New Starters

[Anthony webster]

Look at top belgium lads now 30 yrs bk no drafts now all aviae6s look on utube at Cyril lambrecht and he's sons wire over windows n cardboard put over in cold n just ripped off a piece in summer these lads race in toughest area in belgium and are a force every season going back 40 years solid ,,same as widowhood lads do brilliant here but in florida where racing in my opinion is red hot they race cocks to box perch or V perch and win loads ,
Here I do ok with cocks but each season my hens are best going back 17 years lads say try proper widowhood 2 times now cocks had stay at home partners was on 100 percent widowhood so system didn't suit hens more n again hens were top again in fact my cocks how I normally race were better thet would top fed n land with winners but on widowhood hens ruined them same as widowhood hens my celibacy hens best them as well 24 races celibacy 18x1st clubs 6x1st opens plus 1st sections in mnfc n bbc ,I think like Frank in usa there either good or not and motivation is operated but certain triggers do get a team racing bit harder.

[goose1]

Point No. 4 (to come)

MEDICATION / SUPPLEMENTS

Well done Mike.

[Held2025]

Point 4

MEDICATION / SUPPLEMENTS

If you're an experienced fancier you already have your ideas on how relevant this is to you
I'm not here to persuade you any differently to the ideas that you already have
My view was we look after our birds 365 days a year, but for 12-13 weeks (OB) and about 8 weeks (YB) I wanted performance
Excuses don't help you climb any further up the ladder. Actions do


I've seen guys after 4 races without a card and at that point they still aren't asking the question "what's wrong?"
Remember, I'm thinking like a sprinter here
After 4 weeks? Congratulations - that's a 1/3rd of the OB season down the toilet straight away


If you're racing in strong competition (I'm not talking club level here) it's really hard to win every week
If the competition is strong that means there's "x amount" of really talented fanciers all readily capable of taking the 1st Open place
By "talented fanciers" I mean people who are knocking about week in week out year in year out making themselves hard to beat
Those guys have to be respected



I'm a big believer in "supplements" and I'd readily use "medication" IF i felt it was necessary
As experienced fanciers you learn over the course of time little things you can do and things to avoid
For instance, "if" you have to or want to treat for Cocci then if you're using Baycox you really want to be hitting them on the Saturday night with it
If you give it say Monday/Tuesday you'll find it does "knock them" a bit



You can easily spend a fortune on supplements if you choose to - or there's other options available too
For instance, there's no real need to treat for canker if you're giving your birds iodine on a fairly regular basis because iodine suppresses it
If you're treating for fungal or respiratory then I'd say "why not use Virkon S instead"?
Virkon S is highly effective against both fungal and respiratory
I used to bathe my birds in it weekly too


You may "poo poo" the idea of supplements - and that's your choice.
When I talk to Gary and Niall Gordon (daily) in the racing season all you'll hear during the conversation is "churn, churn, churn"
He's forever administering products onto the feed. And I mean every single day
When someone comes along and shows me performances that are better than theirs without the use of supplements maybe then I'll have a rethink


There's "protein powders" like Immunol for instance that you can give the birds on the return of a race
Protein repairs muscle damage - we know that
An alternative is to just crack an egg into the feed and mix thoroughly (I used to use a powder to act as a drying agent too if time was limited)


One product, for me, that's stood the test of time but has largely fallen off the radar is Johnson's Pigeon Tonic Gold
If you're using that on a regular basis you're doing a good thing in helping to keep your birds in good order

At the end of the day it's about winning pigeons
I've never seen an unhealthy pigeon win.
With health you can build fitness.
With health and fitness you can get condition
With health, fitness and condition you can get form
With health, fitness, condition and form you get results


If results aren't important to you then trust me, you and I are polar opposites because I was performance driven
That was all that mattered. I'd take a deal that said "stay up all night and i'll give you an extra yard on a Saturday"

Another good read again Mike and seeing this kind of info is what forums are all about people sharing information and knowledge with like minded people and I know there is that competition to it and some may not be happy sharing that’s fine but do appreciate people sharing years of knowledge and trial and error hopefully allowing new fanciers like myself to make less mistakes but that’s all part of learning.

