1. No category

Gonversations
aboutthe pÍ
nGy
By Dr. Ìloel de
W E I G H TA N D T H E W I N G
Novice: I had the great pleasure of seei n g s o m e g r e a t l o n g d i s t a n c ec h a m p i o n s
i n J o s M e e s ' l o f t a t K a p e l l e n .Y o u r f r i e n d
A n d r e F e v r i e rs a y s t h a t y o u m u s t b e w a r e
o f w e i g h t i n a p i g e o n .A n d y e t J o s M e e s '
c h a m p i o n sw h i c h I s a w a r e o f w e l l a b o v e
a v e r a g es i z ea n d w e i g h t .S o n o w I d o n ' t u n d e r s t a n d .W h a t s h o u l d I b e l i e v ea b o u t a l l
t hi s ?
V ¡ c l o r :l t ' s n o t e a s yt o a n s w e rt h i s q u e s t i o n , b u t I s h a l lt r y t o s h e d a s m u c h l i g h t
a s I c a n o n w h a t A n d r e F e v r i e r ' sw o r d s
m e a n .O n c e a g a i nw e m u s t t a l k o f ' w e i g h t ,
t h e s o u r c eo f e n e r g y ' a n do f d e a d w e i g h t ,
the sourceof fatigue.
W e s h a l la l s o t a l k o f t h e w i n g , b u t a l s o
of the 'motor' and its fuel. That will be
a n o t h e rd a y .
Novice:lt sounds as though you are talki n g o f c a r s , o r r a t h e ra e r o p l a n e s .
A n d i n t h i s c o n t e x t I r e m e m b e rw h a t
Enzo Ferrari,the racing car manufacturer,
a s k e dh i s e n g i n e e r s": G i v em e l e s sw e i g h t ,
or more power for my cars".
V i c t o r :T h e s e l a s t w o r d s b r i n g u s t o t h e
h e a r t o f t h e p r o b l e m .I k n o w J o s M e e s '
pigeonsfairly well. They are aboveaverage
t y p e s .A n d y e t t h e y h a v ee x t r a o r d i n a r e
y nd u r a n c e .W h y ?
F i r s to f a l l w e m u s t d i s t i n g u i s hb e t w e e n
w e i g h t a n d w e i g h t .T h e r e i s n o t h i n g m o r e
r e l a t i v el.t ' s e v i d e n t h a t a s m a l l p i g e o nw i l l
w e i g h l e s s t h a n a b i g o n e . H o w e v e r ,w h a t
counts ís relative weight. That is, relative
t o t h e p i g e o n ' sv o l u m ea n d i t s w i n g . B u t
o t h e r f a c t o r s c o m e i n t o p l a y .Y o u h a v et o
r e a l i s et h a t a b i g p i g e o nm a y b e l i g h t ,a n d
a s m a l l p i g e o n m a y b e h e a v y- ' r e l a t i v e l y ' . W h e n A n d r e F e v r i e rs a y s y o u m u s t b e w a r e o f w e i g h t i n t h e p i g e o n ,i t ' s o b v i o u s
t h a t A n d r e i s t h i n k i n g e s p e c i a l l yo f t h e
d i f f e r e n c eb e t w e e n' d e a d 'w e i g h t a n d ' l i v , hen
i n g ' w e i g h t .A n d r ec a n ' s e n s e ' w
he is
holding a pigeon,if it has vitality,if it's
' a l i v e 'i n h i s
h a n d s ,i f i t h a s k e e n n e s s !
I n a d d i t i o nt o t h i s y o u s h o u l da l s o c o n s i d e r t h i c k n e s so f t h e w i n g , t h e s u p p l e
resistance of the upper wing and the
p r o p u l s i v ep o w e r o f t h e p r i m a r yf e a t h e r s
Courtesyof the NaturalWinn¡rt Wrlr ll¡tunl Cy, Belgium
a n d i n o a r t i c u l a rt h e f o u r l a s t Þ r i m a r ¡ e sI.n
m y e x p e r i e n c et h e b i g g e s th a n d i c a pf o r t h e
w i n g i s f o r t h e m i d d l eo f t h e w i n g - i . e .
t h e 4 t h , 5 t h a n d 6 t h p r i m a r i e s- t o b e t o o
l o n g .T h e y a c t a s a b r a k eo n f l i g h t a n d t i r e
t h e p i g e o n .T h e s ef e a t h e r sa r e o f t e n o v e r d e v e l o p e di n a h e a v yp i g e o nb e c a u s et h e y
s e r v et o ' c a r r y 'i t s w e i g h t .T h e s e a r e p o o r
pigeons.
Novice: But what does the harmful'
w e i g h t ,t h e d e a dw e i g h t ,i n f a c t c o n s i s to f ?
V i c t o r :T h e r ei s , a s l ' v e a l r e a d yt o l d y o u ,
f a t w h i c h i n f i l t r a t e st h e w h o l e o r g a n i s m .
Y o u k n o w t h a t a g o o d p i g e o nd o e s n ' t e a s i l y p u t f a t o n b e c a u s ei t h a s a n e c o n o n i i c a l l yf u n c t i o n i n go r g a n i s ml.t h a s n o n e e d
to form fat, which is in fact only reserve
f u e l ,w h i c h a g o o d p i g e o nd o e s n ' t n e e d .l f
y o u l e t y o u r p i g e o n sf a s t f o r a f e w d a y s - ,
a p r a c t i c en o t u s e d o f t e n e n o u g h b y f a n c i e r s - y o u w i l l s e e t h a t a f a t p i g e o nm e l t s
a w a yf a s t e rt h a n a g o o d p i g e o nw h i c h h a d
less fat than the former one at the comm e n c e m e n to f t h e f a s t . T h i s i s b e c a u s ei t
h a s g r e a t e rv i t a l i t yt h a nt h e f i r s t p i g e o na n d
t h u s a r i c h e ro r g a n i s me n a b l i n gi t t o u s e
e n e r g yw i t h o u t g r e a t e f f o r t .
