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Thought for the Novice |
Terry Hughes (Bentley West) |
Published: NTU Yearbook 1986 |
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Thought for the Novice
by Terry Hughes (Bentley
West)
Food is required by pigeons in two main forms. The first is carbohydrates
containing carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. The second is in a form of proteins
where the same three elements are combined in a different way but with
nitrogen. The carbohydrates are the energy giving foods and the proteins are
the body building foods. A typical carbohydrate in the human diet is bread and
a typical protein is meat.
CARBOHYDRATES
These, as they are digested,
are turned from their starches into forms of sugar which can be absorbed into
the bloodstream. In the bloodstream they pass all around the body to give
energy to the muscles and organs of the birds. The digestive process in which
these starches are broken down is comparatively simple. If the bird is overfed
on carbohydrates like humans who eat too many starchy foods, the bird will put
on weight and after a time get fat. Up to a point this will not hurt too much
since a small amount of fat provides a reserve supply of energy. Roughly
speaking, a bird obtains energy by first drawing on the sugars in the
bloodstream of the muscles and the liver. It then draws on the sugars in the
bloodstream of other parts of the body, including freshly digested food just
consumed. After the bird has exhausted the sugar in the bloodstream it will
start to draw on its reserves of fat. Even if a bird feels quite hard to the
touch, the reserves can be considerable and the loss of weight of a bird during
hard training or an endurance fly is due partly to this reabsorption of fat
into the bloodstream. Birds are known to lose at least over 5 per cent of their
weight. It is obvious that a little bit of extra flesh won't hurt (so long as
it is not too fat) and would be useful in a hard or long hours fly.
PROTEINS
Proteins when they are digested, instead of forming sugars,
form amino acids and these amino
acids are transported like the sugars through the body by the blood. Amino
acids form the basis of bone, featherand muscle of the birds body. No less than
25 per cent of the protein that a bird eats is used in the making of its coat
for all weathers (feathers). It is therefore obvious that during the growth of
a Squeaker and during the moult any shortage of protein will show itself in
poorly developed birds. Protein is also the food that replaces worn out tissues
in the birds body. The strain of a long hard fly not only uses up energy
supplies, but at the same time causes a certain amount of muscle tissue to be
worn out. This must be replaced
with muscle building protein, (most essential). I hope from
this you can see that although carbohydrates are of greatest importance before
a competition, (incidentally I feed a lot of plain canary seed before a
competition) after the fly proteins are essential for rebuilding.
VITAMINS
The main fat soluble vitamins are A, D and E, but vitamin A
is the most important, because if there is a shortage the bird will be more
liable to disease and growth will be restricted. It is normally found in only
just sufficient quantities in maple peas, tic beans and yellow maize. It is
present in considerable amounts in the green leaves of cabbage and lettuce. I
make sure my birds get enough by giving them approximately 1 teaspoonful of
commercial Cod Liver Oil to 14 pounds of seed or corn.
VITAM1N D
Vitamin D will also be found in Cod Liver Oil, but is
obtained naturally by the direct action of sunlight on the birds body. Vitamins
A and D act together rather curiously, if extra large amounts of Vitamin D are
given then it will counteract the Vitamin A. Pause for thought. Vitamin D is
also necessary for the formation of strong bones, also the shells of the eggs,
have you ever had soft shelled eggs?
VITAMIN E
I have found this vitamin good for fertilization in the
birds if given to them at the time of mating and 3 weeks before. It is also
found in abundance in maize, but not in peas or beans. This is another vitamin
I make sure my birds don't go short of because it can be given in a
concentrated form of Wheat Germ Oil.
WATER SOLUBLE VITAMINS
The B complex is the name of a whole group of vitamins that
are split up into Bl, B2 and B12 which I give to my birds in the form of
Cythcon obtained from the Chemist. Vitamin B1 is for a healthy nervous system,
good appetite and digestive function. A diet lacking in B2 will lead to eggs
not hatching out (once again, has this happened to you?) Animal protein factor
(B12) helps change protein foods into amino acids that can be absorbed into the
bloodstream. Certain. forms of protein will not be digested unless minute
amounts of B 12 are available. It is interesting to know that some of the
recipes for Tonic Kakes contain small amounts of meat extract, such as Bovril
or products derived from fish, both sources of animal protein factor BI2.
