life with youer birds

would you like to tell us how you started with youer pigeons and why you still feel the need to have them???? Thumbs up

Inherited passion from my father. Reason for keeping them now........ To feed the BOP :thumbs down:

took the few my brother had cos he had cancer and at to give them up. now i would'nt be without them

born into pigeons my grandfather and uncles all had and raced pigeons,sadly they have all gone to race the big one upstairs now.could not be without them, the pigeon sport as changed so much in the last twenty years,the sportsmanship as almost gone at times making it seem not worth keeping them.most clubs seem full of bitter fanciers now ,no fun anymore just arguments after arguments ,members wanting now what seem like yearly changes just thinking this may stop the top flyer winning week in week out .if this does not work they wreck the club sickening many fanciers off from sending on a weekly basis .

To me pigeons are my first love my hobby and will always be my hobby ,if i race them or not i love me pigeons

christopher09 wrote:born into pigeons my grandfather and uncles all had and raced pigeons,sadly they have all gone to race the big one upstairs now.could not be without them, the pigeon sport as changed so much in the last twenty years,the sportsmanship as almost gone at times making it seem not worth keeping them.most clubs seem full of bitter fanciers now ,no fun anymore just arguments after arguments ,members wanting now what seem like yearly changes just thinking this may stop the top flyer winning week in week out .if this does not work they wreck the club sickening many fanciers off from sending on a weekly basis .

To me pigeons are my first love my hobby and will always be my hobby ,if i race them or not i love me pigeons

Chris like you Pigeons were passed down to me from my Grandfather and my father, and in turn My son and Grandson both keep and race them. Your description of the way the sport has gone over the past 20 years is spot on my friend. With regards to Annual rule changes to try and prevent the top boys from winning, that is just an excuse by those who are too feckin lazy to get of their own @r$e$ and put the effort into their own birds. Too many people are in the hobby today to make a quick buck, and not for the love of their birds. If things don't go the way they thought it would they make a quick exit, but not before they have left a trail of destruction behind them.

Pigeons are my first love, my hobby and my life, but I feel it is soon getting to the stage where I call it a day. I thought it was only occurring locally to me but since I have come on to these pigeon forums, I see it is happening all over the United Kingdom. :grrrr!: :sulk: :it's :

snap and thats how im feeling bob this sport full tossers now who act all supeior to anyone else and then sulk and act like ass as some on other sites do

Trouble is now ,there is to many rich people now in this game .everyone once upon a time where mostly equal ,when everyone worked ,kept few birds ,never sold birds ,only sent a few birds ,because they could only afford to keep a few birds .

all worked hard for the club ,all friends ,everyone welcome ,and respected everyone in the club ,in todays world all them old fanciers have either walked away or passed on ,they where all brothers in arms together.

will them days every return ,not in my lifetime .will this hobby go full circle and back to the days of racing milers between a few friends.

my older brother kept pigeons since he was 12, then when i was 15/16 i started keeping them and raced up until about 1985 when i packed in with them.....last year after a twenty year absence i bought 3 pairs of stock birds and amm planning to start racing again next season.... :Very Funny:

christopher09 wrote:Trouble is now ,there is to many rich people now in this game .everyone once upon a time where mostly equal ,when everyone worked ,kept few birds ,never sold birds ,only sent a few birds ,because they could only afford to keep a few birds .

all worked hard for the club ,all friends ,everyone welcome ,and respected everyone in the club ,in todays world all them old fanciers have either walked away or passed on ,they where all brothers in arms together.

will them days every return ,not in my lifetime .will this hobby go full circle and back to the days of racing milers between a few friends.

The days of the cloth cap, and a whippet in tow are long gone SADLY. I remember with fondness the tales the 'old boys' used to tell me, and even to this day I listen intently to the few old'uns left in the sport, (who would probably die without their birds) of the tales they have to tell. It always brings a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye. BRING BACK THE OLD DAYS, PIGEON RACING IS DEAD THROUGH THE CANCER WITHIN

Ive had pigeons on and off since i was 10 but mainly rollers,roughly this time last year i starting keeping them again had rollers for 6 months but changed over to racing pigeons in December,once pigeons are in your blood very hard to keep away from them

maid08 wrote:would you like to tell us how you started with youer pigeons and why you still feel the need to have them???? Thumbs up

Started off with Pigeons when I used to go to Hereford racecourse and help the Feds from up north cut the strings and hook up the baskets when they were racing from here, this was so I could have the lead seals that were used in those days to melt down for fishing weights. Somehow the sound and smell of the birds appealed to me and soon got some birds from a local fancier (Jack Jones) Sadly I was informed Jack had passed away only a matter of weeks ago and although he hadn't kept or raced pigeons for many years he will be a name that will be remembered by all the fanciers in this area as an excelent flyer and true sportsman. Things went on from there and I shudder to think of the amount of money I have spent on this hobby since those days as a child with a few birds in an old coal shed with an old dowel clothes airer for perches. The worrying bit is not really knowing why I still have them, as although I love the birds the sport is really on its knees and in dire straits with some of the major problems which blight the sport being way beyond our ability to deal with them, maybe I will be another name that drops off the list of members very soon who knows as I can't help feeling very disillusioned at the moment. I can always look back on plenty of success, having been the higest prize winner more times than I have'nt so plenty of happy memories from the game thats for sure and made many good friends over the years that I may otherwise never have known

this is another one very disalusiond mark me im very near culling the lot this sport is rife with lies twisters conmen bigheads knowitalls and the like to be decent fancier is just not the done thing these days if youer anyone of the aboe you are in if not you get kite day in day out