N o v i c e :I h a v e t o c o n f e s s t h a t I d i d n o t
allow for the weight-volume
relationship
w h e n I m e n t i o n e dJ o s M e e s ' p i g e o n s .I n
t h a t c a s e h i s p i g e o n s a r e n o t ' h e a v y 'f o r
their 'size'.Also, they have a very long
b r e a s t b o n ea n d t h e i r w e i g h t i s t h e r e f o r e
s p r e a da l o n gt h e w h o l e l e n g t ho f t h e b o n e .
I m u s t h o w e v e ra g r e et h a t i t i s e x t r e m e l y
d i f f i c u l t , i f n o t i m p o s s i b l e ,t o j u d g e a
p i g e o n ' sb o d y c o r r e c t l y .L e t u s n o t f o r g e t
t h a t t h e b o d y i s c o v e r e di n f e a t h e r s- a n d
t h a t f a t , w h i c h g i v e s i t i t s w e i g h t ,i s n o t s o
e a s i l yd i s t i n g u i s h efdr o m t h o m u s c u l a t u r e
a s i n a n a k e da t h l e t e .
Victor:You are quite right,but by assessi n g a p i g e o ni m p a r t i a l l y* w i t h o u tl e t t i n g
yourself be influencêd by the famous
p e d i g r e e- y o u c a n m å n ä g ên o t t o b e t o o
f a r m i s t a k e na b o u t i t $ p h y s i c a lq u a l i t i e s .
12
W h a t i s m u c h m o r ed i f fi c u l ti s t o j u d g et h e
p i g e o n ' sk e e n n e s s .
A f t e r s c r u t i n i z i n ga p i g e o n ' s e y e , o r
r a t h e ri t s e x p r e s s i o n f, o r q u i t e s o m e t i m e ,
J e f v a n R i e lu s e ds o m e t i m e st o s a y ,t h o u g h
w i t h o u t a n y d e g r e eo f c o n f i d e n c e ", T h i s
one could well be a good pigeon". Jef
w o r k e d w i t h d i a m o n d sa n d w a s t h e r e f o r e
u s e d t o a n a l y s i n gt h e b r il l i a n c e a n d t h e
' l i f e ' i n a d i a m o n d a n d h i s o p i n i o nw a s
often correct.
D u r i n g t h e r a c i n g s e a s o nw e w i l l c o m e
f a c e t o f a c e w i t h t h e s u p r e m ej u d g e , t h e
race basket.But this judge can also be
w r o n g .T h i s w i l l b e o u r f a u l t , f o r i f t h e
p i g e o n sw e e n t e r a r e n o t i n p e r fe c t c o n d i '
t i o n , t h e j u d g m e n t o f t h e r a c eb a s k e tm a y
d e c e i v eu s .
b e g i n n i n gt o g e t a r o u g h i d e a o f h o w t o
j u d g e a p i g e o n ' sw e i g h t .
Noel de Scheemaecker.
T H E P O W E RO F O B S E R V A T I O N
N o v i c e :W h a t y o u t o l d m e a b o u t y o u r
f r i e n d J e f v a n R i e l - " T h e b e s t f a n c i e ri s
the one who can detectdefectssoonest"
- mademe think.
I n m y v i e w , a f t e r d u e c o n s i d e r a t i o n ,I
t h i n k a l l t h e d i f fi c u l t y l i e s i n t h e f a c t t h a t
i t i s n o t e n o u g ht o o b s e r v eo n e ' s p i g e o n s ,
one must know what one must look for. I
wish you wouldtell me what that is.
V i c t o r :l f y o u t h o u g h y o u n e e d e dt o l o o k
o u t f o r o n e s i n g l ei t e m ,y o u c o u l d m a k ea
g r a v e m i s t a k e .N o , m y f r i e n d ,t h e p i g e o n
i s a c o m p l e t ew h o l e .D o n ' tf o r g e tt h a t e a c h
defect reduces the length of its racing
Novice:I know that a Pigeonin good
, plump,
f o r m h a s s o f t , s h i n i n gp l u m a g e a
l i g h t b o d y a n d a d r y , b r i g h t e y e .A l l t h a t i s
fine - but what do you do if they are not
likethat?
career.
you correctNovice:lf I haveunderstood
ly,youshouldtherefore
valuehighlythose
pigeonswhichhavea long career,which'
do not becomeold beforetheir time.
V¡ctor:Whatyou havejust saidshould
V i c t o r :l ' m h e r et o a n s w e ry o u a n d l ' l l d o
m y b e s t a n o t h e rt i m e . B u t I h o p e y o u a r e
COMINGSOON- The Bestof British- from
LOU ELLA
We are offering the best of our young stock ¡t auction
in Sydneyin October.Theyare unlikelyto bereheopbut what an investment!Hand pickedsonsand dau$hters
of our premierchampionsthat sellin the U,K, for up to
5,000poundsSterlingeach.Watch the fancy pressfor
full details,appearingsoon.
Champion Peter Pau (Silvere Toye). lst Open Pau
lnternational1984.He won the eventby a clear % hour.
He was 1'/zhours ahead of the next bird into Belgium.
Purchasedby Louellafor 41,000pounds.He remainsthe
highestpriced bird ever to leaveBelgium.His progenyare
winning in the best of competition.
PAUL.
CH. PETER
& FURTHER
SATECATATOGUE
INFORMATIONFROMNICK BRENT
(02) 8342060
I J
rÊ
b e c a r v e do n t h e l o f t d o o r s s o t h a t i t i s
n e v e rf o r g o t t e n .
