Basics about Tipplers
(Internet Published) Mar 2001
Working Tipplers are more of a liability than an asset unless they are
properly trained from an early age. No man can train more than a few at a
time. A kit of Tipplers must essentially be small in number. The minimum is
3 and in my opinion it is folly to fly more than 5. The size of a kit is
directly proportional to the range of the flight. The longer the ranges of a
kit the more likely it is to fly long times. There are no Tipplers that fly
long times when they fly within sight of the loft all of the time.
Tipplers are intended for time. High flying or low flying is of no
consequence. High flying does not necessarily mean longer times. Some of the
best highflying pigeons don't exceed one hour. Contests in the UK have been
won with kits that don't fly very high. Anyway, excessive high flying can so
easily end in a disaster, as they are prone to become disorientated and
completely lost. Furthermore, they are a great attraction to the Peregrine
Falcons.
I always worry when I find that my kit gets up to excessive altitudes
estimated at one mile high or more and looking like the tiniest specks. A
lot of losses have happened when pigeons have flown to this altitude and
Tippler kits have been disqualified due to the fact that they were
unobservable.
The control and discipline of Tipplers requires time and expertise and there
are no mass production techniques. Any man who tries to train more than 10
at a time is creating too much of a problem. When I see that some man has
ordered 100 rings I see only squander. His mass production will yield a lot
of birds that are not trained properly. The sales of such become a financial
enterprise but what are these men selling?
Untrained specimens of good pedigree and that is all.
Genetically speaking all working livestock should have had withstood the
strain of training before being qualified for the breeding loft. There are
no cull free strains of Tipplers and if we breed from failures or unproven
stock I can see nothing but failure. Why fill lofts with "Plugs"? They just
eat the feed and muck the place up - That's all.