The NSS Part 2 - A AND T Deacon by Gareth Watkins

The Norman Southwell Series - Part 2

by Gareth Watkins

A & T Deacon of Waterlooville

Continued success with their Southwells

Albie and Jeanette Deacon of Waterlooville in Hampshire have an enviable record in long distance races competing with the NFC, BICC and CSCFC. They have always enjoyed success at club and fed level with their birds, but when the Southwells were introduced some 20 years ago their performances at National level “took off”. Since that time they have been placed in the top 500 Open from Pau with the NFC every year and have only once been out of the top 200 Open. During the same period Albie and Jan have twice won 1st Section plus 2nd Open from Pau with the NFC. The Langstone Gold Cup awarded in the NFC to the fancier[s] with the Best Ave all NFC races has also found its way into the Deacon’s trophy cabinet. Add to this impressive list an additional 4 x 1st Open plus many 2nds, 3rds, 4ths etc when competing with the BICC in long distance International races, and you can appreciate the class both of the fanciers, and their team of long distance pathfinders. They have also won the two bird average from Perpignan International six times and twice had the only bird on the day from Dax International!

The original Southwells were obtained from Jimmy Shepherd, Roger Goble and Ernie Deacon, Albie’s cousin. These conformed to the typical Southwell type being small to medium sized, mostly dark chequers and black velvets. The feather quality was superb and the birds tended to be “a bit flighty”. These characteristics are still evident in the Deacon team today.

Approximately 100 birds are wintered and these are housed in three separate lofts. The main racing loft measures 28 ft x 10 ft and has a pantiled roof and a 4ft wide internal corridor running along the front. This corridor reduces the depth of the internal sections and helps maintain control over the birds. A second loft of 20 ft x 8 ft, also with a tiled roof, houses the 60 – 70 strong y.b. team. The stock birds enjoy life in an 8 ft x 9 ft stock loft with associated aviary. A deep litter of straw is employed in all lofts and this is removed and replaced with a new litter annually.

All birds, including stock birds, are mated around the middle of March. The racers have an open loft from 6.30 am until dark and are raced exclusively on the natural system throughout the season. Very little roadwork is necessary as the birds are of the type that rarely put on fat and keep themselves fit with their constant coming and going during daylight hours. However, just before the target race set for them, the team does get a few 30 – 50 mile tosses as final preparation. Albie also likes to see the team with a good 8 – 10 hour fly under their belts in the last race before the target race to which they are generally sent sitting 8 – 10 day old eggs. The Deacons have never had any success with birds sent feeding small babies. The aim is to produce a contented, stress free home environment, to which the racers will do their utmost to race home. This seems to be sufficient preparation for the type of pigeon housed i.e good honest racers, and it has certainly produced excellent results over the past two decades.

Young bird racing is not taken seriously but the education of the youngsters in their first year is approached with professionalism. The babies are trained extensively in the year of their birth and half of those that come through the training programme are sent to the young bird National from Guernsey or France. This sets them up for later in life as they quickly develop confidence in their own ability to find their way home.

A basic mixture to which farm beans are added in various proportions depending on the season, is hopper fed to all birds throughout the year. More barley is added in the winter once the annual moult is over and more maize included in the build up to the longer races.

The birds are not subjected to antibiotics and in recent years the only treatment they have received is for canker once annually and even this treatment was stopped in 2002.

As I will point out in the other articles in this series, the Southwells are real tough little characters with an iron hard constitution and as a result rarely “go wrong” – just like the man who created them.

Pigeons from the Deacon loft have done exceptionally well in other fanciers’ lofts. As examples of this I give you the following: One latebred hen given to Jimmy Jackson won 2nd Open Scottish National Beauvais; A dark chequer latebred cock gifted to Peter Harris won 9th & 13th Open NFC Pau; Alan Holdaway’s dark chequer hen which won 13th Open NFC Pau was, once again, gifted by the Deacons as a latebred. As you can see, these birds win almost at will from the distance races for various fanciers, not surprising when you look at the quality of the bids in the photographs that accompany this article.

22/6/07