THE RACING PIGEON 29 MARCH 2024
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pairs together that in the second year the resulting children are not so good and in the third season they produce nearly all failures!” Then Hugo revealed the biggest benefit of his actions. “If I bred good ones off a couple then separate them and the next year the cock breeds well but the hen breeds rubbish and the following year it is the same with the third fresh coupling then I know which are my most potent breeding birds. The cock must stay but the hen must be disposed of”. ‘Lady Percy’ is a classic example of what Hugo is saying she bred brilliantly with a selection of mates proving that she laid ‘the golden eggs’. I also asked Hugo about inbreeding and his answer was very candid. “Yes we do inbreed but only to the very best producers it would be pointless using anything less that the very best but the offspring are put into the basket and tested as I have already explained we don’t believe in putting these inbreds straight into the breeding loft. They must prove their own racing ability first”. So if you follow Hugo’s sound advice you will in a short period of time have good, proven breeders in your stock loft and a good selection of half brothers and sisters to maintain the family. I believe that if the above is all that you the reader learns from this article then you will have gleaned invaluable information. Before anyone tries to shoot Hugo’s principle down with examples of ‘Super Pairs’ then remember it is only when the couple is parted that you reveal the true ‘Golden Producer’. They say that ‘It takes two to tango’ yes but one is usually the better dancer! My final thought on this one is what a friend once told me when he said, “Bred a lot then try and lose them!”. This is very strict but sound advice. Obviously Kipp & Son are of the same opinion. Another subject which Hugo has discussed with me is how they feed their race team and here once again the Kipps differ from many of their peers. They tend to feed their birds a lighter mixture than many other veteran long distance enthusiasts. Their base ‘light feed’ is made up of 30% maize (mixed varieties), 10% peas and 5% soya beans. The remainder of the mixture is made up of 35% cereals such as wheat, barley, oats, safflower, dari and rice. With 13% the higher fat level seeds such as sunflower hearts, millet and linseed. The remainder being made up of paddy rice and a small amount of sweet lupine which is a seed that few use or have access to in the UK. The partners like the lupine because of its high protein levels (I would add a word of warning here as many lupine seeds are
your birds from a good fancier who is winning from the distances that you wish to succeed from. Then you must race the children because that is the way to prove that you have chosen your sources wisely”. Wulfram and Hugo have introduced birds in from many sources over the years. From fanciers such as W Bolting (Pol Bostyn lines) their ‘Lady Percy’ the mother of the partners fantastic ‘La Petite Marseille’ which won 1st International Hens from Marseille and 1st National
A view inside the aviaries.
Marseille 6,466 birds. Also this superb hen won 1st from the ultimate race point Barcelona against 1,048 birds and 3rd International from Marseille 16,784 birds was bred by Bolting. When looking a little closer at ‘Lady Percy’ which was a Bolting crossing of Bostyn x Kuyper Brothers bloodlines, you will see that she is a marvellous producer being mother to a host of great racer breeders including ‘Christina’ and ‘Lisa’ but it must be remembered that she was always coupled to great pigeons such as ‘Oberon’ and the fabulous ‘Rainmaker’. The 2011 International Ace pigeon ‘Golden Glory’ is a product of birds from Emile Matterne. Other stock sources include Piet de Weerd and Van Wanroy. So it is clear that the partners went in search of and got the superior bloodlines. Which reminds me of the saying that ‘you won’t make a silk purse out of an old sows ear’. What the partners did though was as Hugo said, they put the progeny of these purchases immediately to the test…the basket, the ultimate selector.
toxic. So unless you know exactly what you are feeding I’d recommend leaving the lupine and it’s seed in the garden borders!). The birds are given 1¼ ounces of this mix daily per bird, ½ an ounce in the morning and ¾ ounce in the evening. It is only for the last four or five days that the birds get a heavier mixture which isn’t rationed and extra oil feed by way of seeds and a handful of peanuts offered
as a treat. Over the last couple of days the birds consume nearly 50% extra food in the build up to a long race. For the final feed the birds get a mix of equal parts, light feed, paddy rice and seeds. If the birds just pick at this final meal, being very selective of what they choose to eat the partners know that they have been prepared correctly and that their ‘tank is full of fuel’. One example that the feed is not so very important was when Hugo suggested that they send a particular bird because he was exercising so strongly at home but Kipp senior commented, “But he has not been prepared for a long flight he has only been given the light feed” Hugo though
Championships 2011 1st National Ace Pigeon Long Distance (2 races) 1st National Ace Pigeon Marathon (3 races) 2nd National winner of the Seegmüller Trophy 3rd National winner Golden Barcelona Pigeon 4th National winner Artur Lück Trophy 5th National Champion Long Distance 8th National Ace Pigeon Long Distance (2 races) 8th National winner Mediterranean Cup
Another of Hugo’s principles is the fact that he only puts a couple together for one year. They are then parted and paired to a new partner the following year. I found this rather odd, after all if you have found a pair that breeds ‘the goods’ would it not be wise to keep them together, I enquired? Once again Hugo explained his thinking, “Mike I have found in my experience that the best offspring come from first time couplings. In the past when we left the
8th National winner Atlantic Cup 10th National Marathon Champion
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