# performance breeds?



## amoonswirl (Nov 14, 2006)

Ok...I've had my pet pigeons long enough now to know that I am hooked on pigeons & will never return to being pigeonless. And I think that sometime in the next year or 3 I might like to get more "serious" and try a performance breed in addition to my beloved mishmash of pet birds. 

But I want to take my time and think this through very carefully before making a big commitment. So I am tossing a few questions out there to the P.T. experts to see what I can learn first. My goals are:

To meet with other pigeon fanciers and enjoy events together.
To experience and enjoy the process of training and conditioning a small team of birds.
To experience the joy & pride of watching my birds in flight.
To invite other (non-pigeon) people to share the joy of watching (my) flock of trained birds in flight - thus spreading the wonder of pigeons through my community.

Although I initially thought that racing might be the sport for me, now I am not so sure. The problem is that though I appreciate athleticism and training, I do not have a single competitive bone in my body. I am wondering if there are other performance breeds (rollers, tipplers, etc..) that might suit my personality better, yet still offer some opportunity to socialize and attend events with other fanciers. Or even still - a flock of white "release" birds might be the ticket for me since I have a bit of of a theatrical flair. (this may sound odd, but i have done quite a few outdoor musical performances and could imagine incorporating a bird release or some type of kit performance into a show - what a great way to introduce an unsuspecting audience to the joy of pigeons, no??)

Anyway - Can anyone recommend reading material or performance breed clubs to check out in my area? (New England) I have some contacts for local racing clubs but I want to explore other options first & I have had trouble finding reliable information on the web about care and training of any of the other performance breeds. I want to make sure I am doing things the right way.

Thanks in advance! Whew - if you made it all the way through this post you are a good sport!

p.s. I've given showing some thought too, but I am not particularly interested in breeding birds. I want to train them - they are so intelligent and so responsive, I enjoy that kind of interaction better than meticulous genetic documentation.


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Just off the top .. my first thought .. you would probably greatly enjoy rollers. They come in absolutely incredible colors and are such delightful slightly bigger than dove sized pigeons. There are flying rollers and parlor rollers .. both quite interesting to learn about. 

White bird release is a good thought too .. that might just really be your "ticket"!

I don't have the guts to try and free fly any of my birds, so I know that is probably not for me. I've been tempted a time or two to try my hand at showing but just don't have the space to allocate to it .. it would be at the expense of my rescue and permanent birds, and I wouldn't give them up or disadvantage them for anything.

Terry


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## learning (May 19, 2006)

*Welcome and Congratulations!*

Well first of all be careful, because once the racing bug bites you there are very few that can ever get it out of their blood!

You are very fortunate in that you are right smack dab in the middle of one of the hottest hotbeds of racing in the country. There are many many clubs in the New England area of the country. They are all very active and have a wide range of social as well as competative activities available for members and non-members alike. I am not sure exactly where you are located in New England but a good place to start might be the Southern New England Combine or SNE for short. They include many clubs and represent hundreds of flyers. If you go to the American Racing Pigeon Union website at:

www.pigeon.org

...and ask for information regarding clubs in your area they will be more than happy to provide that for you. 

A word of caution when it comes to the racing side of things. Like anything else in this world, there are aspects of anything that will be appealing and some that will not be. As a for instance, there is a good bit of gambling that goes on "under the table" at many clubs. We do not have anything like that in our club down here (Atlanta) but it has come up at some meetings. You will just have to decide at what level and under what parameters you wish to compete. Some of these guys live for racing pigeons and it is quite cut throat for them. There are others that are just recreational flyers. I personally think there is room for both in the sport. You just have to decide what you want to do and not do. 

Another thing that is sort of a pet peeve of mine is that everybody, and I do mean everybody, will have their opinion on how the sport should be done. This guy flys natural, this guy flys widowhood. This guy feeds supplements, this guy feeds straight grain. This guy trains 4 days a week from 75 miles, this guy just loft flys during the week. The list of topics goes on and on. The only advice I could give you along this line is that there is no such thing as bad information, just bad choices for implimenting the information. Everybody will tell you how to do it. You have to take their advice and weigh it against what makes sense to you. Some things will work for some guys and not for others. Don't be affraid to make your own decisions and your own mistakes. That is part of the fun of the sport. You are in total control of your birds. The things you do with your team that are successful are your personal triumphs that you can revel in. Your mistakes are yours to learn from. Look at everything objectively and go with what makes sense to you.