N o v i c e :Y e s , b u t s u c h p i g e o n sa r e r a r e .
Y o u m e n t i o n e dt h e m t o m e o n e d a y a n d
s a i d t h a t t h e s e p i g e o n sw e r e ' i n d e f a t i g a ble'.
V i c t o r :l f t h e y a r e i n f a c t b e c o m i n gm o r e
a n d m o r e r a r e ,t h e n i t ' s o u r f a u l t .G e n e r a l l y t h e f a n c i e rd o e s n o t p r e o c c u p yh i m s e l f
w i t h t h e f u t u r eo f h i s l o f t . l f h e n o t i c e st h a t
t h e p i g e o n sh e i s b r e e d i n gs t i l l d o w e l l a s
y o u n g b i r d s a n d a s y e a r l i n g sb u t s t a r t t o
d e c l i n ea s e a r l ya s t h e a g e o f t w o , t h e f a n .
c i e r o u g h t t o r e a l i s et h a t h e i s h e a d i n g
s t r a i g h tt o w a r d s a p r e c i p i c e .
NoviceW
: h a t c o u l d b e t h e c a u s e so f t h i s
r a p i dd e c l i n e ?l f y o u c a n t e l l m e t h i s , I s h a l l
b e a b l e t o b e c o m ea c h a m p i o n ,a s J e f v a n
R i e l s a i d , a n d r e m a i no n e !
V i c t o r :G e n e r a l l yi t s t a r t s i m p e r c e p t i b l y .
O n eq u a l i t yw h i c h c o n d i t i o n sa l l t h e o t h e r s ,
w e m u s t n e v e r f o r g e t , i s r e s i s t a n th e a l t h .
A p i g e o nw h i c h i s i n e x c e l l e n th e a l t hh a s
a good chanceof lastingfor many years
w i t h o u tl o s i n gi t s v i r i l i t y A
. g o o do b s e r v e r
w i l l m e r c i l e s s l ye l i m i n a t e a n y p i g e o n
w h i c h l e a v e ss o m e t h i n gt o b e d e s i r e du n -
,
ffi
N o v i c e :B u t I t h i n k t h a t e v e r y t h i n gi n t h e
p i g e o ni s i m p o r t a n ti f w e a r e l o o k i n gf o r t h e
p i g e o nw h i c h w i l l l a s t m a n y y e a r s .F o r h a v e n ' ty o u j u s t s a i d t h a t e v e r yd e f e c t h a s t o
/-'"^@
\-.--..'-]r,.'"
louella haveover 2,000singleflight compartmentsto
ensurethat our traditionfor exportbreedingis continued
with guaranteedparentage EVERY tim'er Þaily
of theyoungsters
andthe parentbirdsen$ures
examination
t h a tt h ee n d p r o d u citso f t h e h i g h e sstt a n d a r dT,h e r e . ¿ t e
c o u n t l e snsu m b e r so f b i r d sb r e d ì n t h i s w a y t h a t h a ú e
provedto be winnersin club and open comÞetit¡on
not
A uniquedraftof super
onlyin CreatBritainbutworldwide.
q u a l i t yì,m p e c c a b lbyr e dy o u n gb i r d sw i l l b e o n o f f e rt o
A u s t r a l ì af n
a n c i e rw
s h e n L o u e l l ah o l d t h e i rf i r s ta u c t i o n
salein SYdneYin October'
ChampionMagic Biue, bred by Louella. 100% Lefebre
Dhaenens.Winnerof 30xlst including l0xlst Open
averageentry 5,500birds. He is one of many birds that
prove our environment,foundationsto.ckand good stock
managementproduceschampions.
,,
In my exper¡ence the greatest hand icap
"One quality which conditions all the
others is resistant health".
S I N G L ET L I G H TB R E E D I N C
TIME!
C U A R A N T E EE
DV E R Y
il
fi
d e r t h e h e a d i n go f h e a l t h .l f i t o f t e n h a s a n
i n fl a m e dt h r o a t ,o r s e n s i t i v ei n t e s t i n e ,i f l t
d o e s n o t m o u l t p e r f e c t l y ,l e t u s b e w a r eo f
i t . L e t u s t a k e n o r i s k s ,i t m u s t b e e l i m i n a t ed. One day Jef van Riel, all of whose
knowledgewas basedon his powersof obs e r v a t i o ns, a i d t o m e , " l t h i n k t h a t t h e m o s t
i m p o r t a n tp a r t o f t h e p i g e o n i s a g o o d i n testine".
CH. MAGIC BLUE.
the wing is for the middle, i.e. the 4th, Íth dnd 6t¡ primates,
to be too long.
& IURTHER
SAIE CATALOGUE
¡ N F O R M A T ¡ OF
NR O MN I C K B R E N T
(02) 8342060
15
be paidfor,andreducesthedurationof the
pigeon'sachievements?
Viclor:Yes,but robusthealthis an ind i s p e n s a b lqeu a l i t yf o r a p i g e o n ' sl o n g
sportinglife.I told youthatdefectscreep
in surreptitiously,
littleby little,intoa loft.
For example,the wing loses its suppleness,the upperwing becomestoo large
and what Van der Scheldencalledthe
'strikingpower'
of the last four primaries
decreases.
Anotherdangerous
defect:the
volumeof the pigeonsincreases
and the
'holds
pigeon
together'lessand lesswell
- you can twist it like a bit of rag.
Novice:You were talking of robust
health.So I assumethat the pigeonmust
demonstrate
this robusthealthespecially
by its resistance
to attacksfrom outside.
B u t t h e r e i s n o p o s s i b l em e a n s o f
resistance
againstparasites.
