The key to success starts with the breeding

We just paired our pigeons last week. Mostly we try to do so at the end of November and with most fanciers the breeding period starts now. Of course this early breeding asks more work and time of us fanciers. First of all the lightening is very important, although some fanciers don’t think this to be necessary. But I learned of my own experience that these birds get a good condition sooner, which leads to a better impregnation and a good lay. This light also has a positive effect on the seed-production of the cock because his organism comes to rest in wintertime. Don’t think this has everything to do with the temperature but most of all it depends on the ultra-violet radiation, which gives the pigeons more energy so the passion will lighten up too. In fact a good example here are the temper of the Italians and the Spaniards, they also get a higher dose of sun and so they are known because of their high temperament. On the other hand this light also has a positive effect on the hens, her biorhythm will be stimulated, their temper will higher up and the lay of the eggs will be easier too.

It’s best to give this extra light in the morning. Personally we give more light during 8 days before the pairing and this between 6 and 9 o’clock in the morning that’s about 2 hours extra light. We don’t do so in the evening because we have the possibility to do all the needed care in the morning. This lightening happens till the couples laid their second egg and during the broad-period this will stop. Now the pigeons will get the chance to prepare to the feed-on period. Only with the breeders we make an exception because their eggs are put under feeding-couples. In fact I only try to give the reader some tips but beware and be careful with the racing-birds because there the light can have some influence on the moulting.

Why is it that the breeding period is so important and why does this form the base of the colony?

Striking of a loft with successful youngsters, is the succession of the ring-numbers. During an excellent breeding-period, the old animals must be in a super condition and at that time they have everything they need and of course they pass it on to the young birds. So many good youngsters will be born at that point. Take a look at the ring-numbers and you’ll notice that these good ones will be born almost at the same period. This proves once more that the extra preparation and the support of the old animals before the pairing most certainly has an effect on the impregnation, the making of the eggs and afterwards with the feeding of the youngsters.

About 14 days before the pairing, the hens must have grit and minerals at their disposal because that’s necessary to make the eggs and it’s the hen that provides the young bird with their first food. Also the cocks have to get enough of vitamins and albumen to come to a proper seed-production of a high quality because he’s the one that has to take care of the impregnation. So five days before the pairing our pigeons get liquid vitamins in their drinking water and besides they also get Zell-oxygen, Optimix or some other condition-powder mixed with their food. The most important aspect is that the birds have the right condition and a super health to be in the mood for the pairing. Another factor is the weight, when the pigeons are too fat, it will be more difficult to impregnate well and the hen will get in trouble when it comes to the lay of her eggs. So the pigeons should have an ideal weight and then they won’t get in trouble when it comes down to the “sex”. This is the aspect that is forgotten very often although it’s important too.

More about the sport

As a person I like to visit several pigeon-clubs as well during the season as in winter. To drink a cup of coffee and talk about the pigeons, which is also a kind of relaxation that is part of our sport. Many times you can hear people talking about the fall of the pigeon sport and they look for all kinds of reasons. Among other reason they blame the strong-playing lofts that take over the whole game and think more about the commercial side of the sport. But let’s be honest and think about it; everybody can go as high or as far as they can and I’m sure that each and every one of us try to reach the top. In fact I think that everybody is able to reach this top but we have to specialise and claim a certain purpose. It’s not the quantity but the quality that counts and we can only reach the top with well-motivated pigeons. What do they mean with the “ Great ones” in our sport? Are these the colonies that arrive with the many pigeons in their basket to leave for the provincial or the national flights or are they the real champions who go for the titles? This is the most important to us fanciers, the one thing we enjoy and must come before everything else. From the moment we would be able to bring this over to other fanciers, we can talk about a good P.R.. To look out to the results of the pairing, the youngsters that are born and the way they grow. Next watch them fly out and learn. Watching the cock in condition when he’s training or the widower at his arrival from a flight. We should be able to promote our sport as a family happening, where every member of the family can do his or her own task. Every weekend again they all look out to watch the birds come home and have a nice comfortable family-weekend. But sad enough we often like to tare each other down and talk about the commercialisation of the sport, which belongs to a certain group of fanciers. After all we have to move along with time and take a look to other sports where this commercialisation is a necessary aspect to keep the sport alive. In the earlier days the fanciers didn’t buy more than 20 or 30 rings but nowadays they talk more about 70 till 100 pieces. It all has to do with the time and the conditions we live in, more chances create more possibilities.

