Building pigeon lofts isn’t all that difficult but there are some things that you should take into consideration before moving forward. Pigeon lofts become the home for your birds so you want to give the potential for comfort and ease of return for homing pigeons before you build. It is much harder to fix a problem after your birds move in than it is to consider all possibilities and move forth from there.

Silvio’s extensive ongoing series of articles on racing pigeons have been and continue to be published in racing pigeon and fancy pigeon journals in the USA, Great Britain, Canada, China, Taiwan, Mexico, Romania, Hungary and Australia as well as having been published digitally by websites globally. Do Not Forget To Lock Your Champion Pigeon Racing Loft. No pigeon loft should be without a lock. Over the years, a number of American fanciers have had their lofts vandalized. Their pigeons were either stolen or killed. A lock is not very expensive. A lock is a good investment and it should be in every loft.

1. If not done yet, download and install the latest version now. If uncertain, just be safe by downloading and installing it again. Current Version: Hawkeye 8. Hawkeye Loft Management System 8 Professional is the most feature rich version of our racing pigeon software yet. Use Hawkeye Loft Management System to manage your racing pigeon loft.
2. Pigeon Professional will help you quickly and easily manage your racing pigeons. It's complete information ceneter about your loft. You can provide list, show pigeons photos, print pedigrees, show.
3. Loft Value: As a result of the poll and after a long study, at 23h30m today , the loft value will be calculated based on the total sum of the pigeons value. Passwords: Due to recent events we ask all users to change their passwords urgently.
4. Pigeon Planner 4.0.4 is free to download from our software library. The software relates to Development Tools. The Pigeon Planner installer is commonly called pigeonplanner.exe. This download was checked by our antivirus and was rated as malware free. The most popular versions of the tool 3.6, 2.2 and 2.0.

The number one consideration for creating a quality pigeon loft is providing your guys with ample space. Providing a large enough area for the pigeons to move around comfortably and to find their own space can help cut down on the transmission of diseases from one bird to another. Additionally, cramped birds are unhappy birds and over time your birds might start hurting each other if they are too cramped. A small pigeon loft is a recipe for fighting.

When you are considering where to put your pigeon loft don’t forget to look up. Overhangs, wires, and other easy perching places are likely to serve as a distraction for pigeons who are coming in for a landing. During the training process these obstructions can make it very difficult to train them to land on the pigeon loft. If you can find a place that is elevated and free from obstructions you have found a prime piece of real estate for your pigeon loft.

Pigeon lofts need a high quality floor that you can maintain. Most pigeon lofts use concrete, wood, or screened floors and each one has its benefits and drawbacks. While wood flooring is preferable for your pigeon’s little feet, they require a rather high degree of maintenance. Wood floors on pigeon lofts need to be smoothed before the building process. They also require regular cleaning and replacement. Water from many different sources such as cleaning, water spills, and bird baths take its toll on pigeon loft floors made from wood. Screened floors are not a bad option as the living area is often cleaner because the droppings tend to go through the floor but this option is really hard on the feet of your birds. The chronic drafts associated with screened floors can also take a toll on the overall health of your birds. Screened floors also place your pigeons at risk for the random animal break in, disrupting the safety of the pigeon loft. Concrete floors retain cold and heat, although they are easy to maintain and are a little easier on the feet than a screened floor.

When you take these elements into consideration and you place the birds’ comfort and safety above expense, you can create a pigeon loft that is clean, well built, and will shelter your pigeons for years to come. A poorly built pigeon loft is only likely to create more problems for you and your pigeons over time. It is worth building a high quality pigeon loft once rather than dealing with replacement and repair issues on a regular basis.

Tips on the Best Feed for Pigeons and a DIY Pigeon Feed Formula

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Pigeons are adaptable, hardy, and agile. And although the types of pigeons range in size and function, all pigeons have similar husbandry requirements. Knowing what to feed pigeons and the ideal pigeon loft design will allow you to ensure a healthy flock.

How To Build A Pigeon Loft

Pigeon Loft Design

Across the board, the rule of thumb when setting up and maintaining a pigeon loft is to keep the loft extremely dry with plenty of ventilation.

Philip Spatola of Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, recently won the American Racing Pigeon Union “Loft of the Year” award. Members were encouraged to submit photographs and descriptions of their lofts. Not only was it an online loft “beauty contest,” but it also illustrated the variety of appearances that provide healthy housing for homing pigeons. The styles and sizes conveyed a large range of skill sets and funds.

“I contacted a local shed company to build a shed to my specifications and then had a friend install partitions and perches inside the loft,” said Spatola.

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He cleans his “Cary’d Away Loft” once a day in the mornings and then feeds and waters the birds. In the summer, he cleans the loft twice a day. Fans and electricity were installed to aid in ventilation and convenience.

