“What you see is not always what you get!”
By Tom Domanski
Overview
| This section is not for the beginner as it does not teach basic biology. One may have to already have a grasp of the subject before completely understanding genetics in racing pigeons. I am of the opinion that breeders of the fancy pigeon breeds often have a far greater grasp of genetics as it is their “bred and butter” in their ability to produce or even manipulate certain characteristics of their breed. Winning a show is not simply having the best in class, it is the ability to produce the best in class. There are homing pigeon fanciers, that have mastered the art of breeding top performing racing pigeons. The difference though is fancy breeds are selected solely based on the physical characteristics and racing pigeons have many characteristics that are undetected but yet selected by the basket and the races. Racing pigeon fanciers do not always want the same type of bird within a team. For instance there are differences between sprint pigeons (100-250 miles) and long distance pigeons 300-600+ miles. within racing pigeons we tend to break our birds down into “strains”. Genetically this is NOT the proper term, but it is the popular term amongst racing pigeon fanciers. Some strains are known for maturing late and being great long distance birds. Others are known for maturing quickly and being great young bird racers. Others are known for being tough weather pigeons. There is truth that some traits remain within a family or strain due the hard work and selection of the founding loft and those that continue to develop a family.In fancy breeds there is usually ONE standard for each breed. When there is a fancy pigeon show, breeders from all corners come and are judged on the ONE standard. In racing pigeons, performance is the standard. For racing pigeons, the course they fly is the standard and every club flies a different course under different conditions. Depending on the geographical area, each club has different weather, terrain, temperature and even the style of race schedule. In racing pigeons, there is NOT one standard, there are many. A standard that may fly very well in one area, may not fly well in another. Some fanciers specialize at certain distances. For us, the racing pigeon fancier, there are no hard and fast rules. There are only scientific principles, theories, methods and experimentation. Read all you can, experiment often, set standards and stick to them. Completed Chapters: Genetics Part 1 The Basics Genetics Part 2 The 3 Basic Colors Genetics Part 3 Basic Patterns Genetics Part 4 The Gene Pool |
Subpages (4): Genetics Part 1 The Basics Genetics Part 2 The 3 Basic Colors Genetics Part 3 Basic Patterns Genetics Part 4 The Gene Pool
