This morning we had a few birds sitting on the roof of the loft so we have decided to continue running yesterday's inventory for a second day. Most of the birds who arrived last week went through the trap yesterday, those who did not were allowed through the windows yesterday evening and fed lightly. Usually we don't start trap training until they have been in the loft for a full week after quarantine, however we started a few days earlier yesterday just to see how it went. About 90% went through quickly, hopefully the rest get the idea today. So this means that the inventory we started yesterday will be of all birds EXCEPT the birds that arrived this week.
Weeks 1-5 are out flying.
Week 6 is trap training today, they will be settled either tomorrow or Tuesday depending upon the weather.
Week 7 started trap training yesterday and will continue for 6-7 more days before being settled.
Week 8 are in the quarantine cages, they will have chips assigned on Tuesday and put in the loft.
Only 2 more weeks to ship birds, the very last days you can put them in the mail is May 6th or 7th. We will also be accepting drop offs that week on the 8th, 9th, and 10th.
Please do not mail any birds after the 7th of May, if you do they will not be accepted for this year's race.
Mail birds to:
Apple Cup
PO Box 313
Moxee, WA 98936
Currently over 1,900 birds in the loft, at the rate we are going we will hit 2300-2500. It is going to be a big race, don't miss out!
NO MONEY DUE WITH BIRDS, $350 PER BIRD DUE ONLY AFTER THE ACTIVATION RACE AND THIS INCLUDES THE PERCH FEE!
5 races, 165, 200, 250, 300, and 375 mile final race!
Not a cupcake course! Fly over the desert, ridgelines, through valleys, mountains, over the Columbia River, over Klammath Falls Lake, over the forest, typically N to NW winds, final race within view of the famous Mount Shasta in the background. It takes a tough pigeon to win the Apple Cup, not just a follower, do you have the type of racing pigeon that can win here!
Everyone have a wonderful Sunday, spend time with your friends and family.
Rick & Olga
The inventory today is of all birds received except the last two weeks. Some of the birds that arrived last week will show up on today's inventory because there is an active clocking pad in their section, these birds will be able to go through the traps or through the window. These birds that arrived last week will start trap training more seriously on Monday and will all show up on future inventories, just not today. The birds that arrived this week are in quarantine and can not possibly show up on today's inventory.
Only 2 more weeks to ship!
Everyone have a great weekend!
We are running another inventory today of all birds EXCEPT those that arrived last week, also those that arrived this week.
The birds in the first section of the loft are birds that arrived LAST WEEK, there is an active trap in that section. The birds in this section are not required to go through the traps to reenter the loft, they can come and go outside to the aiviary as they choose. There is an active pad in there so if you see a bird on today's inventory that arrived last week it just means that your bird went outside to take a look around in the aiviary and just happened to walk close enough to the trap to clock in, or through the trap. The birds in this section will be trap trained next week and all of them will be part of the loft flying inventories starting next week.
OK, back to work on getting these last 10 boxes processed. We brought in about 110 birds yesterday and 90 today for a combined total of 200 this week. We usually get a few late boxes on Friday that were sent Tuesday so this will add to this week's total.
Only 2 more weeks to send birds this year after this week. The very last days to ship are Monday May 6th and Tuesday May 7th. After that week we will not accept any birds, any that show up at the post office will be returned from the post office, no exceptions.
Thank you all so much for registering before sending if you have never sent here before, then putting your loft name on top of the box preferably on the shipping label. This saves us several minutes per breeder not having to search Wincompanion trying to figure out who you are when your birds arrive. If you have flown our race before there is no need to register first because you are already entered as a breeder, as long as your Loft Name is on top of the box then when we go to assign birds your loft name will pop up. This is why we never delete all past breeders, if we do and someone sends who did not register then we have to go find you in Wincompanion and add you, just takes too much time.
Since starting today's inventory it has begun to lightly rain, we all know how much young birds like to screw around when it starts to rain. Most are already in, those who continue to trap are on top of the loft taking a rain bath!
Everyone have a great day!
Today's inventory is of all birds EXCEPT those that arrived last week, which was our 7th week of acceptance. Weeks 1-5 are outside the loft and are part of today's inventory, week 6 is trap training and part of the inventory today and will be settled next week.
No birds were forced out of the loft today. Tomorrow morning we will make sure all of the birds are outside of the loft and we will clock in those who did not clock in today.
Week 7 birds which arrived last week were moved out of quarantine today, assigned chips, then were put in the loft. They have access to the aiviaries for a week so they can get a good look around before trap training for a week.
Again, this is a 2 day inventory and is all birds EXCEPT last week arrivals.
Quarantine section has been disenfected and is ready for new arrivals tomorrow!
Health is still holding very, very, very well!
There are only 2 more weeks to ship birds here after this week. Last day to ship is May 6th which is a Monday, May 7th which is Tuesday.