W i t h i n t e s t i n a lw o r m s , c o c c i d i o s i s ,
trichomoniasis,
we aredealingwith parasites and the organismcan acquireno
naturalimmunity.
Soyourtheoryof health,
capableof resistingeverythingmust be
f alse!
WARWICK FARM
PHARMACY
DavidCroot,B. Pharm.M.P.S.
8 B H U M EH I G H W A Y ,
WARWICK
FARM.2170
6l)28474
BIRD AND
P¡GEON
MEDICINES
FREECATATOGUE
Pleasewrite lor our freecatalogueof bird
medicineswhichconlainsour complete
rangeof all items slocked
. VitaminConcenlnles. Nutt¡tional
St¡mulants
& Tonics
. lnseclPowdeß, Antibiotics, WomingTabtets
å Sotut¡ons
.
. DinkingWatetSleillizeß
"
Coccidiosis
Trcatnents
. LoftDisinfeclants.
SullaThrce
Solutìons,
P¡oeon
PoxVacc¡ne
o1rnithonoBreeder
Tablets
Íot Eggitoduct¡on
. CageandLoftLice/Mile
Prcparations,
etc.
. SYDNEY'S
BESTKNOWN
VETERINARY
PHARMACY
. C O M P L E TREA N G E
0 F B I R DM E D I C I N E S
. STOCKISTS
0F ALL VETERINARY
PRODUCTS
. DISTRIBUTOR
FORALL INCA,PFIZER,
ICI,TROY
& MEDICALRESEARCH
PRODUCTS
FOR PNODUCÍ INFORMATION . . .
Novice:I concod&
right,but
whatever
the scientists
notethat
thereare,for examplo,
strslnsof pigeons
which are less subj6ct to attack by
trichomoniasis
whereag
üth€r*,ìå$
soonas
theycomeintocontactwithÕöntåminated
wateror regurgitated
seed,experience
an
proliferation
ultra-rapid
of the pårasite.
So
you must agreethat there are pigeons
whichhavea degreeof resistance
to this
parasite.
Frommy own observations
it is
precisely
thosepigeons
whichstay'young'
for manyyearswhichareleastsusceptible
to trichomoniasis.
They are also always
pigeonswitha perfectthroat:tongueresting at the bottomof the beakwith a fine
opening
t o t h el u n g sa n da p i n k i s hc o l o u r ;
pigeonswhosebreathing
is imperceptible
- i n a w o r d' i n d e f a t i g a bpl ei g' e o n w
s hich
deserveour full trust.
Novice:I shan'tdisagree
with whatyou
say,but thereare,however,
fancierswho
s t i l l c l a i m ,w i t h t h e l a t eC h a r l e sv a nd e r
S c h e l d e nt ,h a t i t i s o n l y t h e w i n g t h a t
counts.
Victor: They look prima;ilyat their
pigeons'wings
and maketheirselectiorl
-basis
ôoìetyon the
of these.Theyalsosaf
in their defencethat their greatmaster
Charlesvander Scheldensaidthat those
w h od i d n o t b l i n d l yb e l i e v e
i n h i st h e o r i e s
w e r e ' s o m e t h i n ge l s e r s ' .A d e l i c i o u s
phrase,but one which was intendedto
r i d i c u l et h o s ew h o b e l i e v e di n a n y t h i n g
o t h e rt h a nt h e w i n g .
Novice:So you meanthatyou mustobservethe wholeof the pigeonto seethe
itemor itemswhichhavea tendency
to be
prejudicial
to a long racingcareerin the
pigeon.
I assumethat that includes,
of course,
thewing,butspecially
thethroat,thelungs
andtheheart,themuscles,
thebonestructure,the richnessof theeyeandaboveall
the balance.
It doesn'tseemso eâsyto observeall
that.I don't believel'll overmanageit.
Victor:You will manâgoit, if you keep
youreyesopenandthinkaboutwhatyou
see.But,my f riend,theroarefewfanciers
w h o t h i n k .T h a tt o o i s s o m e t h i n w
g hich
m u s tb e l e a r n t !
Noel De Scheernaocfter.
to
S E L E C T I O NW
, I T H O U TB E I N G
I NF L U E N C E D
N o v i c e :Y o u t o l d m e o n e d a y t h a t d u r i n g
t h e m a j o r a n n u a l s e l e c t i o no f p i g e o n s a t
t h e B r e e d i n gS t a t i o n y o u i g n o r e dt h e o r i
g i n o f t h e p i g e o n se x a m i n e d .B u t s u r e l y
t h e i r o r i g i nd o e s c o u n t - o r d o e s i t n o t ?
V i c t o r : T h a t ' s a n i n t e r e s t i n gq u e s t i o n .
D o e sa p i g e o n ' so r i g i nc o u n t n ?M y a n s w e r
i s ' y e s 'a n d ' n o ' - - b u t m o r e o f t e n ' n o ' t h a n
'yes'.
T h i s d e p e n d si n t e ra l i ao n t h e c r e d u l i t y
a n d n a i v e t yo f p i g e o n f a n c i e r s a n d t h e i r
ability to assess a racing pigeon. lt all
c o m e sd o w n t o k n o w i n gw h e t h e ri t i s r i g h t
t o j u d g et h e p i g e o no n i t s i n d i v i d u avl a l u e
o r o n t h e v a l u ed u e t o i t s s u r n a m e !| k n o w
it's not easy. but it is made even harder
w h e nt h e f a n c i e rb e l i e v e tsh a t t h e o r i g i ni s
p a r a m o u n ti n d e i e r m i n i n gt h e m e r i t o f a
p i g e o n .l t i s , h o w e v e r ,r e a l l yo n l y a n a n c i l l a r yf a c t o r .I s h o u l de x p l a i nt h i s m u c h b e t ter, because I believe that you are always
subject to those influences to which you
wish to be subject. lt is difficult to
e l i m i n a t ea c e r t a i n d e g r e eo f p e r s o n a li n -
itiativef rom the fancierhimself.His self.
to jugglewitha famousname
satisfaction
flattershis vanity.
