P.P.News

Pigeon Racing Under The Darkening System concl...

Glenn West — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:29:00 GMT

Howdy Race Fans!!

Lots in today's blog, from the subscriber's results video, YouTuber's submission, NLOP Pigeon Poker room video, to the conclusion of Chris's Pigeon Insider Newsletter samples on the "Darkening System". Enjoy!!

Racer's Catalogue and Insider's Guide results video:

Pigeon Pals' Free NLOP Poker Room

YouTuber's submission: from maguianyi's Channel

The Pigeon Insider newsletter sample:

Hey Glenn,

Whats up? over the last few days we have been talking about the darkening system, We talked about the advantages and disadvantages as well as the setup, feeding and training. To conclude I posted a new article that explains what to do both pre and post season when using the darkening system. It goes over adding light and returning your birds to natural day and night after the race season. After you read it dont forget to post your comments I would love to hear what you think especially if you have tried and have experience with the darkening system.

I look forward to reading your comments

Talk to you soon

Yours in the sport,

-Chris Please let Chris know how much we appreciate his hard work.

Darkening System Pre and Post Race Season

Adding Light
Two weeks before the first race, I make another change and put the birds on sixteen hours of light. The birds wake to a natural sunrise, but I turn lights on in the coop with a timer and then shut them off at 10:00 p.m. with the timer. This is the easiest part of the system, since the timer can take care of the lights without any interference from me.

Adding the extra lights, lengthens the day for the birds and tricks them into believing that it is still summer time. Consequently, the birds do not begin to prepare for winter as they do on the natural system. They don’t need to, since they have already gone through the body moult.

I leave the birds together for the first race and then separate them into hens and cocks on the evening after the first race. I continue to train the birds several times a week, but I have to switch to afternoon training tosses. Having the birds in two groups requires that someone be at home who can close the front to the hen loft and open the front to the cock loft so that the birds don’t end up in the same pen.

By this time, school has started so I train as soon as I get home from work and my kids help me out by switching the loft fronts for me. It is difficult, but I can usually work two tosses in each week and still manage to get to several soccer games and practices with my kids.

The Race Season
Once separated, the hens and cocks get let out at separate times to fly around the loft. If I don’t take them on a training toss, I let them out to fly around the loft. Most days they will take off and fly for up to an hour before returning to the loft to eat. I still feed just once a day after they have flown or been trained. I don’t let the birds fly on Friday or do training tosses on that day.

I again get to spend a lot of time with the birds as they eat and drink. I continue to clean the lofts almost every day. For me it is easier to do it regularly and clean up just a little than to let it all build up and have to really work to get it clean. It pays off so much in the better health of the birds.

On Friday afternoon, I let the hens and cocks get together for about an hour before I crate them to go to the club. I make sure the birds eat and drink before I crate them. I adjust the feed depending on what the conditions for the race are supposed to be. If it is going to be a harder race, I feed more heavily. For an easier race, I feed less.

Making sure the birds get the right feed at the right time during the race week is a skill you have to learn. Every race is different. The weather, the temperature, the wind, all make a difference on the condition of the birds when they return to the loft. How I feed the birds, has a big effect on how the birds recover from a race and how they prepare for the next one. Just like an athlete has to be careful with his diet, I have to prepare my flying athletes to be ready to do their best.

Usually I start with light food immediately after a race and then increase the amount of protein on Monday through Wednesday. Peas and corn have a lot of protein in them which helps to build muscle, but it won’t help to feed it on Friday right before a race. By then, it does not have time to digest properly. On Thursday and Friday, I feed less protein and more carbohydrates. This provides the energy the pigeons need for the race.

I try to handle the birds as little as possible on race day. I don’t want to stress them in any way. Since the birds at this age don’t have a permanent mate, I don’t worry so much about which birds stay or go, like I do with the old birds. I try to send those that look and feel the best. If the bird is stressed for any reason or not in good condition, I will leave it home. I always have plenty of birds.

When the birds arrive home from the race, I allow both sexes to mix within the entire loft. They are like teenagers strutting their stuff. They haven’t settled down with a permanent mate. They all seem to play the field and flirt with many different birds. I allow them to stay together for several hours, then separate all of the birds again. Those that arrive home early, get the most benefit from this experience. If they come home late, they miss out.

Using the Darkening System, I get great results on the returns. On many of the races over the past years, I have had ten to twelve birds on the first drop. I rarely get a single bird on the first drop.

After the Season
At the end of the race season, I return the birds to a natural day and night. I keep the birds separated by sex, since I don’t want them to begin mating. This would cause additional stress on the birds and put them at risk of getting sick.

The birds will begin the moult really fast as their day has suddenly gone from a long summer day of sixteen hours to a shorter autumn day of about twelve hours or less. The birds will moult the body feathers again and they will moult the wing flights. A few birds will have already begun the wing moult, but most of mine have not started this yet.

The birds seem to just fall apart at this time, but they get through it rather quickly. Again, I try to keep the loft really clean during this time to prevent the birds from getting sick. There is considerable dust with the huge loss of feathers, so at the very least I sweep the loft every day.

I return the birds to the 22 percent turkey grower pellets for this time while they are moulting. It seems to help them get through the moult easier. They have the extra protein available that they need to grow the new feathers, but in a form that is much easier to digest than peas and corn. I always give the birds plenty of grit as well.

Darkening System Pre and Post Race Season By Craig Goode

I hope you enjoyed the last few emails explaining the darkening system, I just wanted to send you a follow up article on the darkening system. In this article it answers some questions that you may have regarding the darkening system.

The Darkening System

First when we say darkening your loft
You can use anything to cover your loft windows with whatever is convenient and at your disposal: curtain material, wood, or a piece of tin.

I personally cut up a thin sheet of plywood. I run it in a grove so I can slide it in front of my windows inside my loft to darken the room. It also comes in handy later to darken the loft to catch your birds for training, as they are more calm when being caught.

How dark should it be?
Like a night with no moonlight. Try not to have light coming through little peek holes in your loft. I would say just try and keep it as dark as you can.

Ventilation for darkening a loft is very important
Any ventilation is fine as long as daylight does not come through it. You can also use power vents if desired. Power vents may be a better choice in warmer climates.

When do I darken the loft?
I would say to your convenience. Keep in mind your birds can only have eight hours of daylight per day. For example: from 8 AM to 4 PM; maybe 9 AM to 5 PM; or 10 AM to 6 PM. Whatever is convenient for you.

How old should my young birds be for the darkening system?
At the age of thirty five days. However, some people start them on twenty eight days old, while others wait until they are fifty days old. We found they will start to drop their primary flights if you decide to go beyond the 35 days, but as soon as you put them in the dark, they will stop dropping their primary flights.

Dropping body feathers
You will notice body feathers in your loft after two weeks of beginning the darkening system. The birds will go through their body moult which will take about nine to ten weeks. They should not drop their primary flights.

When do I feed birds that are in the dark?
That will be up to you. I always try and feed them a little before I let them out for their morning exercise, and one hour before I darken the loft. It’s amazing how they find their way around in the dark in the loft, even to go for a drink.

How long should they be in the dark?
Twelve weeks, but longer if you like.

Exercise for your birds
Exercise your birds as you like.

Caution in training your young birds that just come out of the dark, or still in the dark – It didn’t seem to make a difference in training. We all found extreme care must be taken here. Where dealing here with young birds that have feathers like old birds, but in their mind they are still young birds. They panic very easily and are capable of flying great distances before realizing they are lost. In our club we found to have fewer loses if we trained in the morning only. Take extreme care, start slowly, don’t push them up the road too fast. They seem to lack confidence. Sometimes later in training I have taken a couple of yearlings along to help build up their self-esteem until they become sure of themselves. I train three times a week right up to the end of the racing season .

The first week in August
The daylight hours are getting shorter, now we start to increase daylight hours in the loft by turning on the electricity which is set on a timer to create fourteen hours of daylight in the loft. This is to delay the body moult .

Now, the lights are turned off halfway through September. Within ten days after shutting off the lights they will start their complete body moult. They sometimes drop their last flights in the winter months but that is not a concern. I have found out that my young birds moult out faster in their own original young bird loft better than trying to move them too soon to a yearling loft.

Feeding after the race season when they have started their moult
It is very important to feed them good quality grains two times a day till they are through their moult. Give them lots of rest, and limit the amount of exercise during this period.

