# How Many Clutches A Year?



## Daniel Scuiry (Sep 5, 2001)

My Fantails are two weeks into brooding over two new young. It looks like the hen might be getting ready for another clutch. She has had five clutches this year, this is the first brood. How many clutches do Fantails have per year? I thought we were past the breeding season?

Best,

d.


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## Pigeonrh (Oct 3, 2001)

Hi,
They could breed all winter, do you have the lights on?

Ryan


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## bigbird (Aug 19, 2000)

If the conditions are right pigeons will breed all year. Need warmth during the winter to continue the breeding and keep the squabs warm. Might try taking away the new eggs until your current squabs are grown and safe. Don't push them to hard because they can become sick from to much responsibility.
Regards,
Carl


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## Scuiry (Jul 11, 2001)

This may have been a false alarm. Hopefully at least.

The hen has stopped acting like she's getting ready to lay again and has gone back to her brooding and feeding routine.

The other poster asked if I have the lights on. Yes, for eighteen to twenty hours a day.

The brood is coming along. One squab is also noticeably larger than the other - about a third larger. For two weeks old it's a big baby. I hope the other gets enough crop milk from the parents or it may end up with a tiny Fantail...

d.



> Originally posted by bigbird:
> *If the conditions are right pigeons will breed all year. Need warmth during the winter to continue the breeding and keep the squabs warm. Might try taking away the new eggs until your current squabs are grown and safe. Don't push them to hard because they can become sick from to much responsibility.
> Regards,
> Carl*


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## bigbird (Aug 19, 2000)

The smaller baby you will need to watch very close because the larger baby will hog the food and the smaller baby my die from starvation. If it looks like the baby is not getting enough food, you can begin to hand feed until it learns to self-feed.
Regards,
Carl


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## Daniel Scuiry (Sep 5, 2001)

I tried syringe feeding my others once with no success. I'm not very good at invasive techniques, especially living alone with no one to help. Any suggestions?

d.



> Originally posted by bigbird:
> *The smaller baby you will need to watch very close because the larger baby will hog the food and the smaller baby my die from starvation. If it looks like the baby is not getting enough food, you can begin to hand feed until it learns to self-feed.
> Regards,
> Carl*


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Hi Daniel,

It has been my experience that young birds will readily "adapt" to whatever your feeding technique may be. I swear by feeding needles and truly believe that any of us who care for young birds or sick or injured birds should have these on hand ... go to www.feedingtech.com to check on these. I like the curved ones. They are a bit pricey, but you really only need one. You can easily see and feel when you have the end of the feeding needle in the crop and then just "shoot" the food in from the syringe.

Otherwise, a plain old syringe or eye dropper works well ... the baby will help you to "adapt" to it. Failing this, soak or nuke in the microwave some dry cat or kitten food and water or unflavored Pedialyte and just place pieces of the soft food in the mouth of the bird. Avian vitamins can also easily be added to the soaked food. This technique totally avoids any possibility of aspiration and still gets good nutrition into the bird.
I have a rehabber friend who rarely syringe feeds and almost always uses the soaked dry food with great success.

Best of luck to you and your little one. Please keep us posted.

Terry Whatley


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