Racing Pigeons

Racing Pigeons: A Manual describes the historical use of homing pigeons for communications and is a manual for the pigeon racing sport. Descended from the wild Blue Rock dove, homing pigeons have been highly valued since ancient times for sending messages in times of peace and war. Todays homing pigeons have been bred to perform better than ever. Pigeon racing has developed into a worldwide hobby and is the national sport of Belgium. In 2013, a champion Belgian pigeon was sold for $400,000. Some pigeon races offer a million dollars in prize money but it can also be a hobby for ordinary folks who raise pedigreed pigeons and fly them for pleasure. This book explains how pigeon racing can be enjoyable and affordable with information on getting started, instructions for establishing a loft, breeding and training programs, and details about pigeon racing on a modest budget. The author has over fifty years of experience with racing pigeons, raising them, importing and exporting them, and winning races in international competition. In our fast paced electronic and impersonal age, homing pigeons can be a relaxing, challenging and rewarding family activity, appealing to people of all backgrounds. The author mentions some celebrities who have been homing pigeon fanciers. Pigeon racing in an under-publicized activity in America. Racing Pigeons: A Manual unveils this unique hobby and sport.

The main part of the book covers the care and training of racing pigeons today. From a detailed study of the physiology of the pigeon, the authors then give clear advice on acquiring stock, basic management and health of the bird. There is further information on housing and equipment, and an explanation of the correct procedure for breeding and building a successful racing team. Finally, the all-important subject of training, both for young and old birds, is studied in depth.

Racing pigeons are also called homing pigeons because they can return home from almost anywhere. Find out what it’s like to race these pigeons, and how much care and training they need from you. Discover how long these colorful birds have been helping humans deliver messages, and find out about the pigeon war hero G.I. Joe. Do you have what it takes to become a pigeon fancier? Can you convince your parents that you do?

A detailed handbook and guide. The illustrated contents include The Dawn of Pigeon Racing - Art of Breeding - The Practical Selection of Breeders - Breeding a Champion - Colour Breeding - Breeding Grizzlies - Practical Breeding etc. Originally published early 1900s. Many of the earliest livestock books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing this classic work with a brand new introductory essay on pigeon racing.

A SPECTATOR BOOK OF THE YEAR Longlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 'Rich and joyous ...The book's quiet optimism about our ability to change, and to learn to love small things passionately, will stay with me for a long time' Helen Macdonald 'Big-hearted and quietly gripping' Guardian 'I love Jon Day's writing and his birds. A marvellous, soaring account' Olivia Laing '[A] beautiful book about unbeautiful birds' Observer 'This is nature writing at its best' Financial Times 'Awash with historical and literary detail, and moving moments ... Wonderful' Telegraph 'Every page of this beautifully written book brought me pleasure' Charlotte Higgins 'A vivid evocation of a remarkable species and a rich working-class tradition. It's also a charming defence of a much-maligned bird, which will make any reader look at our cooing, waddling, junk-food-loving feathered friends very differently in future' Daily Mail 'Endlessly interesting and dazzlingly erudite, this wonderful book will make a home for itself in your heart' Prospect As a boy, Jon Day was fascinated by pigeons, which he used to rescue from the streets of London. Twenty years later he moved away from the city centre to the suburbs to start a family. But in moving house, he began to lose a sense of what it meant to feel at home. Returning to his childhood obsession with the birds, he built a coop in his garden and joined a local pigeon racing club. Over the next few years, as he made a home with his young family in Leyton, he learned to train and race his pigeons, hoping that they might teach him to feel homed. Having lived closely with humans for tens of thousands of years, pigeons have become powerful symbols of peace and domesticity. But they are also much-maligned, and nowadays most people think of these birds, if they do so at all, as vermin. A book about the overlooked beauty of this species, and about what it means to dwell, Homing delves into the curious world of pigeon fancying, explores the scientific mysteries of animal homing, and traces the cultural, political and philosophical meanings of home. It is a book about the making of home and making for home: a book about why we return.

This vintage volume contains a comprehensive guide to thoroughbred racing pigeons, with information on their natural history, breeding, selection, types, and more. Containing a wealth of interesting and practical information, this timeless handbook will be of considerable utility to the modern fancier, and would make for a worthy addition to collections of allied literature. Contents include: “Racing”, “The Breathing System”, “The Digestive Organs”, “The Bird’s Eye”, “The Homing Faculty”, “Bird Flight”, “Marey’s Experiments”, “Genetics”, “Breeding”, “Apropos Origins”, “Pure Strains”, and “Your Questions Answered”. Many vintage books such as this are becoming increasingly rare and expensive. We are republishing this vintage book now in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with a specially commissioned new introduction on pigeons.

Pigeon Racing by Dr. Herbert R. Axelrod contains all the information that a budding fancier needs! Extract from the book: "There has probably been more written on feeding than on any other subject related to pigeons. This has always been the most controversial subject. This chapter will give you a general knowledge of what and how to feed. The importance of choosing the right food and feeding in the right way cannot be overemphasized. The fancier who learns to feed correctly will win his share of races. Food gives the elements for proper growth and fuel to nourish the body and produce heat and energy."