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Double Widowhood - Part 2
I now
realize that there are very few principles in this sport to which you need to
strictly adhere. Be as innovative as you possibly can be and try to find out
what works for you. Our first race is generally the first week in May so I like
to put them together either the third or fourth week in February. I try to raise
only one youngster a nest so that the parents can save as much energy as
possible. I have read many, many different articles on whether to raise two, one
or no youngsters. As for me I favour rearing only a single young bird in each
nest. As soon as the youngsters reach about fifteen days old I start to take the
hens away. I do not let them lay their second round. Why? First, because it
takes too much out of the hens. Second because doing so will start the moult.
For years I was told that in order for a pigeon to come into form he must have
moulted his first flight. Over the years I can not tell you how many races I
have won with birds that have not moulted their first flight. I have had pigeons
score in the third or fourth week of racing that still have not dropped a
flight.
While still
on the topic of mating up the birds, I would like to mention three small points
that I feel may be of benefit for those few who are new to our sport. Number one
is that prior to mating up the birds leave the lights on in the loft for about
eighteen hours each day. This will artificially activate the birds' hormones and
ensure that they lay quickly. Number two, three weeks prior to mating make sure
that you are giving the birds about a 16% protein ration and that the barley
content is reduced to 5 or 10%. The last point is to add 15% pellets to their
ration for the egg laying period. I feel that the riboflavin contained in
pellets greatly enhances the hatching of the chicks.
Next, I
would like to discuss how to get the birds physically right for racing. In the
late seventies and early eighties I seemed to have more time and ambition;
therefore , I exercised the birds throughout the winter months. They were
definitely fit the year round. Many people would look at them flying sometimes
two to three hours and say that they were in super form. These same people
predicted that the super form would not last. Nothing could be further from the
truth. They were so fit that they definitely had a huge advantage over the
competitors going in to the first few races. In those days I would not think
twice about taking them up forty miles for their first toss, then to sixty and
once at eighty and their road work would be completed. Three tosses and they
were race ready, mind you they were flying almost three hours a day. The other
day, I was looking over some old diaries from some thirteen years back and one
year they only had two tosses and still topped the Combine in the first few
weeks of racing. I no longer freeze outside during the winter months. Once the
last race is completed they are locked up until they have been sitting eggs for
about eight to ten days. As is my practice I will cut the food once the hens
have laid. I attempt to get the unwanted weight off the racers. Next, I choose
an excellent day and I try to allow them their first exercise early in the
morning just in case I have hawk problems. Last year, I had tremendous hawk
problems and therefore had to re-evaluate what I knew about hawks. It seemed
that everything I had read about hawks went out the window as these hawks were
not conforming to any kind of rules. During the next few weeks I try to get them
out as often as possible and as soon as they land I quickly get them in. After
three weeks of exercising them they are ready to train. In the next issue I will
outline the training schedule I use, the feeding methods, medication and how I
handle the hens. Once again, all the best next year.
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