Hey Everyone,

Lucy has is close banded, unlike the other two. I'd love to track down her breeder to find her hatchday. Unfortunatly, the only thing the owners remembered was that they were from Mississippi and they were two ladies. Out of curiosity, I wanted to know if anyone could help me track the reeder down. I've already emailed several and with no luck. I think the letters are te annitials of the breeder, but I can't be sure. Here's what it reads:

VAT ms (printed vertically) 157 (VAT ms 157)

Unfortunately there is no real national registry. So even though you can find a couple partials it's tough. Usually you have to rely on another person who already knows VAT stands for and their naming conventions. And many times they really want to be anonymous. Also they sometimes send a handful of bands with very young birds and it goes on any old bird but might (if it goes on the "right" bird in the 'place") id who the breeder is at least.

Since it's Lucy, I'll suggest you contact Laurella Desborough she is an Ekkie expert, breeder, and on the AFA pretty high up from what I recall...I haven't had reason to look her up lately. She may know....she is very good with advise... I read her on another forum. She'd be a good friend to make and I bet she'd be impressed with your dedication and willingness to learn and do everything you can. Teenagers get a bad rap sometimes (smile). Here's her center:

Laurella Desborough's Eclectus Center

BTW she's excellent with photos, send her a "before" and current of the same spot....if you want....just say you heard about her on the internet, she's generous with her time.