Deone Roberts, the Sport Development Manager for the American Racing Pigeon Union, says that a well-designed loft consists of a floor, four walls, a roof, external fixtures (landing board, trap, ventilators and turbines, and aviaries), internal fixtures, a storage area for feed and other supplies plus an infirmary. The loft needs to prevent vermin, including aerial predators.

“A neat appearance and blending into the neighborhood is most helpful to encourage good community relations,” said Roberts. And remember, “The cost of construction has no bearing on racing success.”

The size of the loft should allow eight to 10 cubic feet of air space per bird. A well-made loft would include at least three partitions: one for breeders, one for young birds, and one for old birds. To make it comfortable for yourself and to aid in cleaning, the ceiling should be high enough for you to stand erect. Having the loft elevated from the ground will help air circulation and keep it dry.

The roof should be slanted from front to back to allow the rain to roll off away from the landing board. The landing board should be large enough for all the birds to land at one time. The trap functions so that pigeons that fly outside can get back into the loft but not be able to fly out again. It should be in the center of the landing board. Traps can be purchased for around $20. My father and I built a trap out of wire coat hangers when I was flying tumblers and racing pigeons, and it worked out great.

Roberts says that aviaries are an essential part of any well-designed loft allowing the birds to have a constant supply of fresh air and sunshine.

“Each section of the loft should have a small aviary where the birds can go out into the sun and rain,” said Frank McLaughlin. “It is also nice to be able to close off these aviaries to keep the weather from the inside of the loft.”

McLaughlin of McLaughlin Lofts has been raising pigeons for 43 years.

“Most of the best lofts have air entering low and leaving the loft at a high point causing a chimney effect,” he said. “Many fanciers keep their pigeons on grated floors and some use a deep litter which I prefer a thin layer of wood pellets used in wood-burning stoves.”

“Dampness is the worst condition for pigeons so having sunlight enter the loft is excellent to keep dry,” said McLaughlin. “Pigeons rarely if ever get sick if they have space, dryness, good feed, minerals/grits, and clean fresh water.”

Each mated pair of pigeons should have their own nest box. The boxes do not need to be elaborate. Boxes that are 18 inches long and 12inches high and wide are suitable for most breeds. Having a small lip on the front will keep nesting materials, eggs, and squabs safe. Placing a small clay flower pot or bowl, along with nesting materials such as hay, straw, pine needles, wood chips or twigs will assist with the breeding cycle.

Perches throughout the loft and aviary can be constructed out of one by four-inch boards, tree branches, or half-inch doweling. While pigeons are highly sociable, another pigeon fact is that they can be territorial. Having ample perching is important to reduce quarreling.

What do Pigeons Eat?

Commercial grain and seed mixes are easily available at farm stores and solve the question of what do pigeons eat. Protein is important for pigeons that are producing. Peas and soybeans are great sources of protein. What do pigeons eat depends on the activity level of the birds. Different compositions are made for birds that are breeding, raising young, molting, or racing.

Some of the first food items that are eaten by the birds include green, maple, and yellow peas, mung beans and lentils. To guarantee that your birds are getting the nutritional value that is advertised on the package, the birds must eat the full range of grains. If they are given too much seed, they will pick out their favorites. By offering only the amount of food the pigeons will consume in one day, you will ensure that they are eating the nutritional diversity the bag advertises. To create your own pigeon food, check out this baseline formula.

The Scoop on Pigeon Poop

Ten thousand years ago, farming was evolving in Iran. The shift from short-term profits to sustaining yields had begun. Farmers needed a way to amend the soil after their crops had decimated the soil’s fertility. Pigeon towers, or dovecotes, became a crucial part of the agricultural economy by providing fertilizer for crops such as melons and cucumbers, which require a lot of nitrogen.

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Wild pigeons would live in these towers, which were strategically placed in fields, and the caregivers would harvest the manure once a year to sell to other farmers. The pigeon manure was considered so valuable that guards were posted at the dovecotes to keep thieves from stealing the wild birds’ droppings! In a different time in history, pigeon droppings were used as a component of gunpowder.

Dr. Ayhan Bekleyen of Dicle University, Diyarbakır, Turkey shared this dovecot from Eastern Turkey.

Cleanliness in your nest boxes and loft are important for preventing manure buildup, minimizing moisture, and keeping a healthy environment, which reduces the likelihood of disease. Placing an inch of sand on the loft floor will assist in the cleaning on the loft. You can easily sift through the sand and remove debris. Daily raking of the sand will keep the sand clean and dry. By adding a little dirt and organic matter like grass clippings to the manure, it will compost down, making your own valuable pigeon poo fertilizer. This high-nitrogen fertilizer works well on tomatoes, eggplant, melons, roses and other plants that do well in rich soil.

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Do you have a pigeon loft design or feeding tip to help beginners with figuring out what do pigeons eat that you would like to share? Let us know in the comments below.

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