These valley quail chicks hatched out today from some eggs I got from Travis Proctor in Nephi, UT. It was fun to visit his gamebird farm and see his small quail and chukar operation. I also got some french red leg partridge eggs from him but the hatch was not as good as the valley quail. The next day I had a dozen bobwhite quail chicks hatch from some of my breeder that I got from Travis last summer. If you are in Utah and need some birds or chicks for dog training give Travis a call. Email me for his phone number or you can check out his page on the game bird breeders directory.
Raising Gamebirds
DIY, Game Birds, Incubators and Hatching, Raising Chicks
Now that the hunting season is actually over I have spent some time in the woodshop working on upgrading the pigeon coops. I have two seperate coops for raising pigeons for the purpose of dog training. Today I found an abandoned shelf project that was collecting dust in the corner of my shop. With a little work I was able to convert it into some overflow nesting boxes for my white pigeons. The perches on the front are made with 2×2 lumber scraps. I also had to glue in blocker peices to keep any nesting materials or eggs from falling out of the nest. The pigeons seem to like the extra space. This week I hope to explore my options of raising some chukar and pheasant chicks from eggs. When researching such topics about gamebirds I usually consult the folks at That Quail Place Forums.
Raising Gamebirds
DIY, Gun Dog Training, Pigeons for Training
Through all of my reading and learning about dog training I have found it impossible to train a bird dog without access to plenty of birds. This week I finished construction on a small pigeon coop in the corner of my existing chicken coop. I framed in a 4×8 area with a raised wire floor next to a window. It should work well for 6-8 breeding pairs of pigeons.
In the rear of the pigeon coop is a small window that opens to an outside aviary where they can perch and get some fresh air. When my little flock of pigeons gets larger I will fly my younger birds and train them to home back to the aviary. The two pigeons in the pictures are common barn pigeons that I trapped.
The nesting boxes were built above the window to the aviary. There is room for 6 breeding pairs of pigeons with the current setup. I placed some grit on the floor with clean water, food and straw for nesting materials. Next week I will purchase a few breeding pairs of roller pigeons from a neighbor. These are basically his culls that don’t fly/roll as well as he would like. Should be perfect for bird dog training.
Raising Gamebirds
DIY, Game Birds, Pigeons for Training
