How come?
"I really do not understand" is what both L from Taiwan and L from China said.
Both of them are fanatic and competitive and always looking for the best.
They are "not poor", they both bought expensive birds from great names in Europe that turned out to be totally worthless.
And they are both surprised that such great names can breed such bad pigeons.
It makes me think of my own experiences. I also bought pretty many birds.
As soon as a fancier thinks he has the best birds and he cannot improve his family that is the beginning of the end.
And what did I experience?
Cheap birds or birds that I got for free were the best.
And then you should know how people do their utmost to sell or give me quality birds because they want to be on good terms with me/the media. They realise well their reputation is at stake.
And it must be said, also others were most successful with birds of mine that they got for free.
FOR FREE
- Take Dutch B Knaven. I gave him a child of "Home Alone" as a birthday present. Only 3 years later her babies made him National Champion long distance.
- H Kennis had a bird that was probably the best of all Holland at long distance in 2011. It was bred from a present of mine as well.
- Back in 2007 I had 2 my 019 and 020. Two nest sisters that were outstanding racers. J Storms got eggs off the same parents, the off spring made him one of the best in Antwerp. Vercammen got a sister of my 019 and 020 for free which is now a great breeding hen in his lost.
- I let M Wouters use a hen. She became mother of his "Ad", the best bird of ALL Belgium and 1st OLympiad bird as well.
- Jochems van Hasselt got a pigeon for a voucher. Two years later he won 1st and 4th Semi National. With a baby of my gift.
- I donated R v d Zijde 2 birds that became parents of the NATIONAL Ace fond.
- I gave Cor Leytens a hen for free. A son (Lammert. 1st Olympiad bird) won:
3.353 p - 1
1.373 p -1
4.780 p - 1
4.720 p -1
1.972 p - 1
5.429 p - 2
4.799 p - 2 And so on!!!
In the pigeon press you can often read about great pigeons that the fanciers got for free and is not strange.
With gifts there is more to it: Friendship. You do not give presents to a person you do not like. And persons you do like you will not give rubbish.
But presents are rare today"s materialistic world. Today it is often pigeons for money, money for pigeons. And unfortunately foreigners face problems that we do not have.
This man also breeds junks
PROBLEMS FOR FOREIGNERS
- They do not know the strength of the competition, which is very important. A first prize means little. I need to know where it was won, in what area, against whom.
- They do not know if the fanciers from whom they want pigeons are "medicine men".
I do not advise birds from fanciers that medicate a lot
- They cannot handle the birds and it is hard for them to judge results correctly. Some race few birds, while others, the "sellers" in most cases, race an army.
It looks impressive when you see the name of a fancier 85 times on the result sheet. That means he won 85 prizes.
On the other hand, the fancier that won 7 prizes does not impress at all.
But what if the first fanciers entered 160 birds and the second fancier only 7?
BRAINWASHED
The point is media abroad do whatever they can to brainwash fanciers.
The result is that many are struck by the pedigree craze.
- They believe only great names breed great pigeons.
- They believe pigeons are good just because they were bred by great names.
- They believe that if a pigeon is good, the brothers and sisters are good as well.
It is not that simple though, I would say: Thanks God.
Don"t all those people that pay crazy prices for birds realise there are so few good birds I sometimes wonder?
The answer is simple: No, they do not. And the media are to blame.
Take pigeon magazines. The money of the subscribers is not enough to survive, therefore they are involved in the pigeon business. Promoting and pushing certain fanciers and birds means money. The truth is not important.
If some(!) middle men and auctioneers would not keep up appearances they would finish themselves as well.
PROOFS
In Belgium there is a saying that if you buy 10 birds and ONE is real good you were lucky. How true this is. Open your eyes and see:
- The majority of the well known names will breed at least a 100 babies yearly. In case 10% would be any good that would mean 30 good pigeons in 3 years" time. Who has TEN good pigeons?
- Take those fanciers that have say 20 racers and 25 breeding pairs. 25 pairs easily produce 600 babies in four years" time. Still 20 racers only? Hmmm.
- Why do champions breed so many babies to-day? Because they know it enhances their chances. Therefore I cannot help smiling when I hear fanciers from the Far East talk about Golden Couples. Stefaan Lambrechts, a coming man, once said: No one in Belgium has a pair that gives ONE super EVERY year.
