VMD 513: Pet animal Breeding, Management, Nutrition and Health Care (1+1)

Split ring

SPLIT RINGS

• Split rings can be fitted to any bird at any age, and are purely used as a means of easy identification of birds especially by breeders.
• For example fanciers often ring all the young from each particular pair of birds with same colour split rings.
• This enables the breeder to see at a glance which pair produced which youngsters without having to catch up individuals to check their ring numbers.
• Breeders who have birds which are adults, and have not been close rung, may find it an advantage to ring their stock with numbered split rings, so that each individual bird can be identified in breeding records.
• A special tool to enable split rings to be fitted to birds is usually supplied with each order of split rings.
• Split rings can be purchased either in a coloured plastic form or as aluminium rings. Both forms can carry a personal identification number, stock number or year identifier.
• Aluminium split rings should be closed with the correct size of ringing pliers, this will ensure that the ring remains round and does not create an oval shaped ring thus hurting the bird's leg. Many single or bi-colours are available in the plastic form.