The Darkening System By Roland Paret

Sign up for the Pigeon Insider Newsletter, click here to learn more.

Thanks for tuning in!!
Glenn West

Pigeon Racing Under The Darkening System cont...

Glenn West — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 20:47:00 GMT

Howdy Folks!!

     Great news today, Chris is adding three more articles on the darkening system. I will add the second one today and the other two stories tomorrow. These next three articles will go into great detail and describe the advantages and disadvantages to darkening, you can also learn exactly how to implement these pigeon racing systems.

Racer's Catalogue and Insider's Guide results video:

YouTuber's submissions:    from romanianrp1's Channel

                                 from pigeonmaniac's Channel

The Pigeon Insider newsletter sample:

Hey Hey,

Yesterday we talked a little bit about the advantages and disadvantages of the darkening system, just in case you wanted to try it this season in your own loft I posted a new article to the blog that explains more in detail the setup, feeding and training of the darkening system. It's a very interesting article I think your gonna enjoy it, after you read it be sure to post your comments and tell us what you think.

Talk to you later

Yours in the sport, Wonderful as always Chris!!

-Chris

Darkening System Setup, Feeding and Training

The Setup
I put my breeding pigeons together near the end of January. My last birds come out of the nest near the end of May. As soon as I wean the first round, they go on the system. All of the birds I raise during the season are put on the system when they are weaned. Some moult earlier than others, but they are all ready by the time the season begins.

My young birds go into a large loft with three big sections. There are two aviaries on the front where the birds can go out and get a drink and get sunshine. There is also a large aviary on the back of the pen. The pigeons go out a walkway, down the side of the loft and then into the back aviary.

I am a school teacher, so I leave for work early in the morning and arrive home in the early afternoon. I like to spend time with my pigeons every day, so the traditional method of darkening the loft in the afternoon and evening hours didn’t work for me. I would never be able to spend time with my birds under that system. I set up my system so that the loft is darkened in the morning hours, then opened at 10:30. My birds have their light in the middle of the day, then I close the curtain at 6:30. This gives my birds eight hours of sunlight during the day and it allows me to have several hours each evening to work with my birds.

The curtain I built allows me to keep the birds on a very consistent system. I try very hard to be there every night at 6:30 to shut the birds up. This is one reason many flyers don’t like the system. It keeps you tied to home. It is difficult to take off and go places. If I need to be gone, I have to find someone to do it for me. It is not good for the birds when you miss putting them to bed on time.

If the loft were built differently, it might be possible to have a curtain come back down and close up the loft, but my birds get all spread out throughout the loft and the aviaries. I have to be there to get them all back inside and into one area to be able to close up the loft.

My Feeding Routine
When I wean the pigeons, I feed a 22% protein turkey grower pellet. This feed really helps them get through the moult and grow all of the feathers they need. I feed them once a day in the afternoon.

When I get home from school, I let the birds out on the landing board. My landing boards have slide down fronts with screen. This lets the birds look around the loft and begin to become accustomed to the area. It also gives me a chance to work on trapping with the birds. I spend a great deal of time teaching the birds through repetition to trap when I whistle.
While the birds are out on the landing board, I spend a few minutes cleaning the loft. I like to keep it clean because when the birds are moulting there is a lot of dust. I don’t like the birds to breathe anymore of the dust than is necessary. I scrape, scoop and sweep it out almost every day.

After sitting outside for a while I whistle the birds into the loft and use a push stick with a square of plywood on the end to help get the birds inside. I whistle the same tune every day and I whistle continually while the birds are eating in the loft. I like to be inside the loft with the birds as they eat, so they get used to being near me.

After the birds eat, they go out into the front aviaries to get a drink. I give them water with a tablespoon per gallon of apple cider vinegar mixed in. This reduces the PH level in the gut of the birds and helps prevent the birds from getting coccidiosis and e-coli. While the birds drink, I like to sit on a bucket near their water tray and watch the birds. It lets me see each bird individually, gets them accustomed to me, and helps me to learn the birds’ band numbers. It is important for me to really know my birds, so I spend the time to make it happen. Most flyers are not committed to spending enough time in the loft and with the birds.

Before I start training in the middle of July, I switch the birds to grain. I add a little grain with their feed to begin with and then gradually build up the grain while decreasing the pellets. I mix a pigeon feed with three different types of peas, Austrian Peas, Trapper Peas and Maple Peas. It also has whole corn, wheat, milo, millet, safflower, rice and barley. The feed has about one half barley. When I start to train and race I reduce the barley to about one third.

In the water I give the birds, I also mix Red Cell, which is a vitamin and iron supplement sold for horses. I buy it at a farm store in gallon bottles. I use a teaspoon per gallon of water and give it to the birds three or four times per week. I mix it together with the apple cider vinegar. I use poultry vitamins and Windsmore vitamins that I order from Jedds Pigeon Supply. I put a quarter of a teaspoon of each in the water two or three times a week. I also use pureed garlic. I put a teaspoon of it in the water two or three times a week. It doesn’t seem to matter to the birds what I put in the water, they drink it just fine. Most days it is a mixture of several things.

I always give fresh water every day. I clean the glass gallon bottles and glass Pyrex trays that I use several times each week with chlorine bleach to kill any germs and bacteria. My water trays are built on the outside of my lofts in an aviary. This keeps the floors inside my coops dry at all times. If any water gets spilled, it just drops to the ground through the screen in the bottom of the aviary.

Training
The second week of July, I switch the schedule for the birds. I change their day from the middle of the day to a natural morning. In Utah, it is very hot in the middle of the summer when I need to train, so I have to have morning training tosses. A week before I begin training tosses, I begin opening the curtain up at night before I go to bed. The sun is down, so I can open the curtain without disturbing the birds.

The birds awake to a normal sunrise. My kids are home during the summer and they put the birds to bed for me at 2:00 p.m. During this time, I don’t get to spend as much time with the young birds because I don’t mess with them in the evenings, but all the early work with the birds has prepared them for training.

Another benefit of this change is that now the curtain is open all night long and there is more air movement in the loft. This is a healthier condition for the birds to be in.

Training tosses begin after a week of the new schedule. I begin by taking them to the street in front of the house several times, then increase the distance very slowly. I toss them every day for the first week or so and then about every other day after that. I do lots of tosses within a mile or two of the loft and then gradually increase to longer tosses.
For me, this is a little bit of a sacrifice. I have to get up at five most days to get the training toss in before I go to work for the day. During the summer, I work at the school, building things in the woodshop like shelves and tables. The school district uses them in other schools.

Most flyers aren’t willing to get up early and make the sacrifice to make it happen. Without a good training schedule, the birds won’t develop the muscles they need and they won’t develop their homing instincts as keenly. Experience pays off when they get into the race season. During the training tosses, the birds make mistakes. They get off course and have to find their way back home. I believe they are a lot like kids. They learn from their mistakes and they gain experience that will help them later when they get into the same situation. They will be able to find their way home much quicker.

Darkening System Setup, Feeding and Training By Craig Goode

Sign up for the Pigeon Insider Newsletter, click here to learn more.


                        Thanks for tuning in!!
                    Glenn West

Pigeon Poker Room Midweek Update and UFC Bounty Tournament

Glenn West — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:30:00 GMT

Hey Poker Players!!

Welcome aboard to "FluffyBunny"!! I will post the top four of the clubs leaderboard, as well as, paste the email I received from NLOP. There is still lots of week left to join in on all the fun and try to qualify for the $1000 Top 2000 weekly point getters Tournament.
Feel free to post your comments below and thanks to all our sign ups, may you all flop the nuts....just not against me.

view as web page

$1,000 UFC^® Dana White Bounty Tournament

First Place Wins: $500 Cash
Knockout Dana White and Win: $300 Cash
Top Finishers' Prize Pool: $200 Cash

Play Live with Dana White!
Thursday, March 11th at 7:00 p.m. PT (10:00 p.m. ET).

Login and go to the Win Cash tab in the
Tournament Lobby to register.

Thanks for tuning in!!
Good Skill!!

Glenn West

Gotta Love Those Pigeon Racing YouTuber's

Glenn West — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 21:24:00 GMT

Welcome back Folks!!

        Three very impressive but very different pigeon related YouTube channels to view today. These channels come from three different places in the world and cover the most scientific approach to the basic backyard fancier. I will also add a request for participation that Chris from the Pigeon Insider sent awhile back. I am re airing this note in hopes at least some of you fanciers will lend a hand.

