CHRIS SNELL

on the spot

The name Snell has long been synonymous with Light Greens. Tell me how did your love of Light Green begin?

We won best beginner breeder at the BS club show in 1967 with a Light Green cock. A local intermediate congratulated us and said “you are lucky to have bred such a good one because they are difficult to produce”. I suppose I thought to myself “Difficult are they? We will try to prove otherwise”. It is the original colour and because people said it was difficult we decided to take up the challenge. Things really took off for us two years later. We won best novice breeder at the BS club show with a Grey Green hen. Jack Fisher took a liking for the hen and we exchanged it for a Light Green cock. It was the offspring from that Fisher cock which took us forward at that time. We got one or two further Light Greens from Maurice Fmey in the 1970s and another from Muir & Crossman later.

Probably the best partnership in the world

Any other favourite colours after Light Greens?

No

How many birds do you have?

I have heard you do not particularly like Opalines?

I do not dislike them, I just like Light Greens more and do not find the Opaline factor or for that matter the Cinnamon factor compatible with my goal of breeding top quality Light Greens. I generally only keep Opaline hens. For an Opaline cock to be retained it would have to be outstanding and I mean outstanding. An Opaline Green cock I sold won the CC at the 1995 BS club show. I thought I was right to sell it and still do. It was not good enough to miprove my Light Greens. Opalme cocks and Cinnamon cocks are almost always sold. Don’t all rush at once!

Five times, you have done your homework. Steve Robertson’s Light Green cock won it twice. I judged the show one of those years. My show season revolves around Doncaster. For me it is the show season. Other shows are not unimportant just less so. People remember the bird which won the Blue CC ten years ago, the Opaline hen which won the beginner class five years ago etc. I was speaking to John Woods recently and remarked “Everyone remembers your Light Green cock which won the club show in 1988 but nobody remembers your Grey cock which won best in show at Lancashire, Cheshire & North Wales two years ago”. Incidently that Light Green cock was the last time the variety won the club show. Win the club show and everyone knows about you at home and abroad. Our Light Green hen which won best in show is still spoken about. Was it really 13 years ago?

The Light Green hen seen on this page was best opposite sex at the 1991 club show. What do you remember about her?

She was bred from a Light Green cock and a Skyblue hen. It was a prolific family. The cock was extremely successful on the show bench including best in show twice at LEA. The Light Green hen herself was not as successful a breeder as her mother and sisters. She bred only one youngster which was an outstanding Skyblue hen which sadly was never ever m condition at quite the right time to show her.

Turning to the Cobalts which you have had much success with recently. How did they come about?

My father bought a Cinnamon Grey hen from the late Monty Stradling 15 years ago. We paired it to a Grey cock. All the babies were Greys but carried the Blue factor. It will come as no surprise to learn that our best Cobalts are mated with Light Greens.

The Cobalt cock shown on this page won the CC for young bird in 1994. How have his offspring turned out?

He was paired to a Light Green hen in 1995 and there are still five of his chicks about including the Cobalt seen on the page opposite page. The quality of the Cobalts he bred has meant that he has not been shown since the 1994 club show.

We do not show very often. This year I showed at Cleethorpes (diploma) and won best in show with a Cobalt cock, best young bird with a Light Green cock and best opposite sex with the Light Green hen photographed on this page. We showed at LEA yesterday and won three any age certificates with a Cobalt, a Cinnamon and a Yellowface. Very possibly Doncaster may complete our show season.

You mentioned above the Light Green hen which won best Light Green at last year’s BS club show. Tell us a little about her?

She was bred from two Light Greens. She has yet to be beaten on the show bench. Once last year she was best young bird in show. She was very early bred and just came right for Doncaster last year. Disappointingly she has bred just one youngster. It is an outstanding Light Green cock. He is certainly one I want to have tip top for this year’s BS club show.

What kind of breeding season have you had?

