Gun Dog Forum

I posted recently wanting to buy homing pigeons in ga/ al. No response.
I have 9 pigeons I bought back in spring that I have used in launchers, using tethers and hobbling with garden hoses. But that is a pain to say the least.
I have no idea what kind of pigeons these are as they are all different colors, sizes, shapes, etc but a couple have bands on their legs.

So this afternoon about 90 minutes before dark I said what the heck, and opened up the access window and let them go. 5 flew out. I put some food in and left. Returned at dark. All 5 had re entered.

So for the next few days I will repeat process and if all goes well I will then begin to catch, cage, and then release starting 100 yards from coop increasing distance until reaching training site about 3/4 mile away.

Any holes in my plans?
I am hopeful to end this process with 6 of 9 pigeons recalling to coop. Is that a realistic expectation?
Thanks

Sounds realistic. If they have bands they are probably racing pigeons.

After loft flying them for a week or so I would take them out to 1/4 mile, 1/2 mile, 1 mile.

RichK wrote:Sounds realistic. If they have bands they are probably racing pigeons.

After loft flying them for a week or so I would take them out to 1/4 mile, 1/2 mile, 1 mile.

Most pigeon breeders band their birds and there are over a hundred different breeds.

Sounds like a plan to me. Keep us informed. I'll bet they home for you and if they start breeding, your in business.

Keep them hungry and trap training a little before dark as you have been doing. Although since you have had them since spring I do not foresee any issue at all expecting even a re-homed feral from trapping 3/4 mile away. I still keep them hungry so they trap quicker on training days, just so they avoid hazards outside the loft.

Good call on ditching the gizmos. Grab them by the back, spin them in a tight concentric circle with their neck elongated for a few seconds. They will display a "dizzy" appearance. Toss them into light, natural cover 3-5 yards away. Then quickly turn your back and DO NOT look at them. They will be ready to use in 5-10 minuets, and will remain in place for 10-20 minuets. Wildbirds leave hotspots leading to unproductives too, the dog must figure this out, no harm if the bird is gone when you return.

A ruffed grouse has nothing on a savvy dog training pigeon.

I have raised pigeons since i was 10 and I'm 56 now and feel like I can speak to your question with some experience.
All pigeons have a natural homing instinct it normally takes around 60 to 90 days for them to relocate their home coop .
The exception is if they nest , as soon as they nest they will consider that coop home.
Also if a cock mates up with a resident female he will stay.
The better the blood line the longer it takes unless once again they nest.
If you have banded birds it's highly likely you have some racing homers as has been pointed out.
And if they have two bands one that looks bulky it's probably a magnetic trip for a time clock.

Hey guys
Have opened up loft 3 days now. Still have 8 of 9.
Had one today that came out of coop, caught the wind, and just left, I watched him fly off.
Maybe he will return. Maybe not.
Guys I am new to training dogs but I see a tremendous advantage when having pigeons you don't have to hobble with a hose or tether.

muckalee wrote:Hey guys
Have opened up loft 3 days now. Still have 8 of 9.
Had one today that came out of coop, caught the wind, and just left, I watched him fly off.
Maybe he will return. Maybe not.
Guys I am new to training dogs but I see a tremendous advantage when having pigeons you don't have to hobble with a hose or tether.

Absolutely! Cheaper, the dog is less likely to catch the bird & and one less thing to worry about. Buy a remote launcher and your in business.

just an update - 8 of 9 pigeons are recalling. I am 3/4 of the way to my training area. Here is a question for you all. I had been feeding with an automatic feeder before beginning this homing project but have lately been manually feeding to make sure I was releasing hungry pigeons. Once I get comfortable with them homing from the training area back to coop can I go back to automatic feeder?

muckalee wrote:just an update - 8 of 9 pigeons are recalling. I am 3/4 of the way to my training area. Here is a question for you all. I had been feeding with an automatic feeder before beginning this homing project but have lately been manually feeding to make sure I was releasing hungry pigeons. Once I get comfortable with them homing from the training area back to coop can I go back to automatic feeder?

