Some tips for a good purchase
Choose who you buy from ahead of what you buy
Don't buy from places that bring birds and breeds from all over the country, they are a melting pot of infection & desease. Buy only from breeders or Approved agents of breeders. A good source of info is the back of the magazine 'Practical Poultry'
Before you drive away, make sure the bird is healthy.
Check the crop, rarely empty during the day - bird could be off food
Check the weight, Check the poo, soft poo is not a major prob for birds living outdoors, they pick up alll sorts that can temporarily cause this, but don't accept a birds with very dirty bum feathers, this means a constant problem.
DON'T BUY HEAVILY VACCINATED BIRDS. Ask to see the med sheet that gives details of vaccination and antibiotics routinely given. This is a sign that the vendor has problems and the birds could be carriers for a host of problems. This is OK, so long as they are the only birds you'll ever keep, and don't mix birds from a different source, like ours, that doesn't overly vaccinate beyond legal requirements for 2 good resons :
1. If there's a problem we can see it and deal with it
2. Our birds have the natural ability to build a strong immune system, we free range rear from an early age so that they are naturally hardy and know they are not carriers of desease that can ruin someones hobby or kill pets.
3.Good Biosecurity, only birds that have been hatched on the farm or bought in as day olds from a specialist breeder exist on site. WE NO LONGER ALLOW BIRDS REARED ELSEWHERE ENTRY TO THE SITE.
Don't buy from shows
This should be banned. Certain 'businesses' here in Wales simply bring in birds from anywhere and everywhere, kept in poor conditions , small feed rations then left in crates for days , if they don't die they'll sell. DON'T DO IT.