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

HOUSING REQUIREMENT FOR PIGEONS

• The loft building should be constructed to enable easy cleaning and permit good sanitation.
• Smooth concrete floor sloping to wards the door (1 in 10 feet) can be easily washed down after each flock.
• Loft windows and doors should also be screened and be designed to close securely to exclude birds and rodents.
• The building should face the sun. Sun light no only aids dryness but is beneficial to the birds by stimulating laying activity.
• Clean loft window or skylights permit entrance of ultraviolet rays, which activate the pro-vitamin D within the skin of the birds, thus promoting health.
• In a loft normally house 20 pairs of pigeons in a pen with on to three pair per square meter.
• Each breeding pen should contain 40 nest boxes (e per pair), one self feeder, one drinker and a perch area.
• Hoppers and water pans should be designed to exclude the feet of birds and bird droppings.
• The feeder or drinker located near the floor may be placed on a square (15 to 20 cm) high box frame covered with ½ inch wire mesh.
• Feed or water that is tossed out will then drop through the wire mesh where it cannot be reached by the birds, preventing them from eating contaminated feed or water.