As it is known, the Gold Club awards at national level were won by pigeons from several counties of the country, at least one from each pigeon province, and Arad County, in the 2021 season, wins two such awards, proving that truly valuable pigeons stand out regardless of the difficulty of the area and the flight path. The 5th place National Gold Club was won by the hen with the series 2001811-2020, who comes from a family of excellent fliers of the fund category from Călin Ususan’s loft.

Călin Ususan is, without a doubt, at least as good as a pigeon fancier, as a pigeon breeder. Aradean is a follower of “cultivating” his own pigeon lines, and his entire breeding work can be easily observed if one is curious to read carefully the pedigrees of his pigeons with notable performances. One such example is the pigeon 2001811-2020. Her mother is the hen with the series 0532808-2014, named “Golden Yarlinga”, which, at the age of one year, obtains four places in the first three pigeons of the Western province, respectively: 1st place Long distance Ace yearlings, 1st place Allround yearlings, third place Speed Ace yearlings, third place Middle distance yearlings, and nationally tenth place Long distance Ace yearlings and eight place Allround yearlings, having as origins the pigeons of Nouwen Paessen, Etienne Devos, George Carteus and Jakab Sandor. The hen’s father is a son stopped for breeding from the hen with series 1001533-2013, Olympic in the Long distance category, having the 1st place national Long distance Palmares 2015-2016, 2nd place national Long distance ace Palmares, occupying the 4th place at the Brussels Olympics 2017.

Ususan excludes extramotivation tricks from pigeon training

Aradean is one of the formidable pigeon fanciers of the Western area, who likes very strong competition where he can highlight his qualities as a breeder, along with the extraordinary talent of his birds that are able to make a difference in national rankings. Călin competes with the pigeons from 2008, having three national champion titles and two national titles in the Pigeon of the Year category (Carol I Trophy), in two consecutive years (2018,2019) and many other top results at national and provincial level. The preferred distance categories are represented by the long distance stages with a distance of over 600 km, and in the following years he will approach the marathon and extreme marathon stages “with great pleasure and maximum seriousness”. In the 2021 season, the pigeons were competed by the method of total widowhood throughout the competitive season. “I did not use any extra-motivation trick at all because I do not believe in this. From my point of view, if we are talking about a quality pigeon, healthy and properly cared for, then it will motivate itself, without the need for the pigeon fancier’s involvement “, said Călin Ususan. The food used by the pigeon fancier from Arad is purchased from the Verselle-Laga company, respectively the Champion Plus, Gerry Plus and Energy Plus assortments, respecting the manufacturer’s instructions both when the pigeons leave and arrive at the competition.

“I am a player, I like the competition and I want to participate in competitions as strong as possible”

A well-built loft, the high quality birds he owns, the brave mentality, as well as a careful care of the pigeons make the Aradean’s methods an example for his colleagues. “For me, the basic rule that I consider the key to success in pigeon sport is represented by the origins-loft-food triad and veterinary medical treatments. Without these four correctly applied, the top results are impossible to achieve. I don’t believe in miracle products that make you a champion, I pay special attention to the pigeons’ diet, both qualitatively and quantitatively. The conditioning products I use are pre-probiotics, electrolytes, vitamins and proteins, and in terms of treatments I prefer individual ones. When the situation requires water or food treatments, the dose of the veterinary medicinal product used must be strictly observed. Unfortunately, I believe that most fanciers underdose their medications, especially in the winter. The so-called winter treatments are, in my view, a stress for healthy pigeons, ”the breeder reveals.
Regarding the Gold Long distance Club and the newly established Gold Marathon Club, Călin Ususan is clear: “From its beginning, the Gold Club has been a transparent competition both at county and national level, the prizes being calculated and distributed correctly. I consider the norms of the Gold Club to be equidistant, which can also be seen in the national ranking, the prizes being won by pigeon fanciers from various counties of the country. I consider the Gold Long distance Club a very good idea, as shown by the high competition and the number of rings purchased last year. The Gold Marathon Club is also welcome by introducing those marathons with slightly shorter distances, in which we can participate all the pigeon fanciers in the country with yarlings, in my area the marathons being very heavy. Given these considerations, I can say that the organizers have sought and made the best decisions for the Gold Marathon Club to be characterized by the same fairness that the Gold Long distance Club has enjoyed. Since the beginning of the Gold Club’s existence, I have bought 20 rings every year and I will do the same now. In addition, I will take 20 Club Gold Marathon rings. The prizes that will be won at national level are substantial prizes, and those at county level are not to be neglected. All in all, looking back, I can say that the pigeon fancier activity in Romania is on an upward trend in recent years. I am glad that now more attention is being paid to the means of transporting pigeons, which, at least in our association, ensure the optimal welfare conditions (feeding and watering) during long-term transport, especially for long distance and marathon races”.