BRIAN BEZZINA

of Malta

by Les J. Parkinson

For many years Elizabeth and myself have had a love of Malta and we have taken a break there from time to time. On every trip we visit new fanciers and Eddie Newcombe and his friends on the island have reported many on over the years.

This time we called in to see the lofts of the very likeable Brian Bezzina who races his pigeons in the Mosta area where there are 60 members. We also went to see the lofts of France & Sonny Gatt who race their pigeons to the Qormi area of the island. I am still not sure how they get their good pigeons recognised elsewhere because it is first on the clock and no vels, the winners all depend in the weather and which way they approach the island. I know on such a small island and with the long distance between Malta and the first race point the birds go straight on to 60mls of water from Sicily. The heat also plays a big part in the success of the pigeons because they don't really get a fair crack at it when the temperatures rise. We know that from our experiences here in the UK that when the heat rises the pigeons suffer, we might like it but the pigeons don't. Both these fanciers and businessmen but in different ways, France follows the road of garden furniture and it is good while Brian is more of a traditionalist and runs cars, flats etc so is a handy person to know.

Wins and position

Lets start with Brian Bezzina who is always on the go and has a few good recent positions to his credit such as 1 st Bari; 2 nd Belvedere; 4 th National; 1 st Section A Malta; 1 st Malta when there were 9 Pigeons on the island and he was beaten by seconds and Brian's belief is like many more that because they do not use a velocity system he didn't get the result that the pigeon achieved. The weather kept the pigeons on the Gozo side and he was beaten with decimals and therefore this was a great achievement.

I did ask what was the way to go with pigeon racing on Malta when you think about the likes of averages. Brian said, "I would like velocity in Malta many do not want to hear about it because right now the pigeon that comes first in the clock wins. Therefore those that live by the coast do not want velocity" Another point that always raises it's head when you are in Malta and that is the number of birds that the keep, Brian has about 110 that are raced on a semi-widowhood there are also 20 stock pairs that are kept for stock that are paired in January and breed until the end of May. With the heat I was interested to know how they dealt with young bird sickness and Brian replied with, "For me sickness is not always a problem but you always listen to somebody who is having sickness problems with his pigeons. The best is to treat the pigeons for cancer every three weeks. First for cocci, and inject them for Newcastle Diseases, and salmonella".

Accommodation

The lofts are made of marine plywood, the first being the stock loft that has a slightly sloping roof and is away from the race lofts. One race loft is 12ft 8ins and is for the semi-widowhood team then there is one at 16ft where the young birds and stock are kept. I n Malta it is very hot so a very good ventilated loft is very important, plus of course good pigeon. Pigeon racing in Malta is very different from the UK; fanciers who have gone to live in Malta have found this out. What Brian does have in common with my way of racing is that that the best thing is to go on your knees and scrap, hygiene is a very important thing if you want to have a good season. Good pigeons and good management are also very important which is agreed around the world. It's the same with the vaccination programme, if you do not do it in Malta you are asking for a problem. It is the same with overcrowding the heat tells you to limit your numbers but as I said earlier they do keep a lot on Malta compared to many other countries.

There is also a difference in the way they race their birds and Brian does prefer the longer races so the young birds do not get raced as most places do around the world. They also race the young and old birds together but it has been said by many fanciers "They keep a lot because they lose a lot due to the locality of the island" however what they have left most do breed from.

Feeding etc

Brian is a big believer in using grits as they are a very important part of pigeon racing on Malta and he also likes to use minerals at all time and again they are also essential. The feeding is made up of small seeds in the morning and in the evening 1oz of racing mix, Brian sticks to the same amount measured for each pigeon all the time and they are flying well on it. They are fed well and if they go wrong then they have to go, there are no medicines used at these lofts. However the above is for the shorter races and as always there is a change depending on the distances because for the shorter races the 1oz keeps them a little on the hungry side but as the distances progress's the opposite route is followed. They are fed as much they like and Brian said that this does give him good results. Always remember that feeding is very important, get it right and you win both short and long distance races. If they are healthy they are left alone but Brian does give them glucose.

Breeding

Brian is a traditionalist who likes to pair winners to winners; they must be good pigeons if you are to stand a chance of winning. Also in Malta it is more a case that you have to breed from what you have left, and when you start breeding many fanciers use pig starter which makes a difference to the growth of the youngsters.

The pigeons, racing & training

It is surprising how different countries have different ideas and obviously the capabilities of the racing pigeon are going to depend on what location you race to. In the case of Malta the racing is completely different because of the island. For this reason Brian does believe that the distance pigeons can also sprint but the opposite does not appear to work on Malta. On whether they get better with further trips Brian said, "In Malta, the races they are totally different than U.K. All foreigners tell me about this. Sometimes pigeons get better on subsequent trips, but this is not always the case. You cannot keep on sending the same pigeon for over 400 miles distances, because you will end up of loosing the pigeon".

