HOW TO TKA-IN PIGEOKS TO " I'LY." 



don wMte with, black tails. It has been recommended that 

 the breeding-places for these birds should be private and se- 

 cluded, as from their wild nature they are liable to be dis- 

 turbed. 



HOW TO TRAIN PIGEONS TO " ELY." 



Having selected the sort of pigeons you wish to train, your 

 first aim must be to not only instil in them a fondness for their 

 home, but to maie them familiar with the appearance of its 

 exterior, as well as of the surrounding neighbourhood generally. 

 By-the-by, it should have been mentioned that it is almost 

 useless to attempt to train adult pigeons to the flying business. 

 Pigeons have curiously tenacious memories, and if it should 

 happen, even a year after they come into your possession, that 

 they, in the course of a journey, catch sight of their old abode, 

 or even of a " flight " with which they were once familiar, it is 

 a chance if you ever see them again. To return, however, to 

 the subject of training. After keeping your pigeon well fed in 

 the loft for about a fortnight, during which time you will have 

 paired him with a sober and thoroughly settled hen bird of your 

 establishment, you may allow him, under her charge, to go into 

 the trap or area, and look about him. After a few days more 

 you may let him fly at his will. "When he seems to fly " strong," 

 he may be carried out on a bright day to a distance of, say a 

 mile, to essay his first " homing." It should be borne in mind 

 that the earlier the bird is taught to rely on his own " hgming" 

 instincts, the greater proficient he is likely to become. 



The box or basket in which pigeons are carried out to be let 

 oS or " tossed " should be constructed with a view to the bird's 

 ease during the journey. If your box is large enough to con- 

 tain more than one bird, it should be divided into compart- 

 ments. " It may be from six to eight inches deep, and ten or 

 twelve inches broad ; the length will depend on the number of 

 compartments. These may be five inches broad in front, and 

 may either be made straight, or the partitions may be put in 

 obliquely, leaving only one inch width at the tail end, the wide 

 end of the open spaces coming alternately. Thus the pigeons 

 are placed in it alternately head to tail, side by side, by which 

 arrangement much space is economized. The lid is made in 

 pieces, or so jointed that only one bird is let out at a time. A 

 stout leather strap passes over all, and is secured by a buckle or 

 padlock. The boxes should have an air-hole above the head of 

 each pigeon, as weU as in the front end of each compartment. 



