Thought of the Day - Training Birds

We often get asked where to buy gun dog training birds - quail, chukar, pheasant, and pigeons. More often than not we'll suggest they go to www.mynaga.org, North American Gamebird Association, to find a supplier in their local area. If they're not on this website, they probably don't exist unless, of course, they're very small and don't produce a lot of birds.

For pigeons, finding a supplier may be a bit more difficult. If you're looking for birds just to train with, and you don't have a loft, you may be able to find a local supplier of "common" pigeons or you may need to trap them yourself. "Common" pigeons are those that you see flying around - near farms, overpasses, major cities, etc. Ask some local bird dog clubs if there's a local supplier and you'll probably find one rather quickly.

In my opinion, homing pigeons are the way to go. They're basically a renewable resource simply because once they've been released during dog training, they'll return back to their loft to be used again in future dog training sessions! To find a supplier for homing pigeons, I've always found it easy to find a local racing pigeon loft that was looking to sell or cull some birds that I could use as breeding stock. A simple GOOGLE search in your area should get you to a local pigeon racing loft.

You'll need to keep the breeding pair secure in your loft simply because if they do get out, they will "home" back to their original loft. The good news, their offspring will home to your loft!!!

Good luck and here's to many great training and hunting seasons ahead!!!