24 inches by 36 inches
and 1 foot high, will hold 30 live squabs for shipping; more than that
is risky.

All shipments of live squabs should also be marked, "PERISHABLE--RUSH,"
the number of birds in shipment, and also the value.

If squabs are to be sold for breeding purposes, they should not be
shipped till they are at least eight weeks' old, and preferably ten
weeks. Only strong birds should be shipped and no shipments should be
made in extremely cold weather.

CHAPTER VII.

SELECTING BREEDERS.

Selecting squabs for breeding purposes must be done with great care and
understanding. If the right kind of birds are not selected your flock
will gradually deteriorate. With careful selection, although slow, you
will constantly be adding profitable breeders to your stock. This is,
of course, if you start with P. V. Breeders, so as to have the nucleus
of a good flock to start with. Remember, good breeders will breed
plump, white squabs at a fast rate, while poor breeders will grow
small, dark squabs that have not the vitality to ever be first-class
breeders. Even with P. V. breeders you must use care in selecting the
young, and it is wise when starting with a few of our breeders to sell
your squabs for a time and buy more of our breeders until your flock is
large enough to have a good selection to choose from.

The months when squabs should be saved for breeders are, February,
March, April and May. The birds are in the best of condition then and
the squabs will be strong and vigorous. June and July squabs are good,
but are more expensive to raise, as they are at mating age in
September, October and November, when they are subject to moult and are
difficult to mate at this time. I do not recommend saving squabs during
the other months, as I have found from experience that they will breed
well for two or three years, and then, there is a falling off in squabs
and a heavy death rate among the hens.

[Illustration: Figure 6. THE HOME OF P. V. BREEDERS]

When ready to select your squabs for breeders, get some light pigeon
bands. We use a celluloid coil band that wraps around the leg and stays
in position without fastening. By using a different color band every
month, we know at a glance the age of the youngster. Always take your
squabs in pairs and unless there are two good healthy squabs in the
nest do not take them. They do not have to be of unusual size, but they
should both be well fed and weigh eight, nine o