Back garden fancier

Easy to sort them out, just pair them up best to best and work your way through the loft. When all the boxes are full whatever is left you don't need.

Are those calculations correct? If you pair up tomorrow they will lay in 10 days and then hatch in 19 days more. They will need ringing in the next 10 days, which is still in December? I thought about the 6-8th of Dec was the earliest date to get rings on?

Only looks to be 1 o8 ring?

My loft faces east. The prevailing wind is westerly, so when the birds arrive home they can land in to the wind without circling. (9 times out of 10 anyway)

What if Amtrak pack up with pigeons all together? Then what? Buisnesses like louella would go bust? The rule which states you have to get strays back would have to be changed, to non fanciers only. Fanciers would be told to feed water and release unless you are prepared to go pick it up. I can see it happening, how much do Amtrak need us I wonder?

Been looking in to ETS, for the whole club.At first I was in favour of ETS but the more I look into it the more tricky it seems. For the fancier, no problem just take home your clock and wait for the birds then take it back to the club. But for the secretary it looks a nightmare, all the birds to assign rings for before the season starts, thats every bird that every member intends to race. Some members have over a hundred birds, all to have a ring assigned at £1.20 each! Not sure if we'll go down the ETS route.

Used it in the past, made no difference so don't bother now.

Louella have some yelow Kirkpatricks on their on line sale list dated 24th Oct. That's what they look like!

Just look at the "Mardon Van Reets" Total sale last year at Blackpool, now loads are advertising their stock! Never been raced, just bought 12 months ago to churn out youngsters for sale this year.

Just been on news about corn prices, saying everything is going up! Bread milk eggs meat cheese. Partly because of bad harvest. But more to do with oil companies making bio fuel!!! So they put up the price of petrol and put up the price of all our food as well!!! Bas***ds

Not much success with chocolate pigeons, but how many are raced? If you think of all the blues and cheq's that race, and how many of them are winners? It's no wonder you see so few winning coloured birds. Nothing to do with the colour, just statistics and odds.

Been using the Harkers loft white this season, will carry on. Keeps perches dry and makes them easier to scrape off. Smells nice too.

Read post below about white pigeons. Yes you can race them

TCP, the unknown secret! Told to me be an old lad at the club. Put a tablespoon in their bath and it keeps them free of lice also clears their throats and nose out. £1.50 per bottle from Tesco.

Do you get the British Homing World? There are plenty in there. Louella have them, Warren Forster has a good family as do others.

Quick look in my pigeon cupboard I have the following. TCP / Milton / cod liver oil / cider vinegar and fresh garlic. All for a few quid from Tesco's. Don't need £20 to get what you need!

I do it with both old and young birds, not too far about 5 miles. I do this on a Friday morning, think it gives them confidence to be on their own and not with a pack.

One bag of corn..................the way prices are going!!!!

Extreme hunger is a sign of coccidiosis. Because the guts arn't working they are always wanting food. Or could just be fat B's!

Remember a bloke having some "Victor Lemons" back in the mid 90's, they were advertised as "the fastest racing pigeons in the world." Certainly looked the part. He was Belg/Dutch despite the name, does anyone remember them?

My corn shop has cider vinegar for pigeons at £6.99 for a small bottle. Tesco's has it at £1 for a large bottle! Know which I'll buy.

I think you might mean "yellows?" Been posts on this colour before. Louella sell yellows, had some at Blackpool last year but looked a bit strange to me.

Ro get "control" of your birds, start feeding just over an ounce of corn a day. As their weight comes down they'll soon be all over you, and will follow you all over the garden. Then gradually increase the food till they loose interest in you, and then you've found out two things. How to keep control of your birds and how much to feed them.

The bigger WH Smiths have it in stock. Comes out on Thursday.

North South divide does have some advantages!!