King pigeons: breed description and characteristics, care and maintenance

The King breed was bred in the 19th century in the USA from crossing M altese, Roman and postal breeds. Purpose - obtaining meat and decoration. Consider the description and important characteristics of king pigeons, their main pros and cons, features of maintenance and care in the household. How to properly breed birds, how to prevent diseases and carry out their prevention.

Description and characteristics of pigeons of the king breed

The pigeons of this breed are large, stately, have a dense build. On average, they weigh 0.7-0.8 kg, with a maximum of 1.1 kg. The head is large, with a developed beak. The back is wide, rounded chest, thick neck.The wings are short, the legs are red, of medium length, without feathers. The plumage is smooth, the tail is short. The coloring of the kings is monophonic, more often they have light brown, red, white and black feathers. But you can also meet silver, blue, yellowish birds.

Kings, as representatives of the meat breed, are growing rapidly. At 4 months they can weigh 0.6 kg. At this age, they can be hammered. Slaughter yield of meat - 60-67%. Young pigeon meat is moderately fatty, not fibrous. If you leave the pigeons to fatten further, they will gain more mass, but the meat will become a little tougher. As a meat breed, Kings are extremely common in America and beyond. They are popular in other countries as well.

Main pros and cons

Pros and conslarge sizes of birds;the ability to grow for meat;variety of colors;decorative.when kept only in a poultry house, without walking, kings show less productivity.

How to keep and care for birds

Pigeons of the breed are not too demanding on conditions, they can be grown in a spacious poultry house. But it is desirable, for better well-being and weight gain, to provide a covered area for walking next to the poultry house. Inside the dovecote, you need to arrange a ventilation system, heating, if necessary - and lighting. Kings, due to their large weight, fly reluctantly, they behave calmly on the run.

They feed pigeons with grain and bean mixtures, in which you can put any grain; large, such as peas and corn, need to be crushed. Fresh herbs, some grated vegetables, feed additives are added to the grain. Minerals and vitamins have a beneficial effect on the development of the bird's body, the maturation of young animals and future fertility, prevent and protect against diseases.

An adult bird can eat 50-65 g of grain per day. This amount should be divided equally and given to pigeons 2 times a day. You can not feed spoiled, sour and even more moldy food. Water in the drinkers should be poured around the clock. It needs to be changed every day. In winter, heat up if the room is cold.

Kings are considered aggressive, therefore it is undesirable to keep them together with pigeons of other breeds. They overwhelm them with their mass. As a last resort, you can add chickens of small breeds to pigeons

Subtleties of reproduction

Kings are a prolific breed. Birds become suitable for breeding at 6-8 months, they have 5-6 broods per year. Oviposition occurs 1.5-2 weeks after mating, doves lay 1-2 eggs. Hatching offspring for 16-19 days.

A week after the start of incubation, the eggs should be checked in the light for the development of the embryo, as it happens that not all eggs are fertilized. In fertilized specimens, you can see a dark spot - this is the embryo. The changed color of the shell also indicates the successful development of the chick. After a week of incubation, it turns dull gray.

Kings do not fly well, so nests should be placed on the ground or not high above the floor. You need to attach a ladder to the shelves, along which the females will climb up. Nests should not be placed next to each other, but at intervals, because females do not like close proximity to each other.

While incubation lasts, do not disturb the females, remove them from the nest, touch and turn the eggs. Due to interference, the bird may abandon the nest, and the embryos will die. After hatching, the pigeons stay with the females for a month, who feed them first with a secret secreted in the goiter, then feed them with grains and gradually transfer to adult food.Male kings are sometimes mated with females belonging to sporting breeds. The result is offspring with excellent meat characteristics.

Disease prevention

Kings do not have diseases that are characteristic only for them, for example, genetic ones. But, like other breeds of pigeons, they can have viral and bacterial infections. Kings suffer from salmonellosis, coccidiosis, ornithosis, paratyphoid, trichomoniasis, birds are affected by helminthic infestations.

Diseases spread quickly, the whole flock can become infected. You will need treatment, which is expensive. Therefore, it is recommended to carry out preventive treatments of young and adult pigeons with antiparasitic and anti-infectious drugs, and to carry out routine vaccination. New birds purchased from other farms should first be placed in quarantine for at least 2-3 weeks and only then sent to the rest.

You need to maintain immunity by proper feeding, cleaning in the house, in the aviary, in the nests. Sterilize all inventory and premises 2 times a year or more often. In a clean dovecote, the likelihood of infection is always lower. Pigeons need to be let out for a walk, walking has a beneficial effect on the psyche and physical he alth.

King breed is known to lovers as meat and at the same time decorative. It is grown by both private traders and farmers. Keeping birds is not difficult, they require standard care and nutrition. Pigeons are prolific, fast growing, and can be raised for meat for your own consumption or for sale.