When I decided to write this work-a rather specific topic-, my first thought was to schedule writing and printing so that the book could be published before the start of the breeding season, to provide fanciers the most up-to-date information during their preparation for pairing. Before long, however, I realised that such timing was not necessary. The simple reason is that successfully raising a new generation does not start with pairing-but much, much earlier. The quality of this year's young was largely decided as early as their grandparents' and great-grandparents' pairing and their parents being raised. There is no season, month, or day of the year when you can neglect the interests of following generations. Anything you do to the future parents, or even grandparents, will have a considerable effect on later generations-in terms of both number and quality.Consequently, the preparation for the breeding season never ends. It never starts in the first place. It is a continuous
