# Can Racing pigeons b trained ot tossed at night?



## shibu (Sep 11, 2011)

I heard about pigeons coming from long distance races at night? If that is possible y can v give them training at nights if they r capable?


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

I guess it depends on your location and if you live near a city with allot of lights.. pigeons can not see well in the dark, but they can still home.. other species fly at night like geese and some ducks..but perhaps their eyes can see things better.


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## Gnuretiree (May 29, 2009)

No, do not do it.


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## steveeman (Mar 18, 2011)

pigeons can't see at night, DON'T DO IT MAN


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## sky tx (Mar 1, 2005)

Shibu--you need to talk with whoever told you that pigeons can fly in the dark.
They may KNOW something we don't KNOW.
Most pigeons will sit Down at night. Unless they are over the ocean.


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## Print Tippler (May 18, 2011)

well i think i heard of homers trained to fly in the dark. Most tipplers are trained to fly in the dark. 22 hour of flight cant happen all in the day. But flying over the loft and homing is two different things. but its a very well practice thing in tipplers.


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## Quazar (Jul 27, 2010)

Contrary to what some have said, pigeons CAN actually see at night, but not nearly as well as in daylight. They can see Ultra Violet light, which is radiant from the sun & moon although much stronger from the sun hence the reason its obviously easier and safer for them during the day.
Most pigeons will only fly at night till they find what they consider a safe place to roost, so its doubtfull if any night training would see them return directly, and for their safety I wouldnt recomend it


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## ptras (Jun 29, 2010)

steveeman said:


> pigeons can't see at night, DON'T DO IT MAN


I had three pigeons that didn't trap with the rest of my birds last weekend after I loft-flew them. They sat on the loft roof until well after dark. Around 10:00pm, I went down to the loft to grab them and put them inside. The first one I grabbed and pushed through the trap. I went back for the next one, and fell off the inverted five-gallon pail I was standing on. The sound spooked the birds, and they both flew off into the night. One of them tried to land in a tree, but I kept hearing it rustling through the leaves and branches as it fell lower and lower. Finally, it gave up and flew towards the roof of my house. However, it missed, and smacked into the wall about a foot below the edge of the roof. It fell to the ground, but fortunately landed in some Hostas that are planted at the foundation. It didn't seem any worse for the wear, so I grabbed him, brought him to the loft and pushed him through the trap. The second pigeon flew in a bunch of wide circles around my backyard, and finally disappeared over the woods down back. The next morning, he was standing on the landing cage. Those two birds came from two different breeders. Maybe some strains can see/navigate better in the dark than others can.


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## pidgey boy (Dec 23, 2010)

i would not risk it they can not see at night making them vulnerable to things like cats or other animals that like to hunt birds i wouldn't do it but its up to you


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## Backwoods Loft (Aug 11, 2011)

Hahaha Im glad you posted this because I took my birds on a toss this afternoon and they landed on the loft and every time I try to make them go in the loft they get up and fly like crazy and I have no light out near the loft!! But back to your question it couldnt hurt just try it with a small number of birds that way if they dont come back you wont loose any thing I have sent some on a race before and be laying in the bed and the alarm goes off because birds are coming in at 11 o'clock at night


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## Print Tippler (May 18, 2011)

heres info on night flying, this is just loft flying at night, and for tipplers, and not homing obviously....

http://www.tipplers.ca/articles/CNTU_article_dark_flying.html

Also the 2nd article here
http://www.tipplers.ca/articles/CNTU_article_battle_tipplers.html

He says 


> My tipplers in the summer time only fly at night from 9pm to 3am.No daytime flying ever. That is a fact and they are just regular tipplers. I use 2 giant lamps and bright yellow tape on top of my coop shaped like an X. I fly 9 tipplers from 9pm - 11pm. I don't use droppers. I shut off one lamp and they come diving down fast. From 11pm, I turn out 50 more tipplers and they look real good kitting in the dark.


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## boneyrajan.k (Jul 15, 2010)

From what i know,tipplers do loft fly at night......its a very usual thing happening in this part of the world...
With homers,i have no idea


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## shibu (Sep 11, 2011)

Thanx for sharing ur thoughts.....friends. I heard most long distance races got winned at nyte time only. It wil be better to try with little trained pigeons i guess.... lets try and find out the results.... i think they will reach the loft but trapping will b the main problem


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## Goodger (Sep 21, 2011)

It can be done but it has to be done gradually, eg late afternoon and getting slightly later each time. It's done a fair bit in Queensland, Australia, one guy up there is well know for it and trains his birds in the middle of the night, as he is a shift worker and its the only time he can do it.

Also years ago there was a truck tipped over in the middle of the night transporting pigeons to a race, the driver and liberator rushed out in the dark and released the birds from the wreck, these birds apparently homed in the dark in the same time it would have taken in daylight


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## shibu (Sep 11, 2011)

Thanx Matriarch, ur links r very useful for me


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## shibu (Sep 11, 2011)

Goodger..... what do u think? R they capable to fly at nyte?


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## Print Tippler (May 18, 2011)

I think it could be done, I'm not a homer person so take what I say with the grain of salt. I would train the birds out 30 miles or so then start loft flying. Read up and do google searches for night flying tipplers. Tipplers trap in at night just fine. Once you got them loft flying at night start tossing slowly leaving the loft go farther and farther. I do know how open your environment is, trees may not be good. If you slowly toss them away from the loft they should be fine. If they don't home, and have already been trained up then they should come home first thing in the morning. You want a good flood light outside your loft. Blinking LEDs or refelting strips. You want your birds to quickly know where your loft is while flying. Homers go off magnetic pull along with other things, if you have neighbors they should start being able to map places out based on other people's outside light, theoretically.

EDIT: also I haven't night flown but I have let's my birds put a good time before sunrise, maybe 40 minutes before. The 1st tome they landed right on my horse shade which is above my loft I flagged them and they flew, after that they mostly would leave the loft and kite right up, flew low tight circles for acouple minutes but the branched out and up and flew into the morning. In order for my birds to fly any good during the summers I have to do early. 105 110 115 is too hot for them to just want to do circles over head


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## bunnyrabbit (Aug 20, 2011)

*RE: flying at ngith*



shibu said:


> I heard about pigeons coming from long distance races at night? If that is possible y can v give them training at nights if they r capable?


You know, I have been alwyas curious about that topic.. Do it, let your birds out at nigth for a trining toss and then let me know how it turn out. May be, both of us can learn something from your experiment. Do it.


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