Pigeon racing

Pigeons are the oldest domesticated bird. The predecessors of modern-day racing pigeons were pigeons bred for their homing ability, primarily to carry messages. "Pigeon posts" have been established all over the world and while mainly used in the military, some are still in service today. Modern pigeon racing originated in Belgium in the mid 19th century.[3]

The sport was aided by several new technologies of the era. The advent of the railroad permitted pigeons to be sent to distant release points quickly and at modest cost. In addition, the creation of mass-produced, sophisticated timing clocks brought accurate and secure timing to the sport. These clocks were designed with special compartments where an entry band, removed from the returning race bird was placed. When struck, the clock recorded the time and also placed the band in a compartment that could only be opened by race officials.

The importance of homing pigeons in the centuries before electronic communications, such as the telegraph and telephone, is seldom recognised. However, the Reuters News Agency, the world's largest information provider, began as a pigeon service carrying closing stock prices between Belgium and Germany, basically between the western and eastern terminus of the telegraph in Europe.

A fancier with racing pigeons

Pigeon racing has been described as a "sport with a single starting gate and a thousand finish lines."[5] In short, competing birds are taken from their lofts and must race home. The time taken and distance are recorded and the fastest bird is declared the winner. Races are generally between 100 kilometres (62 mi) and 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) in distance. In the United States flights of up to 1,800 kilometres (1,100 mi) have been recorded.[6]

Provided it survives the many hazards associated with racing, a single pigeon could compete from about six months of age and still be in competition at over ten years of age. Such feats are uncommon, however, and the average racing career rarely exceeds three years. Hazards can also come from weather conditions on the day of the race. Pigeons can become grounded and disoriented, and therefore not finish the race. In one instance in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1941, a family found a pigeon on their property. Since the bird was sporting an identifying leg band, the Wisconsin Conservation Commission was called, who identified the owner as a man from Green Bay.[7]

In the early days of racing, paint was used to identify birds for owners. Belgium then developed a ⅛-inch brass leg band, that was sent to racers in America to use.[8] Since then, to compete in a race, it must wear a permanent, unique numbered ring or band that is placed on its leg at about five days old. For a race to be conducted, the competing pigeons must be entered into the race, usually at the organisation's clubhouse, and taken away from their home to be released at a predetermined time and location. The distance between the bird's home loft and the race point is carefully measured by GPS and the time taken by the bird to return is measured using one of the two acceptable timing methods. Sometimes in some leagues, there are two divisions: one for the young birds (usually yearlings in their first year of competition) and another for older birds.

Traditional timing method

Inside an older pigeon clock

Some old style pigeon clocks use thimbles.

The traditional method of timing racing pigeons involves rubber rings with unique identification numbers and a specially designed pigeon racing clock. The ring is attached around the bird's leg before being sent to race. The serial number is recorded, the clock is set and sealed, and the bird carries the ring home. When the first bird returns, its trainer removes the ring and places it in a slot in the clock. The time that the ring was placed in the clock is recorded as the official time that the competing bird arrived home. From this time stamp an average speed is measured and a winner of the race can be found.

Although serving its purpose, this method has proved somewhat problematic for a few reasons:

• The pigeon's "official time" is not the actual time it arrived, it is the time the ring was removed, placed in the clock and recorded, which could be many vital seconds later.
• Exceptional pigeons may arrive home first on multiple occasions; knowing it is going to have the ring removed speedily, which may be uncomfortable, the pigeon could be reluctant to enter the loft for the trainer.

One-loft racing originated from local futurity races. Futurity races are when the birds race home from the racing station to their homes. The difference between regular racing and futurity races is futurity races has prize money involved. Usually, the prize is used for a bragging right more so than to win the money. The process of racing could be a bit complicated as handlers of their racing pigeons compete with one another. Some handlers could be better than some when it comes down to racing. Therefore, one-loft racing was created. One-loft racing is the process of training birds bred by many different breeders in the same loft, under the same trainer and in the same conditions (as opposed to trainer against trainer in their own lofts and usually with their own birds). It is thought to be the fairest method of proving which bloodline or breeder is best and usually provides the highest amount of prize money. Pigeons are recorded by electronic timing systems scanning the birds as they enter the home loft with winners decided by as little as 100th of a second. The birds are all taken to the same release point and they return to the same home loft, so therefore it is the fastest bird to complete the journey from A to B. One-loft racing is now becoming very popular all around the world with fanciers able to compare their bloodlines on an equal basis against the best breeders.

Racing pigeons are housed together in a specially designed dovecote or loft. From about four weeks of age until the end of its racing career, the racing loft is the pigeon's home and is where it returns to on race day.