Many subjects can be discussed relating to the pigeons and one such subject discussed worldwide is eye sign, that is of no importance at these lofts because the belief is that all you need is a good breed and the winners will come. One thing that they do agree on is that when it comes to the longer races they get a fortnight's break because that is good for the pigeons. Then for the longest races then the birds must be prepared from at least eight weeks before because of feeding. You also need good management for both short and long distances; although they are totally different everyone has their system. Having spoken to many people a statement that Brian made regarding establishing a family summed it up. "I think that long distance is difficult everywhere, but here in Malta it is totally different than any other place. I talk to a lot of foreign fanciers, and they are also of this idea". When Brian first started he went to a local agent but that did not last too long because later he went to champions and now has Busschaert's from UK and also some good birds from his friend the great Eddie Newcombe. Without any doubt, Eddie Newcombe is Brian's mate and he said that he is a great legend for long distance racing in Scotland and in Malta Brian is winning thanks to his pigeons. Brian now looks for good winners and when he does find them and put them into his loft they are given 2yrs to acclimatise and if they do not perform then they are replaced. He does admit to looking for good pedigrees because breeding does come out in anything whether it is pigeons or anything else. He was keen to point out that he does not change for the sake of changing, that is why some fanciers never win and that is down to good management. You do need the right pigeons for the right distances and if you set yourself a distance target then those are the pigeons you should go for and not mix sprint with distance. Brian's favourite pigeons are small to medium but he has also won with big pigeons during the first few races. Training is a subject that has caused a few laughs at times because in Malta they use Gozo because that is the longest place you can go to 23 kilometres from Brian's loft location. There are fanciers who have trained by boat out into the seas but that is not a system that is practised by many. Brian does believe that it is important to have a good wing and also that the pigeons should be well balanced and good health are very important. A point that is very often raised is whether or not a pigeon is better once they have cast, Brian thinks that this is important if you want your pigeons to win. A question that is always on the lips of fanciers is "Do you use the darkness system for the young birds" I have reported in the past and it will always remain the same because the system will depend on where you live and how the young birds are raced and Brian doesn't find any difference in Malta.

On Malta

Brian said that on the island need to race properly like other countries with velocity; the system that the first bird that comes is a winner should be abolished. Brian also adds "I like velocity because it will be a fare game. However, as mentioned earlier, the first pigeon that is in the clock wins. Therefore those that live by the coast have a great advantage" It is the same with the wind direction which pushes the birds one way or the other towards the island, someone is always going to benefit because of it's size. If they had a velocity system a good bird that fights the wind and stays on line would get its just rewards and not be beat because someone clocked first. Malta has had a good strong set of fanciers for many years and probably one of the largest number of fanciers per square mile to anywhere in the world. But times are changing and the problem is that some are leaving the sport because they are having trouble with the planning authority. As we are all aware the lofts in Malta are generally kept on the roofs of the houses and with the changes that are going on fanciers are having a hard time.

General

The information was gathered via the questionnaire after a visit one of the questions is " Do you use any form of heating system in any of your lofts. Do you think it would be advantages for the birds" Now on Malta with the heat you would think that they don't need it but the answer given was "I do not use any heating. There are different ideas about this. As I already mentioned, good pigeons, and good management are very important". Now having talked to a few people about this on Malta fanciers have their own ideas and I shall leave it at that because I also have the views of France Gatt on this subject.

Final word from Brian

It was great to ask me about pigeon racing in Malta, the questions made me think a bit about what we do. About the wind direction I use the same strategy, no matter if its Easterly or Westerly. What would I like to achieve, that was easy "Fancier of the Year". On reading I like to your articles Les because you talk a lot about modification and it is part of the game. I see in articles about drug testing, no one uses them but there are always stories and fanciers seem to know how to use them! On Malta we do not have so many clubs they are not so small like in England. In my opinion, some clubs should join together because they are becoming smaller. People talk about leagues in England but I think that everything must stay like it is; you have to work hard with the pigeons and than you can win. The sport is becoming very expensive, sports especially for the young once, and it is getting technical. To stay at the top, you need to work hard during the whole year with the pigeons. Here in Malta everything is changing because everybody is getting good pigeons, from all over the World. In Malta there are a lot of good fanciers and good pigeons. I am doing very well, and maybe with a little luck I will do better. For some time I have help because I have had loft manager, Bob Reeves, ex British Homing World Subscriber. However, I think that he will go back to U.K. in the future, because of his family. In England there are other Nationals but in Malta every race is a National one because we do not have a special club to do the classic once. Therefore, if you win a race, you will automatically be wining a National race. From what I hear there is a lot of jealousy in the clubs; this is everywhere and not just in Malta. We must always remember that to win races we need good pigeons, and good management for sure because one race is different to the other. Here is a tip if you lose pigeons from a mating, do not try to pair them up in the loft, leave them outside and they will pair much quicker, believe it or not, it works. If your pigeons go off form try cleaning your loft out more than before and take a couple to the pigeon vet, they will soon get back to form.

LJP. Thanks for the information Brian we look forward to seeing you at a future date. I mentioned France Gatt at the start of the article, will follow on next month on the fancier who has his own idea about heating in lofts.