Racer's Catalogue and Insider's Guide results video:

YouTuber's submission:   from harrygeurts9's Channel

                             from ubaid666's Channel

                from Moroncelos verderonbruno's Channel

The Pigeon Insider newsletter sample:

Hey Glenn,

What's up? I just wanted to drop you a quick email to let you know I would really love to know if you have any pigeon how to articles or videos that you would like to share on our blog www.pigeonsite.com

As you may know by now pigeonsite.com blog is just as much your site as it is mine and if you have any articles or videos I would love to post them for everyone to read and learn from.

My goal with the blog is to bring as much information as possible to you, so you may have some tips, tricks and strategies that others can benefit from and vice versa.

So again if you have any pigeon tips, tricks, techniques, strategies, articles or videos that you would like to share and see published on pigeonsite.com just drop me an email at pigeonracingpigeons@yahoo.com and let me know.

It doesn't matter what subject your expertise is in I'm looking for info on all subjects be it loft related, breeding, stock selection, racing and training strategies, eyesign, breeding techniques, health, disease and so on. just drop me an email at pigeonracingpigeons@yahoo.com and let me know.

Hope to hear from you,

Yours in the sport,

-Chris

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Darkening System

I have had great success using the Darkening System with my young birds. It has helped me overcome other disadvantages I have, like a poor loft location and headwinds off the Great Salt Lake. This is the eighth season I have used this system. I had some success the first year, 1997, while I was learning, great success the second and third years, 1998 and 1999.In 2000, my fourth year, my young birds picked up the Adeno Virus. I lost many birds before I got on top of it, so I stopped flying to tend to my birds and so I would not infect the other pigeons in the club. I learned a lot about the Adeno Virus that year which has been helpful to me and others since that time.

In 2001, 2002 and 2003, I flew only young birds so I could spend more time with my kids and be able to watch them play sports. I had some good results with my young birds, but spent a lot of time these years experimenting with breeding theories. I used the darkening system with my young birds. My results were good, but not spectacular.

This year, in the 2004 young bird season, I am seeing some phenomenal results. I think what we have done with the breeding is really working and we are able to fully use the power of the darkening system. We are really excited about the results. It looks like we are going to have an awesome season.

Using the Darkening System causes the young birds to moult their body feathers very rapidly, but they do not moult the flight feathers. The system tricks the pigeons biological clock through manipulation of the length of the day. The shortened day forces the bird to prepare for winter by moulting the body feathers. As the bird moults, it also grows and matures. It becomes stronger and more muscular. This gives the bird an advantage when racing against birds that have not gone through a moult. The larger body size gives the pigeon more power and speed.

During this moult, each pigeon loses all of the feathers on the head, neck and shield, but will not lose the primary and secondary wing flight feathers. This moult occurs before the racing season starts in the fall, so the birds have great body coverage throughout the entire young bird season. They are not falling apart like most young birds do.

Advantages
One huge advantage I have seen is that the young birds are sexually mature for the racing season. They can be put on the widowhood system and respond very well to it. I fly the double widowhood system with my young birds which really helps to motivate the birds to come home quickly.

My birds seem to be in top form week after week on the Darkening System. I usually have a large young bird team and most weeks I have more than enough birds ready to go on the race. The birds have a full wing and good feather coverage on their bodies. They are not stressed and they always seem to recover easily from a race.

Proponents of the Darkening System claim that the birds acquire adult immunity to diseases under this system. They are less affected by respiratory problems and viruses. Since beginning the sytem, I have had less health problems and diseases in my young birds.

Disadvantages
Opponents of the Darkening System claim that the birds reach maturity too quickly and will be too old when their training begins. They claim that great losses will occur because the optimum time for teaching the bird to home to the loft has passed. I have not found this to be true. I rarely lose any young birds as I train and I lose very few birds throughout the race season.

With the loft being closed up for a big part of the day to cause the birds to be in darkness, there could be a danger of poor ventilation for the birds which would cause respiratory problems and poor health. I have overcome this by installing a ceiling fan to help circulate air. I only run the fan when the birds are closed up. The rest of the time my loft has plenty of air circulation.

Another disadvantage of the Darkening System is that a few birds may begin to moult their flight feathers near the end of the season. I have only had this happen a few times. Most of my birds hold their feathers very well all through the season.

Birds on the Darkening System fly throughout the season with their baby flight feathers. This may be a disadvantage to them, but I don’t think so. I feel it is better to fly with a full wing of baby feathers than to fly while trying to moult them.

It is very painful for a bird to fly when a new feather is errupting from the quill. If stressed during this time by flying a race, the feather may be permanently damaged. The bird may return from the race, but probably not with a winning time. When you don’t feel well, you don’t perform your best. The same is true for your pigeons.

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Darkening System By Craig Goode

Young Bird Racing from Canadian Pigeon Breeder

Glenn West — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:12:00 GMT

Hello Pigeon Fans!!

Happy Monday folks! Have a look at today's Pigeon Insider newsletter on Young Bird Training from a Canadian perspective. I would love to hear your comments on this fellas thoughts on the subject. I will add a new YouTuber from Florida, " Billsbirds" has a few cool pigeon videos, the first two take you through the Florida State Fair and Bills booth. The last two are a tour through Shady hills pet supply and his loft at home that has a great variety of all types of homers and fancy pigeons.

Racer's Catalogue and Insider's Guide results video:

YouTuber's submission: from Billsbirds1's Channel

The Pigeon Insider newsletter sample:

Hey Glenn,

I posted a new article to the blog titled "Young Bird Racing" this article is written by Roland Paret and in the article he gives you some good insight on what his young bird criteria is. He actually wrote the article after having a great young bird season. If you have any comments on young bird racing be sure to post them after reading the article, we all would love to hear your thoughts.

Enjoy

Yours in the sport,
-Chris Wonderful as always Chris!!

Young Bird Racing

This past winter I received several e-mails on young bird racing maybe, because I had a great young bird season last season. I thought I would write a few lines on my experiences in young bird racing here in Canada. Years ago in early winter, I would pair up some of the birds so I could band young birds in early January. However, breeding early for me always ended up in a disaster. Our Canadian winters, the hawks and late springs takes its toll, and that put an end at my attempt of early breeding.
This winter I had a conversation with a pigeon flyer, and he told me that his first year flying pigeons was his best. When he got started he said various fanciers had given him some young birds, mostly from their second and third round, and that young bird team was hard to beat that year. He only had 28 young birds, practically all the same age, and they trained easy and were just about the right age when the races started with very few losses.

That was a very interesting statement, when I compared it to my way of racing young birds today. He went on to say, now things have changed considerably in young bird racing, he was referring to the modern methods of today. Years ago flying young birds up to 600 Km was unheard of, and I couldn’t agree more. In today’s method we have the dark and the light system which allows us to ship birds in excellent condition feather wise. A lot of these races are completed on the day with very good returns. Something we could not do years ago.

In the transition from being a young bird and yet not a yearling, young birds somehow seem to lose interest in flying. It is my opinion that a lot of young birds are past their prime when the young racing season starts. There is a time when they lose their zip as I call it. You may have noticed that they slow down considerably as they mature. Older youngsters are generally raced on the widow-hood system. We separate the sexes, and have to exercise them separate twice a day. Or, we can fly them as mated to the nest. Here extra roadwork is needed if we want to exercise them. A lot of this is aimed for 500 and 600 Km racing. In all cases motivation is needed to fire them up in preparation for race day. Here adding extra stress can lead to a lot of health problems in the loft, such as wet droppings and also to the point where the birds would bring up their food. Some strains perform better under stress than others. Over crowding and too much stress are the number one cause of bird losses in my opinion.

I have the best luck racing them not mated at the age of four and five months old, before they really come too attracted to the opposite sex. I feed and exercise my young birds twice a day, and after ten weeks of darkening they are nicely moulded and ready to be trained. Up to this point the length of their daily exercise has not been a concern. At the age of 14 weeks, they now have their new feathers and love to exercise for long periods of time. At this point, they are ready to be trained. I definitely take my time in training, and during the racing season I take them down the road once a week for a 50 Km hike. I have experienced that at this age they exercise together longer with a minimal amount of stress. I would like to point out in all my years of flying young birds it has been my experience if they don’t exercise at home during the week, I will need a lot of luck come race day.

