Homing pigeon

Postal Pigeons General Information

Similar to other breeds, there is no pure blood homing pigeon, since after 1850, the race pigeons (contemporary racing pigeon) emerged as a result of the matchmaking between pigeons belonging to various races in Belgium. we can't expect it to have To give an example, among these pigeons, there are those we can call as leggings or legs, and there are also ones with or without legs.

In addition, some birds are present in the chest, similar to those in some of our bango birds, that produce roses. Although certain lineages emerge over time, it is very natural for birds of various colors and patterns to emerge from these lineages.

Since the homing pigeon is bred for racing purposes, it is always more important for intelligence and success in races rather than form features. This does not mean that some visible qualities in the homing pigeon are not sought. On the contrary, besides the bird's success in the races, it is the common aim of every breeder to have the desired qualities in the physical. When you reach the question of what are these qualifications;

Postal Pigeons Features
Feather structure: Feather structure is one of the most important features sought in the mail pigeon. When you hold a good pigeon in your hand, you should feel that you are touching the silk. Soft feathers like velvet are an indication that the bird is from a good lineage. Why is the feather structure so important? Because a pigeon that does not have a good plumage gets wet quickly in a slightly rainy weather, so it cannot stay in the air for a long time. Since we do not know what kind of weather awaits our birds in the races, pigeons that can stay in the air in any weather conditions and do not get wet are very important to us. Sometimes I fly my birds especially in light rainy weather and try to find out whether they get wet or not. This year, I never saw my 2000-year-old blue rambo guy, who was 35th in the race with an air distance of Istanbul - kelkit (950 km), got wet. Moreover, the next day came from this race by the hawk, with the chest muscle broken apart. I am sure he would have performed better if he had not been injured. This pigeon has been competing for 3 years and has won numerous awards. His brother, black rambo, does not have as much hair as it is, so he competes in a single gear (short distance) and has won numerous bets and awards. He tried the long distance once and failed and returned home late. I write this only as an example to the differences between the two brothers. There is no doubt that although they race in separate categories, both of them are extremely important pigeons for me. But regardless of the marathon (long distance) pigeon, it must have a magnificent feather structure. Famous Expert Piet De Weerd says; "Feed moist birds of dry poultry, do not feed dry birds of moist poultry". What this world-renowned specialist wants to tell me is that since the birds in humid poultry are not healthy, they have a dry and fragile plumage, but since the birds in the dry poultry are healthy, their feathers are slightly oiled and they cover the feathers with powdered white powder that protects the feathers. gives a feeling of having its structure.

Eye and Beak Structure; The eyes are of great importance in the homing pigeon. As far as the breeder emphasizes the importance of the eyes, especially in breeding picks. Personally, I believe in this theory in part, and give importance to it. In the homing pigeon, the eyes should have extremely vibrant and metallic colors. Whatever pigeon with dull and matte eyes has a health problem. In humans, the eyes are the mirror of the heart and the birds are the mirror of health. This pigeon is unhealthy if it shuts bubbles in the eyes when you close the bird's nostrils and beak. There is a difference between regular healthy pigeon and super healthy pigeon. We want to have super healthy birds. In addition, when you drip eye drops on the bird's eye, the eye of the super healthy pigeon absorbs this drop immediately, while the eye of the unhealthy or normal healthy pigeon does not absorb the drop and drain it to the sides. In matches, we definitely hit birds with opposite eye color to each other. In this way, the offspring will have live eyes. The eyes are located in the upper part of the head in the body of the bird and are slightly buried inward. In some birds, the eyes look straight ahead in the bird's beak direction, and these birds are usually extraordinary breeds. The beak should not be too long (medium size) and the nostrils should be wide enough to be able to breathe comfortably. When you draw an imaginary line of the beak towards the eyes, this line should pass right in the middle of the eyes. The head should be large enough to be balanced with the body and should display a slightly curved round image. Cere snow on the beakit should be white and smooth and there should be no gap in between. Depending on the breed of the bird, this gum can be large or small.



Sternum; A long and slightly inclined sternum is the reason for preference, although it is seen in birds with short sternum in races. Because breast muscles apply pressure to the breastbone during flying. The longer the sternum, the less tired because the severity of this applied pressure will spread over a larger area. In addition, the slight rounding and width of the chest in front of the bird are indicative of an advanced lung structure. The breastbone protrudes from the front of the body and reaches to the back, ending near the part we call the fork. When we take the bird in hand, we control the breast bone by caressing it with our hands while at the same time controlling the breast muscles on both sides of the breast bone. Muscle structure is very important in pigeon. It should be as advanced and elastic as possible. In order to test whether the breastbone is strong, we apply pressure on the back of the pigeon with the help of both hands. In the meantime, since the entire load gets on the sternum, if the pigeon's sternum is weak, it cannot withstand this pressure and reacts by sewing its tail in the air. The pigeon, with a strong sternum, hangs its tail towards the ground. It should be very careful when doing this, as excessive pressure can cause injury to the pigeon.

Back or Waist; The last stage should be strong in terms of back or waist endurance in pigeons. It narrows down to a wide waist tail. Feet; feet should be thin, light pink and without scales. The foot may be long or short. As the feet were very long in the past, quite a good pigeon was eliminated. However, the pigeon's foot height is directly proportional to its overall structure. However, both feet should be equal in length. One should not be long and one should not be short.



Wings; Although various theories have been put forward in this regard, it is enough to have two wings for a pigeon to gain the general opinion. However, birds with short wings and sprinters are more suitable for short distance races. For long distance races, long winged pigeons are more suitable. My preference is that the pigeon sits on the ground, the wing length sits on the black line extending over the tail, and even crosses this line very little. When you open the bird's wing sideways in the form of a fan, the first four strands at the very beginning should be the same size and obviously longer than the other strands. These 4 wire ends should be similarly sharp and inclined outward. If we consider the bird's wing in 2 separate sections, the first 10 large wires are the primary wing, the other short 10 wires are the secondary wings. If the 10th Wire, the last wire of the bird's primary wing, is clearly high at the beginning of the other secondary wing lines, this format can be used for speed races.

Queue; In the homing pigeon, the tail is very important for the balance in the air, as it acts as a helm. Body hair covers at the starting point of the tail but should not be too long. If the tail is too long and open in a good pigeon, it may create negative effects in terms of its balance in the air. The tail should be narrowed towards the end in general and it should give a single feather appearance. Tail length can be 1 cm more than wing length. When you have taken the pigeon in your hand, we wait for a few minutes to calm down, then release the bird's feet by loosening the paws of both hands. A good homing pigeon will slowly hang its tail down to the ground after this is done. This method is often used to select a homing pigeon.

Balance: It is very important that the body of the pigeon is balanced. When you take the bird in hand, it should give its weight forward and have an advanced muscle structure, it should not just be too heavy. Because heavy birds cannot stay in the air for a long time and get tired quickly. In addition, birds with sporty bodies in the shape of a triangle, which start from the front wide and narrow down to the back, are preferred. In a balanced pigeon, the distance from the feet to the head and the distance from the chest to the tail should be equal.

My Personal Opinion
Color and other elements are not important at all. As a result, there are birds that have become champions of all colors. The only thing that matters is the bird's invisible (mental) qualities rather than the visible (mental) qualities. My personal opinion even the biggest expert may be mistaken when evaluating the bird.