Diamond dave

Hi all you distance fanatics I have a couple of birds that I would like to send to Pau Tarbes or Barcelona. I have never sent anything further than Tours before. I would like to know if I should still send these birds to Tours before the big one or if I should hold them back until the big one. To date, they have had 5 or 6 inland races up to 130 miles which have all been fairly easy and Falaise and Alencon. With Alencon, they had about 7/8 hours on the wing. Incidently the "big ones" are between 580 and 675 to me. - Be grateful for any advice. D.D.

Hi all you fancy bird lovers - Any of you guys lost a fancy pigeon - or can someone tell me where to report one. It is a lovely brown and white bird akin to a blood red chequer (in the racing bird) it has fully feathered legs and a fantastic white eye. - Ring No. BSW 06 B102 on a blue plastic ring. Any help please. D.D.

Thank you all for your comments - however, I have a couple "quirks" that I would like to add to the debate. Firstly, my hens feathers are silkier than my cocks and all they are on is barley through the week and then widowhood mix Thurs and Friday. Some of these are prisoners and only get a bath once every couple of weeks - they do not fly out. Secondly, if I want to keep my birds on a diet high in carbs and low in fat should I be feeding grains like linseed or putting oil on the corn - or is this where my problem lies. Is there an oil that is low in fat and high in carbs? Thank you all for your very welcome advice. D.D.

Just sent my widowhood cocks and asked the guy how they handled - He said that the birds were "Dry" - he gave me someone elses birds to handle and they were like silk to handle. Is this a sign of form or is there something I can give to the birds to get this silky feel. D.D.

The cock is of the Champ. Fallow Hill Superstar lines and also has Motta and Silk My Girl in its lines - does anyone know where these birds come from? D.D.

Thanks to you all for your replies - I shall have a bit more confidence now in sending a cracking 2yr blue cock to Bergerac (500 +) this year and perhaps Barcelona next year. D.D.

Hi All - Does anyone out there fly the Van Hee strain of pigeons - Can anyone tell me if they are sprint, middle or distance birds? D.D.

Northamptonshire - Blanket cloud with one or two blue holes - Wind strong South Westerly - Good visibility though. D.D.

South Northants - Light S.W. Light but complete cloud cover very high up. Good visibility - Good racing - Good LUCK.

Interesting cross section of answers - with the general concencus being not to let them out . Thankyou for your replies. D.D

Do members continue to excersize their widowhood cocks in pouring rain? D.D.

South Northants - Has been raining continuously here for the last hour. Starting to brighten up just a little bit in the South but still full cloud cover. Cold South wind varying through South West to South East. Hope it warms up for the sake of the yearlings. D.D.

What do members normally feed on Friday before basketing. And how do you feed if you suspect there is going to be a holdover. D.D

South Northants - Blanket Cloud - Brisk North Easter, about 10-12mph - chilly, about 7 degrees. Good luck to everyone racing today. D.D.

Jansen Van den Bosche

Anyone having trouble getting an 80 dose vaccine - No one seems to have any. Can only get 200 dose at a cost of £50 - daylight robbery!! It makes me think they do it on purpose just to try and milk the fancier a little bit more. Angry D.D.

Be Careful with the clear stuff because you will get a lot of condensation with it - and I mean a lot!! Mine is 2 sheets wide in the middle of widower loft but on some damp foggy/misty mornings the loft floor can get quite wet with condensation dripping from the clear sheets. Also, have to agree with early post put it on ply first or it will sag. D.D.

is it something to do with the development inside the egg - what if I were to put them on pot eggs. D.D.

I have read many times of the need to take the hen away frrom a widowhood cock after sitting 5 -10 days of its second nest. Can anyone tell me how this can possibly affect the moult of the cock bird? - I can understand it affecting the moult of the hen but cant work out if or why it should affect the cock. D.D.

Are some of you missing the point. Old Yellow has come up with an option that suits evryone that has expressed an interest. How can it be watered down. It is only watered down if you are entering for the money. This is for FUN with a reasonable prize at the end of it. For those wanting 500+ there are 23 voters - People were willing to sign up for that when there were only 6 interested. Good luck with this old yellow - With all the grief you have had, I would have said sod it long ago. Count me in for the 500+ (Bergerac - 507 miles - with the MNFC). I will send a Ko Nipius cock and I might try a Jansen Hen. I dont want to lose them but it will help me prove the breeding. (Thats providing that I still have them come that date). My two pennies worth is that I would prefer to leave verifaction of the ring number etc as late as possible at least until after our first channel race ( Mine havent been over the water yet) In any case, does it really matter if it is later - you may find that you get more entries. Whatever you decide you have my support.

Whichever way you do it - make sure you WEAR A MASK. I have tried the lime and it goes straight to my chest but I dont have the same problem with loft white -anyone know why? D.D.

Thank you all for your contributions. The thread has got a little bit sidetracked into the colour of the droppings when my interest is for the nutritional values of the food. I am particularly interested in what foods have a high fat content to feed to 600mile pigeons - surely you wouldn't send to such a race just feeding barley would you?...................

Hi All, Can anyone tell me where I can obtain a chart showing the nourishment values of all the different pigeon corns. I,ve seen several along the way but can't remember where. Thanks in advance. D.D.

Hi all, - A very happy, healthy and successful new year to all. I am hoping that someone can tell me through thier experience if oversized eggs tend to be infertile? I have one that is close to 1 3/4" long (45mm) from a stock pair that I want to underlay. Many thanks D.D.

Thanks Grasshopper - I already looked but nothing on there.