"The personwho knows how to pair and
guaranteesuccessjust doesn't exist.The
only thing I believe is that you havea better chance of successif you have good
pigeons".
He wantsto be ableto imoressothers
thathe is deceivthisway,whileforgetting
ge d e c l i n e
i n g h i m s e l af n d p r e c i p i t a t i nt h
of hisstock.
For decadesthe 'Wegge'strainfrom
Lierrehas literallybeenjuggledwith.
Now the Weggestrainhas neverexisted,andthe sameis trueof most 'strains'.
Whenaskedwhathis breedwas,Charles
Weggewouldtakea gold coin out of his
pocketandsay'Hereis my breed
wa¡stcoat
, . , a few good pigeonsboughthereand
at a highpriceandsomethere,sometimes
timesfrom an unknownlittlefancier."
It is theskillof thefancierwhichshapes
T H E C R E A T E SN
TA M E SI N A U S T R A L I A
Yes,LouellaPigeonWorld will be presenting
a superior
draft of youngpigconsfor saleby auctionin Sydneyin
October.Theywill be sonsand daughtersof our premier
championsand will be the ultimate'in quality and
pedigree.They are not likely to be cheap - the best
seldomis - but what an investment!Watch the fanóy
presspublications
for furtherinformationon this super
auction- comingsoon!
Ch. Su¡ler Lou. Bred by Louella.Winner of 52xlst,
13 x.2nd, 10 x 3rd, 17 x 1st Amalgamation. He is one of the
foundationbirdsin our new superspilnt family,and further
proof of our record for breedingoutstanding champions.
CH. SUPERLOU.
& FURTHER
SALECATALOGUE
F R O MN I C K B R E N T
¡NTORMATION
(02) 8342060
a b r e e d .A n d t h e v a l u e o f t h i s b r e e d d e p e n d so n t h e f a n c i e r ' sk n o w l e d g ea n d t h e
severithy with which he judges each
pigeon.
N o v i c e :D o y o u t h i n k t h e r e a r e a n y f a n c i e r s w h o , i f t h e y w e r e r e a l l ys t r i c t i n t h e i r
selection, could retain over a hundred
pigeons?
Victor: I cannot answerthat question becauseI do not know all the great Belgian
o r f o r e i g n f a n c i e r s .B u t I c a n a s s u r e y o u
t h a t i f a r e n o w n e d b r e e d e rw e r e t o s e l l
each year even only a few very good
pigeons would not keep his position
a m o n g t h e l e a d e r sf o r v e r y l o n g .
N o v i c e :S o a c h a m p i o n w h o w i s h e s t o
m a i n t a i nh i s p o s i t i o ni s o b l i g e dt o k e e pt h e
g o o d p i g e o n s ,o r t h o s e h e b e l i e v e st o b e
g o o d , f o r h i s o w n r a c i n gl o f t . H e c a n o n l y
a l l o w h i m s e l f t o s e e t h e ' s e c o n dc l a s s '
b i r d s u n l e s sh e h i m s e l fi s t o b e c o m ea s e c o n d g r a d em i n i - c h a m p i o n .
V i c t o r : T h a t i s s e l f - e v i d e n tT
. he clever
o n e s s e l l t h e i r ' n a m e ' , t h e r r e n o w n .b u t
keep the good pigeons.
Noriice: And yet they say that you can
b u y v e r y g o o d p i g e o n sf r o m t h e J a n s s e n
b r o t h e r sa t A r e n d o n k .
So theyselltheirgood pigeons.
V i c t o r :l ' m g l a dt h a t y o u h a v em e n t i o n e d
t h e J a n s s e nb r o t h e r sf r o m A r e n d o n kT
. hey
a r ea s p e c i a lc a s e ,s i n c e i n s p i t eo f t h e f a c t
t h a t t h e i r p i g e o n sh a v et h e h i g h e s tc o m mercialvalue and they are overwhelmed
w i t h r e q u e s t st o b u y ,t h e s e f a n c i e r so f t h e
o l d s c h o o ld o n ' t k e e pp i g e o n st o s e l l .T h e y
a r e s t i l l t r u e f a n c i e r s .T h e y o n l y r a c e i n
speed races and yet real long distance
champions have resulted from crossb r e e d i n gw i t h t h e i r p i g e o n sT. h e ' J a n s s e n
s t r a i n 'i s o f n o g r e a t e rv a l u et h a n a n y o t h e r
s t r a i n i f t h e s p e c i f i cq u a l i t i e sw h i c h t h e
b r o t h e r s a l w a y s t r i e d t o r e t a in i n t h e i r
p i g e o n sa r e n o l o n g e rt h e r e .
N o v i c e :A n d w h a t a r et h e s es p e c i a lq u a l i t i e s t o w h i c h t h e J a n s s e n b r o t h e r sh a v e
a l w a y sc l u n g ?
V i c t o r : l t ' s v e r y s i m p l e . B e c a u s ew h e n
they startedoff almost f ifty yearsago,they
a l r e a d yh a d a f e w e x t r a o r d i n a r yp i g e o n s
w h i c h o u t c l a s s e dt h e i r c o m p e t i t o r s ,t h e y
observed these pigeons closely. They quite
NOWEASIERTHANEVER
"We should always prefer a fine unknown
individual of quality to one with an illustrious pedigree and defects!"
N o v i c e :Y e s , b u t i f t h e y h a d n ' th a d t h e
g o o d f o r t u n et o s t a r to f f w i t h s u p e r - p e r f e c t
s p e c i m e n st,h e i r i n - b r e e d i n sgy s t e mw o u l d
n e v e rh a v e Þ r o d u c e dt h e s u c c e s s i t d i d i n
t h e A r e n d o n kl o f t s .