I hope I haven't scared you off from the racing side of the sport because it truely is an incredibly rewarding and satisfying venture. Just know that, like with anything else, you have to take the good with the bad. I am sure there will be others that will chime in on this one with their own feelings (how 'bout it Warren! ). I wish you the very best in your search for what you want out of this hobby.

Best Regards,

Dan


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## A_Smith (Aug 8, 2006)

Looking for a good book. The best I have read sofar is " The Racing Pigeon Story" by Richard K. Parry. ( got mine from http://www.foyspigeonsupplies.com/) 
The book is written in the form of a child with many questions being answered by auther. It starts as birds being seen on a training toss to comming home from race day. I highly recomend it for ALL beginers looking to try racing.
The release at outdoor events is a great idea IF the event location is within your training distance. The birds don't need to be only white, they all look white from the bottom, and why not just have some color.


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## amoonswirl (Nov 14, 2006)

TAWhatley said:


> Just off the top .. my first thought .. you would probably greatly enjoy rollers. They come in absolutely incredible colors and are such delightful slightly bigger than dove sized pigeons. There are flying rollers and parlor rollers .. both quite interesting to learn about.
> 
> White bird release is a good thought too .. that might just really be your "ticket"!
> 
> ...



Hi Terry,
Thanks for your input!
I know what you mean about not having the heart to free-fly...I'm struggling a bit with that myself since I keep an eye on 911 pigeon alert & see how many of these beautiful birds are reported lost every day. (and of course for every one that's reported, there may be plenty more that nobody even notices...)

I don't want to fly them any great distances - I know that for sure. If I did end up racing I'd opt for the shorter distance events.

Also - about showing...space is at a premium here as well. Though one of my longterm life goals is to move out to the country where I can keep different types of animals, and more of them. I had horses, rabbits, and chickens as a kid and I miss that daily interaction with animals. Once I manage to retire from urban life I may take up showing. Then I will have to choose show breeds - another difficult choice!!! So many pretty birds!!!


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## amoonswirl (Nov 14, 2006)

A_Smith said:


> Looking for a good book. The best I have read sofar is " The Racing Pigeon Story" by Richard K. Parry. ( got mine from http://www.foyspigeonsupplies.com/)
> The book is written in the form of a child with many questions being answered by auther. It starts as birds being seen on a training toss to comming home from race day. I highly recomend it for ALL beginers looking to try racing.
> The release at outdoor events is a great idea IF the event location is within your training distance. The birds don't need to be only white, they all look white from the bottom, and why not just have some color.


That sounds like a great book!! Thank you for the tip!
And also I hadn't thought of release birds in different colors but what a splendid idea. If I try this performance bird concept I want the audience to understand that all pigeons are special. Using homers that look more like common ferals might get the point across better - cool!


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## amoonswirl (Nov 14, 2006)

learning said:


> Well first of all be careful, because once the racing bug bites you there are very few that can ever get it out of their blood!
> 
> You are very fortunate in that you are right smack dab in the middle of one of the hottest hotbeds of racing in the country. There are many many clubs in the New England area of the country. They are all very active and have a wide range of social as well as competative activities available for members and non-members alike. I am not sure exactly where you are located in New England but a good place to start might be the Southern New England Combine or SNE for short. They include many clubs and represent hundreds of flyers. If you go to the American Racing Pigeon Union website at:
> 
> ...


Hi Dan,
Thank you so much for your informative response! I did send away for the free reading material from pigeon.org and also got some local contacts from them. I do find the idea of racing very exciting. But perhaps a bit too much excitement for me - not sure until I attend some activities and interview some people who race. I didn't realize that there were non-member events too so thanks! I also didn't know there was so much pigeon activity here in my area - very encouraging! (I guess one of my worries is that since I am only interested in the recreational side of the sport I might end up diluting the results somehow for those in the club who are more driven...but maybe that doesn't even make sense...i guess it comes from always being the last one picked for teams in gym class way-back-when, lol!)


