Colour is the magic ingredient in the formula for winning showbirds. But you have to give colour time to grow – especially in native finches, and this week’s cover story explains how even once your birds are moulted out, that special radiance can take a while to glow through. The moral: don’t panic if your newly moulted finches don’t look quite there yet – this is why the shows are held late in the season! Over in Budgieland, we learn why we’ve really, definitely, properly got to understand about seed nutrition. And a “feed and hope” approach will only hold us back. Strong support on canaries, pigeons, zebbies and the North-East region, plus that pre-Christmas essential: the Avian Draw raffle form.

Colour is the magic ingredient in the formula for winning showbirds. But you have to give colour time to grow – especially in native finches, and this week’s cover story explains how even once your birds are moulted out, that special radiance can take a while to glow through. The moral: don’t panic if your newly moulted finches don’t look quite ....