Entrevista para criadores em Bangladesh
Sultan: How and in which year did you come into this hobby? Where did your first budgies came from?
Luiz: I started breeding budgerigars in 1984 when my mother presented me with 02 couples! That year I was 7 years old, my life was going to school and breeding Budgerigars!
At the age of 12, I saw the first English standard Budgerigar couple, so I said to myself, one day I will have several of these!
In 1995 I sold all my simple Budgerigars and told a breeder to bring me some English standard Budgerigars from São Paulo city.
My first budgerigars were not chosen by me, but when they got to my hands, it was like I had bought a good car! I was very happy, it was a jump!
In 1997 it was when I visited a breeder in the city of Uberlândia and I was able to personally choose my first budgerigars!
After this period and with the emergence of the internet, it was possible to contact other breeders and I was acquiring new birds!
Sultan: Share something with us about this hobby in your country.
Luiz: In my country the hobby grows every year, but we still don’t have budgerigars with very long feathers as you can see in some countries in Europe and Asia.
Importing budgerigars in Brazil is not as simple as in other countries!
Sultan: Would you like to share any of your special memory related to this hobby of breeding Budgerigar?
Luiz: One of my best memories was some shows that I took some birds and had good results, receiving Best in Show and Best Opposite Sex.
Sultan: What is the best part of Budgerigar breeding according to you?
Luiz: The best part of the hobby for me is seeing couples breeding well and babies being born strong, healthy and with excellent quality!
Sultan: How long you are breeding Exhibition Budgies? Can you please share your show bench experience and success?
Luiz: I breed budgerigars since 1984 and speaking of budgerigars shows, I don’t participate much, because Brazil is very large in its territorial extension. I prefer to keep budgerigars healthy and stress free in my birdroom, than traveling long distances to participate in a budgerigars show and stress the budgerigars.
Sultan: How do you see it... Breeding Exhibition Budgerigar- art or challenge?
Luiz: I see it as a little bit of both! Breed budgerigars is an art, but genetic improvement too and the search for the ideal budgerigar every season is also a challenge!
Sultan: What are the varieties you keep/breed? What are the specific varieties you think we should start with as freshers or newbies?
Luiz: I like to breed all kinds of mutations, always in search of genetic improvement and with birds with perfect health and plumage!
I avoid working with budgerigars that have plumage defects, like the absence of feathers on wings and tail.
For beginners I believe that the most important thing is to visit more experienced breeders, collect as much information about the hobby as possible and start with healthy and good Budgerigars, the most basic mutations like normal skyblues, greens, greys, etc., are simpler to produce, but I see that with a good study on mutations and having a more experienced breeder to guide the beginner, he can start his hobby with rarer mutations, like breeding Fallows and Recessive Pieds. The most important thing is to study, have patience and dedicate day after day!
Sultan: What are the considerations you keep in mind while setting new pairs? Are there any specific combinations or features that you maintain for pairing up?
Luiz: Whenever I go to select a couple, I try to select the best male with the best female ever. If I have a mutation and the bird does not have good morphological characteristics, I make a puzzle, selecting the best characteristics in the partner to add to the future generation!
I always try to work budgerigars with full plumage and that have all the feathers. If the couple produced good babies the previous year, I repeat the couple the following season!
Sultan: How many times you breed in a year? Is there any month/ weather preferences for breeding them?
Luiz: I use a couple in a breeding cage for 3 times!
If the female takes care of the babies alone until they are independent, in this specific female, I leave her in the breeding cage only 2 times and then I take a rest of 3 months to her and put a new couple in the breeding cage!
In my country budgerigars breed all year, so as long as they are healthy it is possible to breed all year, but always providing couples with proper rest!
Sultan: What are the diet/foods you maintain? Does it vary between breeding season and resting period?
Luiz: I always offer the same food for budgerigars, whether they are in the breeding seasons or resting seasons. On large flights I put alfalfa hay on the floor, which serves as a lining and food for them. Alfalfa hay contains 18% protein, 23% fiber, phosphorus and minerals. I change everything every 20-30 days.
The food I offer is:
1 - Birdseed
2 - Millet
3 - Japanese millet
4 - Oats
5 - Niger
6 - Softfood - CC 2030 Premium
7 - Mineral with charcoal
8 - Calcium stones or Ciba bone
During the year!
I avoid using greens and vegetables because of pesticides!
Everything natural, always!
Sultan: Which specific features, you think, are most challenging to develop? Which are the particular features, according to you, should a newbie/ new fancier focus on initially?
Luiz: In my opinion all the features are challenging!
The beginners should pay attention to all the features such as:
1. Directed crown with long feathers,
2. face width,
3. wide and deep mask,
4. good spots,
5. wide back skull,
6. shoulder width,
7. good posture on the perch,
8. having all the wings and tail feathers
9. have the correct marking for each mutation.
Perhaps longing the crown and body feathers are the biggest challenge
and take the longest time to get it, but with a good job, dedication and genetic selection is possible to achieve the goal!
Sultan: What are the guidelines you want to give to the new fanciers willing to breed Exhibition Budgerigar around the world based upon your years of experience?
Luiz: For beginners I believe that one of the most important thing is to visit more experienced breeders, collect as much information about the hobby as possible and start with healthy and good budgerigars.
Another important thing is to study, have patience and dedicate day after day!
Sultan: How can fresher's fight against diseases or take precautions? What are the challenges you think a newbie should be very mindful of from the beginning?
Luiz: The beginner must always have a good prophylaxis in his bird room, that is, work to increase the immunity of the birds and not let them get sick, because after that it becomes very difficult to recover a sick budgerigar! Prophylaxis is the best medicine! Work hard not to let your budgerigar get sick! Provide healthy food, water always clean and changed daily, suitable place with air renewal and without air currents! If possible, take a look at my YouTube Channel (CRIADOURO LAS), I have many vídeos posted.
Others fanpage are: Instagram and facebook (CRIADOURO LAS)
I have a blog on google blogspot. (CRIADOURO LAS)
Sultan: Thank you very much for your valuable sharing with us.
Luiz: You're welcome.
