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  Text and photos by L. Monneret, 2000.

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Hello everybody,

I am Lionel MONNERET, I am 21 years old and I'm native to the Saone & Loire (France). I'm impassioned by birds in general and especially by pigeons. I hope this article which relates to my breeding will interest you and that you will be many people to join us to the club of the French Eastern pigeons to help us has to give his place to this extraordinary pigeon, the DAMASCENE.Good reading.

For all questions dont wait to go by the site or well by my E-mail: liomon@moncourrier.com

HISTORY OF AN INCIPIENT HOBBY

I began breeding from pigeons there is five years with at the start a PAIRE of old dutch Capuchine Dutch given to me by a breeder which I pays homage here. The same year and since I had obtained good results with the Baccalauréat, my father has agree to increase the breeding and thus we built two birdcages. Thus I will want to us them for good use. By photographs ones of the standards breeds, I had retained ten races likely to interest me.

First I want to have simply pleasant pigeons, at most of average size and especially not too common. It was necessary to choose and I had already understood the interest to have not so many races. It seemed logical to me to haven't too many paires because it will be difficult for me to control the breeding (I was materially limited).

Autumn 1996, I visited several shows pigeons and I 'm" fall " on five or six specimens of Damascenes. It was literally what one calls "falling in love".

These pigeons which may be were not exceptional comparatively to the standard, however to my eyes I noticed them, the luminosity made them incredibly beautiful. There were two fanciers exhibitors and one of them became a great friend Francisco VIDELA today. Thus I bought a paire has each one, which one I join the first year two paire of Ice pigeon, very prolific breed but I renewed the breed the following year because of their crazy character.(very, very wild).

• Loft visiting
  Text and photos by L. Monneret, 2000.

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TODAY AN ALIVE HOBBY

Since, my breeding object evolved and now I try with that I have to improving year by year the quality of my birds.

About breeding:

Practical:

Each year I mate two paires of Damascenes for breeding and lets them to have 8 young each to tha max. which They are placed in a birdcage (1,50*2*1,90m, on the right on the photo), birdcage have boxes in wood (dimension of the box 50*45*25cm) to the setting to the breeding season, at the Saint Valentin (February the 14).

These boxes are withdrawn from the birdcage at the beginning of July and are replaced by individual perches. The pigeons are then out mated:

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  • The hens go with the young in the birdcage (1,60*2*1,90m) which was reserved to them until now (it is also equipped with individual perches and is on the left on the photograph).
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  • The cocks remain and all the young people who become of this sex joins them.
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Sight of breeding box, always largely defended against possible adversaries. They are provided for each one of a removable separation which one facilitates cleaning. The nests are quite simply flowers pots regularly cleaned and mulched.

Results: To appear soon

• Loft visiting
  Text and photos by L. Monneret, 2000.

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About food

For the breeders and only in breeding period they always have provision of corn and wheat as well as new water every day.

The peas are added in a plastic manger to the center of the birdcage every day but in limited quantity because my pigeons do an excessive consummation of it if they have them so much. Thus given, they come to take their share and quickly will feeding their young. The ground being covered with sand, I distributed them a grit building from various societies once per week only just like vitamins in the drink water.

As regards young, the pigeons are feeding once per day has regular hours with a mixture of wheat, of barley, pea and corn (the last in reasonable proportions) and that quasi at will. The barley which isn't feeding at first by its lack of appetence thereafter is well accepted by the pigeons. But water is permanently available just like the grit, the ground of the birdcage being covered with wood and being scraped every day in wet weather.

The pigeons have the possibility to go outside under more or less high monitoring. They learn then very quickly to return inside when I call them (meant by the daily give ration), by the Sputnik like carrier place side to the loft. Some more submissive prefer to go inside by the door… but what more simple!

• Loft visiting
  Text and photos by L. Monneret, 2000.

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To the opposite to Jean Paul SIMON (see article on ite) which selects relatively to each births squabs, actually I have selected my pigeons only at the end of the breeding season. And this I explain it by the fact that I didn't have enough retreat and I waited to have all the young to be able to compare between them.

JToday I know there are birds which have defects which will be able to improve (we could believe with the age and the moult...) and will disappear for ever.

The only one birds that I sacrifice before the end of the moult are those which have an important delay of growth (what I consider prejudicial for later).

For about fifteen pigeons a half to the two thirds will not go on show and I could qualify them like bad birds (useful for nobody). The others i.e. between five and seven can be shown. It is after the French championship that I definite which will be worthy to become breeders. The others will be sold but in all the cases if it are not , they will be killed.

Here I want to remember at first it is necessary to learn, understand and especially to know the standard to have good results. In this subject nothing will replace the personal experiment but also those of the others breeders (which it is necessary to transmit), to go ahead more quickly but not too it's this which I gone wrong the end of the season last year: I had obtained two good hens but which were (and are) very differents, one is rather bulky and seem to be somewhat as a cock (especially on the head size), the other of a medium size but more feminine type. Thus I decided to go them to the championship of Châtellerault (and they went there) and thought that the first was better well than the second. Before this, Anthime LEROY was to go at home while the championship of the club Alouette de Cobourg of Chalon sur Saône and told me the opposite above and it was true at the championship. Today and since that each one were put at the breeding I do not regret having took the advice of JP SIMON.

By lionel Monneret