V i c t o r : T h a t i s a v e ( y t r u e r e m a r k .I ' v e
k n o w n t h e J a n s s e np i g e o n sf o r d e c a d e s .
T h e y a r e c h a r a c t e r i z e db y t h e f o l l o w i n g
q u a l i t i e sa
: r e a l l ye x t r a o r d i n a rey x p r e s s i o n
i n t h e h e a da n d e y e s .
T h e i rh e a d sa n d e y e s ' s p e a kt o y o u ' ,l n
t h e c o c k s ,i t i s a n e x p r e s s i o no f v i g o u ra n d
v r t a l r t yw n r c ha c c e n t u a t e st h e m o b l l i t ya n d
t h e t r a n s p a r e n c yo f t h o e y o s ,I n t h € h e ñ s ,
i t i s a n e x p r e s s i o no f g e n t l Õ n ð s $ö,u r l o ô i î
t y a n d i n t e l l i g e n c oA. s l o r t h e w i n g , i t I s
oharacteriuod
i n t h e t r u å J a n s $ ê np i 0 å O n
YOUR FUTURESU{CË$SIS ON ITSWAY!
W O R KO U TY O U RV E L O C I T I E-S O N A C O M P U T E R !
LouellaPigeon,World- the world's No. 1 stud is to
auction a sclectdraft of high quality, impeccablybred
youngpigeonsin Sydneyin October,Until nÒw,sucha
sale has been impossibledue to Australianimport
restrictions.Over recent years there have beqn many
Australianfanciersthat have visited us and who have
expressedtheir desire to obtain some of our excellent
stock.Now is your chance. . . includedin the auction
salewill be over 120 hand pickedyoungsters
from ôur
international, national, combine, federation and
amalgamationlst OPEN CHAMPIONS - a great
opportunityfor Australianfanciersto purchasethe best
of British!
ALLTHETHINGS
YOU'VE
ALWAYS
WISHED
FOR
HORNSBY
COMPUTERCENTRE
h a s d o n ei t a g a i n ! !
o
o
o
o
o
o
K e e pt h e d i s t a n c e sf ,r o mu p t o 5 6 r e l e a s ep o i n t õ ¡, n t h e c o m p u t e r .
F o r u p t o 2 0 0C l u bM e m b e r s .
P r i n to u t t h e r e s u l t s .
A c c u m u l a tteh e c o m p l e t er e s u l t sf o r a f u l l s e a s o n .
E a s yt o f o l l o wi n s t r u c t i o n s .
1 d a y r a c e s+ 2 d a y r a c e s+ 2 b i r d r a c e s+ p o o lb i r d s+ o t h e r c o m p s .
T h e s ea r e n o t o p t i o n ael x t r a sA
. l l t h e s ef a c i l i t i e sa r eb u i l t i n !
,
H O R N S BC
YO M P U T ECRE N T R w
E i l ls u p p l ya c o m p a t i b lpee r s o n ac lo m p u t ecr ,o m p l e t w
e ith
20 Mb harddisc,keyboard,
screenand pr¡nter(evena box of computeipaperanda box of
f l o p p yd i s c s )w i t ht h e s o f t w a r ef u l l yi n s t a l l e do n t h e P C r e a d yt o s w ¡ t c ¡¡rt o n a n ds t a r tt o
u s e .A l l t h i s ,A N D t h e f u l l i n s t r u c t i o n sf o, r $ 2 , 1 5 0p l u sf r e i g h ta n d i n s u r a n c e .
ARE YOU STILLDOING IT THE HARD WAY?
Our system makes calculafing pigeon velocitiesSO EASíI
RingBill Denisonon (02)4873434or writeto P.o.Box86,HoRNsByNsw 20zzfor cample
printoutsfrom this system.Better still,call in (by appointment)
at suite 4, 1ðt Floor,1oo
PacificHwy,WAITARAfor a hands-ondemonstration.
18
by the qualityof the lastprimaries,
which
arefairlynarrowat the baseand extreme.
l y s u p p l e .T h e u p p e rw i n g i s n i c e a n d
straight,slightlyconvexand fairlyshort.
The bodyis heavilymuscledin frontand
makesthe pigeonleanforward.ThatI think
is withoutdoubttheorimarv
virtueof these
pigeonsis a perfeit throãt.A very fine
respiratory
orificebehindthetongue,leadingto the lungs.Thisis a verystablequality in the Janssenpigeons.
Yes,butwithsuchqualitiesany
Novice:
pigeonwouldbe a champion,whetherit
was a Janssenor not,
'Vlctor:Youreright again. . . but such
pigeonsarerarc.lftheyhavebeenableto
kêepthemlikethatby in-breeding
andthus
it is quitenormalthat
to fix thesequalities,
withsuch
thereis no riskin cross-breeding
plgeons.Whereasin cross.breeding
with
the most illustriousof strainswe run the
rtskof failureif the essentialqualitiesof
thåtstrainhavebeenlost.In thiscase,the
We shouldalways
oilginhasno meaning.
pfefera fineunknownindividual
of quality
tó Õnèwith an illustriouspedigreeand
dcfoets!
s i m p l yt r i e d ,b y m e a n so f u l t r a - s t r i cst e l e c t i o n , t o r e t a i nt h o s e q u a l i t i e sw h i c h t h e y
l o g i c a l l yt h o u g h ti n d i s p e n s a b lien o r d e r t o
k e e p t h e m s e l v e sa t t h e t o p . T h e y a p p l i e d
a s y s t e mo f q u i t e i n t e n s i v ei n - b r e e d i n g .
CH. DE SMARGO II.
