On the national race from Argenton we again had to deal with a one-day delay. On Saturday it was absolutely not possible to release the pigeons and on Sunday we had to deal with a strong tailwind, which again made the speed very high. The Team Leus family colony is a pigeon colony with several generations, the youngest member is drumming to sit in the pigeon loft and there are 3 generations that have been bitten by the bug. The family here consists of grandfather Karel, son Koen and his 2 sons. 

Their Sunday couldn't go wrong because they also won 1st Noyon against 2,288 young pigeons in the morning. The condition of the pigeons has been very good in recent weeks, so they also hoped for a good result from Argenton. 

This year the young pigeons were separated into groups for the first time, the group for speed was in a separate loft and the group for the national flights in a different loft. In the beginning we have about 200 young pigeons of which we know that we will certainly have to deal with some losses in the beginning due to a large release. That is why we first kept the speed pigeons separate this year and this means that the losses are somewhat more limited. The pigeons also train separately and are supervised separately, the pigeons sit on grids in the boxes and on the floor.

The young pigeons for the national flights were darkened until mid-June and were enlightened from mid-July until the end of the season. The sexes also remained together until about 14 days before Bourges and from then on they were played on the sliding door. The pigeons come together by feeling before basketing, so sometimes it is 1 hour, sometimes it is 2 hours. Once they understand the game of widowhood, the time they stay together becomes shorter. After the flight they stay together until the next morning. 

In preparation they flew 2x Quievrain, 2x Noyon, 2x Toury and then towards the national flights. We also keep a group in the shorter middle distance because we notice that the pigeons come home fitter and provide an atmosphere when the sliding door opens. 

During the day they live in an aviary at the front of the cages that is equipped with windbreak mesh, so they do not come into direct contact with the sun and their eyes remain more or less under control.

Another small detail, after the season the young hens are transferred to the lofts of Rudi Vandeputte, which is located 6 km away, and there the hens are raced as yearlings, while here they only race with yearling cocks. 

In terms of nutrition, the pigeons always receive Versele – Laga mixtures. The young pigeons receive breeding mixture until the first flight of the season. Afterwards we switch to Gerry Plus and Champion Plus. We did it this way because our youngsters trained very well at home from the start, so we did not dare to switch any faster. As an extra, we use Multi Mix and Morning Mix from Patagoon, which contain everything they need.

In the medical field, due to our professional job we are often in contact with a veterinarian, so we have our pigeons checked every 14 days. Better to prevent than to cure. If something is present, we are usually very quick to respond, so we only have to give something for 1 day and the pigeons immediately recover and are ready for the next flight. 

Winner Argenton

The best young pigeon of the season was the “407”, which came really regularly and well to the top, which gave her nest sister the chance to race at Argenton. This one had not yet proven to her as it should have and so you can see that you really have to give the pigeons a chance. She had recently been paired with a young cock, which already motivated her to fly Argenton.

BE 24-4055406  "Estella" Blue Hen
1st National Argenton 9.401 young birds (fastest 11,188p)

Arrival : 12:46:20
Distance : 511.167km
Avg.Speed ​​: 1883.91m/min

Father BE 22-5051214 Porsche Jarne – Franky Appelmans

Gr.F. BE 20-4158341 Favorite Franky – PEC                
           Son of “650/18” Son Porsche 911 x Sun 1 Nat Ace Pigeon heavy middle distance KBDB Benny Steveninck x 
           “104/18” Daughter Porsche 911 x Annelise 1 Nat Ace Pigeon heavy middle distance yearlings KBDB Vandenheede F & J
Gr.M. BE 20-4158316 Dali 316 – PEC                
             Daughter of “418/15” Brother Dali 418 x “481/19” Sister Porsche 481 is daughter of stock couple “Wacko Freddy” x “Lieve” 

Mother BE 19-4086571 Blauw Pootje – Rudi Vandeputte
Won herself 1 Argenton 84p – 2 Chateauroux 334p – 5 Limoges 223p – 5 Tulle 271p – 6 Argenton 418p -7 Souillac 146p – 11 Limoges 394p  

Gr.F. BE 17-4207079 Son New Rudy – DVV Pigeons                
          Proven top breeder and father of 1 Nat (z) La Souterraine 4,119p – 5 Nat (z) Issoudun 4,627p    
         Son of “561/15” New Rudy 1 Nat Brive 5,925p Frederik Everaert x “748/11” Smart Princess
Gr.M. BE 17-3075197 Tornado Queen – Rudy Desaer                
           Daughter of “860/10” Antonio 1 Nat Souillac 7,760p x “321/16” Romy is full sister New Jens 5 Nat Ace Pigeon Long Distance KBDB