Innholdsfortegnelse for September 17, 2025 i Cage & Aviary Birds

PERSICARIA is an excellent food for finches, canaries, budgies and parrots of all sizes and most species. As I write in August, it is flowering, but when it sets seed it is equally beneficial. It grows profusely as a “weed” on waste ground, grass verges, allotments, etc. In my front garden, it appeared and I nurtured a small bed of it, which actually looks quite pretty, with its small pale pink flowers! But it is everywhere in my garden this year. Persicaria and Polygonum constitute two of the main representatives of the Polygonaceae family, which have been extensively used in traditional medicine worldwide. For example, Persicaria minor has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-atherosclerosis effects. As atherosclerosis is a major problem in older birds that have been fed high-fat diets, this is…

Exhibition Date: October 5 2025 JOIN us at the Parrot Society’s UK National Exhibition 2025! As chairman of the Parrot Society UK, I warmly invite all bird enthusiasts, breeders and admirers to our flagship event, the National Exhibition, on Sunday, October 5 2025, at the Staffordshire County Showground. This vibrant celebration showcases a stunning variety of cage and aviary birds, including parrots, canaries, budgerigars, British birds, finches, cockatiels and more – a must-visit for anyone passionate about aviculture. Held at the spacious Staffordshire County Showground, this event promises an unforgettable day for everyone, from seasoned breeders to pet-owners and families who are new to the world of birds. Expect breathtaking displays, expert interactions and a warm, welcoming community atmosphere. What you’ll see: Diverse bird displays Be captivated by an array…

Cage & Aviary Birds Email: rob.innes@kelsey.co.uk IT’S FAIR TO call birdkeeping a traditional hobby, isn’t it? At the National on October 5, we’ll all be doing approximately what fanciers have done on show days for at least a couple of centuries. Every judge will be completely unbiased. The fine spirit of fair play will reign among competitors. And no purchaser will leave the hall with spending budget busted. (Yeah, right…) At the same time, no birdkeeping year is ever just the same, and likewise each National is always a bit different. This October, if all goes to plan, we’ll have 18 clubs organising show sections: that’s more than ever before. There will be exhibitors new to the Stafford show benches. And, commercially, we’ll see innovations. Perennial Stafford sponsors Johnston &…

ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO The canary fancy in 1925 A CENTURY ago, birdkeeping was dominated by the canary fancy, and the canary fancy was dominated by just three breeds. Border, Norwich, Yorkshire: that triumvirate had bossed the hobby for decades. Take a typical large show, the event at Alexandra Palace in October 1925. In a total entry of just over 1,500, Borders numbered 400-plus, Yorkies about 400 and Norwich 230-ish. Regional variation did occur: more Borders would feature at Scottish events and more Yorkies in that breed’s motherland. But at most UK shows, the BNY combination gobbled up two-thirds of the bench space. So a hundred years ago we were very, very accomplished at breeding Border, Norwich and Yorkshire canaries. What else did we do well in 1925? Reading the…

SHOWS I HAVE learned to enjoy a challenge in birdkeeping! And a recent judging engagement at the Northern Ireland Budgerigar, Zebra Finch & FBS show held in Carrickfergus certainly provided me with one. That was not only because of the very respectable entry but equally the high quality and excellent presentation of many of the exhibits. The foreign bird classification was divided into four distinct sections: foreign birds (parrotlike, foreign seedeaters and waxbills), Bengalese finches, zebra finches and (thanks to the setting-up of a well-organised specialist society) a separate section for Java sparrows. It’s great to see. It also means a lot of different colour awards and other specials to think about. In addition, a nice feature for Ulster fanciers is that a points competition runs through the show season.…

SHOW DATES BEVERLEY CBS will be holding its open show on November 2. This will be held again at Beverley Racecourse with its excellent facilities. There will be a substantial schedule and many open specials to compete for. This venue has proved very popular with exhibitors and the following judges have been engaged: Borders, Frank Sanderson; Fifes, Terry Kelly, Steve Cook and Alan Wilson; Glosters, Steve Cook; Irish, Barney Owston; Norwich, Brian Rayfield; British, Derek Smith; foreign, zebra and Bengalese, Steve Cowling. We hope to see all our previous exhibitors plus anyone who wants to compete at a friendly and welcoming show. Schedules will be sent to last years’ exhibitors and anyone requiring one should contact secretary Sylvia Hardcastle on 07927 366 846. BIRMINGHAM AREA BORDER CLUB open show (in…