Our sport got more possibilities too in the last few years. The pigeon is still the most important matter but the game, the breeding, the inspection, the loft and the care all became very important aspects too. Besides the training and the food got also more important because of the human impact. The preparation of the athlete, the medical world and the different by-products like vitamins, oils, amino acids, etc. Also the professional information is better in the many different pigeon-papers, which all try to give the best and most modern information in a beautiful “outfit”. This all became part of the pigeon sport. Here we didn’t talk yet about the one-loft races, the possibilities to build out our lofts or the artificial manipulation and the evolution of the clocking-systems.

We always get more possibilities and may be this is the way to give more opportunities to the newcomers. They always talk a lot about having less fanciers but in the earlier days there was one fancier on one loft but nowadays there is more to it then one loft only. More people get involved with our hobby; we have the combinations of friends or relatives, who all take care of one and the same loft with more pigeons and each and every member has his own task. One of the nice things of our sport is that everybody can do this one thing he likes the most. Of course I still admire the older fanciers when I see them pass with their basket on their bicycle because he still has the will and the power to ride for several kilometres with his feathered friends, to give them their private training. This is still a part of our sport, which deserves a lot of respect.

All about the moulting

At the end of September the so-called “resting-period” starts for our pigeons but in fact it isn’t a period of rest. All they can do is recover of the racing-season although they have to work on their new “outfit”. The moulting is working on their future, so we have to do all we can to support our feathered friends and help them to get beautiful, new feathers. The pigeons must be in a super condition so the moulting will happen without problems. After the moulting the pigeons should look at their best because at this time the results of the following season are separated partly. On our own lofts we always take care that the birds get everything they need and they are able to chose from a mixture that contains many different oil-keeping seeds. So since some years we like to use a mix of diet-mixtures, wild seeds and candy-seeds. This lot will go together with the usual moulting-mixture. Besides the pigeons also get on 5 days out of 7 a mix of beer yeast powder, wheat germs, milk powder and vitamins over the food. First we moisten the food with garlic-oil, about one soupspoon per kilo of food.

Almost every day the pigeons get a natural product, based on herbs, in their drinking water. Sometimes we also use tea or apple vinegar to keep the intestines in balance.

Next to this we think it’s also important that the birds get the chance to take a bath once a week because in the moulting-period, the pigeons get more flakes so they start to itch more. At that moment the pigeons like to take a bath to keep their feathers cleaner too.

Once and a while we also go around with a drop against the feather-louse and other parasites. At the same time I also control the poison against the mice because this is the time when they look for warmer places and more food so it’s best to prevent these little animals.

Peanuts: I like to use these nuts and once the pigeons know the peanut, they are very fond of them. In fact these peanuts take care of a reserve of fats that can be used very well during the racing-season. At first the bird will get her first energy out of the sugar but these will be used up very soon, already after some kilometres. Afterwards the pigeons will be able to use the fats and with this energy they can stay in the air for several hours. I must say I don’t know everything about this aspect but I do know that the oil will support the pigeons with reserves, which can be used after some time. Soon after the weaning, the young birds will get to know these peanuts and this for about two months.

Afterwards I continue to give the nuts but not that often anymore. When the racing period starts, the nuts will be given more again and I can assure you that they like it very much. Last season we even add some peanuts to the food of the breeders when they were feeding the young ones. Those peanuts, containing these oils, also take care of the feathers of the birds and our youngsters had beautiful, fat feathers. The only thing that wasn’t that good was the manure, here we saw that the pigeons ate more oil-containing products.

Another advantage of these nuts is the digestion-process, the birds don’t need water to digest the food. Because of the oil they contain, they are softer and more digestible. But I must say that you have to be careful with the nuts because they have to be of a very good quality or else they can be like poison in their body and their results will go down during the racing-season. When it comes this far, the liver has to work much harder so the body will not be able to do heavy efforts.

In fact I know some fanciers with this problem and they didn’t know what to do and at the end they visited the vet and after a long examination at the lab, they concluded the intoxication of the mouldy peanuts. So here we have to be very careful! It’s best to taste the peanuts yourself first and when you think there’s something wrong, you best don’t give them to your birds.

Yours in sport, Hilaire