Well that's 5 posters on this topic and 3 are very disillisioned at the way the sport is these days, and all 3 have expressed a possibility of calling it a day. :sulk: that is 60%. SO I ask WHAT CAN BE DONE TO CHANGE THE PRESENT TREND. :#####: :flip:

maid08 wrote:this is another one very disalusiond mark me im very near culling the lot this sport is rife with lies twisters conmen bigheads knowitalls and the like to be decent fancier is just not the done thing these days if youer anyone of the aboe you are in if not you get kite day in day out

Chris I know what you mean but the sport needs people like you to bring these things to light, without the likes of you the corruption and lies would be out of control and the sport would die even quicker believe me. As for bigheads and know-it-alls? Well I can't help it , its not so much a case of a big head anyway, I just have a very small body that makes it seem that way hahaha. All joking aside though its not the kind of thing you mention that puts a dampener on it for me its the hot topic at the moment, Hawks! Well I can't see the point in breeding these lovely creatures of ours getting them flying well and healthy only to be taken a handfull of miles up the road to be attacked and eaten alive! That has happened with old birds week in week out and when you only have accomodation for 16 widowhood cocks 8 hits is more than the heart can stand. Only thing with experienced OB's is when attacked they come home in ones and twos except for the victim if he hadn't got lady luck flying with him but YB's is a different story, 3 times I have had my kit hit and every time it has been more than the one they go at that fails to return. How long can I keep throwing money away which is what it seems like to me at the moment with no sign of light at the end of the tunnel? Answer to that is not very long, my pockets are far from bottomless pits thesedays and every penny counts as is with a lot of people. Fingers crossed your petition will draw some more support and soon or it will be lights out and curtains down for me and I don't mean the darkness system either

lenwadebob wrote:Well that's 5 posters on this topic and 3 are very disillisioned at the way the sport is these days, and all 3 have expressed a possibility of calling it a day. :sulk: that is 60%. SO I ask WHAT CAN BE DONE TO CHANGE THE PRESENT TREND. :#####: :flip:

Some kind of control over the amount of birds of prey would be enough to give me hope especially in the Ross-on-Wye/ Forrest of Dean Areas. Can you see this ever being the case though Bob? Crikey there are enough campaigns on the go at the moment yet they still have the backing of only the minority of fanciers and even as a collective we don't have the loudest of voices so when it is just a handfull shouting for help how in God's name will we ever get heard?

superstar wrote:

lenwadebob wrote:Well that's 5 posters on this topic and 3 are very disillisioned at the way the sport is these days, and all 3 have expressed a possibility of calling it a day. :sulk: that is 60%. SO I ask WHAT CAN BE DONE TO CHANGE THE PRESENT TREND. :#####: :flip:

Some kind of control over the amount of birds of prey would be enough to give me hope especially in the Ross-on-Wye/ Forrest of Dean Areas. Can you see this ever being the case though Bob? Crikey there are enough campaigns on the go at the moment yet they still have the backing of only the minority of fanciers and even as a collective we don't have the loudest of voices so when it is just a handfull shouting for help how in God's name will we ever get heard?

NO for two reasons Mark. Firstly we don't get the backing from our governing bodies that we should do, and Secondly, those who don't have the problem adopt the selfish attitude of "Feck You Jack, I'm Alright"

wel the feck you jacks are the arseholes on other site that think they own it. me im the lot of them it most certanly looks as if the click runs it as they do and say what they like and get nothing done about i

lenwadebob wrote:

superstar wrote:

lenwadebob wrote:Well that's 5 posters on this topic and 3 are very disillisioned at the way the sport is these days, and all 3 have expressed a possibility of calling it a day. :sulk: that is 60%. SO I ask WHAT CAN BE DONE TO CHANGE THE PRESENT TREND. :#####: :flip:

Some kind of control over the amount of birds of prey would be enough to give me hope especially in the Ross-on-Wye/ Forrest of Dean Areas. Can you see this ever being the case though Bob? Crikey there are enough campaigns on the go at the moment yet they still have the backing of only the minority of fanciers and even as a collective we don't have the loudest of voices so when it is just a handfull shouting for help how in God's name will we ever get heard?