WITH THE SUMMER holidays over, and an added seven pounds in weight to try and shed as quickly as I can, its time to look towards those all-important preparations for the winter months. In all honesty, I do not think that anyone knows if its going to be a hard winter or a relatively mild one. That, however, does not stop you (and hopefully me) from planning for the worst. You certainly need to watch out for the possibility of shortages/interruptions to electricity supplies because the general power situation is not good, and gas prices – used to generate electricity – have spiked to high levels. Giving too much heat to birds in a birdroom is not that sensible. I try to avoid it because at least the parrots are…

STAFFORD IS COMING up fast, drawing the main show season in its wake. In this special issue we focus on the forthcoming National: the where and when, but also the who, as we hear from the event’s admirable and hard-working organisers (the Parrot Society) and sponsors (Johnston & Jeff). And we also take the opportunity to see what this event grew out of, by visiting the accounts of the National and the cage-bird fancy of a century ago. I love attending the National. My sole regret is that because it’s a one-day event, my activities are tightly scripted: not only does Cage & Aviary Birds need to cover the show from a news perspective, but the National offers the best opportunity every year to refresh the paper’s photo library of…

THE National Exhibition, organised by the Parrot Society UK (PS), is the largest and best-attended hobbyist breeder bird event in the UK. This year’s event will be on Sunday, October 5. It is located at the Stafford County Showground, which is well signed from Stafford town centre. For all those with satellite navigation systems, the magical postcode is ST18 0BD. HOW TO ENTER BIRDS FOR THE EXHIBITION: The exhibition is held in Argyle and Sandylands Centres. All entries for the competitions must be arranged through the participating clubs. Each club will give benching times in their schedules. Note that a number of clubs will accept birds on the Saturday evening between 5pm and 7.30pm. IMPORTANT: Please check with your club in advance to find out what arrangements are available. Club…

ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO The rise of Crystal Palace THE year 1925 settled the question: “Which show is THE National?” There had been four contenders: Crystal Palace, Olympia, Alexandra Palace and Bradford. Then, in 1924, the Olympia event had tanked – and in 1925 it slipped off the show calendar altogether. “Ally Pally”, a traditional October show, went ahead cheerily enough in 1925, and pulled in an entry of about 1,500, which was respectable. However, its show report in Cage Birds lacks colour, the main takeaway being that the 400-plus Yorkshire canaries had to be judged by a single trouper after his fellow official had cried off at the last minute. So Crystal Palace found itself leading the National field. Held over February 6-8 (Friday to Sunday), it attracted an…

New Year novices shine in North Wales BEAUMARIS CBS It was a happy new year for North Wales fanciers, and some beyond, with the Beaumaris CBS show being staged on January 4, reports Mark Jones. Exhibitors travelled significant distances to attend. The entry, of just under 800 birds, was boosted by attendance of exhibitors from far flung places like the North-East, South-East, the south coast and South Wales. In addition, the entry was strengthened by the staging of the last leg of the Irish Fancy Canary Club series and the first North Wales Yorkshire Canary Club show. It turned out to be a great show for the novice exhibitors with several taking best in section. M. Copeland took best Irish Fancy, Gareth Fisher took best Yorkshire, Damms & Vickers took…

CHICHESTER CBS – September 23, Village Hall, School Lane, North Mundham PO20 1LA, 7.30pm. Members’ young stock exhibition. Bring along some of the youngsters you have produced this year to show (not competitively). Enquiries: 01243 551 093 or www.facebook.com/ChichesterBirdClub COLCHESTER CBS – September 18, Stanway Village Main Hall, Villa Road, Stanway CO3 ORH, 7.45pm. Young stock show. Enquiries: 07484 688 334. DAGENHAM CBS – September 20, Wantz Hall, 257 Rainham Road North RM10 7DX, 10am - 12pm. Rickie Pennell will be giving a talk on crossbills. There is a sales table at the meeting, so you can bring unwanted birds or equipment. New members and guests welcome. Enquiries: 07852 959 447 or visit: www.dagenhamcbs.com DARTFORD BIRD SOCIETY – September 17, Royal British Legion Hall, Devon Road DA4 9AB, 7.30pm. This…