DIGESTION
In the crop the process of digestion begins. The food they
have eaten is softened and then passed into the glandular stomach. In the
stomach the liquids from the glands are emptied over the food and the process
of breaking it down into its basic elements is continued. From the glandular
stomach the food will move into the gizzard. It is here it is broken down small
enough to be digested completely. The grinding process is accompanied by grit.
It is in the small intestine that the blood begins to play its vital part. It
is here that the digestion is complete and the proteins, carbohydrates, fats,
sugars and starches of the food have been converted into a form of sugar which
has been absorbed into the bloodstream through the walls of the small intestine.
Once it is in the bloodstream, it is pumped round together with the oxygen from
the lungs to feed all parts of the body.
BLOOD
The job of the blood is not finished even at this late
stage. For in addition to the waste matter of indigestible food which is
temporarily stored in the large intestine and then exereted, there are waste
products formed in the internal organs of the bird itself. The white corpusc(es
which destroy disease are themselves destroyed by their own healing action,
these and other waste matters must be filtered from the bloodstream. Alas, this
is the job of the kidneys. The liver is also a blood filter, but the main job
of the liver is to make bile. This bile is poured into the small intestine to
help in the digestion of proteins and fats. Needless to say, both of these
organs must function perfectly if the bird is to be in good health. The
efficient functioning of the kidneys can be seen in the white tippings to the
dark mass of a birds droppings.
I
hope this will be of help in giving you the basic fundamentals of how the birds
body works. With the help of the food percentage chart you will be able to work
some feeds for yourself. I won't bother writing a feed out for competition as
there are so many about and you will only be distracted from your own efforts.
With training in mind, I always start my birds off on a measure of plain barley
for a couple of hours fly. When they have started going into the dark I up the
training time to 5 or 6 hours with 1 %z hours or 2 hours of that in the dark,
by now though, I am giving them a mixture of barley, wheat and white darry made
into one measure. I have tried a few times to keep the birds trained on pure
barley but find the birds don't seem to have it when long hours are on their
backs. Some fliers will prove me wrong I. suppose, but that's my way of
training and my times back me up. When I say a measure I mean one ounce, no
more, no less. Start your feed up on Wednesday night, bearing in mind one
measure per bird. Also a good tonic to give them is 1 teaspoonful of Parrishs'
food along
with 1 teaspoon of Glucose Powder mixed into a pint of warm
water given with the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights feeds. There are
other tonics on the market with a lot more kick to them, but the one above is nice
and simple and well proven. About the fifth or sixth day after competition I
give the birds a good drink of Epsom Salts. One teaspoon to a pint of warm
water. This will give the birds a good clean out which will be better for it as
it will get rid of any toxics left in the digestive system. Then again, a lot
of tliers disagree over this (so try and teach yourselves). I have found the
best way to learn is by your own mistakes and let yourself be the judge. After
all is said and done, even if you hear of a tonic that will make them fly round
the clock or a feed that so and so uses, it will make no difference at all if
the birds have not got it in them to start off with.
The
two main things to look for are proven birds, not something bought from the pet
shop up the road, or one from here, there and everywhere. The second is good
rigorous training, which is a must. There are three main thoughts to bear in
mind, patience, persistance and perseverance. Whether you (7y for pleasure, at
will or are reaching for that first place in competition, don't let bad luck
get you down - we all suffer from it. One of Ihe main Ihings that got me down
in the beginning was why it seemed everybody elses birds flew together in
three's and my birds all the corners of the compass. Anyway, keep on looking,
listening and learning.
Yours in sport,
(Bentley West) TERRY HUGHES.
