The young bird loft or
section should be light, well ventilated and NOT OVERCROWDED! Air should enter
the loft or around floor level, rise slowly and exit through a roof ventilator
located at the high point of the roof. I also recommend a skylight in this
section. Make sure the loft is “bone dry” at all times. I prefer box perches
10” x 10” made from 1 x 4 material. Water fountains should be about 12” off the
floor preferably outside the loft with a hole and drinking platform inside the
loft. It is important that not a single dropping can get in to contaminate the
water! Poor water management contributes more failure than anything I know of.
Take time to do this right! In most localities, a loft facing south will provide
the most sunlight and the least draft exposure. Instant trapping is paramount
to winning young bird races. A picket fence on the roof, strung so the birds
must land only on the landing board is important. We prefer a low landing board
that is about waist and California style stall traps. Young bird racing is a
game of seconds! Our birds exit the loft by a drop-door, level with the landing
board. Our training crates are equipped with a slide door on the back so that
the crates can be placed on the landing board and the exit door opened from the
inside of the loft and the birds simply fly into the training basket without
having to be handled. This saves a lot of time and energy for everyone.
LOFT
MANAGEMENT
Racing is the only thing
that is seasonal about this sport, everything else is 365 days a year! Let up
on year-round management and nothing else you do will bail you out. If the
newcomer misses this point, then he can stop reading this article now for it
will be in vain. Our young bird section is 6’ X 8’ and houses between 25 and 35
youngsters. I believe this area could healthy support around 50, but 25 to 35
has always been an adequate amount for our methods. Before the first youngster
is placed in this section, the loft is scrubbed thoroughly with a strong
solution of water and bleach from ceiling to floor, including all perches.
After it is “bone-dry”, a liberal sprinkling of carbola is administered and then
the floor is covered with a one-inch layer of clay particles ( kitty-litter)
which we purchased in 50 lb bags. This pulls the moisture from droppings
unbelievably fast and makes an attractive floor covering. Once a week, usually
race day morning, all water fountains, grit bowls, covers and covered feed are
removed from the loft and washed in water and bleach and dried in direct
sunlight. While these are drying, all dried accumulated droppings are raked and
removed from the loft and a liberal sprinkling of carbola put down and raked
in. About once every two months, a new bag of litter is added to replace that
which is raked out with the dried droppings.
FEED,
GRIT AND WATER
From weaning until 2
months before the first race, the youngsters are fed ICT Number 5, a mixture of
about 15% protein. From that time on until the end of the races, 10 lbs of brown
rice and 10 lbs of barley are added to 50 lbs of ICT Number 5. Brown rice
releases more unusable energy than any other grain and is rich in minerals.
Barley keeps you and the birds honest and is an excellent guide to know when to
stop feeding. Grit is put into a covered bowl every Wednesday morning and
removed from the loft Wednesday night. Grit left in the loft can and does
accumulate moisture from the birds’ respiration and can cause problems. Grit
requirement for race birds, not breeding, is minimal. Water, as mentioned
earlier, must be fresh, clean and located in such a way, that it cannot be
contaminated. We add 2 tablespoons of honey to a gallon of water on Thursday,
Friday and Saturday. On Sunday, birds returning from the races get an extra
energy boost. This is basically grape sugar with vitamin C additives. This is
a great recuperative and I strongly recommend it. On the first day of every
month all birds are wormed, even during races. We use Tramisol. ¼ teaspoon per
gallon of water and left in the loft for one day. Do this year round and worms
will never be a problem for you. Other than worming, we do not routinely
medicate birds, as our management does not require it. However, when birds
begin racing, they come in contact with birds not well cared for all there is
always a chance of contamination. We keep on the medicine shelf: Emtryl for
canker, Terramycin for respiratory problems, Sulmet and NFZ for intestinal
problems, and potassium permanganate which is used in the bath water on Monday
after the race. One small pinch is all that is needed for the bath pan.