We had hoped to get our new pads and wiring installed this weekend however the wiring came separate from the pads. The pads will be picked up today and installed tomorrow after we put chips on the birds that arrived last week, about 200 birds. If everything is working properly we will run a inventory of all birds EXCEPT the birds that arrived last week which will be pulled out of the quarantine section tomorrow after having chips assigned, these will have access to the aiviary for a week before being trap trained for a week, shooting for a Wednesday inventory. Thats how we do it here, quarantine for about a week, access to the aiviary for a week, then trap trained for a week before being settled.
KNOCK ON WOOD, health is absolutely too good to be true and we hate to even talk about it in fear of jinxing ourselves. The number of birds that have been removed due to health is still below 1% of the birds we have received and we are now over 1,700 birds in the loft, we pray it stays this way!
Please ship on Mondays, Tuesday at the absolutely latest. Only a few boxes have arrived on Saturdays this year, less than we can count on one hand. We just got our first box on a Monday that was shipped the previous week. The breeder shipped on a Tuesday, but believe me Mondays are just plain safer and keeps your birds from having to stay the weekend in the post office if they get delayed.
Remember, no money due with the birds, $350 per bird due only AFTER the activation race and this includes our perch fee.
115 activation hopefully early September then 5 races for AVG speed, 165, 200, 250, 300, and 375 mile final race!
Fly across the desert, through valleys and over ridges, over the mightly Columbia River, over the forest, over mountains, and over Klammath Falls lake on a typical NW to W sidewind.
It takes a tough pigeon to win the Apple Cup, do you have the kind of pigeon that can win here!
As we have mentioned previously in these updates and on Facebook, we installed 2 more traps for this year's race. The pads and wiring will be here this week, once we get it all installed and working properly we will run a inventory of all of the birds which have been settled, probably this weekend.
Please read previous updates, there is a lot of information covered and we always talk about shipping. Please read the last few updates prior to this one. Most importantly, register first and put your loft name on top of the box, also ship on a Monday or Tuesday only.
The very last days to ship birds to the Apple Cup this year is May 6th or 7th, DO NOT SHIP AFTER THESE DATES. Any birds that arrive the following week will be returned at the post office, the postal employees have strict instructions to do so.
Health is holding well, have not pulled any sickly birds out for several days and have only pulled out less than a dozen this year.
We currently have over 1,600 birds in the loft as of today, between tomorrow and Friday we will probably get another 150 which will take us up to around 1,750. We are averaging 250 a week, at this pace we should hit 2,500 birds at the end of our intake period.
No money due with birds, $350 per bird due only after the 115 mile activation race.
It is going to be a big race everyone, don't miss out!
We are getting asked the same question so figured we better post another update.
We are currently in week 6 of accepting birds, we took in a little over 100 today and that takes us to over 1,400 birds, by tomorrow we should be over 1,500. We are averaging 250 birds a week so by the 10th week we should meet our goal of 2,500 birds to start training with this year and we hope to get 2,000 activated.
The very last days to ship birds is 6 May which is Monday, Tuesday at the latest which is 7 May. We will not accept any more birds after the week of 6 and 7 May which is our 10th week of accepting birds.
If dropping off birds please do so on Wednesdays and Thursdays between 0900-1200. These are the days we receive most of the birds through the mail and we start them all on our health program at the same time, impossible if they are arriving all week long.
Health is excellent this year, only pulled out 10 birds so far and we hope it stays like this!
If shipping to the Apple Cup please follow these instructions.
Mail on Mondays please, Tuesday at the absolute latest.
Register on Wincompanion before sending.
Put your loft name on top of the box.
Put your telephone on the shipping label.
Vaccinate at least 2 weeks prior to shipping for PMV.
Apple Cup'
Weeks 1, 2, and 3 are out flying every day. We will run another inventory once our equipment arrives to connect the other 3 traps we installed for this year which should be in about 2 weeks.
Week 4 is trap training and will be settled next Monday or Tuesday.
Week 5 is just looking out the aiviaries, they will be trap trained next week.
Week 6 are the birds that arrived today, they are in the quarantine cages and will have chips assigned next Tuesday.
REMEMBER, no money due with the birds. $350 per birds due ONLY AFTER the activation race, we take our perch fee out of this.
115 mile activation race, then 165, 200, 250, 300, and 375 mile final.
If you have any questions please text us at 254-247-9504.
The inventory today is of ONLY weeks 1, 2, and 3 arrivals. Week 4 arrivals which was last week are just looking out the aiviaries, week 5 birds are the birds that arrived this week and they are in the quarantine section.
We currently are 1/2 way done with intake. We have brought in about 1,250 birds and we will probably get a few more tomorrow that are late deliveries through the USPS, usually birds shipped Tuesday. At the pace we are going we should hit our goal of 2,500 birds this year!
We will pull flights around the 1st of June, training should start in mid July and we will hopefully have the activation race around Labor Day. There are 5 races this year and we hope to have all of the races in by mid to late October and the birds mailed back before Christmas.
