Guide to Buying Racing Pigeons—Part Two
Buying Proven Racing Stock
A more expensive option you have for buying racing pigeons is buying proven racing stock right out of the racing loft. You can purchase a bird that perhaps is not necessarily a great racer but falls into the average or good racer category and you may end up end up with an excellent breeder. Of course, if you can afford it, buying a proven great breeder increases your chances of getting superior racers. However, you can also spend thousands of dollars to get a super champion and end up with a breeding ‘dud’.
Considerations for Purchasing Proven Racing Stock
The primary consideration for purchasing proven racing stock is how much you can afford to spend. Once you have determined that, then the secondary consideration is the quality of the bird(s) that you are contemplating buying. These two considerations actually go hand-in-hand—the more you can afford to spend, the higher quality you will seek.
Buying Retiring Racing Birds
European lofts prefer to retire their racing pigeons at about four or five years in age. This is a fantastic buying opportunity for getting a high-quality bird from a well-stocked breeding loft with a proven reputation. After all, if the bird has been kept for four to five years, it has certainly earned its keep. You might have the opportunity to purchase a pigeon that has been flying on the widowhood team or on the racing team for two years or more. Of course, birds like these may be expensive but well-worth the price.
Buying Hens
If you seek out a loft that races only cocks, you may find a number of wonderful widowhood hens that are being used for the sole purpose of stimulating the cock birds. Often, you can buy a quality stock hen from the widowhood hen loft. If the fancier has kept this hen, there is some quality that he used in selecting her. These hens frequently were used, when younger, as racing birds. So, look for younger hens with excellent racing records that are now retired to the breeding loft or widowhood loft.
I personally had the good fortune of getting a hen from Ferry Lambrecht. This hen had been the ace hen of Ferry’s club. She had no pedigree. When I purchased the hen, she was being used as a widowhood hen. The only other history we had on her was that she had been given as an egg to Ferry by Jean Claude Debieve. After hatching and raising her, this hen went on, as I said, to be Ferry’s ace pigeon.
After we purchased her, we bred her with two cocks in her first season. She produced six multiple clock winners. She has been an excellent breeding hen and quite valuable to our loft—even without papers!
Hi Chris,very good advise,i however prefere to obtain young birds from good selected pairs. I have found that breeding from younger birds that their youngsters have more spirit and vigour and they also fly very well. Not to mistaken that i also bred very good youngsters from older birds,but its from a family that not only fly good but also produce the good ones. I think its just a matter of choice. Most of times you obtain a bird as a present from a friend and you will find that their youngster are doing far more better than pigeons that you have bought elsewhere,even from well known fanciers.
why not buy 2 late bred inbreds from one family and 2 from another family cross them together and dream cause you have tohave a dream cause if you dont have a dream how you gonna have a dream come true lol 2years of dreams for couple a hunded quid fantastico
ive heard of top flyers national class who cull pigeons that are 20times faster than mine i would notmind some of there cast offs to race at club level
if a man buys a race winner for thousands of pounds and sells you grand children and g g children for 30 or40 pound each he is not robbing you hes giving you a chance to have good pigeons like his own hes the one who losses if that race winner does not pass on his talent he risks thousands you risk 30 or 40 ponds
do pigeons fly that far at 2 month old/ 200kiloms
200 kilomes at 2month old fantastico
As a beginner, i would buy birds from a very reputable and honest fancier. I came from a country who has a culture of fighting birds,and i believe they sell you the best of your moneys worth. People will never come and buy again from you if you cheat on them,words by mouth alone can ruin your reputation. Buying without proven pedigree is juast like finding a needle in a haystock.I also belive you can not race a pedigreed racing horse to a pedigreed donkey.
many fancier think buying expensive pigeon make them win and think they got the best, but its the other way around. The winner is the seller not the buyer,as we all know a fancier will keep the best to stay the best, unless he is retiring from the sport. And as for buying expensive pigeon,all I can say is if you have lots of money to throw or make money out of it again then go ahead if not better think again.
Your better birds will be the ones given to you from your area. Prisoners are a pain in the but! It may take a couple of years for the new family to get used to the weather and climate ….. Keep this in mind when you purchase birds over a couple hundres miles away..
yes you may beright BUT if thay give you not there best you wil stop racing pigeons
i belive to bay the best from the best
i my self had bay 4 manders jansens for a lott of mony but
i am werry happy whit tham
in england a lot of top flyers will not sell there birds to local buyers they advertise that they must leave area
Andre Roodehoft recommends never to buy old birds. I whole heartedly concure.
People are not knowingly going to sell you their best birds, unless perhaps at a total liquidation sale If you’ve been around at all you’ll know every pair produces a percentage of culls. Often times these champion birds we read about is the only really outstanding bird from that pair, and their ability to produce outstanding youngsters is questionable
However, people are more inclined to sell you youngsters out of a great pair, or eggs, and if they develop in to great racers, you have them for years. Buy old birds, and their productativity can, and often is short lived.
The best course of action, especially when starting out is to search your local competiton, find out who’s been the most consistant, and buy young birds or late hatches from them. He’s already proven his birds can fly your course. Not all pigeons
can fly every course.
But it goes much further than just purchasing birds. It’s what you do with them, how their housed, fed, trained, medicated, etc.