I am currently looking to start training my yound gsp (6 months) and have some young bob whites that i have hatched.
Does any one have any advice on the building of a covey house and the best way to use it?
How many birds can be released and how many need to remain in the pen?
Can you move the pen to diferent locations and will the birds still return.
Thanks
Bob White quail covey houses
-
Wagonmaster
- GDF Junkie
- Posts: 3372
- Joined: Thu Jun 16, 2005 10:22 am
- Location: Minneapolis, MN
One good resource is to look at all the materials they have on the www.uplandbirddog.com website, concerning "johnny houses."
Whether your callback pen is portable or not is really a matter of personal preference. You can make or purchase small callback pens or crates, but predators are always a problem when the gear is lightweight. You can make a callback house that is nearly predator proof, but it is going to be heavy and probably not very portable.
Whether your callback pen is portable or not is really a matter of personal preference. You can make or purchase small callback pens or crates, but predators are always a problem when the gear is lightweight. You can make a callback house that is nearly predator proof, but it is going to be heavy and probably not very portable.
-
gunner
- Rank: 4X Champion
- Posts: 603
- Joined: Tue Jan 04, 2005 2:47 pm
- Location: Indianapolis, IN. USA
This 4x4x6' johnny house holds 30 bobs. The design flight conditions and promotes vertical flight daily as the birds must fly upward to the light, ledge and loafing catchpen/verenda.
The JH itself is of a pretty basic design. Funnels at base, sun porch with ledge on top.
From there I've tried to make improvements to the JH learning from earlier mistakes.
I try to armour the house as best as I can from the perimeter cattle fence, solar hot wire and welded wire protective base. I'm even fooling with a Big Ben Alarm clock that when alarm is set it will lower from the key a pulley which would close up the house after the last bird is in.
Another key component to a JH would be the catch box verenda on the opposite side of the JHdoor. The design allows you to fly birds out the other side without handling them. Or you can drop the quelletine door catching anumber of birds within, remove the box and transport the birds in a darkened cage with a miniumn of disturbance. The top of the catch box is overlapping tire tube tthat allows me to remove birds individually to band, doctor, or set up a controlled flush.
Mirrors set beside funnel entrance shortstop birds that may want to walk around the JH base. Once stopped they enter more quickly. This photo may not show the mirrors. I've also enlarged the funnel cover metal walkup, reduced the walkups angle, and painted it with a gritty paint as some birds seemed hesitant to enter if slipping.
Electric call device seems to improve the return of birds being trained to recall.
Hanging PVC feeders and waterer within reduce waste and there is no fouling of water with the nipple waterers. I use them with my homers as well. The pigeons work the nipples as well as do the gamebirds. A dust box within stimulates preening behaviour to assure better plumage and strong flight.
The beauty of the JH is that it's design makes the birds fly up to the light at the upper ledge and keeps the bird's wings from atrophy, ensuring good flights when training the dogs. It also lessens the attraction to predators that would work a open ground recall pen.
I should ad that the JH is built uupon 4x4 synthetic pieces cut sledge like that can be easily pulled by tractor or atv to various sites.
There's no rotting of base nor termite problems with it as well. My older models, even when raised by bricks, the base and flooring were the first to go. Synthetic wood is more expensive, and heavier but will far outlast even treated wood.
A sign in governmental font attached to the pens side announcing that this is a state gamebird research project with my phone number as reseach biologist and asking to please not approach has prevented vandalism.
Bill
The JH itself is of a pretty basic design. Funnels at base, sun porch with ledge on top.
From there I've tried to make improvements to the JH learning from earlier mistakes.
I try to armour the house as best as I can from the perimeter cattle fence, solar hot wire and welded wire protective base. I'm even fooling with a Big Ben Alarm clock that when alarm is set it will lower from the key a pulley which would close up the house after the last bird is in.
Another key component to a JH would be the catch box verenda on the opposite side of the JHdoor. The design allows you to fly birds out the other side without handling them. Or you can drop the quelletine door catching anumber of birds within, remove the box and transport the birds in a darkened cage with a miniumn of disturbance. The top of the catch box is overlapping tire tube tthat allows me to remove birds individually to band, doctor, or set up a controlled flush.
Mirrors set beside funnel entrance shortstop birds that may want to walk around the JH base. Once stopped they enter more quickly. This photo may not show the mirrors. I've also enlarged the funnel cover metal walkup, reduced the walkups angle, and painted it with a gritty paint as some birds seemed hesitant to enter if slipping.
Electric call device seems to improve the return of birds being trained to recall.
Hanging PVC feeders and waterer within reduce waste and there is no fouling of water with the nipple waterers. I use them with my homers as well. The pigeons work the nipples as well as do the gamebirds. A dust box within stimulates preening behaviour to assure better plumage and strong flight.
The beauty of the JH is that it's design makes the birds fly up to the light at the upper ledge and keeps the bird's wings from atrophy, ensuring good flights when training the dogs. It also lessens the attraction to predators that would work a open ground recall pen.
I should ad that the JH is built uupon 4x4 synthetic pieces cut sledge like that can be easily pulled by tractor or atv to various sites.
