Les J Parkinson - What’s going on this week.
Years ago, I very often used to hear about BOP taking racing birds, at the time I couldn't understand the number of losses that fanciers were experiencing because we were not in the same position. That's not the case now because I am losing them, it looks like every time I let them out the odd one disappears. I have been wondering if this has anything to do with the trees in the next garden to Peter Latham, who are about 150yds away from the Elimar Lofts, having been removed. Peter has often talked about birds from his race team being taken by the BOP. There were several big trees which have now been cut down leaving a big wide-open space. I am now wondering if that's the reason we are losing birds. When Petere exercised his pigeons they would head for the trees, I could see them perched up as if they were hiding from the BOP. I have not seen it happen, but I would have thought the BOP were coming through the trees to grab Peter’s pigeons. Now those trees have gone there is that big open space which would leave the only hiding place in the lofts. I am left wondering if that is why we are losing more pigeons than ever to BOP, nowhere to hide. I was watching them one day from the conservatory and a BOP came skimming over the fence, through the gap and on top of a pigeon before it could move. I no longer leave the pigeons out, they are exercised and fed back into the loft, at this rate I cannot afford too many more, my plans have already been hit hard.
Training.
It will not be long before many fanciers will be having their birds up the road training in the hope of getting the jump on fellow fanciers. There is no doubt that many started early in March because I hear there are races at the end of the month. We start racing in April so the baskets at this loft will not be coming out of storage until the end of March.
ETS
Before the training starts, I need to get the new ETS pads fitted and tested. I will be letting the pigeons out a section at a time and checking them back in to make sure they are all working. Kim is handy with the system helping to register them and any editing that needs doing, if for whatever reason Kim is not available, Peter is around the corner and knows the systems very well. The problem is we all register them as young birds but then many fanciers don’t change the sexes of those who end up being the opposite sex when they are a few months older and wanting to pair up, most of us are guilty of not changing them. It took a few times to have them out, but they are now all going in through the system, correction, all except a dark hen who is still being caught on the front of the loft and put back in through the trap by hand. I wrote the above a couple of days ago, since then one of Ebony’s lost latebreds has turned up and I have had to get it in through the open door., it should be settled by the time you read these notes.
One thing about writing articles
I can make a point and there is always someone who comes up with a solution or at least an idea of resolving the point raised. It is always pleasing when someone has taken the time to drop me a line, because there is always someone somewhere out in the big wide world who will benefit from the information that is passed my way. In this case I mentioned wet droppings in the boxes where there were young birds being reared. I did have one box where there were wet droppings, and the young did not grow well so they had to go. I had a call from Dave Allen who told me about the information he received when he was on a trip to Belgium many years ago. The solution being a pinch of salt on the edge of each nest box, they don't need a lot, it is just a pinch. There is another way of giving them salt and that is through the various grits and minerals that many mix themselves, the one thing we must do is make sure we don't give them too much in one go as I have done in the past. Chris Knowles once told me that he gives his pigeons a mixed grit and minerals after their main feed, he calls it their desert. What I don’t do is give them any grits after Wednesday because I don’t want them to have salt in their system when they are sent to the races.
Les J Parkinson.
15 Rushton Drive,
Middlewich, Cheshire,
CW10 0NJ.
Tel: 01606 836036. Mob: +44 (0)7871 701585.
E-mail:
