# settling old bird prisoners



## tommymartin (Nov 26, 2009)

I am writing an article for our club about resettling homers that are prisoners and would like to hear your techniques if you are willing to share them.
I will post the full article here when I am finished.
Here are a few questions to help.
How old of a bird have you resettled?
How long do you keep a bird before trying to resettle?
How do you resettle?


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## sky tx (Mar 1, 2005)

The amount of birds we are lossing--because of several reasons- If the bird is not worth making it a Prison "Breeder" don't try to resettle it. If you try to resettle it-"MARK" it lost or very lucky. Yes we all have been lucky resettleing older birds BUT it took lots of Cig's and coffee.


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## Kevin (May 13, 2009)

sky tx said:


> The amount of birds we are lossing--because of several reasons- If the bird is not worth making it a Prison "Breeder" don't try to resettle it. If you try to resettle it-"MARK" it lost or very lucky. Yes we all have been lucky resettleing older birds BUT it took lots of Cig's and coffee.


Right on, skytx.

I also have heard that it is possible to resettle twice or three times depending on the age. I'm guessing the younger, the better.


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## Mindy (Apr 2, 2009)

EVERY BIRD IS WORTH LETTING THEM LIVE!!!! EVERYBIRD HAS A RIGHT TO LIVE AND IF BEING PRISONERS OF A LOFT THEN LET THEM BE PRISONERS. 

What do birds have to be NOT WORTH MAKING PRISON "BREEDER". I don't think people should choose, o' that bird lives and that birds doesn't live and it dies by your hands. AWFUL!! mindy


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## JRNY (Nov 17, 2009)

Even though I use to do it with fancy birds that where older or that I use to catch from the neighbor 1 block away. I always let them out right before dark a couple of times with others. Then let them out in the morning and a good percentage use to stay.

Or like yesterday. I let out an older 09 homer.That was already flying. Owner that sold it to me is like 3 miles away.
I kept its mate in the screen so it could see it. I will do this for awhile. Hopefully it will stay. I think a big part of resettling is keeping it in the aviary for a while. Just my opinions.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

IMO, I do not think there is such a thing as resettling, the bird just decides to not fly "home" for one reason or another, which we can only guess at, they always have the chance of taking off oneday, and alot do, ending up who knows where if his last home or loft is gone, so I would say, keep them as prisoners and don't even bother. JMO


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## Mindy (Apr 2, 2009)

There are many stories on here where they usually end up flying home, there first home. One recently flew 1500 miles. I think you should just keep them prisoners also, build them a nice outside aviary and they will be happy. But I wouldn't do what Sky Tx suggested. Mark that one lucky and that one unlucky. Keep them all and enjoy them. min


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## windmill Ranch (Sep 18, 2009)

I have several friends who race homers. I have purchased some of the older birds they have. This is what they told me to do and it has worked for me. 
1 - Make sure your new older homers have a pen that goes outside. So they can get use to and see around the new home place.
2 - Pair them up and have them raise up atleast one set of babies. 
3 - Then put the cock birds in one pen and the hens in another. Put the older cock birds with a group of cock birds you normally fly. Make sure the older cock bird can see his mate. In the other pen.
4 - Trap train them to your loft system. Small cage outside the trap with a few birds already use to your trap system. Call them for feeding time.
5 - Don't feed the cock birds the day you plan to set him free. Make him hungry.
6 - After a week of being seperated but still seeing the hens. Set the cock bird free with a group of cock birds who are use to your system. (About an hour or so before dark). 
7 - After 5 to 10 min. Call them to come and eat. The old cock bird will fallow the other cock birds back in.
8 - After a few days of doing this. Do the same with the hens. They now have a new home.

I have purchased several birds from a friend who only lives a 1/2 mile from me. These are older birds. He would race them from 30 miles away every weekend for years. Not one bird has gone back to the old home. And I have not lost one either. Jim


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## Flying Jay (Jul 6, 2009)

windmill Ranch said:


> I have several friends who race homers. I have purchased some of the older birds they have. This is what they told me to do and it has worked for me.
> 1 - Make sure your new older homers have a pen that goes outside. So they can get use to and see around the new home place.
> 2 - Pair them up and have them raise up atleast one set of babies.
> 3 - Then put the cock birds in one pen and the hens in another. Put the older cock birds with a group of cock birds you normally fly. Make sure the older cock bird can see his mate. In the other pen.
> ...


sweet! thanks for the input!


