# Roller feed



## Diezel111 (May 25, 2013)

I have 9 rollers and each gets 1 tablespoon of feed once a day but they seem to only fly max of 5 mins they have been wormed and the feed is just a basic pigeon mix what am I doing wrong thanks in advance


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## logangrmnr (Jul 14, 2010)

Your birds might not be getting enough feed. They will only fly with the amount fuel in there tank. Check there body to see if there to slim. You might want to bump it up a little. See if that helps there flight times. If it does great. The birds will tell you how much they need by how they fly. Some people either feed to much or not enough. Get your self a ball to help flag them up. Some times they need a little motivation to stay up. Find some one near you that flies rollers to help you. A mentor might see something your missing. Hope this helps


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## Diezel111 (May 25, 2013)

Ok I have a ball but they wise to that they just land on opposite house lol
I will try upping feed then thanks


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## beau brum (Jul 3, 2013)

*rollers*

Hi how old are your birds . I give my birds a good half pint of mix for 8 birds and that seems about right for mine . I m fairly new to keeping rollers and always looking for advice so I dont claim to be expert but can only tell you what works for me .


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## Diezel111 (May 25, 2013)

I have youngsters about 5/6 month and adult pairs 2yrs plus thanks


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## beau brum (Jul 3, 2013)

Youngsters need to build up their strenght I use bamfords super young bird mix after much experimenting this one seems to work . The recent hot weather seems to be holding them down . Are they starting to roll okay


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## amaughlofts (Jan 9, 2013)

What are they kept in (photo please) what are you feeding them?


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## Diezel111 (May 25, 2013)

Diezel111 said:


> I have youngsters about 5/6 month and adult pairs 2yrs plus thanks


It's just a basic mix I got off eBay I'm off to feed store tomorrow see what they have


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## beau brum (Jul 3, 2013)

Hope all goes well mate . The mix I recommended is maize free and I get very little wastage too from the birds compared to other mixes


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## Diezel111 (May 25, 2013)

Got top flight super young bird will give that a go thanks everyone


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## amaughlofts (Jan 9, 2013)

My suggestion would be to use the top flight yb mix for your breeders only. And use a 50/50 mix of milo & wheat for the youngsters maybe a few peas. Normally at five to six months you should be getting good fly time unless they have never been flown by the previous owner. Young birds have to fly in order to develop the roll. Pm me your email address and I will invite you to a social network dedicated to Roller Pigeons, good luck


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## Diezel111 (May 25, 2013)

Inboxed you email thanks


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## Diezel111 (May 25, 2013)

What is milo looked here in uk can't find it


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## earlofwood (Jul 1, 2012)

Milo is sometimes called Grain Sorgham. That might be how it is referred to in the UK.


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## indigobob (Nov 12, 2008)

Diezel111 said:


> What is milo looked here in uk can't find it


Hello Diezel,

In the UK milo is called white dari.

I use Bamfords breed and wean, wheat and red dari. 

For example for 20 youngsters I would feed approx. half a baked bean tin of breed and wean, approx. half a tin of wheat and two handfuls of red dari, all fed separately. My youngsters will fly for about an hour on this and trap quickly.

I vary the amounts and combinations of the feed; because the breed and wean has a variety of seeds, some birds will favour a particular seed, this results in a difference in performance, consequently kitting can become a bit erratic. To counteract this I will feed only wheat (about a tin and a half) to "level them out" for a day or two, with perhaps some red dari.

I keep my birds in kit boxes and fly the youngsters most days, adults I will fly two or three times a week, weather permitting.

There are so many variables to contend with to get a good kit in the air - feed, weather, moult, age of birds, family of birds, etc. 

I have been flying Rollers for six years, so I'm still a novice, but what I have outlined above works OK for me. 

A lot of trial and error is involved before you find a system that works for you and the family of birds you are working with.

Good luck


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## amaughlofts (Jan 9, 2013)

Milo or as we call it Sorghum (sorry I thought I was using the more popular term) It would be more likely to be called Red Dari. As the seed is red, not white


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## earlofwood (Jul 1, 2012)

Just wondering, how many fluid ounces in a baked bean tin?


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## laughingdog (Jun 14, 2011)

I Use one standard U.S. mesuring cup. per two to four birds depending, i use a fourth cup. i feed mostly wild bird seed, and calcium carbonate and sand grit. feed contains mostly (a green scratch feed at our co-op, for chickens): milo, wheat, millet, sunflower seed. I had a great scratch grain that was pretty complete. Can't remember what was all containing besides: peas, wheat, milo. had them on "manna pro conditioner", but expensive. purina pigeon food was worse than decent scratch, as mostly corn in gold, and soy in green, with molasses added and expensive for it, and gave birds the poops, thirsty constantly from added salt also, made hyper/nervous but weak, and created terrible constant molting and dander trouble. My birds are currently. rolling. ten to twenty feet.


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## 2y4life (Apr 5, 2010)

I have 15 birds and I feed them 2 US measuring cups a day. Some birds need more, others need less and with my birds I am flying, 2 cups works just fine.


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