What is the best way to acquire new stock?

Edited BY Paul 7-25-10 today with the World Wide Web, it is easy to find a Champion loft from coast to coast. We are able to view this Champion loft’s racing performance and look at his birds online.  I recommend that this is the unsurpassed way to acquire new stock, from a Champion Loft, “from the web”.  Buy the most excellent birds you can afford. It is also advisable to look at high dollar one loft races and study the winning birds, make sure they are consistent birds in this one loft series of races.  You are not interested in winners of a single race at any one loft race, but only birds clocked on top of the sheet in the whole series of 3 or 4races.  Before the web, we would go and see the best loft in the neighboring combine.  A loft that was doing all the winning and always in the top diplomas is what I looked for. This loft, you would not have to compete against with their birds when you bred and raced the birds. Without the worry of your new birds challenging against his loft, with his blood lines, make for an easy exchange of birds.  

Most fanciers start off with gift pigeons from some of their new club mates. Let's face it, are the unfamiliar club mates giving you the best from their loft? Are you willing to buy a bird for an x amount of dollars and give it to someone you just met or received a call from looking for some free birds? From time to time, people do give the best in this kind of situation. They are folks indeed who show this kind of kindheartedness, but I feel that most of the time fanciers give you just birds and that bird is a So-So bird. Once the bird breeds or they race the bird, and if it breeds satisfactory or races on top of the sheet then, these gift givers are as excited as you. In reality, it is because they did not know in the first place, the bird would have done so well, or it would still be at their loft breeding and racing. Remember there is always an exception to the whole kit and caboodle, in life, you might be in the right place, at the right time, and the great pigeon master will shower you with champion birds. Good Luck! Today there are oodles of pigeon dealers selling birds.  From these brokers of pigeons, you will see most of there for sale birds, are out of, and there so called good ones. The birds bred out of a bird whose grand sire was a champ in most cases. What they do not tell you is they send piles of birds out to the futurity races, friends' loft, etc. when one score from the merchants' loft, in a race, they flood the publicity channels with their story of this winning bird. You never hear about the many birds they sent out all over the USA that did not score or even make it to the race.  

We also see the fellow who only started racing two or three years ago and won a race or two. He now deems he earned the right to market and sells his stock. One or two races wins do not make a titleholder. A lot of these web auctions rarely auction off the winners themselves, but back in the lineage, there were great champion years ago. I personally think the pigeon internet auction clearing houses are not the way to go, to start with birds to enter this world of pigeon racing. These auction sites are filled with pigeons from wantabe champions. Most birds at auction are birds bought by fanciers, occasionally for high dollars. At the moment, that, they have bred those birds, once or twice, they now want to resell the birds to get a portion of their venture capital back, with no regard how well the progenies flew.  Every so often, these fanciers bred these auction birds and fly the youngsters, if the young birds do well then the birds are kept for stock, if they do not propagate well then back on the auction block, for sale to you or somebody else makes an effort to breed or race, in the end. They I am sure a repeat the whole process. I have heard people say they are going to exterminate out the loft and put the birds up for auction; they do not want the birds, so why should you? Do not introduce birds, like this to your loft. A lot of these auctions rarely auction off the race winners, but back in the pedigree, there was a pigeon with great market ability, Name brand birds, birds whose names are pasted over and over in the magazine with many people selling birds bred out of these old champions. I want to say again the champion may be well back in the pedigree, and the blood line is very thin, but the champion birds' name becomes, house hold names in the sport. These types of pigeon were marketed and sold like Christmas toys to kids, and everyone wants one or has one of them.

I also know you should consider yourself  fortunate if you get a bird after paying for it from some of these folks which sell their birds at auction, I in person have heard of many cases where someone  would pay for the bird or birds at auction, and the bird or birds would not ever get shipped. The peddler does not return your calls, but he cashes your check. Conversely, he takes your money back from your pay pal account. When this happens you suffer the thrashing, because these snakes, who call them self, breeders, wait for the specific time period of 30 or 60 days, and pay pal will not issue your money back to you, your check is cashed and cleared, and this crook or ass does not respond to any of your communication tries. .  Be Careful!!! You think you are going to save a few bucks by going with, the going for a song route, but it will cost you more in the end. These snakes cannot guide you how to win, because they cannot be victorious themselves. Remember the pedigree is only as good as the guy who makes it out...  

A person has to make his own conclusions and get what kind of pigeon is pleasing to him, and then have trust in his breeder.  I like a performance pedigree with lots of winners in the pedigree or birds that breed winners. I believe there is no room in the breeding loft for apprentices. I guess I am proof that if a fellow goes to the top flyers and pays attention to his advice arid gets some of his good ones, he will get to the top of the race sheet.

You should start off with pigeons that can and will put you on top of the race sheet, and at Walsh loft we have them! So can you!