We have bred about 340 which is a good year for numbers. I am also pleased with the quality. The best are cocks and it will not surprise to leam they are Light Greens.

What pairings do you use to breed Light Greens?

Someone once asked me “what is the best outcross for a Light Green?” I replied “another Light Green.” It would be nice to have a stud consisting solely of Light Greens. When I am older and a little eccentric I might just do it!

What about other dark factors such as Dark Greens?

Favourite pairings are Dark Green to Light Green! Also Dark Green to Skyblue which is a pairing of two birds none of which are visually Light Green but which can produce visual Light Greens although they will be split Blue. I can put up with that if the quality is right. Another pairing which I use is that of Yellowface Skyblue to either Light Green or Dark Green.

I do not think you can compare m that way. It is like trying to predict if Muhammad Ali would beat Mike Tyson in a boxing match. Twenty five years ago when I looked at the Light Greens at the club show I thought they were fantastic. I’m sure beginners and novices look at the Light Green classes today and think “these are fantastic”. I hope some of those they admire are mine. Although we won best Light Green in 1996 I did not think that the overall standard was wonderful. There have been only three best in shows with Light Greens, the last in 1988. Another is long overdue - perhaps 1997- perhaps a young Light Green cock?

What other colour is strongest if not Greens?

Cinnamons are strong or rather Cinnamon Greys. After all they have won best in show three times since 1990. Cinnamons have also won best any age and both opposite sex awards over that period. They have the size and quality to match any other variety.

Looking at the Cobalt cock in the remaining photograph on this page. What can you let us know about him?

His father is the Cobalt on the opposite page. This cock is a lot bigger than the father which I think came from the mother, a Light Green hen, our best Light Green hen. The pair produced only two chicks but they were outstanding. Given the quality of the hen two chicks was two more than I expected! He was late bred in 1995 and Doncaster last year, where he won the any age certificate, is the one time he has been shown. He is currently paired, up (August) and the hen has fertile eggs. In desperation I let him choose his own mate. It wasn’t the one I would have selected! It wasn’t even close!

Lots really - mum’s frightened of birds! With dad (Arthur) it was more a 50/5 0 partnership especially when he was healthy. I’m sure mum (Mary) won’t mind me claiming to be the senior partner. However mum always played her part even in the days of C & A Snell. It was always mum who cleaned the showcages and nest boxes. I had to bring her into the partnership for fear of losing that valuable input! With dad it was he who decided where to show and I who first decided pairings. After a little discussion we then came to a joint decision. That is one reason I do not show as much now. I miss him most when travelling to shows either to exhibit or judge. Perhaps one would be in the car for several hours there and back. The topic of conversation was always Budgerigars and many of the problems of the hobby were “solved”, pairs confirmed or next week’s show team selected.

How has the hobby changed for you?

I have been in Budgerigars for 32 years. It was more exciting when I was a beginner or novice. It should be I suppose for it is that excitement which helps sustain your involvement through the sections. You see a promising chick and wonder how it will turn out. Now I look at a youngster and can pretty much predict how it will finish up. That is what experience does for you. It takes away a lot of the unexpected. It is the same with showing it becomes easier to predict how your birds will fare at shows. For example how many people were surprised that Sigston & Payne’s Cinnamon Grey cock won at last year’s club show. I wasn’t.

You have won best beginner breeder, best novice breeder (twice), best intermediate breeder (three times) and all the major champion specials including best in show in 1984 at the BS club show. Surely there are no ambitions unfulfilled for Chris Snell?

Of course there are otherwise why keep going on. C & M Snell have yet to win best in show at the club show. I don’t think anyone has ever won twice with different partners. It was always my father’s ambition to win best in show with a young Light Green cock. I still like to think I will one day achieve that for him. We came so close in 1992 when we tied originally with M & K Rihmond’ s Cobalt cock. The two odd judges out had to decide between the two birds an the Cobalt got “the nod”. It was a huge disappointment and dad died two years later.