pigeonscout

I saved the life of an old direct Hartog cock when he was just about to be culled because he had not filled an egg in two years. I put him on wheat germ oil for two weeks before putting him and my best breeding hen into the garden shed. I put a nest bowl on top of an old chair and bingo he filled 1 egg in the first round and 2 eggs in the 2nd round. I do not know if it was just the luck of the Irish or if the oil really did work.

Good shooting Dougie well done.

I found a pigeon in my garden and I put it in the garden shed and fed it for 3 weeks it was flying in and out until one day it was gone. I decided to get myself some more birds so I pick up a copy of the British homing world. As I was reading it I came across an add selling pigeons so I call the number and ask if I could buy some birds. The guy at the other end of the phone asks what kind I wanted, I said homing pigeons he asks again what kind do you want again I said homing pigeons. You know nothing about racing pigeon he said do yourself a favour and do not ring anyone else advertising pigeons as they will take you to the cleaners. He told me to go get some pigeon from a local fancier and come back to him in couple of years when I knew better what birds I wanted. I told him the only guys I knew where the men I would be racing against. He then give me a phone number told me to call it and ask for Richard. Tell Richard John Gerard said he was to sort you out with some stock pigeons. I did as he had asked and Richard ask me to come up to his house the next morning. The next morning I was met by Richard who took me to his stock loft and ask me to pick out any 4 hens. When I had picked the 4 hens Richard took the ring numbers and we went into the house where his father Brain was waiting. He told his father the ring numbers of the hens and ask him to pick 4 stock cocks to go with them. That was the start of a great friendship as Richard was on the phone to me every day telling me what to feed treat train etc. Anyway it was not long before the first young bird race and I was hoping I had done everything right. On the day of my first race my son and I where waiting for the birds thinking they would come 1 at a time and hoping they would not be to far behind. Then all of a sudden there they were and straight though the open door. I will not tell you the result but I doubt if anyone else has had a first ever race like I had. I went on to win every young bird race that year + £3,500 and 11 years later they are still winning and it is all down to John Gerard and Richard Hogg for the birds advice and friendship.

Mike have you managed to join a club yet?

Breeding loft or racing loft? Are you going to race the birds or breeding them to sell?

are vents at bottom of loft facing pool?

I seen a video of this marking birds under the wing but it was so the fancier knew what loft to call the bird into when comming home from race.

Every pigeon will receive a codifiable electronic ring containing a fixed unique reference number. Prior to the start of the pigeon racing season this Ring reference number must be allocated once to a specific pigeon so as to enable it to display the permanent ring number on the control unit and on the printed records. The allocation takes place at the club. During the registration process for a specific race, a random secret code number is generated in the ETS ring. The number is stored in both the ring and control unit. The secret number differs from race to race and can not be retrieved by the breeder. Registration of a pigeon takes place on arrival. When a pigeon enters the loft the ring is activated and transmits its fix code number to the electronic trap. At the same time, the random secret code number is checked for correctness.

ETS rings get a new code every time it is marked for a race so you could not clone it.

Anyone not happy using ETS 500 pro system pm me with price as I want to buy one.

So your saying he was able to cheat clocks but not the ets?

The bar code is only put onto the ring at marking it is that ring bar code that has to be timed. So how would you get the bar code from the chip after the bird is in race the basket.

Rose I was saying what you are saying that I also know my birds.

I am a lucky breeder not master breeder :B :B :B

I think your missing the point the point I am making is that not everyone that sells birds is in it for the money. They sell because they have spent time and money over the years building up a family of birds other fanciers want. In my loft if a bird is no good I put it in the bin I would never give it away. The ones that buy and sell birds to make money are just like anyone else that buys and sells to make a living if the market is there then why not make money from it? Going to all the top lofts buying their birds at a good price and selling them for a profit to the people who do not have the time to go looking. I for one would love a job like that.

I sell because people want my birds. If I was in it for the money I would have 100 stock pair not 10.

I sell because people want my birds. If I was in it for the money I would have 100 stock pair not 10.

I sold two 3 year cocks this year both nest mates to one of my club members. One has won 8 x 1st 3 of those 1st this year and the other 4 x 1st one of those 1st this year so people do sell winning birds. I have never advertised birds for sale but fanciers still come to me every year to buy young birds. I hear people saying that fanciers only sell their rubbish and birds they no longer want, In my view that statement is rubbish as there are good birds sold every single day. Not everyone has a fat bank account and can refuse money someone is offering them for their birds so they sell.

Demand makes prices, some fanciers could not give their birds away and others cannot breed enough for the demand. If a 100 fanciers all want one mans birds then he will sell to whom ever is offering him the most money. Pigeons are no different than race horses or grey hounds when it comes to buying and selling people will pay more for winning lines. Why would a fancier sell a bird for £100 if someone is willing to pay him £5000? Remember a bird is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.

I had a lost bird reported on this site and Gangster was the first man to offer to go a pick it up for me. It is easy to post on the site but to travel 100+ miles to retrieve another members bird for him is something special.

I am looking for a Unikon 500 system. If you have one for sale pm me with details and price.

A guy on TV says that humans have been using herbs for 1000's of years and the ones that worked we now call medicines. ;D ;D ;D

A lot of top fanciers from the past where the only ones in their area that could afford a car. How many races would a fancier win today if he had no means of training his birds.

If a UK fancier goes to the Belgium loft of van den, and buys a full round from his stock birds. In 5 to 10 years time when van den originals stock birds are no longer breeding the birds van den will have left are the same way bred as the ones the UK fancier has. So in my view they have no better birds they are just better at making people believe they have.