For instance, this year my birds started to hatch on March the 8th and our first club race is July the 13th. This gives you some idea of how old the birds are when the races start. I race my young birds up to 450 km. Then I select my cock birds for next years yearlings and they are held back, the rest of my youngsters are raced to the end of the season. Breeding early young birds is okay, it depends on where you live and when young bird races start. For example, in places like Belgium they start racing young birds in May. In Canada most young bird races start in the first week in August. If you see what I mean that’s a big difference. The method I use has worked the best for me. It’s simple and very effective, and allows me to compete at all distances and minimize my workload.

I have a saying that happy young birds are hard to beat on race day. If you can minimize the stress in your loft, and don’t overcrowd, your chances are good on having healthy young birds. I thought some new comers to the sport would find this an interesting conversation or maybe some will disagree with me.

Young Bird Racing By Roland Paret

The Forth and Final Part of "Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing

Glenn West — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 23:57:00 GMT

Welcome back Fanciers!!

I would like to thank Chris from The Pigeon Insider for supplying the wonderful articles we feature each day. I am sure everyone, as well as a rookie like me, has learned a "boatload" of pigeon racing knowledge or will now have a great reference library of tools at their disposal.

Racer's Catalogue and Insider's Guide results video:

The Pigeon Insider newsletter sample:

Hey Hey,

I posted part 4 of the "Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing" article series, this one is titled "Daily Schedule" and it gives you a good daily feeding schedule outline. It also goes more in detail on rationing carbs, proteins and fats for both short and long distance races.

Look forward to reading your comments

Yours in the sport

-Chris

Lets all let Chris know what a great job he does by posting your comments below!!

Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing – Part 4 Daily Schedule

Daily Schedule

Sunday AM: barley

Sunday PM: 60% barley, 40% racing mix

Monday AM: 40% barley, 60% racing mix

Monday PM: 20% barley, 80% racing mix

Tuesday AM: 100% racing mix

Tuesday PM: 70% racing mix, 30% corn and rice

Wednesday AM: 25% racing mix, 75% corn, rice and hemp

Wednesday PM: 10% racing mix, 90% corn, rice and hemp

Thursday AM: 10% racing mix, 70% corn, 10% rice, 10% hemp

Thursday PM: Same as AM

Friday AM and PM: Same as Thursday.

The Widowhood Year by Dave Allen (UK). He feeds birds individually in small pots in their nest boxes. Widowhood mix-45% corn, 25% peas, 10 % wheat, 10% white dari, 5% pellets, 5% safflower.

Saturday- a teaspoon of barley on return from a race: evening- barley with brewer’s yeast.

Sunday– barley with brewer’s yeast all day. Evening 50/50 barley and widowhood mix.

Monday- One feed in the evening-50/50 barley and widowhood mix. (1 1/2 oz. Per bird)

Tuesday– Same as Monday.

Wednesday- Evening- 80% widowhood mix 20% barley. ( 1 1/2 oz per bird)

Thursday- Evening- 100% widowhood mix- no barley.

Friday-morning (shipping day) plenty of widowhood mix. Remove all feed at 1:00 PM.

Belgian racing mix: Light mix (sometimes called a diet mix)-20% barley, 10% white dari (kafir),

10% safflower, 5% rice, 8% paddy rice, 5% buckwheat, 7% red dari, 15% wheat, 5% hulled oats, 3% millet, 3% rapeseed (now called canola, in some areas) 6% flax, 3% hemp. Heavy mix: 35% corn, 12% wheat, 32% peas, 10% white dari, 4% safflower, 5% tares, 2% catjang mango (mung beans).

For an upcoming race of 350 miles.

Sunday: 80% light mix, 20% heavy mix.

Monday: 60% diet mix, 40% heavy mix.

Tuesday: 40% diet mix, 60% heavy mix.

Wednesday and Thursday: 100% heavy mix.

For short races, feed diet mixes more often and heavy mixes less often. For short races, one fancier feeds only the diet mix, with the heavy mix fed the day before basketing. For long races, little or no diet mix is given.

It is important to realize that the foregoing examples are jus that, and they can be modified at will. Be aware that you can substitute one grain in a category for another. For instance, if your favourite yellow or white pea isn’t available, substitute with available green peas: if you are short of corn, substitute with rice, popcorn and wheat, ect. It is also important to understand that the racing rations presented are high in carbohydrates which the liver converts very readily to the fats needed for any sustained flight, whether it is a short training toss or a marathon 500-600-7– mile flight or greater.

For these longer races, it might be a good idea to supplement these high carbohydrate diets with some high fat grains/seeds such as peanuts or sunflower seeds in the last 2-3days before shipping, to add a bit more fat to the reserves. Because it is known that glucose can be converted readily to fat, you can add glucose powder to your drinkers for a day or two, say Tuesday and Wednesday morning (fresh water Wednesday evening), if you are shipping Thursday night. You can also use another sugar-fructose- in the drinking water instead of glucose, because there is a high biological priority in birds to direct fructose to fat production. Honey (about 30% glucose, 40% fructose) could be used instead of either of the sugars mentioned- both sugars and honey are also a good pick-me-up for the birds when they return from a race.

These sugars should be used only for a day or two at a time. Because some bacteria and molds, ect., find them useful as well, in the own life processes. If some of these bacteria are dangerous types, such as the paratyphoid organism or some strains of E. coli, you don’t want to be aiding their growth by overusing these sugars. It’s the same with vitamins- use them in drinking water for only a day or two at a time, for the same reasons.

It is also evident that the level of peas in rations for racing is reduced, but no eliminated. Peas and other high protein grains are reduced in amount and are replaced by greater reliance on grains high in carbohydrates for the racing energy they contain. Peas are just no an energy feed, but as noted, their protein is important for the repair of damaged or degenerated muscle or other tissues. Some damage or degeneration may occur during any race, but logically seems more likely if a race is tough and birds are forced to work extra hard, so some protein should be present in the diet to be used in the repair process.

In addition, we have seen that high levels of protein in a ration will decrease the amount of fat the liver is able to produce. Why in the world would we want to decrease fat production ahead of any race, ince it is the chief fuel for sustained, rapid flight? In another example closer to home, why would we want to put kerosene instead of gasoline in the fuel tanks of our cars? We don’t want to do this, but we do want to provide the best available fuel- gasoline. The emphasis in preparing birds for racing should be a decreased reliance on high protein grains, but a much increased reliance on the high carbohydrate grains (and at some stage, depending on the distance for which we are preparing birds, an increase in some of the high fat grains for a few days). Some protein also appears to be necessary as a source of uric acid which, it seems, may be useful in preventing or reducing the effects of hypothermia (over heating) during races, especially those flown in very hot weather.

Fanciers have asked about the amounts to be fed per bird during the race season. It seems that in birds, hand feeding a given amount each day results in a greater production of fat for fuel than does open hopper feeding. For the shorter races, somewhere in the area of 1 ounce per bird per day seems adequate. As the distances get beyond 250 miles, perhaps 1-1/4 ounces per day, and beyond 200-350 miles, 1-1/2 ounce per day. On some days, birds will need a bit more if they appear extra hungry for some reason, and on other days, they may need a bit less, but over all, it is still a judgment call by the fancier.

In all cases, birds should remain buoyant and light in the hand, and as form approaches, they should balloon out to appear larger in the hand, but continuing to be as light as feathers. Wattles should be sharply white, or even pink, as circulation improves with improving condition. The eyes should sparkle like diamonds, feathers should be tight and smooth, the breast muscles pink, and the skin clear and free of scales, with tiny blood vessels clearly crossing the keel.

During the last week before shipping, it is the philosophy of some successful fanciers that toward shipping day, especially for the longer races, the amount of heavy exercise/training should decrease, and the amount of feed should correspondingly increase. This seems to make a lot of sense. Why build up fat reserves for the race, especially a long race, if you are just going to burn it all off by training during the few days before shipping, thereby alternately building fuel reserves (fats) on the one hand, and then burning them off through excessive work, on the other hand? It’s something to think about. It would be like fueling the car for a long trip, only to use most of that fuel by driving around town at high speed, before leaving on that long trip. Result: the tank is empty or low in fuel, and more fuel is now needed to handle that long trip.

It is also the view of some of my veterinary colleagues who also race pigeons that, during the last couple of days before shipping, the birds should be provided with fresh water only-no additives of any kind. The idea is to avoid giving them anything that might induce unwanted thirst in the transporter on the way to the race point. Something else to think about.

