The Feather's Practical Pigeon Book 



endurance. Without these quaUties they would be no 

 success as long-distance flyers ; and it is only the birds 

 possessed of these qualities in a high degree that return 

 from the three, four, and five-hundred-mile races. 

 Hundreds sent out to cover these distances never return, 

 which makes Homing Pigeon flying' an expensive 

 amusement. But the" cock or hen that succeeds in mak- 

 ing these long distances, and doing it several times in 

 succession, becomes an idol in the loft of its owner. 



While many pigeons will fly quite a distance, such as 

 the Owl, the Swallow, the Dragoon, the Archangel, the 

 Tumbler, and others, still birds kept for the particular 

 amusement of long-distance flying are mainly the vari- 

 ety already mentioned — the Antwerp. To establish a 

 flock of this variety with a view to flying them, it will 

 be necessary to begin with young birds that never have 

 flown, as old birds would return to their birthplace if 

 once flown from there, or else become lost when let 

 loose. Young birds can be raised from old ones pur- 

 chased and kept confined, or they can be purchased 

 when just able to care for themselves, and as soon as 

 able to fly allowed their liberty about their new home. 

 They will know no other, and so be contented and al- 

 ways have a love for that locality. After having be- 

 come well acquainted with their outdoor surroundings 

 and grown strong and hearty, they can commence their 

 training for long-distance flying. At first they should 

 be taken five miles from home and liberated. If they 

 are successful in returning they can again be taken this 

 distance, then increased to ten, then to twenty, and so 

 on by gradual steps and constantly increasing distances 

 until they have become fitted for the supreme effort of 

 their lives, the 500-mile distance. Few birds accom- 

 pHsh this feat, but those that are capable of it are worthy 



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