Training birds

[DonF]

On most the bird dog sites I visit I run into people looking for birds. I can understand not having a flight pen for game birds, I can even understand not having a place for a pigeon loft. I got a call recently from a guy I didn't know in the valley looking for pigeons. I give away a lot of pigeon's to friends but have decided to stop that this year. So the guy tell's me he needs about six pigeon's. OK, I told him $5 each for ferals or $10 ea for pure homer's. You would have thought I'd asked him for his last dime! He tell's me he'll be over and to expect to haggle on the price. I told him not to bother, I won't haggle. I can use the birds with my own dog's, I did not have to supply him with with cut rate birds.

Guy's around here use a lot of chukar's for training, Bob Whites and very few pheasant's. Pigeon's get used more than anything. How can someone get upset about $10 for a training bird he could use 200mi from home and expect it to go home and put out more of their kind that year? But don't raise an eye brow to paying up to $6 for a quail and $9 for a chukar they will realistically get one time use from? And while the game birds can be raised to get more, the game birds don't do the whole thing for them, pigeon's not only work for training your dog but they provide their own replacement's weather you like it or not. A dog sometimes can catch a pigeon and unless it just hard on birds, the bird get's it's feather's riffled and goes back in the loft to be used again tomorrow! I have a loft that I've had for over 23 yrs now right here. I have not had to catch or buy a pigeon in about 25 yrs. I always have to kill birds to keep from being over run! And then some guy complains the $5-$10 dollars is to much for just a pigeon.

My pigeon's started maybe 25 yrs ago in the Willamette Valley here in Oregon. I went out one night into a deserted barn and caught a bunch. The next day I shot them all and had to go out and get more. I finally learned that if I don't shoot them all but used them as fly away's and provide them with shelter and water, I would get to the point where I had to shoot them! Rest is history. I have two bird's here that were not hatched here, both racing homer's. Those tow and two other pair are the foundation of my homer supply. 1 1/2 yrs, three pairs grew into well over 40 birds all told. Hawks have taken a good number of them and they just keep multiplying!

Oh well, enough for the rant! That guy call's again and I'm gonna triple the price. He can pay or I can shoot my own bird's.

[Wildweeds]

I been buying really nice chukars,9 month old fully mature shooting preserve birds for 10 bucks a pop,I've bought 40 of them in the last 2 months,they put up with no monkey buisness from the dogs and eat pretty good too.To quote Bob Pettit.........."The cheapest part of owning a birddog is what people are the cheapest about,the birds,they got money for e collars,electronic traps and backing dogs and if they spent the money spent on all that, on birds and trained the dog the old fashioned way with a checkcord and a shotgun they'd be far better off".

[fishpond]

I decded I wanted my own pigeon coop about 7 years ago.

I paid between $5 and $10 a bird. bought 6-8 at a time. Twice I went to the coop and found

it empty, not one bird. Started over. I've dealt with hawks, owls and cats

Last 2 years they've exploded. Now I have around 25 -30 birds.

Gave away a lot of unflown young ones last spring and summer to friends. I don't shoot mine;

I buy quail & chukar for that.

While its not labor intensive or particularly expensive, keeping pigeons does take some effort;

Corn has gone from $7 a fifty to $12.

I think anyone thinking that you should give them away is out of bounds.

Don, I think what you're asking is very reasonable, and he dosen't have to buy from you.

If someone I didn't know asked me for birds I'd charge for them.

Carl

[wems2371]

You would have thought I'd asked him for his last dime! He tell's me he'll be over and to expect to haggle on the price. I told him not to bother, I won't haggle.

Don, I have a horsetrailer for sale right now on Craigslist. Ay, yi, yi (?)--Some people are pretty bold. I've been told several times in emails that people will take it, but they're not paying over $700 for it. They don't ask what my bottom dollar is, but simply say "I can be out this weekend and I'll give you $700, because that's all it's worth". Hit the road Jack. It's not that I'm against trying to strike a bargain, but it's the way in which it's done, and the expectation that I should take whatever they'll give me.

Some people gripe about paying even $3 for a feral pigeon. First thing they say is how the seller trapped the bird for free. My thoughts are then to get off your duff and go collect your own! I wish I could, but with the price of feed, I can't afford to give too many of mine away.

[duckn66]

These people have been watching too much reality TV shows like "Pickers" where they haggle about price. It's not like you really need to get rid of the pigeons probable and like you say you can always kill them over your dogs which to me would be worth way more than 3 or 5 dollars a bird! Guys like that need to go flop back down in front of the TV some more and stay there.

Guess they don't realize that for 30 or 40 dollars they can be up to their ears in pigeons in 2 yrs or so and then recoup their money on the original ones they bought by selling some off. I'd buy some nice racing homers for 10 buck each!