I understand that some fanciers, past and present, have the idea that any amount of fat is a hindrance, and that it is important to strip the birds right down to eliminate this unwanted fat, (to be replaced with what, I would ask? I continue to wonder what they believe the birds use for fuel in the first place!) True, excessive fat is a definite hindrance, but as fat is certainly the fuel on which birds race from short to long distance, this idea of stripping birds right down in weight is completely unwarranted, and not in keeping with the established facts about fuel requirements. I believe that birds for the shorter races need to be somewhat lighter in weight than those for the longer races, but the point is that all of them use fat as the fuel on which to race any distance.

Another point: I think it is important not to ship birds to a race with a full crop of feed. If we have been feeding the birds correctly up to shipping day, by that time they should be sell prepared nutritionally, so it’s really not necessary to pack them with feed late in the afternoon of shipping day. Loading the birds with feed simply invites unwanted thirst, and if they don’t know how to drink in the transport truck, or if water isn’t provided, birds will suffer unnecessarily. As well, it has been found that birds kept off feed for up to 72 hours load their breast muscles with fat, so if they don’t get a good feed late on shipping day, there should be no further concern about them, as long as they have been well nurtured up to that point.

A few more points-birds should be fed in the transport truck late afternoon of the day before release, and the feeders removed before nightfall. Definitely they should not be fed on the morning of release, again because of the problem with unnecessary thirst during the race. The birds should be watered the night before and on the morning of release, without fail. (Fanciers also need to teach their youngsters how to drink in the transport truck.).

It’s likely a contentious point, but the amount and kind of feed to provide in the transport truck is also important. Birds likely don’t need more feed than about 1/2- 1 ounce (maximum) per bird the night before release. For a holdover, likely 1 ounce per bird per day is enough-remember, these birds should have been well prepared nutritionally, well before they were shipped!

Based on the facts, the grains to be fed in the transport truck should be the cereal grains only-corn, wheat, rice, ect.. In many cases, the main feed given is straight corn, which is just fine. The birds need the energy grains just mentioned, but not peas. (They likely won’t eat many of them anyway, as long as they have the choice of cereal grains, the most desirable feed.) As mentioned a number of times now peas are not an energy feed, and the birds need energy for the race ahead- hence, the value of the cereal grains, especially corn, to help accomplish this.

I am also aware that the subject of feeding large amounts of peas to pigeons is an article of faith to a number of Aussie and British fanciers, but information on the role of grains high in carbohydrates as presented her, is based on scientific fact. I understand why tradition and traditional views die hard. As I mentioned to an Adelaide (Australia) fancier who issued a friendly challenge during my seminar there, it was not my wish to tell fanciers what to do, but that I merely wanted to present facts that thinking fanciers could accept of reject, as they pleased.

In closing this article, it is my sincere hope that the facts (and the opinions I have formed and expressed as an outgrowth of these facts) presented here and in other articles surrounding this whole subject of racing and fuel, will be a means of shedding light on the subject rather than creating heat. Further, it is also my hope that all of this published material will allow the thinking fancier to approach the feeding and breeding of racing pigeons from a factual, practical and scientifically sound point of view.

Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing - Part 4 Daily Schedule By Gordon Chalmers, DVM

          PIGEON POKER ROOM
End of the week Top Three

As of 1am Sunday morning, you can see no one qualified for the weekly $100 tournament. I kept at it until much later and only managed to get up o 15600 points before I could hardly keep my eyes open. One would have needed 26 410 points to get in.

                Thanks for tuning in!!
                Glenn West

Part Three of "Grains Fuel and Pigeon Racing"

Glenn West — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 17:13:00 GMT

Happy Saturday Folks!!

           - Part 3 from Chris at The Pigeon Insider on pigeon nutrition for racing, entitled "Suggested Rations".
           - A new channel I found in YouTube.
           - The Racer's Catalogue and Insider's Guide results video.

Racer's Catalogue and Insider's Guide results video:

YouTuber's submission: from sahmedwali's Channel

The Pigeon Insider newsletter sample:

Part 3:

Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing – Suggested Rations

The composition of the rations given in this section aren’t written in stone, but are suggestions ONLY, and can be modified according to the experience of the fancier, and to the availability of supplies of grains, their cost, ect. In all situations, all year long, there is also a basic need for an insoluble granite grit for grinding grains in the gizzard, plus oyster shell, or calcium rock chips as a source of calcium, in addition to a wide-ranging loose mineral mix containing salt (to encourage birds to eat the mineral), and once or twice a week, a multivitamin mix in the drinking water. Some fanciers use calcium flour as a source of calcium, but because it is fairly fine, it tends to move out of the gizzard into and through the intestines fairly quickly, so that there may be insufficient absorption of calcium for body needs. A better source of calcium is oyster shell or calcium carbonate chips, which, because of their larger size, are retained for a longer period of time in the gizzard, and can provide a fairly steady supply of calcium to the system. Oyster shell used for laying hens may be to large for pigeons and should be broken into a smaller size with a hammer, ect.

Rations for Breeding, Rearing and Moulting

Three to four weeks ahead of pairing birds, increase the percentage of legumes (peas, beans, lentils, ect.), plus a high -protein pellet (18-28% protein) which also contains a broad range of vitamins and minerals. A non-medicated pellet, such as an 18% protein finisher pellet prepared for broiler chickens, or a 28% protein turkey pellet are examples of useful pellets. I use a 28% protein pellet called Milk Plus produced by Cargill (Nutrena Feeds). Aim for a final protein level of 17-18% which is ideal for fertility, hatchability, growth and development of youngsters.

The reason for the 3-4 week interval before pairing the birds is to ensure that the systems of both sexes are well fortified with all of the nutrients that are important for high fertility, ect., as just mentioned. Too often, in my experience, before the breeding season fanciers don’t change from a relatively bland off-season diet to one higher in a range of important nutrients, until after the eggs are laid. One problem with this can be clear eggs, or at hatching, weak or dead-in-shell youngsters. To avoid this situation, improve the diet ahead of the breeding season, much as sheep breeders do when they “flush” their breeding animals by putting them on a higher plane of nutrition, e.g., higher levels of protein, plus vitamins and minerals ahead of the breeding season. )Note that black eggs, or dead-in-shell or weak youngsters can be the result of bacterial infections in the egg,, i.e., E. coli and paratyphoid infections, ect., If this is a persistent problem, be sure to take some of these eggs or youngsters to your veterinarian for bacterial culture.)

One suggested breeding ration mix that will provide between 17-18% protein:

30-35% peas (green, white or yellow peas, or combinations of these), but only 5% maple peas which contain high levels of substances that interfere with the digestion of protein). Peanuts, sunflower seeds, ect., for their high protein and fat content can be included here, as well. 15% livestock/poultry pellets (18-28% protein) 20-25% wheat 25-30% corn 10% safflower
Other grains/seeds can be added as you see fit-rice, millet, milo, flax etc., Obviously, the total percentage of all grains used must be 100.

Because young birds continue to grow and develop for many months, I believe that they should be maintained on the ration on which they were reared, or on one similar to it. As they begin to train and race, they can have more grains high in carbohydrate and fat for the energy they provide.

Similarly, I believe that next year’s races are won, in part, during the current moult in which nutritional demands are very high to complete the annual change of feathers. For this reason, the diet should be one that supports the high demand for the quality of protein needed for the growth of quality feathering. Proteins are comprised of smaller units called amino acids, of which there are some 22. Those amino acids containing sulfur, especially methionine, are key to good development and growth of feathers. A very good short article from Melvyn John of Vydex Animal Health in the British Homing World weekly for October 6/00, explains the need for high quality protein during the moult. The author feels that ordinary grains in pigeon rations will not supply enough of the much needed methionine, and so recommends supplementation on a daily basis. Commercially available amino acid solutions can help, but also, supplements containing fish meal, for example, in pelleted feeds, can be useful here. The author also recommends vitamin (especially vitamin C) and mineral supplementation during the moult.

Racing Mixes–Old Birds and Young Birds

“Light” Mix- often used in widowhood racing.

Light mixes are said to be easily digestible (whatever that means), and allow the digestive system to rest after the stresses and strains of the previous weekend’s race. After a few days on these light rations, birds (especially widowers) can be shifted gradually to a Heavy Mix (see examples) in preparation for the next race. A Light mix with a change to a Heavy mix can also be useful for birds on the natural system, or those on a celibacy system, a common system in Australia, I understand.