It is cold and rainy today, the birds are enjoying their 4th day out of the loft. With this cold rainy weather they would rather play than trap so please be patient with their clocking times. At this point we are not too concerned about fast trapping, we are mostly concerned with the pigeons just feeling happy and healthy and they are getting all the feed they want. Once it gets hot here the birds will trap fast for water and they also start trapping well once we get some distance in training due to calories being burned.
If we received your birds this week they are entered in Wincompanion. All you have to do is click on our Breeders List and scroll down to your loft name to view your birds. If they are not entered to our Breeders List then they will probably be here tomorrow. Check your tracking through USPS.COM to see where your birds are if they are not entered yet.
We let out the birds that arrived weeks 1 and 2 this morning at 7 AM, about 3/4 are in the loft and the rest are outside the loft playing around. Once they are trapping well we will run a inventory, probably this weekend.
There are about 20 birds from weeks 1 & 2 that needed some remedial training as we called it in the Army, our workers call it sending them back to kindergarten. These birds were put in the section with week 3 arrivals which are trap training all this week and will be settled next week Monday or Tuesday. When we do a inventory this weekend if you have a bird come up missing it very well may be one of the ones going through remedial training, they should show up on the week after inventory once the birds from weeks 1, 2 and 3 are merged.
The birds that arrived week 4 of intake, which was last week, will have chips assigned tomorrow and they will be put in the loft.
In summary, weeks 1 & 2 were let out for the first time today, week 3 is trap training, week 4 will have chips assigned tomorrow and put in the loft.
Health has been outstanding this year, hopefully it stays like this! So far 5 pigeons have been removed due to health, if yours was one of them you have already been informed.
There are well over 1,000 birds in the loft and we are averaging over 250 birds a week. We have 6 more weeks of accepting birds, at the pace we are going we should hit around 2,500 birds which was our goal this year and hopefully getting 2,000 activated.
Please read previous Apple Cup updates reference shipping, very important that you follow our directions so there is no confusion on our end when your birds arrive.
Vaccinate 14 days before shipping.
Register on Wincompanion for our race before shipping.
Ship on Monday or Tuesday, Monday HIGHLY recommended!
Put Loft Name on top of the box lid, not inside, not on a note, not on the sides, right on the shipping label.
Thats all we need, too easy!
Almost forgot, do not overcrowd your birds.
If you got sick birds, if they have Pox scabs, leave them at home please.
Back to pacing back and forth in front of the loft trying to get these young birds to go in, think they are messing with me sometimes!
Over the last 2 days we have added 225 more birds to the loft, they are in the quarantine cages and will be assigned chips next Tuesday and put in a section of their own. They will spend a week looking out the aiviaries and getting use to the loft, the following week trap trained, the following week settled. This is our 4th week of intake and this is how we usually do things from intake to settling.
Week 3 birds are looking out the aiviaries this week, they will be trap trained next week.
Week 1 and 2 birds were merged this week. We should of already had week 1 settled however we have had a lot of rain lately and we did not want them taking baths in the puddles around the loft. This early in the season when they are still working their "buggs" out, if they are all huddled up in water puddles canker will rear it's ugly head so it is better to wait for the ground to dry up and for us to get some sunny days to get them settled. We also don't want to let them out for the first time and it starts raining, some will just sit in the rain all day and if away from the loft will stay out overnight putting themselves in harms way. Game plan is to let them out for the first time on Monday or Tuesday, in the meantime they are being trap trained every morning being called in for food.
We added 2 more traps this morning, the birds are really enjoying more entry points to the inside of the loft. We however do not have all the cables to link all of the traps to the clock, they are on order and as soon as we get them we will run a inventory of the first 2 week's worth of birds, the first inventory was 1st week birds only.
Health is holding, we have removed 3 birds so far and we have had 1,041 birds arrive this year so their should be 1,038 birds in the loft.
For those of you who do not read all of our updates, here again is our shipping instructions.
Vaccinate for PMV at least 2 weeks before sending.
Register on Wincompanion before sending, you can go to our Home Page and click on Sign Up to do so.
Put your Loft Name on the top of the lid when you ship, preferably on the shipping label.
Mail on Monday, Tuesday at the latest, our post office is closed Saturday so do not risk your birds getting stuck over the weekend.
PLEASE, follow the above instructions, it makes thigs here run so much more smoothly if you do.
If your birds are entered under our Breeders List that means your birds arrived. If they are not on the list check your tracking numbers through USPS.COM and let us know you have birds enroute.
Game plan is to do a chip and health check early June, pull the 9th and 10th flights, then start road training late July to early August. Hopefully we will have the activation race early September around Labor Day and can get the races completed early October and birds mailed back in November.
Thanks for the tremendous support everyone, there are currently over 1,000 birds in the loft and over 2,200 perch reservations. Our goal this year was to hit 2,500 birds, with 6 more weeks on intake it looks like that is going to happen!
Everyone have a great Easter weekend!
