Physical features and race results - ideas?

BCBrian · March 14, 2006

That "special" thing that makes you think you might have a "good one" - before you fly.

Having been in competition rollers for most of my life, I've always found it interesting to listen to different flyers "favorite thing" when they were looking over young birds prior to them developing. It seems every fancier has something that they say they "just like" do to the impression, that such features seem to bode well for a bird becoming a "good 'un".

I'm not saying I believe in any of them, but I enjoy hearing which physical features people seem to really favour. One fellow I know figured that in his loft the ones with a touch of bronze in their wing bar seemed to be better than the average when they developed. Another, I know favored over-sexed cock birds, and another said his "low perch" henny cocks" were the ones that, more often than they should have, turned out to be superior specimens.

In rollers, I hated the over-sexed cocks, finding them nothing but trouble, and often found that feature associated with non-kitting - these birds all sat on the top perches. On the other hand, I loved the cocks that were so henny as to be almost impossible to sex in the kit pens.

But, now I'm in the process of learning about racing homers. Anyone out there want to share a physical feature in your own birds that, more often than not, seems to have some a better than average chance of being correlated to high finishes in the races?

Geneticists tell us about "linkages" - so any of these observations could, in theory actually exist. Whether they are "actual" or just "percieved" - they are still fun to share and listen to.

pigeonjock · March 14, 2006

PREFERENCES ARE ONLY THAT, "PREFERENCES".OUR OWN WERE FOR WELL BALANCED COCKS THAT HANDLED BIGGER THAN THEY LOOKED.WE HATE DEEP KEELED BIRDS AND ANYTHING WITH WHAT WE CALL A "WILD EYE".WE HAD A HEN BRED IN 1987 THAT WHENEVER IT BRED A CHEQ AND WHITE, THAT PIGEON WENT ON TO WIN.SHE BRED US 14X1ST INDIVIDUAL CHEQ AND WHITE WINNERS.I HATE BIRDS TO BE TOO TAME,I LIKE THEM TO HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF SPARK ABOUT THEM,I DONT WANT THEM JUMPING ALL OVER ME WHEN YOU GO IN THE LOFT.PIGEONS WILL STILL TRAP LIKE BULLETS WITHOUT BEING OVERLY TAME(FEEDING MAKES THEM TRAP)I ALSO PREFER SMALL TO MEDIUM BIRDS AS A RULE AS I FIND BIGGER BIRDS HARDER TO GET GOING WHEN BROUGHT BACK OUT AGAIN FOR A NEW SEASON.THAT IS BECAUSE I FLY WITH HOUSES ON ALL SIDES OF ME AND THEY WILL ROOST ON THERE RATHER THAN FLY.

jimmy white · March 15, 2006

;D ;D YEARS AGO I HAD A GREAT BIG COCK ;D ;D ;D THIS BIRD "THE OLD MEALLY"HAD A DIPLOMA IN EVERY RACE FROM 62 MILES TO 608 MILES, AT 9 YEARS OLD HE WON AN 84 MILE RACE,WAS THEN SENT TO AVARANCHES 505 MILES[ NEXT RACE]AND SCORED IN NATIONAL,,,FROM THEN ON I FOUNDTHAT SIZE DOESNT MATTER OR FOR THAT MATTER LOOKS,, ALLTHOUGH I THINK WE ALL LIKE TO SEE A NICE PIGEON, BUT TO ME WINNERS COME IN ALL SHAPES AND SIZES,

ITS NOT WHATS OUTSIDE THE BIRD BUT WHATS INSIDE

pigeonjock · March 16, 2006

JIMMY WE HAVE HAD THE SAME,A 1973 CHEQ STASSART COCK WHICH I TIMED ON IN 1982 FROM NANTES TO BE 50TH OPEN.HE FLEW THE CHANNEL 43 TIMES FOR US AND WAS A BIG BIRD,BUT THAT WAS FLYING ON ALLOTMENTS WHERE YOU CAN KICK THEM OUT AND THEY HAVE TO FLY.BEHIND HOUSES LIKE WHERE I AM NOW,IF I KICKED THEM OUT AND THEY ARENT READY THEY GO AND SIT ON THE HOUSE TOPS FOR AGES.SO I FOUND SMALL TO MEDIUM BIRDS EASIER TO GET GOING AGAIN FOR THE NEW SEASON,AND ALSO THE FEED HAS TO BE SPOT ON (TOO MUCH AND THEY SIT ON THE HOUSETOPS AND TOO LITTLE AND THEY DONT WANT TO FLY EITHER.THAT IS WHY I HAVE PREFERENCES FOR SMALL TO MEDIUM BIRDS.IF I WAS BACK ON ALLOTMENTS I'D PREFER THE LARGE FRONT ENDED SPRINTERS WE HAD YEARS AGO AS THEY LOOKED THE PART ASWELL AS BEING THE PART.