BIRD
MANAGEMENT
Youngsters are weaned at
25 days of age. They are taken first to a wire bottom weaning pen where they
drink medicate water with Emtryl for possible canker. They remain here for five
days and then to the young bird section. The youngsters are then put on the
landing board in a settling cage for one or two days before allowed to go out
freely. The birds are exercised morning and night until June 1st.
we feed generously during this time and the first handful or two is given on the
landing board when they finish their fly. We then enter the loft, call them in
and finish the feeding. This gets the youngsters used to you being beside them
on the board and they can easily be picked up off the board or driven into the
stall traps on race day. On June 1st, we catch youngster and cut off
the end two flight feathers about 2 inches from the wing butt. The birds must
have molted at least the first primary feather before we do this; if they
haven’t, we wait until they cast a flight before cutting the end flights. From
June 2nd to June 15th the birds are exercised twice a day
as usual. This requires a great deal more energy from them to stay up with the
cut flights and rapid development of the chest muscles results. By June 15th
the two cut primaries will be completely dried up and can be pulled out. After
these dead flights are pulled, the birds are locked in the loft and not
exercised again until the new feathers are both half way out. At that time the
birds begin daily exercising again. By doing this, you can fly the entire
season with a full wing and the birds can be repeated week after week, barring a
smash or strong head winds; and they come into excellent condition and gain much
confidence from the experience. The more birds you have that break early with
the lead group, the more influence you will have on the drag at the home end.
When we win, we usually also take several more top positions due to a large
amount of birds on the drop. Under our methods, the drop usually gets larger
week by week as the birds gain race experience. You must understand that simply
having a full wing isn’t all that’s required to race a bird. You must train
your eyes and fingers to assess which birds can be repeated and which birds must
be rested. No amount of reading will ma pigeon man out of you, but a well
followed plan will allow you time to observe and learn more from the birds.
TRAINING
AND RACING
By the time training time
rolls around, our youngsters are a well developed, unruly bunch, feeling their
oats and dashing about the countryside on their daily flights like wild men. If
we tried to train them in this mental condition, they would continue to fly
about the countryside and we’d pull our hair out waiting for them. So, one week
before the first toss, we have a period of “getting their minds right.” Young
birds are not impressed by very much other thank their stomachs, so this is what
we concentrate on. On the evening of the sixth day before training begins, they
are not fed anything. The fifth day they get 1/5 the normal amount, morning and
night; the fourth day 2/5 the normal; the third day 3/5 the normal; the second
day 4/5 of the normal; and on the first day of training, after they return, they
get their normal amount. Thereafter, the normal amount is given. This will
give you a good quick toss the very first time, as the birds fully believe
they’re starving even though they’re back to normal ration.
The first training
toss is 3 weeks before the first race and the birds are trained in the morning
every day except Sunday until the first race. We get a map and draw a straight
line from the first station to our loft and train right on line. The first toss
is 10 miles and they go there six consecutive days. The next toss is 20 miles
for 3 consecutive days; then 30 miles three consecutive days. This get us to
one week before the race. Then on Monday 20 miles, Tuesday 30 miles, Friday 4o
miles and Saturday 50 miles. The birds get a full feeding upon returning
Saturday morning and about 5:00 pm, they get a scant handful, just enough to
induce a big drink of water. Around 6:30 pm, they are basketed and taken to the
club. During the races, the birds are trained Thursday 20 miles, Friday 30
miles, and Saturday 40 miles for the 100 mile races; Thursday 20 miles, Friday
20 miles, and Saturday 30 miles for the 200 mile races; Saturday 20 miles for
the 300 mile races. If the birds have a bad race, the training must be
adjusted. Sometimes, during the latter part of the season, the birds may look
great but give a poor performance. If this happens, lock them up and don’t
train or even let them out for exercise. If by Thursday, you notice they’re
ballooned out and have become very rounded and “corky” feeling, you can enter
that week with great confidence. An old timer taught me this and I was rewarded
with 6 on the drop from 300 miles and 5 diplomas. The week before, I was
practically on the bottom of the sheet. When birds look great but perform
poorly, the inclination is to train harder but sometimes doing just the opposite
will produce results, particularly if late in the season. Well, this how we do
it. I don’t think anything has been left out except what can be learned by
living with the birds and observing what they tell you. You’ve got the ball
now. Good luck, good flying and good sport!