I have no idea. Never use them.

You will have better pigeons and better results if you hand feed and have them a little hungry when you take them down the road.

Ezzy

Update
Now using all 8 pigeons in training and they are reliably recalling to coop. Much easier to release and let fly home as opposed to carding, tethering, etc.
And another benefit- they flush and fly away- pup realizes real soon no benefit to chasing birds.

If someone asked me what would be the first thing you need before buying a bird dog puppy I would say training pigeons that reliably recall back to coop!

muckalee wrote:Update
Now using all 8 pigeons in training and they are reliably recalling to coop. Much easier to release and let fly home as opposed to carding, tethering, etc.
And another benefit- they flush and fly away- pup realizes real soon no benefit to chasing birds.

If someone asked me what would be the first thing you need before buying a bird dog puppy I would say training pigeons that reliably recall back to coop!

Welcome to our world! Cheaper, faster. easer and better for the dogs.

Well guys what started so well (8 birds) has dwindled down to 2 birds. Let my final 4 out of the loft to fly on their own this afternoon and only 2 returned. Not sure what happened, I did not see a hawk around.
Oh well, I will start over I guess.

At work they catch pigeons so I had them save me the different colored pigeons. Ended up with 8. Got lucky and ended up with 4 breeding pairs. I keep them captive. They have produced 25 or 30. Still have 18 that I fly. More than I can use. Now I have 8 banded homers. And they are producing. 3 coups. It's out of control. I have a cooper's or Sharp shined hanging around this winter. I have enough if I loose one once in a while it doesn't matter. When it dives at the pigeons it sure scatters them. But by dark they are back in. I'm down only one since the hawk showed up a month ago. Might try captives for breeding. You can order squeekers and have them shipped us mail. By 7-9 months they are laying eggs.

Even though ¾ of a mile is not far getting a little better homer blood would probably be a good idea,
1 It will give you options to train else where
2 Once a bird that has hatched in your coop has routed(flown from the koop daily until it flies out of sight for an hour or two) it should already be train to fly back from ¾ of a mile.

Get some decent homer breeding stock
Give them proper next boxes
Give them 24hour light so they start laying asap

Spring time you should have a flight crew

Confirmed today what I had suspected...... to my pigeons..... Came home today to find a hawk perched on top of my coop.

muckalee wrote:Confirmed today what I had suspected...... to my pigeons..... Came home today to find a hawk perched on top of my coop.

Good luck on that one. There are ways to deal with that which I can't go into.

AZ Brittany Guy wrote:

muckalee wrote:Confirmed today what I had suspected...... to my pigeons..... Came home today to find a hawk perched on top of my coop.

Good luck on that one. There are ways to deal with that which I can't go into.

ditto

Legband wrote:I have raised pigeons since i was 10 and I'm 56 now and feel like I can speak to your question with some experience.
All pigeons have a natural homing instinct it normally takes around 60 to 90 days for them to relocate their home coop .
The exception is if they nest , as soon as they nest they will consider that coop home.
Also if a cock mates up with a resident female he will stay.
The better the blood line the longer it takes unless once again they nest.
If you have banded birds it's highly likely you have some racing homers as has been pointed out.
And if they have two bands one that looks bulky it's probably a magnetic trip for a time clock.

What do you mean when you say "nest"? Just curious due to having purchased some homers today, (a breeding pair and two of their young that are about 4-5 months old). I was told by the person I purchased them from to leave them cooped up for 2-3 weeks and then they will begin to home to my coop. I want to be able to help guarantee that since I want them to breed and raise some young that will home there this year for training.

There are no set and fast rules for pigeons that they have agreed to at least. I had a friend that had a bird he had in his loft for 7 years when she escaped one day and went 600 miles back home. I do like the idea of letting them nest and raise the young and when they are setting on the next set of eggs of opening the loft and praying they stick around. Your chances improve if they have an aviary to get out in so they become accustomed to the surrounding area but it is always a little nerve racking when they are out for the first time. Oh and make sure they are hungry will help also.

Ezzy