NO for two reasons Mark. Firstly we don't get the backing from our governing bodies that we should do, and Secondly, those who don't have the problem adopt the selfish attitude of "Feck You Jack, I'm Alright"

That is the pigeon fanciers attitude not just today but for the last twenty odd years .when certain fanciers from wales and around devon and cornwall where complaining about bop the likes of rex doe etc packing up due to continued attacks on a daily basis when asking the rpra etc to tackle the growing problem then they turned there backs and put there heads in the sand .

now say thirty years on the rpra do not have or want to tackle this issue of fanciers birds been attacked daily by bop .i mean thirty years and they come out with a hawk watch page in the weekly mag ,then even question as tall stories peoples accounts of bop attacks
,this is because the general manager as no understanding of what a bird of prey attack as on fanciers day in day out or any understanding of pigeon fanciers.

but bop are not the be all and end all of the decline of our hobby its fanciers young birds constantly been sent lost in there thousands fanciers who a few weeks ago where full with young birds now looking at empty perches asking is it all worth it.year in year out.

iy aint worth the effort anymore im lucky i dont race my birds all go out but its the idiots and the conners i get stressed at weres the fancy of honest straight men of years ago now its all internet big boys with no bottle to even put their names forward and thats the problem with this sport the worms within taking control

Just remember my older brother having pigeons in the sixty’s, he used to catch them with a washing basket and a stick on a string. There were all sorts and colours but one stuck out to me and that was an archangel. A bonnie wee thing with a bronze body and black wings and a little crest like a lapwing. The best thing about it though was the metallic sheen that all pigeons have on their necks near covered its whole body. The bronze neck and breast had a coppery sheen with an iridescent purple blue changing to green blue on the back and wings. I was just mesmerised with the sheer beauty of this bird. Eventually he gave them up so with an empty hut calling out to me I got my first birds at age probably 9 or 10. I got a lovely red pied cock bird from a school pal and a hen from someone else (can’t remember) but it was a small scruffy wee dark chequer. Bred some youngsters from these and some of my pals in the street had doos as well so we started “racing”. A cardboard box was used to take the birds about half a mile or so then having got the bird in you ran with the bird up to the big grass circle where we used to play fitba’ and first there was the winner ( christ, those were the days when every day was an adventure eh! ) Eventually three of us decided we were going to race proper and joined a club. The guys at the club were very helpful and took rings from us to breed us some real racers. Remember getting one young bird from a pal’s dad that was a mosaic. Red chequer on one side and dark chequer on the other. No one had ever seen the like and I felt very privileged to have this bird and was even offered a lot of dosh to sell it but refused. Lost the fekin thing first race. Raced for three seasons but eventually gave in to another bird attraction when I hit 15/16. :Yipee: Realise now I knew Fek all about racing birds then. I have recently got back with Catalonian tumblers and am chuffed to say I’ve actually got the young team of 9 flying well thanks to the help from Superstar. These wee birds were supposedly bred to fly against falcons in northern Spain and the Balearic Islands off Spain and that along with their numerous patterns and colours “wardrobe of a thousand costumes” and the fact they share the same gimple bronze foundation and almost same metallic sheen as the Archangel attracted me to this rare breed. They also looked very athletic in shape and form and are about half the weight/size of a racer. Finding them in this country was difficult but eventually I got some of the cap de frère (white cap on head) patterned birds. As these birds had never been out ( only bred for colour etc. ) I bred some youngsters but could not get them flying at all and this is when I realised I did not know as much as I thought I did. Was not happy at all and was even thinking I’d made a bad choice but after asking Superstar how he trained his youngsters I decided to treat them the same and I am smiling again. These wee birds are going to be interesting I think going by what I have seen up to now. They have been flying out for about 3 or 4 weeks now but they don’t fly the same way each time. Sometimes they range around three quarters a mile, sometimes they circle the loft tight. Sometimes they fly high and sometimes they fly so low I fear they will strike the fencing. I am in the countryside surrounded by trees and farmland and these wee things just love darting in and out the trees and sometimes inches of the ground. They have kitted well from day one and are now starting to “tumble” but it is more like changing direction suddenly (hard to explain) but I’m looking forward to see just what they do when and if challenged in the air. It is really unknown territory with these birds but the signs are there and only time will tell. Sorry If I have anyone but you can see I have got the passion back and therefore I would like to express my concerns re the good fanciers who are thinking of calling it a day. Please re-consider as your knowledge must be passed down to others who can benefit and find peace and happiness amongst the wee doos. I think in the late fifties these wee Catalonian birds were on the brink of being lost forever due to the Franco regime with fighting, lack of feed etc. but due to some dedicated people they are on the mend, unfortunately some patterns have been lost. So please, you never know what is around the corner regarding the BOP etc. so at least keep some kinda pigeons and they will entertain you the best they can as they have done for centuries. Don’t let them get lost like some of the wee Spanish birds. Our ancesters put a lot of time and effort into breeding different types of pigeons so please keep the racers in the sky, where they should be. :yes: :yes: :yes:

i will always keep pair birds here but the sport is fed i think its over run now ??i was reading parking sons crap about europa thats what this sport is about now bull and money not sport the freindships made big lofts filling their birds with substances we cant use their takeing of nat places instead of man working his ass off with his birds one loft a compition for the same way fed trained yep they then fly in feds nats and take the glorey thats the sport not us anymore