Some examples of a Light Mix: 100% barley, or 50% (or more) barley and the balance composed of a mix of equal parts rice, wheat, small seeds and safflower, fed as birds return from the races and early in the week, after which there is a gradual shift to the Heavy Mix by shipping day. Other examples follow.

“Heavy” Mix: Heavy mixes are those that contain more protein than the Light mixes, and definitely more carbohydrates for the production of fat. For longer races, the addition of some high-fat grains and seeds to the Heavy mix toward shipping day seems to make sense. One example of a Heavy Mix:

20 -25% peas

40-45% maize (corn)

25-30% wheat

5-10% livestock/poultry pellets (18-28% protein)

5-10% safflower.

Because of their high percentage of fats, grains such as peanuts, sunflower seeds, etc., can be added as sources of fat as shipping day approaches , especially for long races, including endurance races. If these high-fat, high protein grains are added to the ration, be sure that there are also lots of high-carbohydrate grains present, as well- such as wheat, corn, rice, oats, etc.. High fat, high -protein grains can interfere with fat production by the liver, but if a lot of high-carbohydrate grains are fed at the same time, interference with fat production by the liver doesn’t seem to be a problem. Some fanciers will feed 80-100% corn plus some peanuts or sunflower seeds on the last 2-3 days before shipping to a long race.

Other Widowhood Diets- Suggestions:

British Widowhood Racing Mix: Racing mix: equal parts maple peas, tares, wheat, milo, white dari, safflower, buckwheat, rice, oat groats. The daily schedule begins on Sunday on the assumption that the birds were raced the day before (on Saturday).

Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing - Suggested Rations By Gordon Chalmers, DVM

Pigeon Racing YouTuber from Florida

Glenn West — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 23:30:00 GMT

Hello Pigeon Fans!!

Part two from Chris on nutritional feeding for racers and a couple of videos from a cool loft in Florida in the "YouTuber's submission". I will also paste the top three from our Pigeon Poker room's club leader board. Our subscribers can view today's video results from the catalogued races in the player below.

Racer's Catalogue and Insider's Guide results video:

YouTuber's submission:

hymie06's Channel http://www.flamingoic.com/ The Flamingo Loft, Brookesville Florida

The Pigeon Insider newsletter sample:

Hey Glenn,

We posted part 2 of the "Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing" article series, part 2 continues the discussion of the nutritional importance of proteins, carbs and fats in our birds and which grains produce these elements.

Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing Protein, Carbs & Fats

It is known that the liver of pigeons produces almost 50% of the fat for use in the body, and that it regulates fat production in the body. (Of course, fat for use in the body is also derived directly form the diet.) One study in the US several years ago showed that when glucose was injected intravenously into hungry young pigeons, there was rapid conversion of this glucose into fatty acids in the liver- within three minutes- a fact that indicates an amazingly rapid ability of the liver to produce fat from glucose!

The source of the glucose for conversion to fat in the diet is primarily the starch component of grains and seeds, and can also be supplied as glucose powder added to drinking water. Fat is stored in the liver but it is also exported from the liver in the form of fatty acids through the blood stream to storage depots in the body cavity among the intestines. Some of the fatty acids are also exported to the breast muscles and stored in the red muscle fibers as microscopic droplets where they are ready to be used as the key source of energy for prolonged, rapid flight.

Now, in birds, in general, it has been found that: 1) high levels of fat in the diet will reduce the amount of fat the liver is capable of producing, 2) that high levels of protein in the diet will also reduce the amount of fat the liver can produce: and, 3) that high levels of carbohydrate in the diet will increase the amount of fat the liver can produce. In the basis of these facts, it seems obvious to me, firstly, that in preparation for a race, high protein grains like peas should be fed a reduced level, and, secondly, that high fat grains should be fed in moderation, and thirdly, that when high fat grains are used at all, there should also be a lot of high carbohydrate grains fed, as well.

Strictly speaking, the fiber component of a grain is classified under carbohydrate, but is often listed separately in nutritional tables. Fiber in a ration is important because of its ability of absorb intestinal components that could be harmful to the system. But in high amounts, fiber can interfere with digestion of other nutritional components of the ration. For this reason, it is often suggested that the fiber component of a ration for livestock be no greater than 5%.

In Table 1, you will note that I have included odd items such as cheese, simple because some fanciers I know, as well as some European fanciers, feed it, and the birds seem to enjoy it! Fish meal is included, as well, because of its high level of top quality protein and because, in some cases, it may be included in pelleted feeds for livestock, although it is expensive. Brewer’s yeast is mentioned because some fanciers use it on their feed mix, along with lemon juice, at feeding time. Milk powder, both whole and skim, along with ingredients such as rolled oats from the kitchen, are mentioned because some fanciers include a number of these and other ingredients into a cake that they bake in the oven or dry in the sun, and later feed to the birds.

Malt sprouts, and by extension, other sprouted grains, are high in protein and some vitamins at the time of sprouting, and once they get used to them, birds relish them and will eat them avidly. Hulled oats are the same as oat groats. As long as they are cooked first, soybeans can be fed to pigeons as well as to other classes of livestock. Don’t feed raw soybeans to any livestock, including pigeons, because of the anti-nutritive substances they contain. Cooking destroys these substances and renders these beans suitable for feeding. Whey powder is listed for informational purposes, because it is high in lactose, a sugar that is a source of nutrient for “friendly” bacteria that are added to drinking water or feed, in plain yogurt or commercially available probiotics. These bacteria use the lactose as a source of nutrient, a by-product of which is lactic acid. In turn, the lactic acid helps to acidify intestinal contents and to create a hostile environment for unfriendly bacteria such as paratyphoid organisms, or disease- producing stains of E.coli, among others.

Fanciers will note that under the columns listed as Protein, Fat, Carbohydrate and Fiber, certain values are highlighted. In all cases, the highlighted values indicate feeds that are high, or relatively so, in that particular component of the ration. For example, feeds that are high in protein include beans, brewer’s yeast, canola, ect., and so on down the list; those high in fat include canola, cheese, fish meal, ect.,’ those high in carbohydrate include barley, cheese, kaffir, corn, rice, etc.,; those high in fiber feeds are mentioned because, as noted earlier, while it is useful in the digestive tract, when it is present in high amounts, fiber can interfere with the digestion of some nutrients.

The carbohydrate value of corn is listed the range of 64-70.9%. In my experience, the most common average value is actually closer to 70% for most corn-hence, like other grains with similarly high values of carbohydrates (like rice), it has great value in preparing birds for racing, regardless of the distance.

Some fanciers will have noted that maple peas are missing from the table. Reason: the protein content of maple peas is similar to that of other peas and beans, at about 23%, and are included in that overall value. As well, maple peas, like soybeans, are very high in substances that interfere with the digestion of protein. Let me explain.

The pancreas, located in the first loop of intestine after the gizzard, secretes into the intestine, a digestive enzyme know as trypsin, which is important in that it splits proteins into their amino acid components. According to a friend who is an expert on the subject, maple peas contain very high levels of substances that interfere with the activity of trypsin, which, in turn, prevents the proper digestion of proteins in the diet. For this reason, it seems advisable to reduce the percentage of maple peas in a ration to perhaps 5-10%, to reduce the effects of this anti-trypsin activity.

Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing Protein, Carbs & Fats By Gordon Chalmers, DVM

With a couple of days to go to the $1000 top 2000 weekly leader board tournament, here are your top three.

Thanks for tuning in!!
Glenn West

Pigeon Racing Fuel

Glenn West — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 19:29:00 GMT

Welcome back Folks!!

Today will start the first of a multi part series from Chris at the Pigeon Insider on Grain and nutritional levels for racing pigeons. Also, you can find a great new video from one of our YouTube friends. Please enjoy today's results video in the player below.

Racer's Catalogue and Insider's Guide results video:

YouTuber's submission: from Donspigeons's Channel

The Pigeon Insider newsletter sample:

Hey Glenn,

All of us as fanciers know how important nutrition is to our birds we have talked about it many times on the blog, over the next few days we are going to go over grains and seeds and their levels of nutrients and their effects on our birds more in detail. This article series is called Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing".

Part 1 explains in depth the importance of proteins, carbs, fat and glucose on our birds. Check it out I think your gonna find alot of value out of this article series.

Look out for part 2 tomorrow.

Talk to you soon

Yours in the sport

-Chris Thanks Chris!!

Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing Introduction

Following a series of seminars delivered in Australia during the Fall, I was approached by some fanciers interested in grains/seeds and their levels of nutrients. It occurred to me then that it might be useful for these and other fanciers to have nutritional information on grains/ seeds in the form of a table, along with a number of points of discussion and opinions, to which they could refer at their convenience. For that reason, I have prepared the attached table (Table 1) of common feeds that fanciers might use in the preparation of rations for breeding, rearing and racing. (For greater detail on some of the topics covered here, e.g., muscle, flight, and fuels ect., see my other articles published in the RP Digest during this year, and previously.)

In this table, I have listed only values for Protein, Fat, Carbohydrates and Fiber. These values have been taken from Feedstuffs magazine, 1996 edition, and from an older edition of Feeds and Feeding by Morrison. These values are based on North American-grown feeds, and represent averages only, meaning that some grains could have both higher and lower values for the nutrients presented. For one example, I am aware that some varieties of wheat analyzed in Canada have had up to 18% protein. I suspect that similar ranges of values for the given feeds could be found in feeds grown in other areas of the world, as well. If you want to be completely sure about the nutritional content of your feeds, you can have samples analyzed commercially for a fee.

Briefly, proteins are used in the building and repair of tissues in the body, and so are useful in preparing pigeons for the breeding season, for improved fertility and hatchability, and for improved growth and development of youngsters. For example, studies in the USA have shown that an 18% protein ration, in which soybeans or fish meal were used as sources of protein, resulted in marked improvements in all of the situations just mentioned. No further improvement was found when diets containing higher than 18% protein were fed, so it seems that diets containing upwards of 18% protein are ideal for breeding and rearing.

Carbohydrates are the simple and complex sugars in feeds, and along with fats, represent the energy components of the diet, which allow the body to perform work of any kind. Carbohydrates -and particularly fats- are important for our purposes as racing pigeon fanciers because they are the fuels that supply the energy for our birds to exercise around the loft, and to fly from both the shortest toss and the longest race. One of the important carbohydrates for many birds and animals, including humans, is the sugar glucose, sometimes also called dextrose. In grains/seeds, the starch component (visible to the naked eye when a grain such as corn is cracked open) is comprised of many units of glucose, linked together in a particular large chemical configuration. After grains are ground in the gizzard, and the resulting mash is passed into the intestines, the starch is broken down (metabolized) into individual units of glucose which are ten absorbed across the wall of the intestine into the blood stream, and delivered to the liver. Here, many units of glucose are assembled into a large chemical structure that is different from that of starch, and is known as glycogen. Hence, it becomes clear that starch is the storage form of glucose in plants and their seeds, and glycogen is the storage from of glucose in the tissues of birds and animals.

When glucose is needed by tissues in the body, glycogen in the liver is broken down to individual units of glucose, which are then exported in the blood stream to these tissues. For example, the chief fuel of the brain is glucose; a steady supply of which must be provided by the liver- which is why birds normally have a high blood level of glucose.

Both red and white muscle in the breast of pigeons must have a ready supply of glucose, many units of which are built up into glycogen for storage in the muscle, and for later use. During the explosive launch phase of flight, or during dodging bursts of energy during cruising flight, white muscle fibers in the breast utilize only glycogen as a source of energy for these actions. As a result, the glycogen supplies in white muscle are completely depleted very quickly (within the first 10 minutes or so after launch), and must be replenished to take care of other dodging emergencies that could occur during cruising flight. To replenish glycogen supplies in the muscle, the liver then begins to break down its supplies of glycogen to glucose, which is release to the blood stream and is transported to the white fibers in the breast muscles where it is again built up into glycogen, to be used as needed during emergencies in flight.

The other highly important role for glucose in pigeons is in the production of fat for sustained flight. Fat is unquestionably the key fuel for any flight lasting more than a few minutes, from a short training toss to a 500-mile race, and on to the marathons of 600 miles and more. You may recall a US study in which one group of pigeons was supplemented with 5% fat, and a second group was not supplemented. In races up to 200 miles there wasn’t much difference in the performances of the two groups. However, after 200 miles birds in the fat-supplemented group definitely had better performances than those in the unsuplemented group. Once clocking began, there were more birds clocked from the fat- supplemented group in a given period of time than from the unsupplemented group. These findings demonstrated the marked benefits of fat in providing birds with the improved stamina and endurance needed to complete these races.

Grains, Fuel and Pigeon Racing Introduction By Gordon Chalmers, DVM

Pigeon Poker Room Bulletin

Glenn West — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 13:22:00 GMT

Hello Poker Players!!

view as web page

Dear Poker Players,

Congratulations to Dan "ped720" Ramirez who won a seat to the 2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship. You can read Dan’s story by clicking here.

Dan will play against 63 celebrities and professional poker players for a chance at the $500,000 grand prize. You can see the entire National Heads-Up Poker Championship televised nationally on NBC beginning April 18th.

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Racing Pigeon Tonic

Glenn West — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 00:59:00 GMT

Hello Race Fans!!

The Pigeon Insider newsletter sample:

Hey Glenn,

I posted a new article to the blog it's a recipe for "pigeon tonic" this tonic helps to promote health during both the racing and moulting season.

Pigeon Tonic
Use the following pigeon tonic recipe below, helps promote health during both the race and moulting seasons.

10 Tablespoons Colombine tea 10 Tablespoons White nettle
Boil the above in 2 liters of water for 5 minutes. To this add :

10 Tablespoons of raw sugar
Dissolve the sugar into the hot tea and let the whole thing cool off.

When the tea and sugar mixture has cooled off add:

5 Tablespoons of fresh pressed garlic juice 5 Tablespoons of fresh pressed onion juice 10 packets of electrolytes from Versa Laga{ this is about 10 tablespoons} 5 Tablespoons of Carlsbad Salt { a mild purgative} 5 Tablespoons of Genever or Vadko {helps to preserve the mix}
Keep in a glass jar in a cool dark place (refrigerator)

Use one tablespoon of the above mix to one liter of fresh water at the beginning of the week during the racing season. During the moulting season it can be used several days in a row every week.

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Thanks Chris! for another great story

Racer's Catalogue and Insider's Guide results video:

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                  Thanks for tuning in!!
                  Glenn West

From Pigeon Racing To FreeRoll Poker

Glenn West — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 21:34:00 GMT

Welcome back!!

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Hey Glenn,

Knowledge regarding the nutrition of pigeons is advancing every year. Years ago, it was not unusual for many fanciers to just feed peas and wheat. It now seems incredible to us that fanciers would think that a diet made up of one, two or even three seeds would provide a complete diet. We now know that it is virtually impossible to supply all of the nutrients that pigeons require if fed only a dry seed diet, even if the variety of grains given is quite large. We posted a new article to the blog that talks about supplementing your birds dry seed diet with other nutritional sources,It's a very informative article and I think your gonna find alot of value in it. After you read the article be sure to post your comments especially if you have supplementation tricks of your own that you would like to share.

Looking forward to reading your comments

Yours in the sport,

-Chris Thanks Chris!! Another wonderful story!!

Pigeon Dry Seed Diet, Supplementation to Enhance Health

Knowledge regarding the nutrition of pigeons is advancing every year. Thirty years ago, when I started racing, it was not unusual for many fanciers to just feed peas and wheat. It now seems incredible to us that fanciers would think that a diet made up of one, two or even three seeds would provide a complete diet. We now know that it is virtually impossible to supply all of the nutrients that pigeons require if fed only a dry seed diet, even if the variety of grains given is quite large.

Poor nutrition will suppress the birds’ ability to resist disease, compromise growth, prolong recovery from exertion or illness and decrease reproductive performance. However, it should be remembered that what the astute fancier is aiming for is not simply to avoid any obvious health problem but rather he wants the best diet possible so that his birds are at their best competitively.

Seeds form the basis of a balanced diet and supply protein, carbohydrates and fats. However, all seeds are deficient in some essential nutrients. For example, vitamin B12 is low or absent in almost all plant materials. It is really a matter of the informed fancier realizing that a dry seed diet cannot provide the optimal nutrition for his pigeons and then providing appropriate supplements to his advantage. There are a lot of backyard potions that have, unfortunately, crept into use that achieve very little. However, it is interesting that some of the older supplements do in fact do a lot of good. The choice of supplements is particularly challenging because it is important that they not only add to the diet but they are in a form that the pigeon will readily eat. A race bird is hardly going to race home or eat with relish a meal that is really good for it but is unpalatable. As mentioned above, although vitamin B12 is low or absent in almost all grain it is found in Baker’s and Brewer’s yeast (along with many other micro nutrients). There are also a number of excellent inactivated sterile yeast supplements that contain none of the contaminants found in other yeasts (eg. The Australian Pigeon Company’s ID Yeast). Pigeons love the taste of yeast and so this has become a useful supplement.

