Ian Gill

Are you saying that I buy pigeons for the status or prestige??

Dovescot, I say again I didnt demean anyone for asking legitimate questions but when the questions get nasty and of a personal nature then whats that all about?? Just exactly what is your point Dovescot?? Spit it out man and say what you mean..

I dont quite get your point Albear ?? I have not treated anyone with contempt or would ever do so and anyone who knows me will tell you that. Now you mention the fact of the pigeons you put for sale on this site..Well I too placed pigeons in the for sales at what I thought were a working mans price £30 each..these were young birds which were grandchildren of multiple winning birds or from pigeons that have bred multiple Fed winning pigeons that have cost me tens of thousands to aquire ..not paper pigeons but the genuine article. Now you may or may not know that I run a pigeon website,one that has been one of the most popular on the internet for nearly 7 years and I have never placed my own birds for sale on my own site !! Why?? Because I didnt think it appropriate to do so...I did not want to be seen to be taking advantage of the fact that I could have placed my birds in front of the thousands of fanciers using it...call me old fashioned or just plain stupid but thats the way I am(my friends think Im nuts) I have spent hours and hours placing sales lists and details of other peoples auctions on my site and for no reward ..all free ..yet I had a small auction myself last Monday night and I didnt even place the details of my own auction on my site. No one more than me Albear has the interests of the grassroots fancier at heart and I have spent every available minute of my time this last 8 years working to that end..so please dont try and tell me that I have shown contempt

Dovescot, Having concerns is one thing and you are to be commended for thinking of the other members of this site but concerns arnt proof or fact ..simple as !!

I think you will find if you read my original post that I said I have been reading the threads on this forum since Richard started the forum ..not this thread .. That example you gave..well personally speaking I would have read it the once and forgot about it poste haste.. Your quite entitled to ask questions when offered anything but when that turns to a slanging match I think the questions have gone a little to far

Albear I wasnt referring to anyone or any particular post in either of my two posts ..more like generalising ..its got to the stage that when you read the for sales,it seems like there is some form of witch hunt taking place.

I didnt post that to get into a slanging match with you but when your "FACTS" include people having to go through a spanish inquisiton when selling pigeons for 25 or 30 quid ,well its not right ..what do you think your buying at that price ?? A National winner?? Just what are these facts you mention ??

Ive been reading the threads on this forum since Richard started it and I cant believe some of the stuff posted on here regarding the selling of pigeons ..just because there was one bad apple doesnt mean that everyone selling pigeons should be tarred with the same brush and by the way you pays your money and takes your chance..as far as I can see that lad didnt hold a gun to anyones head to get money from them.Yet he still gets mentioned in every thread regarding the selling of pigeons.

I know people like to see the birds so this is .. Blue Cock ..Young Eddie ,a son of Brownlee,Nee and Wards Champion Eddie the winner of 1st UNC ..Young Eddie bred a 1st Section 6,000 birds in his first nest. Bl P Hen..Pied Princess ..a daughter of Roselyn Supreme and the Young Daniel Hen (both owned by me) and is Dam ,g/dam and g/g/dam of Fed winners

This is the Leprachaun ..he is a son of my cock Apollo...The Leprachaun was raced by Brian Swann before being bought by Mike Ganus.. Apollo is still in my loft but sadly not filling but I have sons and daughters at stock

Thanks Gary..Ive had Staffys van reets since 1993 and your right they are nice pigeons.They done well for me racing and anybody that has got them. This is one of my top cocks "Staffy" ..he's a son of the Golden pair and Sire,G/sire and Gr/g/sire of winners upto Combine level..

They are cards or donations of a young bird for next year :o

I have for sale some quality Saf Van Reets for sale, all bred from the very best of Ian Staffords top bloodlines..I have at stock sons and daughters of Goode Blauwe ,Playboy ,Pied Sultan,Shields cock and the Golden Pair. I have Staffys "69" ,a son of the Golden Pair and winner of 3x1st Feds ..also "Topgun" a son of Sheilds cock and winner of 3x1st Clubs ,2x1st Feds and many more of Ian Staffords top stock pigeons in my breeding loft. These young birds start at £30 each and I can assure you they will be quality . Ian Gill 17 Maybin Park Kells Ballymena Co.Antrim BT42 3JR Some members of this forum have seen my birds and can vouch for the quality I have at stock.

In my humble opinion there seems to be a core element on this site determined to ruin it!!! I cant remember the last time I came on and read a decent thread about racing or breeding pigeons...its filled now with gripes about certain members losing a few quid and going on and on about it... I have known Richard for quite a while now and met him on numerous times at shows with Mo and Silver and hes a great lad and certainly doesnt deserve the hassle a lot of you guys are giving him.. I take my hat of to the moderators on this site and for that matter every other site as well because it is a thankless job they do and the abuse they take at times is unreal and uncalled for.

Quite simply put its your money and ultimatley you are responsible for its destination in any transaction in life..if you decide to buy something and you accept the vendors description of the goods and the terms of sale enough to part with your hard earned cash and the deal goes wrong,how on earth is any website or magazine responsible for your loss ?? You parted with your cash, so the buck stops with you..ok you lost your money but like all else in life you bite the bullet,learn from it and move on..

Hi, I read this forum a couple of times everyday and its one of the best available and I feel everyone of you should be thankfull to Richard for all the hard work he has put into this site. The sad thing is that Richard cannot be held responsible for every post on the forum and banning this lad is just not as easy as some suggest. Sadly this "sport" of ours is no different to any other walk of life ,in that there will be con men who prey on the vunerable and those who take advantage of the ill informed ... What really scares me though is that a lot of people still percieve pigeon fanciers as "a league of gentlemen"...wake up and smell the coffee because the sport has been full of con men for years...long before the advent of the internet. One suggestion I would make, is that when a new starter or novice joins the forum they be assigned a "mentor".. who could give advice when needed and if need be make checks if pigeons are going to be bought ...simple and costs nowt

Heres a new race for you Emerald Classic http://www.pigeonportal.com/cdps/cditem.cfm?NID=127&CFID=59712996&CFTOKEN=37556863/admin

Clocks dont win races whether its ets toulet or t3 !! Good pigeons win races and nothing else..instead of complaining about fanciers timing systems,maybe fanciers should concentrate on getting better bloodlines about them instead of using ets as yet another excuse.

Hi David, I remember having a a widow cock like that about 14 years ago,he had been in the Yearling National and the birds were held over for 6 days....the day after he was timed, he was as you described with what seemed like fluid between the skin and muscle. I kept him in a nestbox for a few days and the fluid disappeared but unfortunately I cant tell you if he would have been any use for racing after that as my partner at the time decided to go out of pigeons shortly after that.

Hi Rose, Could you send me the address so that I can send a donation please ..I dont even race but someone has to make a stand !! Off topic a bit here but Ive being dying to ask this ..Vic are you the infamous Cowboy John???

Hi Jimmy, Im good mate,far to many pigeons though ..its a days work just feeding lol What about the black murderers ?? have ya raced any of them yet mate ..seen a few of the pics of the ybs you put on here and they look class...do you still keep in contact with Alan?

Hi Jimmy, Jump on the ferry and drop them over yourself lol !! Hows it going mate??

Hi Cabinboy, If you are willing to pay the carriage I will send you over a few Van Reet young birds to get you started mate.

There was no offence taken mate ,the was me showing mine

Sick pigeons dont fly mate