[Lovebirds]

I shot these videos last summer, but never posted them or even uploaded them to YouTube............so, here they are.

The main loft

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d73zStBHZ1Y

The widowhood loft

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BUwsMGoERs

 

[spirit wings]

cool. I like your nest fronts...how does the widowhood nest front work, can it be used for regular breeding?

 

[Guest]

loved the walk thrus they were awesome thanks for showing us around

 

[Lovebirds]

cool. I like your nest fronts...how does the widowhood nest front work, can it be used for regular breeding?

1/2 of it's stationary and the other half can be taken completely off or hung in the middle of the box so that it cuts the box in half. I use it that way when the hens are not in there and when I pair them up. I lock the hen inside and the cock can come and go from the box.
OH, and yes I can and do breed in there, but it's a pain cleaning the back part of the box where the front doesn't come off. I wouldn't have those in a regular breeding loft.

 

[SmithFamilyLoft]

Great Tour

I shot these videos last summer, but never posted them or even uploaded them to YouTube............so, here they are.

The main loft

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d73zStBHZ1Y

The widowhood loft

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BUwsMGoERs

I loved it !!! Thank you for sharing !!

You have a very nice set up there. I liked the space for the sink and sickbay area. Very nice loft, and I enjoyed the tour !

 

[Skyeking]

I almost feel like I was there, that was a very pleasant tour.

Your birds have beautiful lofts.

I like your perches as well as the breeding boxes. They suit the needs of your birds well, and look easy to clean too. Most of all... there is plenty of room!!!

 

[mr squeaks]

Many thanks, Renee!

You have the most beautiful home and Lofts!!

Had already taken a tour of your main loft and now got to see the Widowhood area!

Beautiful birds, as always!

Said it before and will say it again...Everett is the MOST TALENTED! He sure did one bang-up job with your pijie homes!!

Love and Hugs and Scritches

Shi and the gang

 

[g0ldenb0y55]

Those are first class facilities you have for your birds! I hope to one day have the same. Thanks for the tour Renee!

 

[Kimberly_CA]

Oh my gosh I am so beyond jealous. Those are just spectacular accomodations for some very lucky birds!

 

[Kimberly_CA]

Oh and ps you have more loft space then my whole apartment quite possibly

 

[Ed]

LOL
when I was looking at loft designs before I built mine I was saying the same thing
"WOW some of these pigeon lofts are better looking than my house"

 

[John_D]

Definitely beats my apartment in size - heck of a lot tidier, too

Your birds really have a palace there, Renee - great vid!

John

 

[Brummie]

Nice set up! I noticed you have a lot of tree's around you, do you have much trouble with hawks? When I was flying widowhood,I too had various coloured nest front's. I dont know why, that's what the old timers's did. I figured it was the right thing to do... your thought's?

 

[wolfwood]

WOW Renee! It's not a 'virtual loft' after all! Thanks for the tour. I left the tour fee on the counter...

I'm interested to see that there is no bedding on the floor or in the boxes. Is there a reason for this? Do they really not need anything? My loft looks a bit more like a .... horse stall....with a nice cushy bed of shavings. Do they not care???

 

[spirit wings]

WOW Renee! It's not a 'virtual loft' after all! Thanks for the tour. I left the tour fee on the counter...

I'm interested to see that there is no bedding on the floor or in the boxes. Is there a reason for this? Do they really not need anything? My loft looks a bit more like a .... horse stall....with a nice cushy bed of shavings. Do they not care???

I not sure why Renee does not, but I don't use hay or straw because I scrape everyday and you can keep an eye on droppings that way, hay and straw hold in moisture too, which bacteria like, I do use pine shavings only when the weather is wet out and the loft seems damp, I don't think it is a problem in the nest bowl though. and it does look cozy, but they really don't need it.

 

[Pegasus]

Nice video Renee...Great tour to the your lofts too...When will be the house tour?(i'm kidding)...Is it going to be in YT too ...Short videos but its a good tour...

 

[Lovebirds]

Nice set up! I noticed you have a lot of tree's around you, do you have much trouble with hawks? When I was flying widowhood,I too had various coloured nest front's. I dont know why, that's what the old timers's did. I figured it was the right thing to do... your thought's?

Actually, no, we don't have a BIG problem with hawks. We were told when we moved here that the hawks would eat us alive............I've been here since 2001 and have lost a total of about 5 or 6 birds HERE in my yard to hawks. They get chased once in a while, but it's not a daily thing or even a weekly thing. Just once in a while, one will show up. I'll shut the birds down for a day or two and then go back to the usual routine. The past 2 years, I had my YB's on open loft from about May to the end of the YB race season. Haven't lost a bird doing that at all.
Far as the nest fronts, I've always been told that the birds can distinguish better which box is there's if they are either colored differently or staggered. We did both. If you notice, one set opens on the left, the next set opens on the right. The nest boxes in my breeding loft are staggered too and are either numbered or have letters on the boxes. I have never (knock on wood) had a bird go in the wrong box and stomp/destroy eggs or hurt babies.

 

[Lovebirds]

WOW Renee! It's not a 'virtual loft' after all! Thanks for the tour. I left the tour fee on the counter...

I'm interested to see that there is no bedding on the floor or in the boxes. Is there a reason for this? Do they really not need anything? My loft looks a bit more like a .... horse stall....with a nice cushy bed of shavings. Do they not care???

Well, putting bedding on the floor of one loft and putting it down in 5 sections plus the individual pens (7)......that's a lot of bedding and all it would do is blow around anyway.....all out in the hallway......it would be a mess in my loft. I scrape the floor once a day...........
When I had a smaller loft up in MI, I did put hay down on the floor, but even that was a lot more trouble than it was worth.
I'm sure that the birds appreciate the shavings on the floor and if you don't mind keeping it clean, then I'd leave it. My birds have never had that, so they don't know what they're missing, and YOU BETTER NOT TELL THEM!!!

 

[Lovebirds]

Wow guys/gals........thanks for the nice compliments. I started to not even post the video......I've posted so many pictures here and on our web site, that I figured everyone pretty much had an idea of what it looked like.
Glad you enjoyed watching it. It CAN be a lot of work.......especially when it's really cold outside, but we muddle through it every single day somehow.

 

[LUCKYT]

Renee, I used to like you, now i am just envious! SORRY! Just kidding!
Great loft, spacious, well lit, CLEAN, well organized. Well set up. I like were you have your Water Founts.... Good idea. Again, GOOD Job! Dave