Giant Homer

Developed in the United States from racing and homing pigeon lines, the Giant Homer is a large domestic breed kept mainly for utility work and for showing. Breeders moved the emphasis away from flight and onto body mass, unlike the homing birds behind it, so today's adults are heavy, broad chested, and quiet by nature.

Within the utility group of domestic pigeons, weight, fast growth, and a steady disposition count for more than speed on the wing, and the Giant Homer was built with exactly that in mind. It is noticeably larger than the standard racing homer it descends from, the result of continued selection for size and a deep, well filled body, yet it has held on to the even, manageable temperament that runs through homer lines generally.

Confinement does not trouble them, and they tolerate handling without panic. Next to racing pigeons they are poor flyers, which is why keepers house them in a loft rather than fly them for sport.

Who it suits

A heavy, placid pigeon kept for utility or the show pen, the Giant Homer suits keepers who can offer a secure loft, daily feeding, and regular cleaning out. Its steady nature makes it a fair choice even for someone new to pigeon keeping. Anyone after a racing bird or long free flights should look elsewhere.

The Giant Homer's story starts with the racing and homing pigeons kept right across Europe and North America by the late nineteenth century. Bred for navigation and stamina, those homing birds became the foundation stock behind many of the utility breeds that followed.

In the United States, breeders turned their attention from flight to size. What they wanted was a bigger, heavier bird with a deep body and good growth, suited to utility work rather than the road. Selecting the biggest and best built birds generation after generation produced a distinct large type, which took the name Giant Homer.

American pigeon clubs and utility associations took up the breed, setting type goals that favoured weight, body width, and a calm temperament. Their standards called for a substantial bird on a broad frame, well apart from the lighter racing homer.

The Giant Homer still holds recognised utility status in the United States and is also kept by show fanciers. Exact founding dates and individual breeders were never consistently recorded, so the breed is best described simply as a twentieth century American development from homing pigeon stock.

The Giant Homer is a big, solidly built bird. It has a broad, deep chest, a wide back, and a full, well rounded body on a sturdy frame, with a smooth head in proportion to the body, a medium length beak, and a moderate wattle. The overall look is heavy and solid rather than lean and athletic.

Birds stand in a fairly horizontal stance, body held level and legs set well back to carry the weight. The wings sit close to the body and the tail follows the line of the back, giving the general impression of a large, well balanced utility pigeon.

Coat and colours

The plumage lies smooth and close, with no crests, frills, or feathered feet in the standard type. Blue bar, blue checker, silver, red, ash, and white all turn up among Giant Homers, along with assorted mixed patterns, though colour takes second place to size and body type in utility selection.

A quiet, even temperament is what most keepers notice first. The breed standard for utility and show stock favours calm birds, and most individuals are gentle and confident around their keepers, settling into a loft routine without fuss. The nervousness seen in some lighter breeds rarely shows up here.

Handlers generally find Giant Homers will put up with being picked up and examined without much of a struggle, which makes daily care and showing that bit easier. They get on well enough with other pigeons too, though cocks defend a nest box and breeding pairs stake out their own patch during the season. As flock birds, they do best kept in company rather than alone.

Giant Homers are neither strong nor eager flyers, so they tend to stay close to home. That steadiness, together with how well they take to handling, explains much of why the breed is valued.

Grooming

• Give birds a shallow bath two or three times a week to keep their feathers clean.
• Check feet and claws regularly, and trim overgrown claws with care.
• Look over the smooth plumage for parasites, broken feathers, or scale, especially during the moult.
• Beyond routine bathing and parasite control, no trimming or special coat care is needed.

Exercise

• Allow daily movement within a roomy loft or an attached aviary.
• Fit perches and nest boxes at varied heights to keep birds active.
• Supervised loft or aviary flight is enough, given the breed's weight and modest flying power.
• Do not rely on long free flights, which do not suit the breed's build.

Environment

Giant Homers need a secure, dry, well ventilated loft, sheltered from rain, draughts, and predators. Keep floors dry and remove droppings often to limit disease, allow each bird enough space to avoid crowding, and give breeding pairs their own nest boxes. Ireland's cool, damp weather makes shade in summer and solid shelter in winter equally worth planning for.

Like other utility pigeons, Giant Homers do well on a mixed grain diet: cereals such as maize, wheat, sorghum, and barley combined with legumes such as peas, beans, and vetch for protein. Given the breed's size and fast growth, protein intake matters most during breeding and feather growth. Insoluble grit needs to be on offer at all times so the gizzard can grind whole grains, and a calcium source such as crushed oyster shell supports eggshell formation in breeding hens.

Treats and supplements

A few safe greens or seeds now and then make a fine treat, but should never take the place of the balanced grain mix. Grit and a calcium source belong in the loft year round, and vitamin or mineral supplements are worth adding during breeding and moulting if grain quality is at all in doubt. Clean drinking water should always be to hand.

Clean housing and good feeding suit this hardy utility breed well, and a Giant Homer kept this way usually reaches 8 to 12 years of age. Most problems that arise trace back to the diseases and parasites common to all domestic pigeons, rather than to any fault peculiar to the breed. Good loft hygiene, clean water, and quarantining new arrivals do most of the work in keeping a flock healthy.

Preventative care

• Keep the loft clean, dry, and well ventilated.
• Provide fresh water daily and keep feeders clean to stop contamination.
• Quarantine new or returning birds before adding them to the flock.
• Schedule routine checks of droppings and keep on top of parasite control.
• Follow a vaccination and worming plan suited to your area and your flock.

Training a Giant Homer is mostly about loft management rather than performance flying. Calm by nature and quick to pick up daily routines, birds can be settled to a loft, taught to trap in for food, and got used to handling for inspection and showing. Its weight and build rule out training for racing or long free flights of the sort racing homers manage.

Basics

1. Settle young birds to the loft so they know it as home and as a source of food.
2. Train birds to trap in by feeding them inside the loft at a set time.
3. Use a consistent call or feeding signal so birds learn to respond.
4. Handle birds gently and often so they get used to being picked up and examined.
5. For show stock, practise posing and time in the basket to keep stress down at events.

Giant Homers live in a loft: an enclosed structure that keeps off the weather and predators while giving birds room to move, perch, and nest. Being a large breed, each bird needs more floor and perch space than a smaller pigeon would. Good ventilation without draughts matters a great deal, since stale, damp air invites respiratory disease, a real concern given how changeable Irish weather can be. An attached aviary or flight pen adds fresh air and daylight while keeping birds secure.

Setup checklist

• A secure loft with predator proof walls, mesh, and doors.
• Adequate, draught free ventilation.
• Wide perches and separate nest boxes for pairs.
• Feeders and waterers that stay clean and dry.
• Containers for grit and a calcium source.
• A shaded spot for warm weather and shelter for when it turns cold.

As with other pigeons, Giant Homer pairs normally incubate and rear their own young without help. A hen typically lays two eggs to a clutch, and incubation is a shared job, with the cock often taking the day shift and the hen the night. Around 17 to 19 days later the eggs hatch. Both parents feed the newly hatched squabs crop milk over the first few days, moving on to a mix of crop milk and softened grain as the young birds grow. Well fed pairs of this large breed can rear heavy, fast growing squabs.

Hatching steps

1. Give breeding pairs a quiet nest box and nesting material.
2. Let both parents incubate the clutch without disturbance.
3. Check eggs for fertility by candling after about a week, if needed.
4. Keep the nest area clean, dry, and free of parasites.
5. Let the parents feed crop milk to newly hatched squabs.
6. Make sure parents have plenty of food and water to rear the young.