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## learning (May 19, 2006)

Believe me, the guys that are ultra competative won't give you a second thought. The ones that are more casual will love having the fresh face! I really think there is something for everyone in this game.

The free literature from the AU is really very good. They have a whole package they send out to interested people. They are a tremendous resource and are very willing to help you in whatever capacity you need them to.

Good Luck!  

Dan


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## george simon (Feb 28, 2006)

Hi AMOONSWIRL,You have answered the most inportant thing about racing being competive,it is VERY,and if you are not a competive person stay away from racing. The white bird release would be much better for you.....You seem to think that a lot of birds are required for showing.You can get into showing with a small number of birds.I believe that you have a couple of Fantails that give you much pleasure.Why not get 2 pair total 4 birds raise two rounds of young birds 8 young birds you can show at young bird shows or at all age shows..... Now Fantails seem to grab people and kids Most people do not look at Fantails as flying rats.You could give talks and show your birds at schools or other events.You could have bbq's at your home and invite neighbors,give a little talk and show your birds. You could join a national Fantail club or an all breeds club.You can do all this with 8 to10 birds.I currently belong to a National Saddle Homer Club, that is for the most part back east.With the computer I am in touch with other members daily.......In October (13) there is a show at RHINBECK NY Michelle Cussick is the person to contact phone 845-266-8807 or [email protected] In November on the 24 th there is a show in Conn.in ANSONIA CT.Take a look at their web site www.FaircountClub.com check these shows out go to them see first hand what a show is all about. .GEORGE


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## SmithFamilyLoft (Nov 22, 2004)

amoonswirl said:


> Ok...I've had my pet pigeons long enough now to know that I am hooked on pigeons & will never return to being pigeonless. And I think that sometime in the next year or 3 I might like to get more "serious" and try a performance breed in addition to my beloved mishmash of pet birds.....
> 
> Although I initially thought that racing might be the sport for me, now I am not so sure. The problem is that though I appreciate athleticism and training, I do not have a single competitive bone in my body......
> 
> p.s. I've given showing some thought too, but I am not particularly interested in breeding birds. I want to train them - they are so intelligent and so responsive, I enjoy that kind of interaction better than meticulous genetic documentation.


 If you do not like to compete, or the breeding part of it....then I would not invest much time thinking about showing or the performance breeds. People who enter winning birds into shows, or various types of contests, want to win. And you won't get much time or help from winners, if you are completely happy being a loser. 

I don't really believe you when you say you do not have a single competitive bone in your body. If that were really true, then you will have a very difficult time providing for yourself and family, because our whole economy is based on competition. 

At any rate........for sure, do not consider racing pigeons. The idea is to win the race, and is the most expensive by far to enjoy.....so save your money and just add a bird or two to your collection for fun. Most pigeon clubs are not social clubs, they are guys who get together to compete with each other. Some times the members don't even particularly like each other very much. It's just not the same as joining a country club or some social club.

That's my two cents..........Good Luck....


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## pigeonmama (Jan 9, 2005)

You need to go to Sturbridge show in Dec. There were some neat little performance birds over by the figuritas last year, can't remember what they were called, but I really liked them, and wished I had room for a few more breeds.
Daryl


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## hillfamilyloft (Jun 22, 2005)

give pigeonparadise web page a try. You will find all you need to know about performance breeds overseas.

Randy


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## amoonswirl (Nov 14, 2006)

pigeonmama said:


> You need to go to Sturbridge show in Dec. There were some neat little performance birds over by the figuritas last year, can't remember what they were called, but I really liked them, and wished I had room for a few more breeds.
> Daryl


Hi Daryl,
I was there last year - parlor rollers I think are what you're referring to. The ones that roll on then ground but don't fly? I enjoyed that demo lots. At the time I didn't have any pigeons at all - just went to look. Hope I can go this year too. Loved, loved, loved seeing all the different breeds!!


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## amoonswirl (Nov 14, 2006)

SmithFamilyLoft said:


> I don't really believe you when you say you do not have a single competitive bone in your body. If that were really true, then you will have a very difficult time providing for yourself and family, because our whole economy is based on competition.
> 
> That's my two cents..........Good Luck....


That's a good point! I guess I can be competitive when I have to but I don't particularly enjoy it is what I mean.

