My Best White Pigeons

I aquired my first white pigeons in 1992 from an egg given to me by the late Skip Shalhoob of the Santa Barbara Pigeon Club. I banded this bird 1992SB4744. The same year he also gave me 1992RIC4594, a white hen bred by Gary Anderson of Riverside from a Bandit/Rothrock cross. I didn't breed either bird until 1996. In that year they produced from their only mating, nestmates 1996SB2220 & 2221, both cocks. 2220 & 2221 placed second and third in club and combine race from the 126 mile stations as YB's. There were 193 birds in the club and 493 birds in the combine. 2221 also placed in the top 10% of birds at the 179 mile station as a YB.

In 1997 I bred my white hen, 1992RIC4594 with a white cock, 1995APA779, a borrowed cock. This single mating produced 1997SB1009 & 1010, a hen and a cock. 1997SB1010 WC as a young bird won 2nd place @ 155 miles. Also in 1997 I bred 1996SB2220 WC with 1996SB2057, a blue check hen from Bob Wheatley. This mating produced 1997SB1003, a splash hen. 1003 placed 1st @ 200 miles as a YB.

In 1998 I mated 1997SB1010 WC with 1997SB1003 SPLH which produced 1998SB2618 WH. 2618 was 6th in champion bird points as a YB. I also bred 1992RIC4594 WH with 1994MCL2056, a white splash cock from Roger Mortvedt. This mating produced 1998SB2616, white splash hen and 1998SB2603 WH. 2603 placed 2nd @ 126 miles, and 2616 placed 4th @ 179 miles as YB's.

In 1999 I am going to mate 1996SB2020 WC with 1998SB2618 WH; 1997SB1010 WC with 1997SB1003 SPLH; 1997SB1777 ( a beautiful Bandit cock bred by Bob Wheatley) with 1992RIC4594.




THE HAWK PROBLEM

The HAWK culls the ones you missed and the color of a pigeon has nothing to do with hawks. The Hawk problem is dependent on the QUALITY of your birds. Birds are being bred which are substandard pigeons by breeding out of hopefuls (losers & hawk meat) instead of breeding from proven birds only. There is something wrong/different with a pigeon a hawk attacks. It may be that they are simply not hawk smart. These pigeons are poorly bred because hawk smart is inherited not learned. Why does a hawk attack your pigeons when 100 yards away feral pigeons are sitting on a wire? It is because those birds are hawk smart and yours aren't. The hawk is going to attack the pigeon it has the best chance of catching. They prey on the weak, sick or stupid pigeon.

I stress the fact that the racing and homing ability of a pigeon is a recessive trait and so are most of the qualities that make a pigeon useful for breeding. If this wasn't the case, we would have many more great racing pigeons. There are hundred of thousands of pigeons hatched every year that are trash birds. Whose fault is it that this many birds are bred every year that are losers? How many birds do you lose every year and how many do you cull in a given year because they are substandard? How many really good pigeons do you raise every year? Don't be a pigeon fancier who breeds hundreds of birds a year in the hope that one or two of them will turn out to be a winner. Know what you are breeding from and why you are breeding from them, and you won't have to breed hundreds of young birds to get a winner.

If birds are bred out of mediocre parents the hawks are certainly going to thank you. Remeber a hawk culls the ones you missed and it is Nature's way of seeing that only the strong survive to breed. If you think otherwise you are defying Mother Nature. If that is what you want to do, then do it, but please don't try to take anyone else down your path.