves having to scrape out boxes. I've got four pairs with youngsters about 14 days old. At that stage where they are eating heaps and the boxes are dirty every morning. I'm putting clean paper in every morning and tipping the bowls upside down and banging them on the floor to knock the droppings out. Put the babies back in the bowl and it's all clean and nice.

Yes ideal

I just use a little wood shavings in the bottom of the bowl then put straw down on the floor of the loft and let them build their own nest.

I've used most types of bowls over the years and just let the birds find their own materials, one of the favourites over the years were pine needles !! As I worked on a farm I always had plenty of straw on the floor for them to use, I found that some birds would go mad nest building whereas others barely put built any nest at all.
These days I use clay bowls and nest felts, I don't use grills in the boxes and don't put anything under the bowls. Unlike others I don't bother disinfecting the boxes prior to breeding either, but that's my choice, I know some fanciers who blow torch their boxes every year, I'd end up burning the loft down lol

NeilA wrote: ↑Tue Dec 10, 2024 9:34 am

Murray wrote: ↑Mon Dec 09, 2024 11:00 pm Yes Neil, generally it is dryer here, we certainly don't often get the long periods of wet weather like you blokes do. So newspaper in the nest boxes is useful, it saves having to scrape out boxes. I've got four pairs with youngsters about 14 days old. At that stage where they are eating heaps and the boxes are dirty every morning. I'm putting clean paper in every morning and tipping the bowls upside down and banging them on the floor to knock the droppings out. Put the babies back in the bowl and it's all clean and nice.

Yes ideal

Nice idea but no one seem to have news papers any more so you'd struggle to find enough the clean out anuauly let alone daily