Champion De Smargo ll (Van Leeuwen), lst Dutch
National Barcelona 1988, 5,451 birds, also lst Open
lnternationalBarcelona1988,21,176birds flying.almost
750 miles.Probablythe finestwinner ever of this event.
Purchasedby Louellafor 77,000pounds, a world record
price for a pigeon. He is one of four lst Open Dutch
Nationalwinnersowned bv Louella.
SALECATATOGUE
& FURTHERINFORMATIONFROM
NrcK BRENT(02)8342060
19
N o v i c e :A n d y e t t h e s e a r e m o r e h i g h l y
p r i c e d .. . .
V i c t o r :T h a t ' st h e f a u l t o f j o u r n a l i s t sa n d
t h e c r e d u l i t yo f t h e i r r e a d e r s !
Let us draw a conclusionfrom it: the
p r i c eo f a p i g e o na n d i t s f a m o u s p e d i g r e e
mûst never influence us when we are
s e l e c t i n go u r p i g e o n s .
that what w6
fruits of ex
whichamountsrtir
Novice:I'm eagerrìt
T H E L A N G A U G EO F T H E E Y E
N o v i c e :M a y I r e m i n do f y o u r p r o m i s et o
d i s c u s s t h e l a n g u a g eo f t h e e y e s i n o u r
p i g e o n s ?l t w a s a f t e r w e h a d h a d a s o m e w h a t h u m o r o u sd i s c u s s i o no n w h a t t h e
d r o p p i n g sc o u l d t e l l u s t h a t y o u m e n t i o n e d
it to me. Do you remember?
Victor: Of course. But before I let our
p i g e o n ss p e a kt o u s w i t h t h e i r e y e s I w a n t
t o s a y s o m e t h i n ge l s e .T h i s m a y r e a s s u r e
t h o s e p e o p l ew h o r e a d o u r c o n v e r s a t i o n s
THE
BOB
APPLEBY'&.
LOFTS *#þ
.¿t
MasterBreederof RacingPigeons
50 Yearsof Breedino
26 GlencoeStreet,
S u t h e r l a nN
d . S . W2. 2 3 2
Australia
Phone:(02)5213960
AUSTRA.LIAN
PIG EON
ST O C K A V A I L A B L E :
Ing.
at you are
m o r e i n s t r u c t i v et o t h e f a n Ê i g f t h a nc l e a n i n g o u t t h e b o x e sa n d t h ê f l o o r r o fl h e l o f t .
but when you do this you must look carefully...andthink.
I t i s p r e f e r a b l et o a t t a c k a d i f f i c u l t
p r o b l e mw h i l e i t i s s t i l l a n e a s yo n e ,s i n c e
t h e s o l u t i o n sa r e t h e n e a s y w h e r e a sl a t e r
they become harder. And our pigeons'
d r o p p i n g st e a c hu s t h i s .T h a t ' sw h a l I w a n t ed to say,and I'll add that the day I stop
s c r a p i n go u t a l o f t m y s e l fl ' l l a l s o s t o p w r ¡ t i n g a n o t h e r w o r d o n p i g e o n s . B e c a u s eI
d o n ' t w a n t t o l e t m y s e l f b e c o m ed r u g g e d
by theories!
N o v i c e :T h a t d o e s n ' t s u r o r i s em e a t a l l .
I r e m e m b e ry o u s a i d o n c e t h a t y o u r f r i e n d
Jef van Rielthought that the best fancier
w a s t h e o n e w h o c o u l d s p o t s o o n e s ft h a t
s o m e t h i n gw a s g o i n g t o g o w r o n g i n h i s
loft.
Victor: Rightl So we must watch our
p i g e o n sc a r e fu l l y , d a y b y d a y ,t o s e e w h a t '
t h e y h a v et o t e l l u s . A n d n o w w e h a v ea t
l a s t c o m e t o o u r p i g e o n s 'e y e s .
The eye cannot hide from us anything
w h i c h i s h a p p e n i n gw i t h i nt h e b o d y .l f t h i s
i s t r u e o f m a n ,i t i s a l l t h e m o r et r u e o f t h e
p i g e o n ,w h i c h d o e s n o t t r y t o d e c e i v eu s .
N o v i c e :I k n o w y o u c a n d e t e c t t h e s t a t e
Noel De Scheemaecker.
Æü
butthe
oþservat¡on,
FANCIERS
ASSOCIATION
R a ceR u b b e rs,
ctock Rols, tNG Sitks,
r himbIes' LeadseaIs'f;,ffig tÉå.?r"åi,i¿,%il n'' Nest BowIs'DuaI
3
låß.'.
All Racing Pigeon Supplies - For Prices Contact Secretary.
BOOKS AVAILABLE=
nac¡ngPiseonin Austratiaby
Graduate;
Ihe
NaturalWinningWaysby D.E.Scheemaecker
Bros.,Belgium,Vols.9 and
10,$8eachincl.P.&P.;
HealthyPigeonsby Dr.Schragg,
Vol.6, NewEdition,
$31.50incl. P.&P.;1990Squílls $8.50 incl. P.&P.
M R S .G . H E N S H A W
22 VernonStreet,Greystanes,
N.S.W.2145- PHONE:(O2)631 6929
20
toryf unctions
arein goodcondition.
As for
how the eye can revealthe stateof the
o f t h e p i g e o n ' sf o r m b y l o o k i n g i n t o i t s
e y e s .B u t l ' d f i r s t l i k et o a s k y o u s o m e t h i n g
w h i c h b o t h e r se v e r yf a n c i e ra n d e s p e c i a l l y t h o s e w h o r a c e y o u n g p i g e o n s .T h a t i s ,
t h e q u e s t i o no n c o n j u n c t i v i t i s .
