Old German Owl Pigeons Have Personality

2024 - Volume #48, Issue #4, Page #20

[ Sample Stories From This Issue | List of All Stories In This Issue | Print this story | Read this issue]

Bill Henderson has raised about 20 different breeds of showing pigeons for the past 40 years, but 15 years ago, he decided to raise just one—the Old German Owl.
“For me, they’re perfect. They’re relatively easy to house and maintain. But the standards (for showing) are strict, and I enjoy the challenge,” he says.
The name comes from their country of origin, round head shape, and distinctive black eyes. Old German Owl pigeons are relatively small and naturally tame.
“They’ll pull on my shoestrings, land on my shoulder, and peck at my finger,” Henderson says of their pet-like and friendly personalities.
He keeps eight breeder pairs comfortable in a meticulously clean pigeon loft and pays attention to the birds’ markings to follow the breed’s strict standards. The body, head, and neck should be white, and the wing shield should be colored. When the wings are open, the furthest flight feathers should be white.
“It’s a combination of the general shape of the bird, a crest on the back of the head, and the way the bird stands,” he says of the breed’s standards.
Though they have shorter beaks, Old German Owls don’t have problems feeding their young like some pigeon breeds. They tend to be good parents and easy to breed.
Pairs typically sell for $200, though he once sold a pair for $500 at an auction. Henderson says that the National Pigeon Association (www.npausa.com) and Old German Owl Club (www.ogoc.org) are good sources for more information.
The Old German Owl breed has become very popular in the last 10 years, though Henderson notes the hobby of breeding pigeons is declining in part because of the restrictions on pigeon lofts in some communities.
“It’s truly a passion and has been a great hobby for me,” Henderson says. “I’ve been to Europe twice, and some of my closest friends are pigeon raisers.”
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Bill Henderson, Chattanooga, Tenn. (whh1150@aol.com).

Click here to download page story appeared in.

Click here to read entire issue

Old German Owl Pigeons Have Personality LIVESTOCK Exotic Animals Bill Henderson has raised about 20 different breeds of showing pigeons for the past 40 years but 15 years ago he decided to raise just one—the Old German Owl “For me they’re perfect They’re relatively easy to house and maintain But the standards for showing are strict and I enjoy the challenge ” he says The name comes from their country of origin round head shape and distinctive black eyes Old German Owl pigeons are relatively small and naturally tame “They’ll pull on my shoestrings land on my shoulder and peck at my finger ” Henderson says of their pet-like and friendly personalities He keeps eight breeder pairs comfortable in a meticulously clean pigeon loft and pays attention to the birds’ markings to follow the breed’s strict standards The body head and neck should be white and the wing shield should be colored When the wings are open the furthest flight feathers should be white “It’s a combination of the general shape of the bird a crest on the back of the head and the way the bird stands ” he says of the breed’s standards Though they have shorter beaks Old German Owls don’t have problems feeding their young like some pigeon breeds They tend to be good parents and easy to breed Pairs typically sell for $200 though he once sold a pair for $500 at an auction Henderson says that the National Pigeon Association www npausa com and Old German Owl Club www ogoc org are good sources for more information The Old German Owl breed has become very popular in the last 10 years though Henderson notes the hobby of breeding pigeons is declining in part because of the restrictions on pigeon lofts in some communities “It’s truly a passion and has been a great hobby for me ” Henderson says “I’ve been to Europe twice and some of my closest friends are pigeon raisers ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Bill Henderson Chattanooga Tenn whh1150@aol com

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.

SUBSCRIBE OR RENEW NOW