Belgium then developed a 1/8 inch brass leg band, that was sent to racers in America to use.

Nowadays, to compete in a race, a pigeon must wear a permanent, unique numbered ring or band that is placed on its leg at about 5 days old

In a race, the distance between the bird's home loft and the racepoint is carefully measured by GPS.

The time taken by the bird to return is measured using one of the two acceptable timing methods.

Sometimes there are 2 divisions: one for the young birds (usually yearlings in their first year of competition) and another for older birds

#RacingPigeons are housed together in a specially designed dovecote or loft.

From about 4 weeks of age until the end of its racing career, the racing loft is the #pigeon's home and is where it returns to on race day.

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After 22-28 days in the nest the young birds are removed and placed in a section of a large loft or in a smaller loft built for the purpose

While wandering around, #pigeons are constantly observing their surroundings and becoming familiar with them.

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As the confidence of young #pigeons grow, they gradually wander farther and farther from home until they are out of sight.

While #TrainingPigeons, they can fly for as much as 2 hours before returning to the loft.

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As #PigeonRacing takes place over great distances in the sky, instead of on a racetrack, there are many hazards that could befall a pigeon

The main hazard encountered by racing pigeons is predation by birds of prey.

The killing of valuable #pigeons by wild predators has led to some #pigeonfanciers being suspected of killing birds of prey such as falcons

Another hazard that racing pigeons encounter is flying into objects they sometimes cannot see.

Despite big lengths, races can be won and lost by seconds, so many different timing devices have been developed.

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