Pigeon Feeding

There are many successful fanciers who claim that when youhave mastered the art of feeding pigeons you are on theway to success, assuming of course that you have the basicsuccessful bloodlines in your family. The late W.T. Carr ofTottenham, a mentor of the author, once said that there wasno way that any feeding or management would make a badpigeon into a champion, but by good feeding a mediocre birdcould be improved and a good bird could be turned into achampion. But he also emphasised that feeding, like every-thing connected with pigeons, was something individual toboth the fancier and his birds.

Like most birds, the pigeon has no teeth with which to chewthe food it is given, so it has another method of dealing withwhat it eats - the grain consumed is stored in the crop, whereit is moistened or softened, until it starts going through thedigestive process. It then passes on to the stomach, which inthe pigeon is quite small and cannot contain a large amount offood for any length of time. From the stomach the food movesinto the gizzard, which has an outer covering of strongmuscular-type walls and a very sturdy lining. It is here that thegrain, with the help of grit which the bird will have taken,goes through the mill and is ground down and mixes with thedigestive juices through which it has already passed on its wayto the gizzard. From the gizzard the masticated food passes tothe intestines, where it meets further secreted digestive juicesand where the contents of the food are broken down further toenable it to be absorbed into thebloodstream.

Having briefly looked at how a bird consumes its food, wemust consider what a healthybird needs and what foods will satisfy those needs. Basically, they come under four headings:protein, fats, carbohydrates and mineral salts plus vitamins.loch is required for building up and maintaining the activeI ini,tions of the pigeon's body. Protein is needed to build uphod r, hone and feather, and to replace worn tissues from timeto time. Carbohydrates are the main sources of heat andenergy, for although protein can also supply these it shouldnot be regarded as satisfactory for the purpose, as an overload-ing of protein has a detrimental effect on the birds. This isIs-cause the bird breaks down the protein into carbohydratesand into ammonia which has to be excreted by the kidneys.The amount the latter can handle is limited, so that toxicammonia and urate accumulate in the bird. So it really is aquestion of finding the correct balance. In general, a proteincontent of 17-18 per cent is considered correct.

To help the reader determine the value of the food he feedsto his pigeons, the following list takes an average of four sets ofanalysts' figures as to the contents of various grains and seeds: These figures are a good guide for preparing your own feedmixtures. For instance, in order to provide the requiredprotein content in a mixture, the formula would be to multiplythe protein content of each type of grain used by the quantityof the individual grain in the mixture, add the totals togetherand then divide by the total quantity of the mixture.

Any seed can be substituted for any other and the contentworked out accordingly. The table can, of course, also he usedto obtain the carbohydrate or other factor content of the feedwhich you are preparing for your birds.

We now know the usefulness of the various grain feeds toour birds, but how much to feed? On average, a pigeon willconsume 25--40g (1-11/2oz) of corn per day, varying slightlywith the size of the bird. A larger pigeon may need more foodto keep its body going, just as a more powerful motor-carengine will use more fuel per mile. A larger pigeon has morebulk and more weight to shift and therefore uses up moreenergy in its efforts, and this energy must be replaced if the bird is to be kept in reasonable condition or form. The dailyfood should be given approximately one-third as an earlymorning feed, and the remainder in late afternoon or earlyevening after exercise.

This brings us to the question of whether one should simplygive more food, or whether it is better to study the content ofthe mixture you are feeding and prepare separate feeds forindividual birds.

There are many successful fanciers who do feed theirpigeons in pairs or singly so that the birds obtain the rightproportion of protein and carbohydrates that their ownershave learned, by experience, they require. With young birds itis best to feed them by hand. This does not mean picking upeach bird and putting the seeds in its beak individually, but toconstruct a feeding-tray, the size of which will depend on thenumber of birds you will be feeding. For feeding twenty-fouryoung birds, the tray needs to be about 60cm (20) long x30cm (lft) wide.

The tray can be constructed by obtaining a piece of woodthe size you require and fixing pieces of 50mm x 13mm (tin x1/2in) battening upright around the edges to prevent the birdsfrom throwing the corn over the floor when eating. Withyoung birds do not pour all the corn into the tray at once, butonly about half the quantity you intend to feed. In this wayyou can gradually add the rest of the food and at the same timetalk to your birds and give them an occasional gentle strokealong the back whilst they are eating. This helps to make thebirds confident, and to cement the link between you and yourpigeons which is so essential to success.

With regard to old birds, the ideal is to feed each pair in itstwo nest-box, using the small troughs available on the market which can be hung on the box front. In this way the birds arefed quietly and without disturbance, particularly when theyarc nesting. The birds can reach the corn and eat it betweenthe dowel or slatted front, and you can control the food forindividual pairs. All this comes withexperience, but attention to feeding is one sure road tosuccess.