[goose1]

Point 4

MEDICATION / SUPPLEMENTS

If you're an experienced fancier you already have your ideas on how relevant this is to you
I'm not here to persuade you any differently to the ideas that you already have
My view was we look after our birds 365 days a year, but for 12-13 weeks (OB) and about 8 weeks (YB) I wanted performance
Excuses don't help you climb any further up the ladder. Actions do


I've seen guys after 4 races without a card and at that point they still aren't asking the question "what's wrong?"
Remember, I'm thinking like a sprinter here
After 4 weeks? Congratulations - that's a 1/3rd of the OB season down the toilet straight away


If you're racing in strong competition (I'm not talking club level here) it's really hard to win every week
If the competition is strong that means there's "x amount" of really talented fanciers all readily capable of taking the 1st Open place
By "talented fanciers" I mean people who are knocking about week in week out year in year out making themselves hard to beat
Those guys have to be respected



I'm a big believer in "supplements" and I'd readily use "medication" IF i felt it was necessary
As experienced fanciers you learn over the course of time little things you can do and things to avoid
For instance, "if" you have to or want to treat for Cocci then if you're using Baycox you really want to be hitting them on the Saturday night with it
If you give it say Monday/Tuesday you'll find it does "knock them" a bit



You can easily spend a fortune on supplements if you choose to - or there's other options available too
For instance, there's no real need to treat for canker if you're giving your birds iodine on a fairly regular basis because iodine suppresses it
If you're treating for fungal or respiratory then I'd say "why not use Virkon S instead"?
Virkon S is highly effective against both fungal and respiratory
I used to bathe my birds in it weekly too


You may "poo poo" the idea of supplements - and that's your choice.
When I talk to Gary and Niall Gordon (daily) in the racing season all you'll hear during the conversation is "churn, churn, churn"
He's forever administering products onto the feed. And I mean every single day
When someone comes along and shows me performances that are better than theirs without the use of supplements maybe then I'll have a rethink


There's "protein powders" like Immunol for instance that you can give the birds on the return of a race
Protein repairs muscle damage - we know that
An alternative is to just crack an egg into the feed and mix thoroughly (I used to use a powder to act as a drying agent too if time was limited)


One product, for me, that's stood the test of time but has largely fallen off the radar is Johnson's Pigeon Tonic Gold
If you're using that on a regular basis you're doing a good thing in helping to keep your birds in good order

At the end of the day it's about winning pigeons
I've never seen an unhealthy pigeon win.
With health you can build fitness.
With health and fitness you can get condition
With health, fitness and condition you can get form
With health, fitness, condition and form you get results


If results aren't important to you then trust me, you and I are polar opposites because I was performance driven
That was all that mattered. I'd take a deal that said "stay up all night and i'll give you an extra yard on a Saturday"

Another good read again Mike and seeing this kind of info is what forums are all about people sharing information and knowledge with like minded people and I know there is that competition to it and some may not be happy sharing that’s fine but do appreciate people sharing years of knowledge and trial and error hopefully allowing new fanciers like myself to make less mistakes but that’s all part of learning.

Its brilliant info whether you agree with it or not and all free. From a top class fancier who's thoughts and opinions are respected and sought after by some of the top lofts racing today. Same with Anthony. Its the best topic there been on this forum since I've been on here.

[goose1]

Thank you for posting the info Mike and Anthony. I've had one message from a guy today who's never posted on the site but has his ears peeled at the min.

[PeteDerby]

Point 4

MEDICATION / SUPPLEMENTS

If you're an experienced fancier you already have your ideas on how relevant this is to you
I'm not here to persuade you any differently to the ideas that you already have
My view was we look after our birds 365 days a year, but for 12-13 weeks (OB) and about 8 weeks (YB) I wanted performance
Excuses don't help you climb any further up the ladder. Actions do


I've seen guys after 4 races without a card and at that point they still aren't asking the question "what's wrong?"
Remember, I'm thinking like a sprinter here
After 4 weeks? Congratulations - that's a 1/3rd of the OB season down the toilet straight away


If you're racing in strong competition (I'm not talking club level here) it's really hard to win every week
If the competition is strong that means there's "x amount" of really talented fanciers all readily capable of taking the 1st Open place
By "talented fanciers" I mean people who are knocking about week in week out year in year out making themselves hard to beat
Those guys have to be respected