Yearbook 1986 – NTU Zeljko Fajdetic - Croatia
Thought for the Novice
by Terry Hughes (Bentley
West)
Food is required by pigeons in two main forms. The first is carbohydrates
containing carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. The second is in a form of proteins
where the same three elements are combined in a different way but with
nitrogen. The carbohydrates are the energy giving foods and the proteins are
the body building foods. A typical carbohydrate in the human diet is bread and
a typical protein is meat.
CARBOHYDRATES
These, as they are digested, are turned from their starches into forms of sugar which can be absorbed into the bloodstream. In the bloodstream they pass all around the body to give energy to the muscles and organs of the birds. The digestive process in which these starches are broken down is comparatively simple. If the bird is overfed on carbohydrates like humans who eat too many starchy foods, the bird will put on weight and after a time get fat. Up to a point this will not hurt too much since a small amount of fat provides a reserve supply of energy. Roughly speaking, a bird obtains energy by first drawing on the sugars in the bloodstream of the muscles and the liver. It then draws on the sugars in the bloodstream of other parts of the body, including freshly digested food just consumed. After the bird has exhausted the sugar in the bloodstream it will start to draw on its reserves of fat. Even if a bird feels quite hard to the touch, the reserves can be considerable and the loss of weight of a bird during hard training or an endurance fly is due partly to this reabsorption of fat into the bloodstream. Birds are known to lose at least over 5 per cent of their weight. It is obvious that a little bit of extra flesh won't hurt (so long as it is not too fat) and would be useful in a hard or long hours fly.
PROTEINS
Proteins when they are digested, instead of forming sugars,
form amino acids and these amino
acids are transported like the sugars through the body by the blood. Amino
acids form the basis of bone, featherand muscle of the birds body. No less than
25 per cent of the protein that a bird eats is used in the making of its coat
for all weathers (feathers). It is therefore obvious that during the growth of
a Squeaker and during the moult any shortage of protein will show itself in
poorly developed birds. Protein is also the food that replaces worn out tissues
in the birds body. The strain of a long hard fly not only uses up energy
supplies, but at the same time causes a certain amount of muscle tissue to be
worn out. This must be replaced
with muscle building protein, (most essential). I hope from
this you can see that although carbohydrates are of greatest importance before
a competition, (incidentally I feed a lot of plain canary seed before a
competition) after the fly proteins are essential for rebuilding.
VITAMINS
The main fat soluble vitamins are A, D and E, but vitamin A
is the most important, because if there is a shortage the bird will be more
liable to disease and growth will be restricted. It is normally found in only
just sufficient quantities in maple peas, tic beans and yellow maize. It is
present in considerable amounts in the green leaves of cabbage and lettuce. I
make sure my birds get enough by giving them approximately 1 teaspoonful of
commercial Cod Liver Oil to 14 pounds of seed or corn.
VITAM1N D
Vitamin D will also be found in Cod Liver Oil, but is
obtained naturally by the direct action of sunlight on the birds body. Vitamins
A and D act together rather curiously, if extra large amounts of Vitamin D are
given then it will counteract the Vitamin A. Pause for thought. Vitamin D is
also necessary for the formation of strong bones, also the shells of the eggs,
have you ever had soft shelled eggs?
VITAMIN E
I have found this vitamin good for fertilization in the
birds if given to them at the time of mating and 3 weeks before. It is also
found in abundance in maize, but not in peas or beans. This is another vitamin
I make sure my birds don't go short of because it can be given in a
concentrated form of Wheat Germ Oil.
WATER SOLUBLE VITAMINS
The B complex is the name of a whole group of vitamins that
are split up into Bl, B2 and B12 which I give to my birds in the form of
Cythcon obtained from the Chemist. Vitamin B1 is for a healthy nervous system,
good appetite and digestive function. A diet lacking in B2 will lead to eggs
not hatching out (once again, has this happened to you?) Animal protein factor
(B12) helps change protein foods into amino acids that can be absorbed into the
bloodstream. Certain. forms of protein will not be digested unless minute
amounts of B 12 are available. It is interesting to know that some of the
recipes for Tonic Kakes contain small amounts of meat extract, such as Bovril
or products derived from fish, both sources of animal protein factor BI2.