I do appreciate athleticism and performance though. And have a "thing" about training animals. It is something I really enjoy & have lots of patience with. When I was younger and more daring I loved training horses.

Perhaps a good analogy is like the difference between a dance performance and a football game. Both require lots of practice, stamina and skill. But dance is for the sake of performance and football is more about competition...I'm more of a dance coach personality


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## A_Smith (Aug 8, 2006)

http://www.parlorroller.com/100Foot.html I did a google for parlor rollers. intresting I didn't know there was an unflying pigeon.  I learn something new all the time on this PT site. Thanks pigeonmama.


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## amoonswirl (Nov 14, 2006)

george simon said:


> Hi AMOONSWIRL,You have answered the most inportant thing about racing being competive,it is VERY,and if you are not a competive person stay away from racing. The white bird release would be much better for you.....You seem to think that a lot of birds are required for showing.You can get into showing with a small number of birds.I believe that you have a couple of Fantails that give you much pleasure.Why not get 2 pair total 4 birds raise two rounds of young birds 8 young birds you can show at young bird shows or at all age shows..... Now Fantails seem to grab people and kids Most people do not look at Fantails as flying rats.You could give talks and show your birds at schools or other events.You could have bbq's at your home and invite neighbors,give a little talk and show your birds. You could join a national Fantail club or an all breeds club.You can do all this with 8 to10 birds.I currently belong to a National Saddle Homer Club, that is for the most part back east.With the computer I am in touch with other members daily.......In October (13) there is a show at RHINBECK NY Michelle Cussick is the person to contact phone 845-266-8807 or [email protected] In November on the 24 th there is a show in Conn.in ANSONIA CT.Take a look at their web site www.FaircountClub.com check these shows out go to them see first hand what a show is all about. .GEORGE


Hi George!
Thanks for the links & contact info! I hope, hope, hope I can make it to the November Faircount show! And also the Sturbridge, MA show in Dec. (Oct 13th I can't make though.)

I like your idea of having people over to see the birds. Our friends do know that I am "into" pigeons but most of them have only seen my birds in photos or heard about them. My fantails are so gentle and elegant you're right - they grab peoples' attention right away. I had one co-worker see photos and say, "Gosh, I didn't know pigeons could be pretty!"


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## hillfamilyloft (Jun 22, 2005)

I would reccomend you obtain the best racing homers you can find. Some birds from a respectable family that race well. Breed a nice little team of 15 or so, train them out and race them a few races. If you do not like the racing you will still have a nice team to fly around the house. If you like colors, get a few quality grizzles, whites, splashes etc and race them. You might like the comraudery, friendships etc. The racing then will be the bonus. And hey you might even win a race or two. I would look to your best flier in the area for birds. I would then research a few good bloodlines and introduce a bird or two to the good blood for the area. This way you will have proven blood in your youngbirds, but new proven blood for that added hybrid vigor. I am still looking for birds that fly better than mine to add to the gene pool. 

Randy


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## amoonswirl (Nov 14, 2006)

hillfamilyloft said:


> I would reccomend you obtain the best racing homers you can find. Some birds from a respectable family that race well. Breed a nice little team of 15 or so, train them out and race them a few races. If you do not like the racing you will still have a nice team to fly around the house. If you like colors, get a few quality grizzles, whites, splashes etc and race them. You might like the comraudery, friendships etc. The racing then will be the bonus. And hey you might even win a race or two. I would look to your best flier in the area for birds. I would then research a few good bloodlines and introduce a bird or two to the good blood for the area. This way you will have proven blood in your youngbirds, but new proven blood for that added hybrid vigor. I am still looking for birds that fly better than mine to add to the gene pool.
> 
> Randy


Hi Randy,
Great advice- many thanks!
As fortune sometimes smiles on people, a funny thing happened the other day when I went to feed the ferals downtown. (Once in awhile I bring them a small bag of the feed that my birds are too picky to eat.) A beautiful homer was amongst them, and came right up to me - she must've been very hungry.

Long story short - in the process of getting this little hen back to her owner, I spoke to a few racing loft owners in my area, as well as the secretary of the local racing club. I opted to deliver the bird back to her home so I could tour the owner's loft and talk with him about the local "scene." A delighful and informative experience! And now I have some contacts to start with...


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