The late Adriaan Janssens (one of the brothers), used to say: "A couple that gives one super in their whole life is a good breeding couple."
And these as well.
A BIT EXAGGERATED
I agree, it is a bit exaggerated, but by exaggerating you can make things clear.
Take also Klak, Houben, Diels and Heremans for arguments" sake.
Klak had only one "613", Houben only one "Sony", Diels one "Goudhaantje". Gust Janssen (Leo Heremans) one "Olympiad". What about all their brothers and sisters?
I myself handled numerous National Aces, National winners, Olympiad birds and so on. But never ever did I see a bird that had a handful brothers or sisters that were equally good. The late Carlens used to say: "If people want to buy your super, sell the parents as well. Because chances that the pair will ever give another super are almost zero." Naturally this was also exaggerated, but he did have a point.
HEREMANS AND V D WOUWER
That brings us to recent "total" auctions that are already historic.
Like those of Leo Heremans and v d Wouwer.
Belgian fanciers shook their heads when they heard about the outcome of both.
10% of the birds good? Let us give Heremans the benefit of the doubt and let us assume 20% of the birds he bred were good.
That means 400 of the 500 that he auctioned for over 4 million (euros) were no good.
By now, 2 years later, it seems that fanciers have found out about that.
Only 2 years ago, it seemed that they thought Leo only bred supers. How else can you explain that it was hard to get a bird for less than 1,000 euros?
In the fall of 2014 he auctioned 10 birds again. The outcome was real bad. Would he only breed bad birds now?
Today v d Wouwer is hot. He recently auctioned 300 birds. I am sure even Gaston himself will doubt if there were 20 good ones among them. Check out the prices that were paid and you get my point.
Within 3 years the v d Wouwer craze will also be over.
The people will have found also v d Wouwer breeds much junk.
Who will be the new hype then?
A sharp knife is the first step to be successful
IN CONCLUSION
Do not take me wrong:
- Of course you have a greater chance with pigeons from a champion.
- And of course you have a greater chance with brothers or sisters of a super.
And what about buying record birds? Hmm. Most record birds that are offered for sale are poor breeders. That is why they are for sale.
One of my sayings is: Buying is an art. Now you may know what I mean.
TEN COMMANDMENTS
1.
"Great names" does not automatically mean great birds. It is the art of a successful buyer to get bids just before a man gets famous. Such people have fewer birds, and those are cheaper. You have more chances since the demand is not so high yet.
2.
Better buy birds from fanciers that lack space. If they do not have enough space they are obliged to get rid of birds that others would keep.
3.
Stay away from "medicine men" and top handlers. They get the maximum out of their birds so that you get the impression that they are better than they really are.
People that exaggerate medicating have birds that lack natural health.
4.
Fanciers who advertise a lot have a reason to do so: No clients for their birds. And why are there no clients? The answer is simple.
5.
Only buy OLD birds in TOTAL auctions.
6.
Never buy so called second hand birds. The seller should also be the breeder.
I wonder who has ever eliminated birds from popular names such as Janssens, Koopman, Vandenabeele and so on. As if they did/do not breed junk.
In the past such junk was eliminated. Today they are put in big aviaries waiting for clients.
7.
Do not pay crazy money for babies that have not proven anything, regardless the origin. Better buy more birds at a reasonable price. Compare it with a lottery. The more tickets the more chances.
8.
Auctioneers that claim only super birds are for sale should not be taken seriously.
"Only super birds?" You can only find such birds in catalogues or on auction sites.
9.
If you buy through the internet only buy from people that you can trust and have a good reputation.
10.
Do not fall for inbreeds. Many people think the more a well known bird is in the pedigree the better the pigeon. The truth is that most good birds are crossings.
11.
Many completely un known fanciers have better birds than the great names. They are un known because they enter very few birds.
12.
Never buy early breds. Serious fanciers need such birds themselves. They are their future.
13
If the fancier from whom you want to buy is a serious person do not tell him what he should sell you, leave the choice to him.
14.
And remember what I said about judging results correctly.
Did not I say TEN commandments? Right. You got some for free. MAYBE they are the best. Remember those free pigeons.
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This is what I told L from Taiwan and L from China.
Hopefully I helped them to find out what they did wrong.
I pointed out what I would NOT do when buying birds if I were a foreigner.
In another article I will tell what I would do if I were from China, Roemania, USA or wherever.