DIGESTION
In the crop the process of digestion begins. The food they
have eaten is softened and then passed into the glandular stomach. In the
stomach the liquids from the glands are emptied over the food and the process
of breaking it down into its basic elements is continued. From the glandular
stomach the food will move into the gizzard. It is here it is broken down small
enough to be digested completely. The grinding process is accompanied by grit.
It is in the small intestine that the blood begins to play its vital part. It
is here that the digestion is complete and the proteins, carbohydrates, fats,
sugars and starches of the food have been converted into a form of sugar which
has been absorbed into the bloodstream through the walls of the small intestine.
Once it is in the bloodstream, it is pumped round together with the oxygen from
the lungs to feed all parts of the body.
BLOOD
The job of the blood is not finished even at this late
stage. For in addition to the waste matter of indigestible food which is
temporarily stored in the large intestine and then exereted, there are waste
products formed in the internal organs of the bird itself. The white corpusc(es
which destroy disease are themselves destroyed by their own healing action,
these and other waste matters must be filtered from the bloodstream. Alas, this
is the job of the kidneys. The liver is also a blood filter, but the main job
of the liver is to make bile. This bile is poured into the small intestine to
help in the digestion of proteins and fats. Needless to say, both of these
organs must function perfectly if the bird is to be in good health. The
efficient functioning of the kidneys can be seen in the white tippings to the
dark mass of a birds droppings.
I
hope this will be of help in giving you the basic fundamentals of how the birds
body works. With the help of the food percentage chart you will be able to work
some feeds for yourself. I won't bother writing a feed out for competition as
there are so many about and you will only be distracted from your own efforts.
With training in mind, I always start my birds off on a measure of plain barley
for a couple of hours fly. When they have started going into the dark I up the
training time to 5 or 6 hours with 1 %z hours or 2 hours of that in the dark,
by now though, I am giving them a mixture of barley, wheat and white darry made
into one measure. I have tried a few times to keep the birds trained on pure
barley but find the birds don't seem to have it when long hours are on their
backs. Some fliers will prove me wrong I. suppose, but that's my way of
training and my times back me up. When I say a measure I mean one ounce, no
more, no less. Start your feed up on Wednesday night, bearing in mind one
measure per bird. Also a good tonic to give them is 1 teaspoonful of Parrishs'
food along
with 1 teaspoon of Glucose Powder mixed into a pint of warm
water given with the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights feeds. There are
other tonics on the market with a lot more kick to them, but the one above is nice
and simple and well proven. About the fifth or sixth day after competition I
give the birds a good drink of Epsom Salts. One teaspoon to a pint of warm
water. This will give the birds a good clean out which will be better for it as
it will get rid of any toxics left in the digestive system. Then again, a lot
of tliers disagree over this (so try and teach yourselves). I have found the
best way to learn is by your own mistakes and let yourself be the judge. After
all is said and done, even if you hear of a tonic that will make them fly round
the clock or a feed that so and so uses, it will make no difference at all if
the birds have not got it in them to start off with.
The
two main things to look for are proven birds, not something bought from the pet
shop up the road, or one from here, there and everywhere. The second is good
rigorous training, which is a must. There are three main thoughts to bear in
mind, patience, persistance and perseverance. Whether you (7y for pleasure, at
will or are reaching for that first place in competition, don't let bad luck
get you down - we all suffer from it. One of Ihe main Ihings that got me down
in the beginning was why it seemed everybody elses birds flew together in
three's and my birds all the corners of the compass. Anyway, keep on looking,
listening and learning.
Yours in sport,
(Bentley West) TERRY HUGHES.
Yearbook 1986 – NTU Zeljko Fajdetic - Croatia
04/11/2002 Zeljko Fajdetic - Crikvenica
© Copyright 1998 by Zeljko Fajdetic - C R O A T I A