In the grains used in most seed mixes, the following vitamins are usually limiting, in addition to vitamin B12: vitamin A, riboflavin, niacin, folic acid, vitamin K and vitamin E. The most limiting amino acids in most seeds are lysine, methionine and tryptophane. While the minerals likely to be limiting are calcium, manganese, sodium and in some cases copper, zinc, iodine and selenium.

And so how can the pigeon fancier add to his birds grain diet to make it more balanced and nutritious? I list below some practical sources of the nutrients that are low in seeds.

Vitamin A. Found in greens such as silverbeet and spinach and also carrot. Pigeons love a plate of mixed chopped greens and some will eat diced carrots. Dilute carrot juice can also be placed in the drinker. There is no risk of overdose here as the vitamin A is only found in its precursor form and the body will not absorb this and convert it to vitamin A if it is not needed. It should be noted that cod liver oil also contains good levels of vitamin A. Cod liver oil, however, also contains gizzerine, which is associated with stomach ulcers. This oil can also lead to vitamin E deficiency if allowed to go rancid, which it does quickly if exposed to sunlight, for example if it is mixed earlier in the day rather than being fed immediately.

Riboflavin. Found in yeast. I recommend an inactivated (sterile) dry yeast, eg ID Yeast, added to the seed after premoistening with a seed oil.

Niacin. Also found in yeast products. However, one seed that does contain good levels of niacin is sunflower. Do, however, be careful both sourcing and storing sunflower seed as it is very prone to fungal contamination.

Folic acid. Also found in yeast products but also wheat germ. Wheat germ oil is excellent to use as a moistening oil on grain. Added usually at the rate of 0.5 – 1 ml per kilogram of grain. This oil can be used to stick a yeast powder to the grain. The result is an especially nutritious meal. I know my own pigeons recognize the sound of this blend being mixed in their feeding bucket and start to act like kids waiting for lollies. Many of the better conditioning oils are based on wheat germ oil, eg Polyseed Oil.

Vitamin B12. As mentioned, also found in yeast products.

Vitamin K. There are two sorts of vitamin K produced naturally, vitamin K1, which is found in green leafy vegetables, and vitamin K2, which is produced by the normal bacteria in the bowel. Vitamin K2 levels can become low after antibiotics if probiotics are not used or if pigeons are not allowed to eat their own droppings.

Vitamin E. Found in vegetable oils.

Lysine, methionine and tryptophane. All found in yeast products and wheat germ oil. Lysine is also found in legumes, such as peas. In grain mixes containing 30% or more peas, deficiency is not a concern.

Calcium. Found in a range of soft grits, ie grits that are dissolved in the gizzard, such as cuttle fish, sea shells and calcite. A blended grit +/- pink mineral should always be available.
Sodium. Found in salt. Available in some grits and pink minerals. If fed only grain, pigeons will become voracious for salt and when a supplement is provided will eat it with gusto. This can lead to dehydration unless water is freely available. The recommendation is that salt form approximately 0.1% of the birds’ diet. The better brands of pink mineral on the market will contain this level, eg PVM Powder, which contains 11 g per 1 kg. Such supplements should be available continuously to avoid deficiency.

Manganese, copper, zinc and selenium. All found in yeast products.

Iodine. The level of iodine in seed is directly relatable to the levels of iodine in the soil in which the seed was grown. The level of iodine in many soils in Australia is quite low. Iodine is found in yeast or can be supplemented in the water. To do this, dilute 2 ml of Lugol’s iodine into 30 ml of water to make a concentrated solution. Then add 4 drops of this concentrated solution to each litre of drinking water.

It goes without saying that a good quality blend of grits should always be available to the birds to avoid not only these but other minerals.

Annual harvest
An important consideration in the feeding of grain is the annual harvest. Seeds grow in spring and are harvested once a year, leading to a cycle of progressively older seeds until the next harvest. At some time during the year, at least a portion of the seeds are one year old or older. The nutrients that are most affected by aging are the vitamins, which lose activity owing to oxidation and fats, which become rancid. This aging process can lead to a reduced nutrient concentration. In this way, the level of many other micronutrients becomes reduced with time. This reduction can be limited by reducing temperature and oxygen in the storage environment. This can be achieved by filling bins to the brim with grain before sealing the lids with tape and storing the whole drum in a cool place. Often, despite these measures, micronutrient levels become low. To guard against deficiency, a complete water-soluble multivitamin drink can be made available to the birds periodically (eg Multivite Plus) and pink mineral should be always available.

It is not only vital for race form to be achieved that the diet provide the birds with all the nutrients that they require but that it also supplies protein and fat at the correct levels. All seed diets tend to be high in fat but low in protein. This can result in obesity as the birds eat to meet both their energy and protein requirements. The correct level of protein in the diet of a racing pigeon during the racing season is approximately 12% and the correct level of fat is approximately 4%. There are many varied diets recommended and some of these provide significantly different levels of fat and protein. These appear fine in the short term but for long-term health the average level in the diet should approximate the above. The various diets have been discussed in my book, The Flying Vet’s Pigeon Health & Management. If the protein level in the diet is too low, normal enzyme and hormone activity cannot occur, healing and recovery are delayed, and muscle, bone and feather growth cannot occur normally. If the diet is too high in protein, this places an increased workload on the kidneys, which can be fatal. In one case at my clinic, stock pigeons started dying. Investigation revealed that they had died of kidney failure. The fancier had fed turkey pellets only (30% protein) for over 6 months.

The normal protein-based grain used is peas. Peas contain 20 – 25% protein and if they are the only protein grain used, and make up 35 – 40% of the diet, they will provide correct protein levels.

Excess fat in the diet leads to obesity, while, because fats are needed as an energy source, too low levels of fat lead to weight loss, poor growth and reduced disease resistance.

The balancing of various grains in the mix to provide correct levels of protein and fat not only for health but also to match the amount of work the pigeons are having so that their weight and fitness are correct to win is challenging and has also been discussed in my book. As a general rule, however, I recommend a base racing diet of 30 – 40% peas, with the rest being equal parts (ie 15%) maize, sorghum, wheat and safflower. To this is added one to two handfuls of mixed small seed (millet, canary, rape and linseed) per 12-litre bucket. Obviously there is no shortage of potential substitutions here, eg a proportion of the peas could be replaced with vetches, which are approximately 35% protein, but the level of peas would need to be reduced to prevent the protein level becoming too high. For breeding, a protein level of approximately 18% is recommended. This can be achieved simply by increasing the level of peas, beans (25% protein) or vetches.

Many successful fanciers will already recognize supplements as being beneficial and the following are recommended:

Complete multivitamin/trace element drink made specifically for pigeons at least one day per week in the drinking water (eg Multivite Plus)

Pink mineral and balanced grit (containing both hard and soft grits) always available (eg PVM powder and The Australian Pigeon Company’s Health Grit)

Wheat germ oil-based supplements together with yeast on seed for two or more feeds weekly (eg Polyseed Oil)

Chopped green vegetables with diced carrot weekly (or carrot juice diluted in water one day weekly)

Other supplements can have other advantages. Some of the teas commercially available not only contain micronutrients but also naturally occurring acids that help to protect the bowel from disease. It should be noted that there is no point in providing the correct blend of seeds if birds are then fed these cafeteria-style. It is a fallacy to think that pigeons know what they need and will only eat what they require. Many birds, if offered a blend ad lib, will overselect particular grains that they fancy, in particular oil-based grains such as safflower and peanuts. The selection of a smaller number of grains distorts the provided balanced diet. In addition a diet that contains excessive oil-based seeds although providing a reasonable protein intake also provides a lot of fat which distorts the amino acid balance. Such a diet is also very low in calcium and can interfere with the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins.

A poor diet means that birds are more prone to disease, poor feathering, poor reproductive performance and, of course, poor racing performance. The provision of a complete and balanced diet will optimize the performance of the competitive bird.

Pigeon Dry Seed Diet, Supplementation to Enhance Health by Dr. Colin Walker

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