Breed for Type and the Best Spinners you have.
The medium size fast birds are the best to use. We are breeding the Birmingham Rollers to be gymnasts. If you look at gymnasts they are all smaller people not 6 footers. So breed the small to medium rollers and to best birds available. There is always the exception to the rule. There are big birds that spin fast and deep. But most big birds spin on the slow side.
The main thing to look for in birds is speed in the roll.
1. Speed in the roll is the most important thing to have.
2. The bird must roll correctly with the wing up not out, snap out of the roll and return right to the kit.
3. The roll should be 15 to 30 feet in depth.
4. The bird must be consistent in the speed of the roll and roll once a minute or more.
5. Hold the bird in you hands with the head toward you. There should be a lot on muscle on both side of the keel. Feel the back and you can feel a little muscle also. The tail should appear to be only 1 or 1 ½ feathers wide. All together some people call this the apple feel or it felt like a brick or it’s the right type to me. Hold the bird in one hand and feel the keel bone, you looking for 2″ to 2 ¼” on hens and 2 1/4″ to 2 1/2″ inch keel on cocks.
Most people all say breed best to best and all will come together. Yes it will but try to speed up the process a little and breed type also.
Some people only breed type, that works the best if you already have good birds with no faults.
Best to Best and Type is the easy way to go and will always work.
Line breeding to get a tight family of good birds
To establish a tight family of birds, you must inbreed to start with. All the good breeders with established families of birds started off line breeding their best birds.
Father to daughter or son to mother is one of the best ways to establish a family of birds, them go to breeding cousins and you have a close family of birds. The cousins are what most people breed, best to best cousins.
The father to daughter or son to mother birds mating is to establish a family of proven birds, they must not have faults or you will lock faults into your family. I don’t like to breed brother/sister I feel it sometimes will produce faults.