Andre & Patrick De Smet of Semmerzake
A number of years ago Peter Morrison was telling me about the excellent
pigeons that were housed at Andre & Patrick De Smet's home in
Semmerzake, Belgium. Then when we were over with Hans Verschueren
we took a look at these lofts and how impressive they are. The trophy
room is by far the outstanding one that I have seen on all my travels,
the cleaner must have a hard task. Neither Andre or Patrick speak
any English so it was good to have Hans there because of his ability
to speak four languages fluently. You know the house before you get
there because it has a window full of big trophies, perhaps that's
his way of saying to strangers "This is where the winners are
housed". I must say the story does go back a long way and it
was a piece that Mick Yates wrote that highlighted just how good these
pigeons are. For those who read my notes in the BHW you may remember
a piece that I wrote regarding the loft report system in Belgium where
you have to pay for your publicity. It is for that reason that Andre
is not known as well as he should be for the top class performances
that have been achieved. You see Andre does not believe in paying
for a loft report to advertise the winning that his pigeons constantly
achieve so therefore is not as well known as he should be. Even so
good pigeons from a good winning loft will always be recognised by
those who are more cultivated in the Belgium pigeon scene.
(L to R) Patrick De Smet, Elizabeth, Les J Parkinson, Andre De Smet
Lets go back to the beginning when it all started way back in 1951
when Andre & Madeleine De Smet were married some 50yrs ago. Madeleine
had a good start with the pigeons because her father was also a pigeon
fancier so she new what to expect when she formed her bond with Andre.
At this time Andre formed a partnership with his brother that lasted
until 1971 but the name stood until 1992.
However the first pigeons came in 1955 and then in 1963 they moved
to their present address at Semmerzake since which time it has been
a place where many fanciers have made the pilgrimage to see their
excellent team of pigeons. The foundations were good from the word
go when they went to the Internationally renowned lofts of Janssen
Bros whose pigeons have proven successful wherever they have gone.
Not only are these pigeons good as pure but are even better as crosses
which is why so many fanciers are always bringing them into their
family.
In 1957 &58 the lines they chose in those early days were those
of "Wondervoske". The birds of De Smet Matthys were brought
in for 1959 followed by the Andre Dierick pigeons at which time the
family really got under way. Never wanting to stand still Andre got
someone else to purchase a sister to the Limoges winner which also
turned out to be a positive buy and is a Deseyn-Vandemeulebroucke.
Together these pigeons became known as the world famous "Vale
Train" which led to the then partnership of De Smet Bros being
excluded from the sprint and middle distance races. This exclusion
forced De Smet to look to the Provincial and National races where
they continued to win with their highly successful team. By this time
these pigeons were lighting up the sky in the Belgium but they were
not happy with that and introduced further pigeons from the lofts
of Roger Vereecke in 1979.
This turned out to be a great introduction because they also brought
in one of their all time greats from this family the "Crack"
who became known world wide a true Champion. He won 15 top National
prizes over a five year period. He was also the first Ace pigeon of
East Flanders in the long distance KBDB for 1981. Plus first Ace pigeon
of East and West Flanders also in 1981. 1st Provincial Ace pigeon
long distance in 1982 and during his racing career won 90 prizes,
by the way this great cock was the only one kept out of 80 young birds
from the Vereecke loft. The "Crack" along with his sons
and daughters have founded the present loft to produce the following
performances. 1990 19 x 1sts. 91-13 x 1sts. 92-35 x 1sts. 93-23 x
1sts. 94-10 x 1sts. 95-31 x 1sts,. 96-34 x 1sts. 97-16 x 1sts. 98-43
x 1sts. 99-38 x 1sts. 00- 33 x 1sts. 01-22 x 1sts. You think you know
the best in Belgium how about these for performances, a total of 389
prizes in the first ten at Provincial level between 1990 & 2001.
Then in the Nationals there are 262 prizes in the first 50 in the
same period against birdage up to 49,152 birds. There are 11 x 1sts,
7 x 2nds 4 x 3rds at National level, I don't think that we need to
say more at that level of competition.
These really are first class fancier who condition their birds as
good as they could possibly be and it is the dedication to the birds
that keep them that way. Andre has now been retired for many years
and with the help of his wife Madeline and son Patrick they can all
give plenty of attention to the pigeons which have won for the partnership
of Andre & Patrick De Smet more or less all the top championship
of Belgium. Peter Morrison has always said that he has never seen
better quality pigeons anywhere on his travels. As we all know feeding
is a major part of any winning loft and at these lofts they feed more
or less as we do and use the super widowhood mix from Versalle Laga.
The same Verselle Laga corns are also the order of the day with the
breeding mix for rearing and there Laga moulting mix for the Moult.
Three weeks prior to the breeding season all pigeons are treated for
cocci and Trichomonosis with widowhood team being treated every three
weeks during the racing season. Andre did stress that the main treatment
is for five days before the season starts with the treatment for the
widowhood team during the season is for two days after a race that
is every three weeks. The training for the race team commences when
they are sitting eggs, this is up to the 40 miles stage then in to
the club races. The club has strong competition with about 500 to
1000 members to 80 miles then 150 miles. The y/bs are trained up to
35 miles in stages of 2 miles 7 miles 10 miles and during the y/b
racing Andre will still send them down the road 2 or 3 times each
week.
Every fancier does have their own ideas of what to look for in a
pigeon whether for breeding or racing, in Andre's case they must have
good feathering. One thing that did surprise me was that a point for
Andre is that the eye must lie well in the head but he is not into
any other points with the actual eye sign. For the fancier with the
wing theory Andre likes to see the pigeon's wing in the normal standing
position with the tips just touching the dark shading at the end of
the pigeon's tail. A good point was that if the wing is good in length
then the balance of the pigeon is generally right. Observation is
a major point for any winning fancier and it is while the birds are
exercising that Andre collects his thoughts on their individual fitness.
At this stage he takes full note of the birds that break away from
the main batch and the ones who drop out onto the roof and show an
eager attitude, they are the pigeons to watch for in the races. Always
look for the pigeon that is doing something different, they are never
far away. Pigeons must be worked well to get the best out of them
and they are not treated with kid gloves at these lofts, they have
to work hard to keep their perch, otherwise they are out, it is no
good keeping pigeons that are not of the highest standard.
For those who wonder why fanciers such as Andre & Patrick De
Smet are not mentioned a great deal in the Belgium fancy press, the
answer is simple. On the continent there are a great deal of fanciers
who have a few good sprint pigeons and plenty of money to waste on
publicity that is paid for in Belgium unlike the UK where the good
fanciers do get a fair hearing. Many names are household outside Belgium
but little known at home. Andre & Patrick are one of those little
known lofts with bigger and better results such as 11 x 1sts at National
level since 1990, how many other Continental fanciers are there who
can boast of such results and they are only the first prizes. Remember
what I said earlier 262 prizes in the first 50 at National level,
those results are more worthy of publicity than the majority who pay.
I did write a piece on this point in my weekly notes that have brought
in many comments from fanciers who were not aware of the continental
system.
Gathering information from the continental fanciers is not always
easy when they do not speak English but with help we did get something
together and for that we have to thank Hans Verschueren and Peter
Morrison. Also many thanks to the De Smet family for their time and
courtesy on our visit and we hope to visit Semmerzake again in the
not too distance future.
