Terrain Already in the 19th century there was a heated argument in bacteriology. On one side was Louis Pasteur, who believed that any pathogen should be eradicated to prevent disease. On the other side was Antoine Béchamp, who argued that disease-causing bacteria can only strike when the…

Vitamins and minerals It's been 50 years since I started studying veterinary medicine in Utrecht at the age of 17. On the one hand, it was found that vitamins play an important role in cell metabolism, but on the other hand, they were more laconically associated with the risk of deficiency symptoms. At that time it was believed that there were deficiency symptoms…

There are infections and infections I regularly get emails or phone calls from breeders asking if I can help them. You have problems. Often for a long time. The performance on the races is below average. Some say things are still going well for the first few weeks of the season, but…

In FEBRUARY 2022 - by Dr. Peter Boskamp...…

Vitamins are particularly important for pigeons because they are involved in almost every metabolic process in the body. They strengthen the immune system, are involved in building muscles and bones and generally play a major role in fertility and growth. There are 13 different vitamins in total. Most of these vital substances…

Breeding The Winter Months As the winter months approach, many breeders make plans for how to put their pairs together. Finding new potential pairs and re-pairing is usually an interesting activity. Do the newly bought pigeons also fit? To the latter, a Danish breeder who recently visited the practice has…

Did you know that…..? The moulting season is primarily the time to take particularly good care of the pigeons. Most breeders know that the prices of the following year are partly made during the moulting of the previous year. But there are still enough breeders who don't do it that way during the moult…

Leftover feed. A few years ago, before the Corona era, I visited a pigeon club to examine the members' pigeons. In a conversation before, the chairman and a breeder told me that she fed the leftover food from the young pigeons to the breeding pigeons. I was surprised that this was still happening. Youngsters in…

Transporting pigeons The transport of pigeons to the deployment sites is a sensitive issue. Conversations about it often turn into arguments. The transport managers usually do their best to ensure that everything runs as smoothly as possible. In this case, a comment or remark is quickly interpreted as a criticism. During my studies…

The Natural Approach Much has been written about this. From me too. Fortunately, there is also growing general understanding that it is better to follow the path of the “Full stuffing” to leave the pigeons with medication. Now we shouldn't throw the child out with the bathwater. Taking medication can, though…