Abstract
The border fancy was first officially recognized along with the formation of the first specialty club, The Border Fancy Canary Club (B.F.C.C.) in 1890, with the formation of the standard and the book of rules in 1891. The border was affectionately called the "wee gem" and was known throughout the border countries of Scotland as the Cumberland Fancy. It was shown in the Common Canaries section and judged for its color and feather quality. In 1938 the trend was for a large border with norwich blood and as a result "the neat appearance and jaunty carriage so essential to the good border were in danger of disappearing. Subsequently a reaction set in against the larger [courser] bird, and during the period of refinement that followed, a more compact, rounder type of Border has emerged differing in slight detail from the original conception of the breed. "1
The grand essentials of a border fancy canary are TYPE and QUALITY. Without these the bird is useless. The general appearance is that of a clean-cut, lightly built, compact, well-proportioned, closefeathered canary. It should show no tendency to heaviness, roughness, or dullness, but it should give the impression of a bird of fine quality and symmetry throughout. No one feature should predominate.
I have been working with canaries since 1962, specializing in borders for the past twelve years. My beginning with borders was fortunate. I started with birds of good quality. My advice to the beginner today is to start slowly and easily. First, know the border fancy according to the scale of points as established in the standard and thus create a picture of the border in your mind. If you have been breeding borders for three years and have had no success on the show bench, then you probably should stop and re-evaluate your stock.
If the birds do not measure up to the Standard of Excellence, get rid of the whole stock and start anew. Type and quality are what you are after, not quantity ! Acquire one or two good pairs, preferably from the same source. Normal yellow to buff is the proper pairing. Double buff pairing usually results in dullness and rough, loose feathers. Double yellow pairing will result in a slim, racy type of bird. The hen should not be oversized but in fact she can be slightly undersized as long as roundness, alertness, type, position, and good feather quality are as close as possible to the standard. The reason I suggest a smaller bird is that big birds tend to be coarse, sluggish, awkward, flat headed, thick necked, and strong beaked. They do not stand at the prescribed 60° angle, a condition commonly called, "laying over the perch. ' '
Your cock bird should have the same characteristics as the hen except for size and color. Since the cock carries more size than the hen, he can be a little larger than the standard. Color should be as deep yellow as possible even to the hard side. In choosing a buff, you should choose a color as high and level as possible, not too mealy.2
If it is a clear strain you are after, one of the pair should be ticked or light variegated or the cock should ©e a cinnamon carrier. Variegation maintains depth in color. A cinammon cock will give you the fine feather quality which is so desirable in this breed.
The pairings just described are ideal to breed, but unfortunately they are hard to come by. To find the ideal birds, I would suggest that you visit the shows and get to know the top breeders. From there, put your wishes in their hands, and if they are sincere border breeders they will get you started correctly.
While you are waiting the arrival of your stock, the second hurdle is to be surmounted - that is the environment where you will house the birds. Poor breeding, hens out of condition, infertile eggs, long moults, and out-of-season moults are all curses of poor environment.