Chris Debacker (Beveren-Leie) 1st Overall Provincial Champion KBDB West Flanders.

Confirming after a top season, it is not given to everyone but thanks to a solid strategy and thanks to the presence of a quality flight team, Chris Debacker had another top season.

Even more, a few days ago he was proclaimed 
1st General Provincial Champion KBDB West Flanders. 

The counter of the number of victories flirts with the number 42 and besides 4 provincial wins, 2 National Zone wins were also achieved.

1st Prov. Chateauroux 2,749 yearlings
1st Prov. Bourges 1,369 yearling - fastest of 2,196d.
1st Prov. Pontoise 10,119 young birds
1st Nat (z) Bourges 1,284 yearlings
1st Nat (z) Argenton 1,809 youngsters

Another noteworthy feat. Among the provincial ace birds, 18 Chris Debacker pigeons have been nominated, 16 flown by Chris and 2 flown by good friend Rik Cools. 

A yes... to further underline the quality of the Chris Debacker pigeons we give another brief report of the most important titles and nominations 2023 won at national level :

1st National Champion KBDB Great Middle Distance old + yearling 2023 
2nd National ace KBDB Great Middle Distance old birds ‘23
4th National ace pigeon KBDB long-distance old pigeons'23
4th National ace pigeon KBDB young pigeons (national racess) ‘23
6th National ace pigeon Great Middle distance yearlings ‘23 
Best young bird of Belgium - KBDB ranking - over 4 national races young pigeons

Impressive ! And these highlights are just a selection of all victories in club and regional. The Debacker pigeons fly in the lead from speed to one-day long distance, real all-rounders as they say. 

CLICK HERE FOR AN OVERVIEW OF THE RACING RESULTS 2024

What colony should be taken care of with this team ?

All pigeons both breeding and racing are paired on 25 November. A round is also bred from the racers which are played during the season. There are 28 couples of breeders coupled together. Three rounds are normally bred from the breeders for their own use. The first leg is put under feeders couples, the 2nd and 3rd round are raised by the breeders themselves. All this results in +- 200 youngsters for own use. During the season, 36 cocks were played on classic widowhood (with hens staying at home). There were 24 pairs played on total widowhood. They started with some hens more than cocks but pretty soon in the season this became a balance due to the loss of some hens. After breeding a pair of youngsters, the racers are housed in an aviary until 1 March. All this means that during the season there is very good consultation about who trains when and by whom.  Looking back over the past few months, it is the cocks on widowhood that have produced the strongest results in a system of classic widowhood i.e. with a partner staying at home, no hen for basketing (only the nest dish), rest in the loft during the day. It has been different in the past but there is no obvious reason. Since 2020, they have also set up a loft in the chaos system (cocks and hens) and have already achieved very good results with this, this season, however, they are outclassed by the cocks on classic widowhood.
The +- 200 youngsters (spread over 3 breeding rounds) are all darkened until the longest day and then lighted. A selection is made of 40 young cocks that are paired with an old hen. These are then also played on conventional widowhood. The other youngsters are put on widowhood and played on the sliding door. The youngsters are played on speed, middle-distance, heavy middle-distance and national races for youngsters. The lofts themselves are all made of wood and are kept spic and span. Everything is spotless and what is striking is the relatively limited ventilation in the lofts. Air circulation is almost only possible through the roof and the cams. Chris is critical when there would be too much draught through the lofts and everything is strongly closed. True, there is enough oxygen and there is limited extraction through the roofs. That this (after searching and testing) is the ideal set-up confirms the results.

How are the pigeons followed up medically ?
Chris is an adept at vaccinating the pigeons as much as possible. He is convinced that this is the basis for a sufficiently high resistance against all kinds of ailments.
All old pigeons are vaccinated with a combination vaccine paramyxo smallpox. In October, the old pigeons are vaccinated against paratyphoid without prior treatment with any medication. Young pigeons are vaccinated against paramyxo-rota at weaning. Three weeks later they will be vaccinated again with paramyxo-rota. Another three weeks later, vaccination with circo vaccine. Another three weeks later, vaccination against smallpox and another three weeks later vaccination against herpes virus.
After several years of implementing this approach, the youngsters are very rarely subject to all kinds of diseases and the team can be kept healthy in a fairly easy way.
Pascal Lanneau takes care of this guidance. Pascal visits every three weeks and does a manure check and a general check-up. Before the season, no treatment is given, except for a short treatment to get the heads completely clean. During the season, any intervention depends on two elements: evolution and follow-up of the results and the vet's advice.

