Winning pigeons

this might be the case in an average loft only 2% score but in you top lofts this cant be the case

I'm not actually going to root for my all my race results and start bragging. But for many seasons I was second highest prizewinner in two of our strongest clubs. Had many winners, not all the same bird and a damn sight higher percentage than 3%.
The same team of youngsters up to three years old. I had one hen in three years she scored 27 prize cards including many firsts in our longer races.nicknamed locally as the Bullet hen. 3rd Futurity a mealy pied cock, two sister nest mates 12 prize cards many firsts. In fact I would be as bold to say that well over 35% scored only being beaten by their loft mates.
Yeah chaps I do live in the real world.
Well done Darren on your race results.

hi gary, very good results you have there,.....maybe some would class this as exceptioal................

but even with 35% this still means that 65% were not good enough, therefor showing most pigeons are no good, as only 1 pigeon in every 3 scored.

Your missing the point David, like I said on the original thread. A lot of the other birds were only beaten by loft mates. OK, granted some were crap and some only got minor positions. Others came good and got firsts as yearlings and two year olds. As Seanl said in his percentages, my three percent were exceptional birds.

hi gary, yes exceptional flying and exceptional birds....but whatever way you look at it there is no possible logic in thinking most pigeons are anything but crap......


ok we have bops to contend with, the weather and also a % of luck.......but out of the hundreds of ybs fanciers breed over the years whatever way you look at it very few turn out to be winners.

yes, some lofts may have a higher % of winners than another man, but the fact is stil,l most pigeons are no good.

I have over the years, helped many fanciers. The help that I have given, is to motivate them and not their birds. Advice which of course has been given for free.
I look at it this way. Look at a brick for instance. Every brick has the possibility to become something great. Just because it became part of a garden wall, doesn't mean the brick was a crap one. But in the right hands, it could have become something great.
I have in the past, witnessed a certain strain of pigeons being sold at auctions with huge price tags. The fancier buys these birds, full of great expectations. They fail miserably as stock birds. Not producing the goods so to speak.
I and many of my friends have bought these birds two years later, at a fraction of the original selling price. Some have far exceeded our expectations.
Why is this?
I put it down to management.
Another thing that I do put it down to, is paying attention to what the original winning owner tells you. One bird I'm referring to, is a pigeon called Omega. Ron Bigwood did exceptional things with this bird in the stock loft.
I asked him personally for advice on crossings for this bird. Advice which he freely gave. Up to date he has bred no less than 17 winners.
I also agree David, there is an element of luck involved. I would be a liar, if I was to say different.

i honestly dont think there is such thing as bad pigeons these so called bad pigeons would come much better under dfferent management there for i think its mostly down to the fancier just my opinion though

I agree Ian.
Because if we thought like this from the beginning. Then I'm afraid we would be defeated from the start.
There's nothing like a bit of positive thinking.
We all get it wrong from time to time, I being no different to anyone else.

to have sucess with pigeons you need the ones that show good character
without this you dont have much to work with this is where spending time with the birds you will find what birds show good character and them that dont once you find out what the bird wants you then have the chance to motivate it no 2 pigeons are the same pigeons come in to form at certain times that is when you must take advantage of any birds that show that bit extra character get inside there heads find out what they want this is then when the super form comes
motivation is one of the most important things to remember without it you wont win much at all if anything jmo

Well said mate.
Louis Janssen, once said a similar thing. The courage of a bird, is an important quality. Without, it's no good.
For instance, a pigeon as a youngbird that takes a high perch and keeps it throughout the whole youngbird season. When as a yearling becoming a widowhood cock. Give him a top box, he will defend this box vigorously.
This will motivate him considerably.

well said graham and a valid point about top perches ....i have what i call the kings perch lol its above a door and the highest perch in the yb loft and this perch has given me 2 winners both cocks and out of the ybs i have left 7 of them aquired the top 10 perches throughout the year

as ive said many times before look around see what they want if you look close enough they tell you

make things happen add things here and there but dont abuse it to often
try extending a box perch with a peice of wood so that it has a platform about 10 inches further out than the rest they hate seeing a young cock that is perading on the board anything you may think is a silly idea maybe the 1 thing that will motivate a bird

i know of a loft that has no perches at all in one y/b section they live on the floor
in deep litter of straw and shavings
2 days befor the first race he puts in a few boxes not a lot maybe 3 the next week more and so on
dafter things have happened

Now we are heading in the right direction. Attention to detail.
Get to know your birds.
Pigeons can always find a way to tell you what they want. You just have to know how to recognise it.
My best ever hen, The Bullet Hen. She never had a mate for the first two years. She used to show to me every time I entered the loft. I used to play with her pushing her with my index finger, she would crow around excitedly.
She would fall from the sky and fly directly into loft.

i think the character of the bird has something to do with it all my best birds have had something which stands out

I most certainly agree. Character is a thing that all pigeons have and every pigeon is different. Once get to know your pigeons you will discover, motivating them becomes a far easier task. As you will become instantly aware of their likes and dislikes. This then this becomes a very powerful motivation tool.
I know that there will be those, who will disagree. But then again we all have our own different methods.

ian wrote:

this might be the case in an average loft only 2% score but in you top lofts this cant be the case

read brasspennings notes he will tell you only 3 or 4 are the ones that consistantly win prizes odd ones score fact 98% are crap

Gary Burgess wrote:

I'm not actually going to root for my all my race results and start bragging. But for many seasons I was second highest prizewinner in two of our strongest clubs. Had many winners, not all the same bird and a damn sight higher percentage than 3%.
The same team of youngsters up to three years old. I had one hen in three years she scored 27 prize cards including many firsts in our longer races.nicknamed locally as the Bullet hen. 3rd Futurity a mealy pied cock, two sister nest mates 12 prize cards many firsts. In fact I would be as bold to say that well over 35% scored only being beaten by their loft mates.
Yeah chaps I do live in the real world.
Well done Darren on your race results.

so why arnt you answering the questions
how many did you bred this season
how many won
how many scored
not hard to remember shorely please answer

i think this topic is drifting away from the theory sean and i have saying most pigeons are no good.................highest perches and gut instincts are all well and good if the bird in question is a good one, if not it dont mean jack s^^t.


the % of wining birds out of the hundred bred every year is very, very low.

Didnt breed any this season, due to the allotment move. But next season will be a different story flying in two different feds

hope they do well for you gary, looking forward to seeing how all our members do next season.......

It's going to be interesting, because geologically from our furthest racepoint to where I've moved to is only 0.7 miles different.

Gary Burgess wrote:

Didnt breed any this season, due to the allotment move. But next season will be a different story flying in two different feds

best of luck gary was only making a point

No worries mate,cheers. Like I say, everybody is entitled to their own opinion. That's what makes this sport so interesting.