SEWAGE LEAK ON POPULAR NORTHUMBERLAND ISLAND A SEPTIC TANK has overflowed on Coquet Island, a rare bird sanctuary off the coast of Northumberland. This is due to more people using the system than it was designed to handle while renovation work is being carried out on the island. The protected nature reserve, managed by the RSPB, is home to 30,000 puffins as well as arctic, common and sandwich terns. Repairs to the waste-treatment system are planned for autumn to avoid disturbing the birds during the summer breeding season. QUESTION TIME AT MARWELL ZOO ON OCTOBER 4 at 11am, Marwell Zoo will be hosting a members’ question time. Join the zoo’s chief executive, Laura Read, in the Science and Learning Centre Lecture Theatre for a tour of the 2025 organisational strategy.…

UPDATED ON: SEPTEMBER 11, 2025 Avian Influenza Prevention Zones AIPZ rules apply to England, Scotland and Wales. Strict biosecurity and hygiene are required, but birds do not need to be housed indoors. Current 3km Protection Zones Mandatory housing; strictly no bird movements in or out of premises. Locality Exminster Evercreech, Frome & East Somerset Attleborough Tiverton County/district Devon Somerset Norfolk Devon Date of declaration August 31, 2025 August 28, 2025 July 30, 2025 July 30, 2025 Source/further info: APHA Interactive Avian Influenza Disease Map…

I THOUGHT I would write a brief email in response to Mark Jones’s recent article regarding tick removal from his birds (see C&AB August 20). I always enjoy Mark’s articles. For many years now we have been using a tick twister removal stick. These have been invaluable and come in two sizes. The smaller one is ideal for ticks attached to birds and small mammals and the larger is perfect for dogs and horses. The problem with just pulling a tick off that is you leave the mouth in place and that can become a source of infection or contamination. You should always try and remove the entire tick. I am sending a photo of the product that I hope will be of use to Mark and others. Although not…

LIZARD CHAT BY THE time you read this, our birds should have nearly completed the moult and we will be looking forward to the show season. And this year I will have the great pleasure of judging at South Bucks CBA! This is a show that is so close to my heart. As always, Stafford will get the exhibition season under way and, early as it is, this one is always eagerly awaited. It is a day when you catch up with old and new friends and compare each other’s breeding seasons. Once the birds are thoroughly through the moult we can start to take a look at what we have managed to achieve in this difficult, hot breeding season. It has certainly been a different breeding season, especially for…

Exhibition Date: October 5 2025 EVERY year, the National Exhibition is a highlight in the birdkeeping calendar – a chance for us all to come together, share our knowledge, and celebrate the incredible variety of species we care for. At Johnston & Jeff, events like this are a reminder of why we’ve dedicated more than 145 years to providing the very best in bird nutrition. Our philosophy has always been simple: great birdkeeping starts with great feeding. That means creating blends and treats that are nutritionally balanced, made from top-quality ingredients, cleaned to 99.9 per cent purity, and are designed to meet the specific needs of each species. Over the past year, we’ve been busy developing new products and refining existing ones to ensure our range continues to lead the…

A proud history The club was founded in 1976 as the Annesley Notts Welfare Border Fancy Canary Club. The driving force behind its creation was a group of dedicated enthusiasts: chairman Ken Elkington, show secretary Noel Weaver, minutes secretary Mrs P. Jackson, general secretary Albert Holmes, show manager J. Denton, and assistant show manager Mr Jackson. Ken Elkington arranged for timber to be delivered to Noel Weaver, who used it to build the staging for the first show, held in December of that founding year. In 1977, it was agreed that an open show would be held on the fourth weekend in October, a members’ show in November, and that club meetings would take place on the second Tuesday of each month. The Annesley Miners Welfare became the club’s first…