Many fanciers still wonder which birds they should breed? Easy access through technology seems to not help much. Beautiful and attractive pedigrees steal the eye of the buyer, and “big names” are more attractive than ever. Despite this, disappointments are bigger than ever and too often the “golden goose” turns out to be just a simple crow.
So what would really matter to a fancier? What should we look at when buying pigeons? First of all, we should look at the competition!!! The bigger, the better! It’s not just about the number, but also about who is part of the competition. How many “big names” are in that ranking? Second, we should look at the winner’s family! Does he have other brothers and sisters who are also champions?
Thirdly, we must look at the speed of the races and especially how many difficult races the pigeon has had! Whether it came back alone or arrived with the flight and got lucky.
Fourth, we must look at the pigeon’s navigation system and its family. There is still no consensus on how pigeons “navigate”. How do they know how to get home? There are various theories but nothing has been confirmed yet. It is probably a set of organs that help with orientation. But what we do know is that some pigeons orientate better than others, and there are pigeons that cannot orientate at all!!!
Therefore we must introduce this criterion when selecting when buying pigeons!!! How many races has the pigeon flown? How many has it won, how many was it among the firsts and especially how many tough races did he have where he arrived alone. The “navigation” system is probably genetically transmitted and is therefore worth taking into consideration.
Remember that, in the economy of the competition, every minute counts and a few extra seconds can make you a winner! Therefore, we must evaluate every aspect and choose the right pigeon.
Good luck!!!