UkPigeonRacing

think 4ft is far too narrow

Welcome to the forum, Daz.
You have had some good advice already.
Actually the first racing pigeon loft I ever built, in New Zealand many years ago, was 8'x4' with two small sections. Using the Red Rose starter loft plans, you could build a tidy loft out of not much more than 5 sheets of plywood or OSB board, and some tin or felt roofing.
With two sections you can separate the sexes during the winter and put 3 or 4 pairs of old birds in nest boxes in one side and the babies on perches on the other.
The kit box you showed was ideal for a kit of half a dozen youngsters, but youngsters become adults at about 10 months and will start breeding. Pigeons are determined breeders, and will breed underwater
A small loft with a centre division so the boys and girls can be separated will be perfect for your needs.
There's some experienced flyers on here, and a great bunch of blokes. Ask questions, we are all here to help.

To be honest , i would hold out fast. Spend some time trying to find other flyers in your area, and try and have a chat to them. In the mean time get your son reading up on keeping racing pigeon, also watching videos. When you know which way you want to go, then you can have a look around. You can pick up a used shed on E bay. or have a good look around for a small shed you can convert to a pigeon loft. Then once the shed is up and made. You can move on to getting a few birds. But knowing people in the sport can help you save time and money.

some great advice here guy's thanks

This may be a silly question but if you buy stock birds to breed from do you fly them? & if so how do you get them to return to your loft & not return to where they came from?

Daz71 wrote: ↑Wed Mar 27, 2024 1:49 pm This may be a silly question but if you buy stock birds to breed from do you fly them? & if so how do you get them to return to your loft & not return to where they came from?

No question is a ''silly question'' as you will find out as you go along, sadly the answer is no you never fly stock birds out some have never been out and may have had several homes so would never know where to go to

Daz71 wrote: ↑Wed Mar 27, 2024 1:49 pm This may be a silly question but if you buy stock birds to breed from do you fly them? & if so how do you get them to return to your loft & not return to where they came from?

As said there are no silly questions. Some of us on here have had a lifetime of experience and even like myself whose dad kept pigeons still had to learn from our mistakes and disappointments over the years. We are all still learning. Unfortunately you and your son will have a few but that’s all part of our sport. By asking your questions you will get a variety of answers but will hopefully save you some disappointments and save you wasting too much money.
So stock birds. These are birds just kept for breeding. Personally I don’t really keep stock birds and everything here does fly out. I breed my replacements from either birds I decide not to race or retired races. Or from the race team. As you can probably see this is why we are suggesting getting a shed/loft where you can have at least a couple of sections to separate old from young birds. 3 sections if you wanted to have stock birds that don’t fly out.
We aren’t suggesting that you shouldn’t restrict the number of birds you allow your son to have but want you to get good advice so that you can get the best enjoyment from keeping pigeons.

Daz, I would advise you to get some young birds, maybe a dozen, from local flyers to start with. Fresh out of the nest. They can be taught to home to your loft straight away.
That way you are not having the hassle of old stock pigeons escaping and the added bonus of making contact with the flyers in your area who will be happy to help a beginner. Many will gift young birds to a new flyer to help them get started.

Joined the RPRA today so first stage completed, do you know if I get rings included in my membership I can't seem to find the answer on the RPRA website?

Daz71 wrote: ↑Wed Mar 27, 2024 10:01 pm Joined the RPRA today so first stage completed, do you know if I get rings included in my membership I can't seem to find the answer on the RPRA website?

No you don’t I’m afraid Daz. You can order some rings from the RPRA website though. Go to the online ordering. You will just need your RPRA loft number that they have given you and your email address. Rings are ordered in multiples of 20. £9.86 for 20. Failing that just give them a ring and you will be able to order them over the phone.