GROVEHOMER

I had dismal race from Wellington to Plymouth on Saturday, got 9 home from 26, I've had 3 reported today (all by non fanciers) one bird is in Bude, can any local fanciers look after the bird until Friday? Thanks.

FIRST YB RACE TODAY, 56mls, LIB 07.15, 71/2 HOURS LATER AND JUST 7 HOME OUT OF 26....AND NOW THE WEATHER IS DETERIATED!

Weather hasn't been very good for training our birds has it? My birds have had just 6 tosses, just six more training days left before racing starts!

Ben, is your first race Wellington?

Let it recover, give the bird a second chance. When do you start yb programme Redfoxkrauth?

Go with Stevebelbin & Rolands advice, Easitox is the most effective treatment i've used, one spot on the skin on the back of the neck, it works a treat! I got mine from Hyperdrug £4.99 no p&p.....good VFM.

nfc h.o.d recently posted on NFC Website

PLYMOUTH. WET, POOR VIS. 10-15mph SSW WIND. BEEN LIKE THIS ALL MORNING. >

NFC LIBERATED FROM TARBES 11.00, LT AND VAR. WIND TURNING SOUTH, BIRDS CLEARED WELL. GOOD LUCK!

NFC CHOLET, 6700 BIRDS, I SENT 2.

Tammy, the same happened to me today, 2 birds bought in the auction, all arranged but AMTRAK failed to show. It's not the first time this has happened to me....... they've let me down more times than I care to remember!

I believe that there's alot of substance to these theories, but intelligence is the icing on the cake.(shy)

YES, GOOD NEWS COMPO, THINGS ARE ON THE UP, ALL THE BEST TO YOU AND YOUR DAD.

I believe in the BRAIN THEORY, (intellect, courage and desire to home ,ASAP).....it supersedes all other theories, because intellect can compensate for physical weaknesses, as long as they aren't too bad (like a weak back or poor balance etc)

AM I WAITING FOR THE NICE WEATHER? DO YOU MEAN WHEN THE RAIN GETS WARMER! ;D ;D ;D

It,s come highly recommended, so i'm giving it a try this season. YB's look very good on it, their droppings are excellent! I put it in the water, I'm not lazy.....just very busy so it saves me time but costs me more.

GREENWAYS, Are your daylight bulbs on a dimmer and what wattage are you using?

I'm pretty sure pigeons don't sweat. they lose fluids through passing urine (with the faeces ) and through exhalation, this moisture lost through the airways is the main concern as birds suffering from respiratory trouble fly with their beaks open causing dehydration at a greater rate than healthier birds.

Thanks everyone, You've given me plenty to work with. I've used an ordinary household dimmer switch in the past, trouble was, the light was a bit too bright at its min setting and the birds sometimes wouldn't settle (even though I dimmed down over approx one hour) Ideally I'd like one that I can press a button when I leave the loft and thats me finished for the evening while the light level goes down very steadily to nothing....I don't want any nest box fights while I'm watching the footie blissfully unaware that the babies off my best birds are being mullered. :'(

CAN ANYONE PLEASE HELP?, I'M HAVING REAL PROBLEMS SOURCING A LOFT DIMMER, ANY HELP WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED. :

I,ve noticed this before, the birds seemed to be excited, usually when I was about to feed them. The birds doing it were in excellent condition, so it didn't concern me......I would like to know why it happens though!

I, like you Roland, believe we will probably race south, but if we dont I think it will be a blip and I'm quite prepared to sit it out. South for us is east (or to be more precise, E.N.E. along the south coast to Eastbourne) and then down through the French race points not the easy option you seem to be suggesting.I have raced from north, east and south and won! I'm not sulking or lip pouting, just trying to build a team for the future......harder than some people will ever know in this neck of the woods.

Roland, we used to race the north route but it died a death about 10 years ago due to the horrific races we were having, the continental route benifited from this. Pigeon racing has been on the slide here so I cant see north road racing making a comeback in this area. I'd like to see the NFC plan a south programme, but also to have an inland programme set in stone as a back up, and to make these race plans common knowledge well before our birds are placed in the training basket so people can make their own plans/ back up plans.

I won't be flying with the NFC if they go north, I'm only interested in the channel events.

As a distance enthusiast, I'd prefer a late April or early May start ( as the weather quite often is cold, windy and showery during pre-season training and the first couple of races) and the YB season to be shortened and be more about educating babies rather than giving them 10+ races......having said that I've tried the sprint/ YB thing and I can see the thrill in it, but for me it's distance.