March 16, 2006

I prefer medium size pigeons, and dont care what colour they are, although Ive got a lot of dark'uns at the moment and they really shine nicely. I hate long keely pigeons, as they feel like they need a good feed. I dont like pearl eyed pigeons but dont believe in eyesign. I dont like pigeons that are really nervous when you walk in the loft, but my best pigeon is like this and grunts constantly when anyone goes near the loft. So really as Jimmy said, I dont think it matters what shape they are, but one thing is for sure, they do look better when they have won.

pigeonjock · March 16, 2006

Sbelbin,you hit on a true point there.I had a cock bred in 1993 which i thought was ugly as sin,he stood bandy legged and didn't look the part at all.I said to the old man if he didn't chalk as a young bird he was going out as i didn't like it.he replied I bet you'd think he was a better looking bird if he won a race.Needless to say the cock went on to win 8x1sts for us with 20 cards in the first 20 of the fed and took 2nd and 34th combine.(What a beautiful looking cock).beauty is in the eye of the beholder

jimmy white · March 16, 2006

yes i would agree , i would prefer a small to medium sized bird, they seem to be easier to condition,,,,but as it is with pigeons theres allways exeption to he rule

snowy · March 17, 2006

always liked the nice coloured ones at first.

Now i like em all, no favorites, apart from three ;D

number 69, blue pied, & a grizz, ;D

THE FIFER · March 17, 2006

I LIKE THE OLD TYPE OF PIGEON, WELL BUILT, GOOD WHATTLES, AND JUST BY LOOKING AT THEM U CAN TELL IF ITS A COCK OR A HEN, REMEMBER THEM JIMMY, STILL SOME AROUND YET, NOWADAYS SOME U CAN'T TELL IF THEY ARE GIRLS OR BOYS, AND JIMMY YOUR STATEMENT 6 POSTS UP IS URE STORY, HOW MANY YEARS AGO HE HE HE HE,

pigeonjock · March 18, 2006

YOUR RIGHT FIFER ABOUT THE OLD STRAINS.WHEN I FIRST FLEW AS A TEENAGER IN THE LATE 70'S AND EARLY 80'S WE FLEW ALF BAKER STASSARTS AND BOY DID THE COCKS HAVE WATTLES ON THEM,THEIR SPONGES GREW THAT BIG THAT BY THE TIME THEY WERE 4 OR 5 YOU COULD SEE THEM IN FLIGHT.

March 21, 2006

In my old loft we had a few that had big wattles and were really well built, and Ive got to say I wish I had a loft full of birds like them as they were always hard days birds. Ill try to get a picture of one as my mate still has a few in his stock loft.

March 26, 2006

I am just the opposite of most I like GIANT birds I have been accused of breeding turkeys into my flock we have some FAST blow home type races and when we do these birds come on in they are really boyant and most are pearl eyed they have really long tails they arent too deep but rather wide and flat when the winds are fast these birds SAIL home in a hurry I won a race in 2004 at 103 miles the speed was 2343.862 ypm ( thats almost 85 mph ) I was 2 minutes and 22 seconds out in front at that speed and distance that is an INCREDIBLE margin this race was about 3 ypm off of a national speed record I saw this bird drop out of sky he was really high up and dropped his wings and fell to earth never circled or anything from the time I saw him till he was in trap was less than 20 seconds I thought he was from another race as he was on wing 77 minutes from 100 mile station and I thought maybe a mistake had been made but after the dust had settled I had a new club record dont get me wrong I dont think this bird is a every race type of bird but when its fast he is there ( yes I still race him ) I have another that is built just like him that is an every race bird I sent him 10 of 11 weeks he was top 20% everytime ( 100%) and in the top 10% 80% of the time same as won 4 races and was best bird in club so I am on the big bird bandwagon my pigeons are wild and will fight and try to get loose they will bite your hand when you reach into a nestbox and trying to look down there throat by holding beak is a new experience everytime

peterpau · April 15, 2006

Slugmonkey, "I am on the big bird bandwaggon too." As for pigeons. I gave up trying to pick out good birds. The basket wins everytime. They all look good when they've done all you ask of them. I Just raise my standards every year.