There's no rotting of base nor termite problems with it as well. My older models, even when raised by bricks, the base and flooring were the first to go. Synthetic wood is more expensive, and heavier but will far outlast even treated wood.
A sign in governmental font attached to the pens side announcing that this is a state gamebird research project with my phone number as reseach biologist and asking to please not approach has prevented vandalism.
Bill
-
Duane M
- Rank: Champion
- Posts: 316
- Joined: Tue Apr 20, 2004 3:15 pm
- Location: Oklahoma
Bill thanks for the veranda idea and the pic of yours. I am rebuilding a couple of my houses next spring and will add that in. I fly my JH birds usually but being able to catch a few for launcher work is a hassle, ya know if you have ever tried to catch a bird without that veranda.
The barrel houses like on the upland link are great and I have used them in the past fro several years. A few things with them I found is make sure you keep the house elevated and move them frequently to cut down disease. I was dissapointed with the birds flight from them in comparison to the standard JH though. The elevated perch does not seem like much but studies have shown that a quails most effort is in the takeoff not the distance flight and that small 5 ft. flight really helps. Nowdays I use the barrel houses more as release conditioning tools than actual training houses, just works better it seems.
When you begin releasing birds only turn out a few at a time that helps reduce the chance of the birds forming their own covey instead of recallling. Also when you put the birds in use the recall funnel, they definitely recall more surely that way. When the birds have been in for three weeks to a month, closer to a month actually, I have been able to trun the whole batch loose and have them alll recall. The initial setup is the most important part I have found.
The barrel houses like on the upland link are great and I have used them in the past fro several years. A few things with them I found is make sure you keep the house elevated and move them frequently to cut down disease. I was dissapointed with the birds flight from them in comparison to the standard JH though. The elevated perch does not seem like much but studies have shown that a quails most effort is in the takeoff not the distance flight and that small 5 ft. flight really helps. Nowdays I use the barrel houses more as release conditioning tools than actual training houses, just works better it seems.
When you begin releasing birds only turn out a few at a time that helps reduce the chance of the birds forming their own covey instead of recallling. Also when you put the birds in use the recall funnel, they definitely recall more surely that way. When the birds have been in for three weeks to a month, closer to a month actually, I have been able to trun the whole batch loose and have them alll recall. The initial setup is the most important part I have found.
-
Wagonmaster
- GDF Junkie
- Posts: 3372
- Joined: Thu Jun 16, 2005 10:22 am
- Location: Minneapolis, MN
The biggest problem I have with callback birds is predation. Up until about a year and a half ago I was lucky to get 10% of the birds back, the rest were picked up by predators along the way. I had my house armored like Bill's, but was still losing them. One morning I was out changing the feed and found the problem, there was a mother hawk in the top of a tree about a hundred yards away screaming at me to let some go, her kids were hungry.
I even had a fence around the JH like Bill's, but that did not help.
What finally solved my predation problem is not for everyone. I had the JH in an old pasture where I used to keep horses. I rebuilt the pasture fence and put two 1,000 pound Tennessee Walking guard dogs in it. That solved the problem and the fence only cost about $15,000.
I have also found that using a drip waterer is way better than the fount water's, the water stays clean and it takes up way less space. I got mine from a poultry equipment supplier called Gillis, you can find them on the Internet, but there is one made just for JH's that you can find on the upland site.
I even had a fence around the JH like Bill's, but that did not help.
What finally solved my predation problem is not for everyone. I had the JH in an old pasture where I used to keep horses. I rebuilt the pasture fence and put two 1,000 pound Tennessee Walking guard dogs in it. That solved the problem and the fence only cost about $15,000.
I have also found that using a drip waterer is way better than the fount water's, the water stays clean and it takes up way less space. I got mine from a poultry equipment supplier called Gillis, you can find them on the Internet, but there is one made just for JH's that you can find on the upland site.
-
gunner
- Rank: 4X Champion
- Posts: 603
- Joined: Tue Jan 04, 2005 2:47 pm
- Location: Indianapolis, IN. USA
FTBritts,
No, I'm sorry I don't. I had a fella sit down with me and we pretty much sketched it out. He's a good wood worker. Overall it's approx. 4'x4'x8'. There's a 4" ledge around the windows in the upper part for the birds to fly up to.
Email me if there is a particular question on it's constuction if you like.
John,
The Coopers hawks just keep getting worse. Had one this AM land on the homer loft.
The Audubon Society's Christmas Bird count has shown a 500 % increase in this species in the last 20 years.
Bill
No, I'm sorry I don't. I had a fella sit down with me and we pretty much sketched it out. He's a good wood worker. Overall it's approx. 4'x4'x8'. There's a 4" ledge around the windows in the upper part for the birds to fly up to.
Email me if there is a particular question on it's constuction if you like.
John,
The Coopers hawks just keep getting worse. Had one this AM land on the homer loft.
The Audubon Society's Christmas Bird count has shown a 500 % increase in this species in the last 20 years.
Bill
-
gonehuntin'
- GDF Junkie
- Posts: 4878
- Joined: Tue Dec 12, 2006 5:38 pm
- Location: NE WI.