After 22 to 28 days in the nest (depending on the owner's preference) the young birds are removed and placed in a section of a large loft or in a smaller loft built for the purpose. After a few days of learning how to locate the water and eating by themselves they are allowed to wander out of the loft and peck around in the garden, while doing this they are constantly observing their surroundings and becoming familiar with them. At about age six to seven weeks the birds will begin taking off, flying in very small circles around their loft and owner's house. As their confidence grows they gradually wander farther and farther from home until they are out of sight and can remain so for as much as two hours before returning. When a few trainers fly their pigeons in the same area, these flying "batches" (as flocks of pigeons are called) can number in the thousands. It does not, however, help them much in relation to finding their home from long distances away, a fundamental of pigeon racing. As confident flyers, the young pigeons are taken on progressively longer 'training tosses', driven a distance away from their home and released. This method of training is a way to condition the birds mentally and physically to prepare them for the races. This practice of loft flying and tossing continues throughout a pigeon's career to keep their homing instincts sharp.

There are many ways to train racing pigeons. Like every sport out there, racing pigeons is an evolving sport. One of the most popular systems is widowhood. This system uses the birds' desire to reproduce as motivation to try to give the bird a sense of urgency on race day. The use of widowhood is usually begun by first allowing the racer to raise a baby in their nest box. After the baby is weaned the hen is removed and often the nestbox is closed off, from then on the only time these birds are allowed to see their mate or enter the nest box is upon returning from training or a race. This conditioning is one of the key elements in a lot of racing programs.

Due to advancements in technology researchers have been able to use small Global Positioning Systems to track the flight paths that their birds follow. Small GPS systems have recently begun to hit the consumer market. Companies like PigeonTrack and GEM Supplements currently sell GPS units for novice to advanced race trainers to use to gather data.

The peregrine falcon is a major predator of racing pigeons.

As pigeon racing takes place over great distances in the sky, instead of on a racetrack, there are many hazards that could befall a pigeon during racing as well as training. The main hazard encountered by racing pigeons is predation by birds of prey.[12][13] The killing of valuable pigeons by wild predators has led to some pigeon fanciers being suspected and prosecuted of killing birds of prey such as falcons.[14][15][16]

Another hazard that racing pigeons encounter is flying into objects they sometimes cannot see, mostly when flying at high speeds or in darker weather conditions. The most common obstructions are electricity pylons or TV aerials.[17] Pigeon fanciers will often have one of their pigeons return home with wounds or missing feathers from the belly or flanks region.

It is thought that racing pigeons rely on the Earth's magnetic field to find their way home. Some speculation has surfaced indicating that mobile phone towers may be interrupting the birds' navigation,[18] although no published research has investigated this theory.

A pair of young racing pigeons, 9 days old.

Pigeons are sexually mature at about six months of age. However, fanciers will often wait until the pigeon is at least a few months older before breeding. A hen bird will usually only lay two eggs in a clutch, laid every other day, after which incubation begins. The incubation period is 17 days. Pigeon breeders are careful in selecting birds to pair together so as to continue improving the breed and gain a competitive edge. It is this selective breeding that has given rise to the racing pigeons of today, capable of finding their way home from over 1,600 kilometres (990 mi) away and flying at speeds in excess of 130 kilometres per hour (81 mph) with a tail wind but average 60 kilometres per hour (37 mph) on a calm day. Hens are often capable of laying upwards of 12 eggs per year, and squabs usually leave the nest at approximately three to four weeks of age.

Doping in pigeon racing is the practice of giving performance-enhancing drugs to avian racers. The drugs are used to produce similar effects to those found in human athletes, building up muscle tissue and opening the respiratory tracts. In addition, corticosteroids can be used to delay moulting, allowing a bird to race late into a season.[19]

In October 2013, blood samples from twenty Belgian pigeons were sent by the Pigeon Fanciers Association to South Africa for testing. This was the result of an exchange visit by the association to the National Horseracing Authority of Southern Africa.[20] While tests in Belgium had not found traces of any drugs the South African laboratory discovered that six samples contained unusual substances. Five samples were found to include traces of acetaminophen (paracetamol), a widely used over-the-counter analgesic (pain reliever) and antipyretic (fever reducer). The sixth sample was erroneously reported in the press as having shown indications of cocaine use, but the lab reported that it was indications of caffeine usage.[21] As the samples were sent anonymously no action could be taken against the owners of any of the birds.[22]

In 2001 a series of raids across 80 homes led to the confiscation of large quantities of illegal performance-enhancers.[19][23] Currently, all race winners are tested and over 100 samples were collected and tested in 2013.

In 1995 the Belgian Ministry of Health mandated drug testing in order to protect the welfare of the birds.[19] The sport's governing body was looking at the possibility of implementing new anti-doping rules for the sport prior to the commencement of the 2014 season.[22]

• Cher Ami
• Homing pigeon
• Pigeon intelligence
• Pigeon sport
• Release dove
• Up North Combine
• War pigeon
• Pigeon racing at the 1900 Summer Olympics

• Royal Pigeon Racing Association
• American Racing Pigeon Union
• International Federation of American Homing Pigeon Fanciers