I first became interested in budgerigars in 1959, when at the age of twelve, I was lucky to win a bird at the local fairground - there's an original start! After joining my local Society, it was not long before I was befriended by a fancier of long standing in the area, George Griffiths. Every Sunday I would cycle to his home and help him clean his aviary, and although I didn't realise it at the time, this was to be the start of a hobby which fascinates me to this day. Even now I am always thrilled to see an egg hatching, just as I was when I was a child.
In 1964, my father was obliged to move his place of work and consequently I had to give up breeding budgerigars until I married in 1970. In that year, I purchased a second hand treble breeder, three nest boxes and I was on my way. In the next few weeks I bought three pairs of pet-type birds and in that first year reared 15 youngsters - all in the spare bedroom. The next year I bought two more cages, and I became even more enthusiastic.
By this time however, my wife and I, now had two children, and a decision was necessary as to whether I stopped keeping budgerigars or built an outside aviary. I spent hours drawing and re-drawing my proposed birdroom and finally I went round to a friend who agreed to make my aviary for the then staggering amount of œ250.00. That caused a lot of thought, since such an expense was too great for pet birds. I decided immediately to delve into the world of the exhibition budgerigar and I've never regretted it.
Like many other beginners, I rushed from breeder to breeder, spending a lot of money on a few birds from here and a few birds from there, most of them being totally unrelated. My chances of breeding something worthwhile in my first year, was, with hindsight, therefore very remote. Had I bought three or four pairs, and perhaps some extra hens (just in case things go wrong and you lose one or more) from a reliable breeder, this would have been more sensible.
Someone has to be selected who is reliable and who is doing a reasonable amount of winning on the showbench, with his own bred current year (young) birds. When I say reliable, you will have to visit as many aviaries as you can in your area and put your trust eventually in one fancier. This done, try and persuade him to let you have the aforementioned birds. By doing this, you are more likely to breed something reasonable in your first year, because there is a greater chance that a few of these purchases are related and they may be related to his very best birds. In this way, the beginner, can with a little luck and lot of perseverance, be breeding birds, which will win for him in a very short space of time. Do remember, once you have bred one or two, take them to the breeder from whom you bought your birds and show them to him. There is nothing nicer than for somebody to ring you up and say, "Hey I think I've bred a storming budgerigar". It not only creates interest between you, but develops a friendship between two people who talk the same language - "budgerigars".
When it comes to the second season, go back again to your man and ask him, if he will sort your birds out for you. He will usually be only too glad to oblige and will give you advice on which birds to pair together. While he's doing this, ask him if he could possibly let you have something a little better in quality this year, and nine times out of ten, he will let you have something a bit special.
Remember, there is no great secret in breeding top class exhibition budgerigars if you follow three simple rules.
Visit as many aviaries as you can - before you buy any birds.
Put your trust in one man to begin with.
Stick at it. There will be times when things go wrong and nothing goes right, but if you persevere you reap the rewards of a really worthwhile hobby.
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