I'm a big believer in "supplements" and I'd readily use "medication" IF i felt it was necessary
As experienced fanciers you learn over the course of time little things you can do and things to avoid
For instance, "if" you have to or want to treat for Cocci then if you're using Baycox you really want to be hitting them on the Saturday night with it
If you give it say Monday/Tuesday you'll find it does "knock them" a bit



You can easily spend a fortune on supplements if you choose to - or there's other options available too
For instance, there's no real need to treat for canker if you're giving your birds iodine on a fairly regular basis because iodine suppresses it
If you're treating for fungal or respiratory then I'd say "why not use Virkon S instead"?
Virkon S is highly effective against both fungal and respiratory
I used to bathe my birds in it weekly too


You may "poo poo" the idea of supplements - and that's your choice.
When I talk to Gary and Niall Gordon (daily) in the racing season all you'll hear during the conversation is "churn, churn, churn"
He's forever administering products onto the feed. And I mean every single day
When someone comes along and shows me performances that are better than theirs without the use of supplements maybe then I'll have a rethink


There's "protein powders" like Immunol for instance that you can give the birds on the return of a race
Protein repairs muscle damage - we know that
An alternative is to just crack an egg into the feed and mix thoroughly (I used to use a powder to act as a drying agent too if time was limited)


One product, for me, that's stood the test of time but has largely fallen off the radar is Johnson's Pigeon Tonic Gold
If you're using that on a regular basis you're doing a good thing in helping to keep your birds in good order

At the end of the day it's about winning pigeons
I've never seen an unhealthy pigeon win.
With health you can build fitness.
With health and fitness you can get condition
With health, fitness and condition you can get form
With health, fitness, condition and form you get results


If results aren't important to you then trust me, you and I are polar opposites because I was performance driven
That was all that mattered. I'd take a deal that said "stay up all night and i'll give you an extra yard on a Saturday"

Another good read again Mike and seeing this kind of info is what forums are all about people sharing information and knowledge with like minded people and I know there is that competition to it and some may not be happy sharing that’s fine but do appreciate people sharing years of knowledge and trial and error hopefully allowing new fanciers like myself to make less mistakes but that’s all part of learning.

Ditto what Held said

[Anthony webster]

Any one who struggles to get birds super fit this time is from a south African friend
Say sunrise is 6am let birds out to loft fly at 5,55am after 15 mins the birds will be absolutely knackered after a few days 10 mins before sunrise you will see birds after 20 mins of exercise absolutely exhausted wings hanging like you've never seen before, this is like us on a exercise bike doing speed cycling high reputation for 20miles straight,,you never get birds fitter same as a 10 mile toss 5 mins before sun down birds hit loft exhausted.

[Diamond Dave]

Yes, brilliant you guys thanks to everyone who has posted on this thread.
Im not even a new starter but Ive learnt more from this one thread than I have in my years of racing.
Very pleased to have you back Mike.

[Anthony webster]

My mind set is very strong,,this Yr I wasn't feeling it or much year before my dad was so unwell it was like waiting for a bomb to hit but you didn't know when it was going to hit ,this year my dad passed and I enjoyed the pigeons but the drive wasn't there I wasn't my self in body or mind a bit broken infact.
Normally I'm so dedicated up hour n half before sunrise and on my game in loft Sunday morning 4am handling each bird in dark if u can't see them ya eyes can't lie ya hands tell you everything then it's sitting by my self writing the week ahead plan each step for distance wind weather the lot each day every task is ticked as I do it so zero stone is unturned ,,that's my normal mind set ,,few sayings I have
Snooze u lose ,,lay in bed u won't top fed ,,if you get lazy the top lads will spank you so be on ya game ,,I'm not interested in clocking 1 bird my aim is 50 to 75 percent of team on drop each race ,,1 pigeon is beautiful if you win But its failure to me if there treated same you want them together, I know in some feds now we can't do this there that large it don't happen but in long narrow feds it's possible.

[Steve Howells]

All very interesting to read

Welcome back Neil, nice to see you posting. Congratulations on a very good year with the Nrcc.