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## Alamo (Nov 22, 2008)

WINDMILL RANCH is 95% right....The other 5% IS.....When the birds you are trying to resettle HAVE babies in the nest at 12 to 14 days old,then let them come out to fly...The instinct to take care of the babies supercedes all the other mentalities to go back to where they came from....I learned this the HARD way..I moved my lofts 2 years in a row,and I finally got the birds to even RACE to the new 3rd location..They have to fly right by the OLD location 6 miles away to get home to the new loft area.....It is wize to have some other of YOUR OWN birds at the same time to YB`s the same age as the NEW birds..Just in case the NEW birds decide to take off,and not come back untill the next day or if they ever come back to you...You can let other birds FEED the YB`s of the new birds you are trying to break....The age of the NEW birds is not that important...It`s harder to resettle younger birds because they were probally being RACED just before you got them...Older birds who have not been raced in a few years seem to be a little easier to settle...Take it slow with them,and you should be OK..Good Luck !!!........Alamo


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## LUCKYT (Jan 17, 2009)

Sorry, if they are true homers, and have the blood behind them, they will go home. Settling might work with some sprint strains, but if a long distance bird resettles, i would find a new home for it. Dave


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## Alamo (Nov 22, 2008)

I have DISTANCE birds,and my birds have been RESETTLED and RACED to a NEW LOCATION.....Whether sprint or distance is of no consequence....It`s up to the loft mgr. to do the things CORRECTLY,if he/she wants to resettle the birds...Alamo 

PS:If you don`t beleive me,click on the IRPC web address below....On the HOME page,click on FEDERATION RACES....Then click on the FEDERATION 400 & 500 mile 2009 races..Look for #7833 DCWFC...Alamo Loft..54th on the 400M,which is a 500 miler for my Combine,and the same pigeon on the 500 mile race,a 600M for my combine at 136th position..This is a 2007 bird raced out of my old loft TWO locations ago....WHO SAY`S YOU CAN`T GET A BIRD TO RACE TO A NEW LOFT LOCATION ??????.....Alamo


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## windmill Ranch (Sep 18, 2009)

HI,
I am sorry not to be rude. My friends who race homers. Raise and pay big money for the racers they have. They have raced for orver 20 years every weekend. And they told me how to resettle the birds. It can be done. I have the proof in my loft.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

Alamo said:


> I have DISTANCE birds,and my birds have been RESETTLED and RACED to a NEW LOCATION.....Whether sprint or distance is of no consequence....It`s up to the loft mgr. to do the things CORRECTLY,if he/she wants to resettle the birds...Alamo
> 
> PS:If you don`t beleive me,click on the IRPC web address below....On the HOME page,click on FEDERATION RACES....Then click on the FEDERATION 400 & 500 mile 2009 races..Look for #7833 DCWFC...Alamo Loft..54th on the 400M,which is a 500 miler for my Combine,and the same pigeon on the 500 mile race,a 600M for my combine at 136th position..This is a 2007 bird raced out of my old loft TWO locations ago....WHO SAY`S YOU CAN`T GET A BIRD TO RACE TO A NEW LOFT LOCATION ??????.....Alamo


how did YOU get the bird to decide to fly to the new loft location?


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## Alamo (Nov 22, 2008)

I got ALL my birds to fly/race to the NEW location by 1st only letting them out when they had babies in the nest....This REENFORCES their BOND to the NEW location....When they are on the 2nd set of eggs,and the babies in the nest are around 24 days old,and they have been loft flying for a month or more at the new location,then I started taking them out training real close to home...1 mile...3 miles....6 miles....10 miles.....I allways made sure they HAD to PASS the old location to get home once I reached the 10 mile training spot...They have to learn to pass up the old place,and go to the new place...NEVER train the COCKS and HENS at the same time...Train the HENS first....Once the HENS take to the new location,the Cocks will not leave THEM,or the babies....Some birds can be a little hard to convince,to stay at the new place...But motherhood is a big deal to a HEN....Once you convince HER to stay,things get alot better....This whole training to a new location takes alot of time.....The first thing is to have the birds in an avairy,so they can see around as much as they can...Give them their weekly bath out on the landing board in the avairy....After say 2 months,and if it`s the breeding season,you can do what I have suggested above....You must not try to relocate the birds during the winter..There is NO drive to mate,raise babies etc for them...They will not stay with you at this time of the year....Another thing which is a GOOD thing to do is....When you are ready to let them out for the first time,and ofcourse they have babies in the nest,let them have their bath pan..Once they are ALL WET,take away the flight cage,so they can come out and take the sun and dry up outside....All you really want them to do at this time is get relaxed to being outside the loft on the roof top...You really don`t want them to start flying yet....Some guys SOAP the wings of the birds so that they cannot hardly fly..Liquid soap that you wash your hands with....The only BAD thing about this is the HAWKS can get them real easy,while they are sitting out on the roof top.....Take it slow with the new birds,and you can get them HOMED to your place...Letting them out with your OLD birds to fly is not going to work,as someone else here has said...They will break away from them and go back to where they were born....You have to make them ADOPT the NEW loft location....And the method used to accomplish this is the Motherhood method...
Good Luck......Alamo
PS:If your NEW birds are say cocks,mate them to YOUR hens that you have BRED at your loft..This will make the transistion alot easier for you....Since I moved my lofts,I had to do it the way I did above.....Alamo


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## Mindy (Apr 2, 2009)

Alamo, Thanks for letting everyone know your method. I'm curious, what is the percentage that you have lost to the birds that leave and go home to there old loft? And how many birds have you lost to hawks with soap on there wings? Have you had anyone leave there babies and never be seen again? Thank you, min

P.S. AMAZING!!


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## JRNY (Nov 17, 2009)

These pics where taken today.
The bars are mated. The male on the left 09 and the other is a hen 08. The splash is 09.
The splash and male out for 4 days. The 08 out for 2 days.The 08 I had since Nov 20.
I took a chance with the 08 having it only 2 weeks. So far so good.


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## Guest (Dec 4, 2009)

this still doesnt mean its going to take everytime... everytime you try to resettle a bird you are still taking the chance of losing that bird .


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## justin4pcd (Sep 7, 2008)

Finally, someone with a method.


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## Mindy (Apr 2, 2009)

I think NO Matter what you are going to do what you want to do. But if you are going to resettle them. PLEASE FOLLOW what Alamo said step by step. Its going to take A LOT of patience and time. I'm sure there is NO easy way to do it. But I do think Alamo had the best way. min


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

That does make sense and is very interesting.... but of course I would not fly birds on eggs/babies....its just me...do not like to hand feed babies if one does not come back or BOP has gotten him/her...the parents do it better.


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## Alamo (Nov 22, 2008)

In 2007...I was at my old location,for 23 years.....I moved my lofts to a ladies property for one year,untill I could find a permanent location..I held the birds in for 4 months...I let them out,and they ALL went back to the old place...I did not have them on eggs or babies..The hawks got 11 of the 20 birds....
In 2008...In the location I am at now,I didn`t let them out untill they had YB`s in the nest...A few went back to the ladies location,but came back that day,and never went back...The YB`s that I flew from the ladies home in 2008,went back a day or two,and then they stopped and never went back again....All these birds raced in 2009 to the new location I`m at now....Remember,the 2007 birds or older,flew to TWO new locations...You have to make them BOND to the NEW loft area....
As I said before in the other post..If say I gave you 4 birds..2 hens and 2 cocks..And you wanted to fly them around your loft,or even race them...It would be wise to mate them to 2 hens and 2 cocks of your breeding..That way 1/2 of the pair is allready trained to the loft,and when a pair BONDS to each other,especially if they have eggs/babies,they usually will not leave.....Alamo


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## Guest (Dec 4, 2009)

if it was true that you could resettle all these old birds as long as they were on youngsters or eggs then why have we read so many stories of this nature :"one of my prisoner birds got out today and flew away ,they were on babys , will the other parent be able to raise the babys by itself "... I myself have lost at least 3 birds like this while on youngsters and eggs and they never looked back .


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## Mindy (Apr 2, 2009)

Alamo, Have you had any of your birds abandon there babies? They still had the other parent to raise them, but did any of them leave there mate? Sorry for the questions, I'm finding your theory very interesting. I don't know if I would ever be brave enough to do it, but very interesting. Thank you, min


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## Alamo (Nov 22, 2008)

I have not lost any babies to this method....You have to remember,just like children,some birds can be very stubborn....There are a few that will not conform to the new loft....Nothing in this hobby is 100% the same all the time....We all find this out as time goes by...All you can do is try...If your not sure it will work,do not do it...OR...you can soap the birds wings as I said before...Be very carefull if you do...You will have to stay with them every minute they are outside,if you soap their wings....Also they will have to he a little hungry,so they will go inside after a while.....Alamo


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