However, the method described takes a great deal of time,and it is not possible for the average pigeon fancier who has towork all day. In a case like this, unless you have the help of afriend or wife, the birds have to be fed all together, and thebest method of feeding is probably by food-hopper. Manyfanciers adopt this way of feeding and say that if food is beforethem all day, old birds will only eat what they require; theywill not overeat. There could be a lot of sense in this, and it isfor the fancier himself to devise and follow the method whichbest suits both himself and his birds. Do not let the jobbecome drudgery, otherwise you will find that you will neglectthe small things and your powers of observation within the loftmay decline. If you follow this method it is a good idea to giveeach type of grain in separate containers; if it is all mixed upthe birds will waste a lot of it searching for the grains theyprefer. Remember that whatever time you spend in the loft,for whatever purpose, is a time of contact with your birds.You should be observing them the whole time, and makingnotes of any little idiosyncrasies.

As regards the corn itself, one of the most important thingsis that it should be bought dry and kept so. Corn which hasbeen subjected to dampness or sweating may become affectedby fungoid growth and this can have a very bad effect on apigeon's health. Storage is also an important factor, and cornshould be stored in a cool dry place with, if possible, aircirculating around it. Avoid metal containers such as dustbins,because there could be sweating, and thus deterioration. Oneof the best ways I have seen corn kept was in the lofts of the late Major W.H. Osman which were situated at the top of abuilding in central London. The containers consisted ofbunt-shaped wooden frames covered with a fine wire gauze andsuspended by chains from the rafters; thus air could circulateAmu id them at all times. In addition the corn was turnedcgti arly with a scoop. However corn is stored, it should beturned over fairly regularly; but the main essential is that itshould be kept dry and free from attack by mice, rats and wildlards all of which can transmit diseases to the corn and so toyour birds.

On the subject of turning corn, two very successful fanciersknown to the author would tip the corn received from theirsuppliers out on to a tarpaulin sheet on their lawn and turn itin the sunshine for two or three days, pulling the tarpaulinsheet over it at night to make sure it did not become damp.After the two or three days' turning in the sun, the corn wasthen transferred to their storage bins. This little anecdoteagain shows the importance of attention to detail.

Besides corn, birds need minerals in their diet. There aresome excellent proprietary mineral salts on sale, but be surealso to give the birds mineral-rich green food regularly. One ofthe best green foods is watercress which is quite cheap during'he summer months. But one of the best all the year roundsources is cabbage, chopped quite finely and then dusted witha fine coating of ordinary table salt. The birds should have thistwice a week; once they discover that it is salted they will eat itreadily. Indeed pigeons will go mad for salt, and can easilyoverindulge.

In addition to this I always remember my grandmother andmother insisting that the family should have a drink once aweek of the water in which any green vegetables had beenboiled, claiming that it was one of the finest blood purifiersthey knew. I extended this idea to my pigeons, at least once aweek introducing a teacupful of this liquid into the 2.8 litreOpt water-drinking fountain in the loft. In fact, if it ispossible, this should be the first drink given to any birds ontheir return from a long-distance race, the green water being introduced warm to the fountain so that the water is not icecold. A little glucose should also be added. The food toaccompany this reasonably warm drink, boosted as suggestedto replace their energy and clear any impurities they may havepicked up, can consist of rice which has been soaked in a littlehoney dissolved in warm water and allowed to cool. This willswell within the crop and the birds will feel well fed, but theirdigestion will not be strained and, within an hour or two, eventhe bird which has faced the toughest of races will be back toits normal self. Many Continental fanciers give a very lightdiet - called a depurative or cleaning mixture and typicallyconsisting of barley, a little wheat and dari - to pigeonsreturned from a race. This is gradually replaced, as they buildup to the next race, with a mixture rich in carbohydrate frommaize, wheat, dari, peas, tares and beans. For young birds aprotein-rich mixture is best. Most reputable corn merchantshave a range of mixtures for pigeons; indeed some specialise inthis trade alone. 'Their mixtures are very reliable, clean and ofgood quality grains, and although they cost more than buyingindividual grains here and there, they are probably worth theextra cost.

Never forget that one reason why the clever fancier controlsthe quantity of food he supplies, is to make his birds obedient."This does not mean starving them into submission, but ratherinstilling in them the knowledge that they will get fed if theyfly home quickly and trap in unhesitatingly. Once this lessonis learned - and apart from a few idiots pigeons learn quickly- it becomes a conditioned reflex that is always with them. Asingle whistle, or a rattle on the corn tin, will have the birdstumbling into the loft in a few seconds.

Finally, remember to see that a supply of fresh grit isavailable to the birds, as they need it to help in the digestion ofthe corn, and to supply them with calcium to make bone, andeggshell when the hens are laying. Vitamins are present inmost good grains, and in green food; no special supply isusually needed. Some fanciers, however, give extra Vitamin131 (thiamine), usually in the form of brewer's yeast, because pigeon muscles are very sensitive to the lack of this vitamin -he bird's stock of it can be exhausted in a long hard race, andihe bird goes down paralysed.

It is hoped these ideas will illustrate the necessity forstudying your birds and their feeding.