V i c t o r : l ' m g l a d y o u ' v e m e n t i o n e dt h a t ,
b e c a u s ei t n e e d s t o b e u n d e r s t o o d .
T h e r ea r e i n f a c t s e v e r a lc a u s e so f c o n j u n c t i v i t i so
, r i n fl a m m a t i o no f t h e c o n j u n c t i v a ,w h i c h o f t e n a f f e c t s b o t h e y e s . l f i t i s
a n i s o l a t e dc a s e ,t h e r e i s n o n e e d t o w o r ry, because it may have been caused by a
f o r e i g nb o d y i n t h e e y e ,o r a m i n o r i n j u r y ,
and then only one eye is affected.
No causefor alarm!
A n o t h e rc a u s e ,o f c h e m i c a lo r i g i n :i r r i t a t i o n b y s m o k e o r i r r i t a n tv a p o u t ' s .
Thereare of courseother causesas well.
b u t t h e o n e t h e f a n c i e rs h o u l d b e w a r y o f
i s i n f e c t i o u sc o n j u n c t i v i t i s A
. t that stage,
why almost all the pigeonsare affected,app r o p r i a t er e m e d i e sn e e d t o b e e m p l o y e d .
N e o - C o(l U p j o h n )i,s s a l u t a r ya n d c u r e st h e
i n f e c t i o n i n 3 - 4d a y s .
p i g e o n ' sf o r m , t h a t d e p e n d so n t h e f a n c i ' , ' : i
,':lt1
er's powers of observation.
N o v i c e :Y o u u s e t h e w o r d ' o b s e r v a t i o n '
a l o t a n d n o d o u b t y o u a r e r i g h t .B u t w h e n
you know what to look for, then you're
t h e r e ! | s u p p o s et h a t ' s w h e r ey o u c o m e i n .
Victor: You have just said something
t r i t e b u t n e v e r t h e l e s se s s e n t i a l - a s s o
m a n yc o m m o n p l a c et h i n g sa r e ! E x a m i n i n g
t h e p i g e o n ' se y e , t h e r e a r e t w o t h i n g s t o
look at, as signs of good form.
F i r s to f a l l ,t h e r i c h n e s so f p i g m e n t a t i o n ,
s h o w n b y d e e p e rc o l o u r i n go f t h e i r i s .T h e
e y e b e c o m e sl i g h t e ra n d m o r et r a n s p a r e n t
a s a r e s u l to f t h e i n c r e a s e dc o n t r a s t .T h e n
t h e r e i s t h e m o b i l i t yo f t h e e y e .T h e p i g e o n
a p p e a r s t o b e o b s e r v i n g e v e r y t h i n g .I n '
s t e a d o f s e e i n g ,i t . i s l o o k i n g .
r Novice:lt seems to me that these are nua n c e s w h i c h f e w f a n c i e r sa r e c a p a b l eo f
seeing.
Victor: You're wrong there. You are forg e t t i n gt h a t t h e r e i s s o m e t h i n gw h i c h i s
g e n e r a l l yn e g l e c t e d ,y o u h a v e l o l e a r n t o
observe.That is the whole secret of pigeon
r a c i n g .. . .
NoviceS
: i n c et h i s i n f e c t i o u sc o n j u n c t i v i t i s i s d a n g e r o u sb e c a u s ei t i s v e r y c o n t a g i o u s ,w h a t s h o u l d b e d o n e ? B y p l a c i n g
o n e ' s p i g e o n si n a b a s k e tw h e r et h i s i n f e c t i o n i s p r e s e n t ,o n e r u n st h e r i s k o f s e e i n g
o n e ' s o w n p i g e o n sa l s o a f f e c t e d .
V i c t o r :T o a v o i d t h i s r e a l r i s k , i t i s w i s e
beforebasketingone's young pigeons,and
e v e n a d u l t s ,t o p l a c e a d r o p o f A r g y r o l i n
t h e p i g e o n ' se y e .T h i s m i n i m i z e st h e r i s k
of infection.
N o v i c e :I s u p p o s ed r a u g h t sa r e o f t e n a t
t h e r o o t o f c o n j u n c t i v i t i sa, s t h e y o f t e n a r e
with our colds.
V i c t o r : T h a t ' s a s i l l y m i s t a k e .W h a t i s
m o r e h a r m fu l i s t h e l a c k o f a i r c i r c u l a t i o n .
H a v ey o u e v e r s e e n p i g e o n sw i t h c o r y z a
( c o l d ) o r c o n j u n c t i v i t i si n a c o m p l e t e l y
ooen loft? | haven't!
B u t l e t ' sd i s c u s st h e l a n g u a g eo f t h e e y e
f o r a w h i l e ,i n r e l a t i o nt o o u r p i g e o n s f' o r m .
O u r p i g e o n ' se y e c a n t e l l u s i f i t s r e s p i r a t o r y a p p a r a l u si s f u l l y i n o r d e r . l f t h e e y e
i s d r y w e c a n a l r e a d yb e r e a s s u r e dt o t h i s .
Noel De Scheemaecker.
ilow AVAIIABLE.*o
The Australian
Pigeon
Fa.n,c,iers
Assoc iat ion,
PIGEONS
I-IEALTHY
By Dr.L. Schragg
PL
. &. P .
VOL.6
N E WE D I T I O$N
31.50INC
1990SQUILLS
INCL.P.&P.
$8.50
All Cheques and Enguiries to:
T H ES E C R E T A R Y
22YernonStreet,Greystanes,
N.S.W.
2145
"The eye cannot hide from us anything
which is happening within the body".
PHONE:(O2l 631 6929
I n a d d i t i o n ,a n i c e d r y b e a k a n d d r y l i d s
a r o u n dt h e e y e a l s o p r o v et h a t t h e r e s p i r a 21