 What feed is used, what (if any) supplements ?
The pigeons eat Vanrobaeys feed year in year out. 3 mixtures are fed:
Sport Pro Junior - Revolution nr 49 To the youngsters from weaning till the end of the season
Sport Pro Revolution Ultra nr 53 (a slightly heavier mixture) To the youngsters the last 3 to 4 feeds depending on the flight and the circumstances
To the widowers the last 4 to 5 feeds depending on the flight and the circumstances Sport Pro Revolution Light nr 57
To the widowers as a light mixture until Arras-Clermont
Chris chooses these mixtures because they contain the Pro-Immune pellet. They like to eat this and the pigeons are always in a good general condition without having to give many other products for digestion.
Feeding is strongly measured "with the spoon" stresses Chris very hard. This is strictly adhered to, food is not spilled, we try to let the pigeons take enough food until the last feeding because this improves the results and strength during the race.
As supplements, the pigeons receive the Vanrobaeys range of Health Balance without going overboard (E-booster).


 

Chris, please describe the structure of your pigeon tribe ?
I basically started with speed pigeons from some regional players. This is the basis that was formed a long time ago. In a later phase I added pigeons from very well known names (Vandenabeele, Cools, De Bruyn etc...) but out of fear of forgetting and short-changing people I will describe my strain differently.
Breeder Nick (out of 2 pigeons by Rik Cools out of Kleinzoon Bliksem x Emma as father and Inbreeding Bont Nijlen x Rik Cools as mother) is actually the basic pigeon of the current colony.
4 grandsons out of Nick have their place in the breeding loft and another grandson resides with Rik Cools (and already father of 1st nat Ascendant). These 4 grandsons from Nick are each paired with a different hen.
These grandsons (half-brothers) are coupled to 5 sisters from Georges (Georges Soenens) x Mieke (Rik Cools x Chris Debacker) who flow through the colony as another golden vein. To sum up : the children of "Salomez" with "Zanine" coupled with children of "Mieke" with "Georges" give a great progeny.
This family has produced numerous top pigeons and ace pigeons in the past and is currently doing so even more than ever. Pigeons from this breeding line are therefore further crossed with pigeons from the likes of Willem De Bruyn, Joost De Smeyter, Luc De Laere, Gino Clicque... and a few more players.
A limited exception to all this is Gerik who is this year's 4th national ace long-distance KBDB pigeon. He is the breeding result of a son of Dietje 1st nat Souillac with Erik Denijs x hen of Wilfried Vandemaele (see more on this below).
A not-to-be-missed part of the concept and formation of the strain is the long-standing collaboration with Rik Cools (Ruiselede). It is a clear win-win for both parties. A cooperation since 2005 that has produced top pigeons on both lofts, a national win and has led to both strengthening their strain and achieving top results with each other's pigeons every year. This is only possible when you work together correctly, honestly and well-meaning.

Top references  

Since several years, many have recognised the value of Chris' colony and have strengthened themselves with these pigeons. The list is a very long one, but feel free to ask Jelle Roziers (Berlaar), Rik Cools (Ruiselede), Annick Goeteyn (Deinze), Anthony Maes (Waregem), Gommaire Verbruggen (Scherpenheuvel) etc.... what the impact of Chris Debacker's pigeons was on their colony.  We could make this list even longer, but we are convinced that the heir of pigeon fanciers is already more than well aware of the quality of these pigeons. The ultimate proof of the ability and performance of pigeons is still, besides your own performance, that others succeed with your pigeons. This satisfaction within pigeon sport is also great.

Chris and his team

Chris emphasises the fact that he would not be able to achieve these results without the great motivation and drive of his friends. They consult each other, make good agreements and push each other forward ! 
Roger Simoens takes care of the youngsters and jumps in where necessary.
Wim Dewitte takes care of the hens and all pigeons in the aviaries.  Wim has years of experience in caring for pigeons at top level.
And of course Chris himself who, in consultation with my mates, sets the lines and makes the final decisions. He is responsible for the widowers on classic widowhood.  Professionally, Chris is the director of two schools where children with disabilities are educated in nursery and primary schools. So for him it is often a struggle with the limited free time to look after the pigeons perfectly. 

Together, they form this real team!

AT THIS MOMENT CHRIS DE BACKER IS OFFERING A TOP GROUP OP HIGH QUALITY BIRDS BRED OUT HIS PROVEN BREEDERS

THIS AUCTION ENDS 16 OCTOBER AT 2 p.m. (c.e.t.)