Patrick DUBOIS - Gaurain-Ramecroix 2nd National Ace Pigeon Long Distance KBDB 2025

Last season 2025, was special and exceptional for Patrick Dubois, because despite his health problems (hip surgery and cancer treatment), he won the Herbots Championship "Old Pigeons/Yearlings (Wallonia)" and, as if that wasn't enough, his pigeon "Meunier 828” - BE23-1093828 - was named "2nd National Ace Pigeon Long Distance KBDB 2025", and also achieved "1st place in the PIPA ranking" as best old pigeon in the long distance races with 4 and 5 prizes. 

This speaks volumes about the fantastic achievements of this pigeon, which won the following prizes in 2025:

- Cahors
Provincial: 1st of 479 old birds
National: 20th of 5,226 old birds

- Libourne
Provincial: 1st of 339 old birds
National: 25th of 3,261 old birds

- Tule
Provincial: 1st of 528 old birds
National: 49th of 5,912 old birds

- Souillac
Provincial: 5th of 456 old birds
National: 61st of 4,577 old birds

- Limoges
Provincial: 14th of 1,202 old birds
National: 314th of 13,016 old birds

Looking at the pedigree of this champion, we see that he comes from a distinguished lineage, as:

1. On his father's side, the blood of the Dutch champion 'Jelle Jellama' (Nijverdal, the Netherlands) predominates.

2. On his mother's side, we find a sister of 'Patrick', another champion, bred by Patrick Dubois and raced by Christian & Cyril Harchies (Warchin). With this pigeon, he won the 12th National Brive (8,807 p.) in 2021, the 7th National Limoges I (15,547 p.), and concluded his season in style with the 1st National Limoges II (6,986 p.), becoming 1st National Ace Pigeon Long Distance KBDB 2021, with a record coefficient of 0.1956%, an unprecedented achievement.

History

 Patrick Dubois and his wife Françoise live in the village of Gaurain-Ramecroix (part of Tournai), right next to the quarries of the CBR cement company. Patrick, now 73 years old, retired from Belgacom in 2002. Originally from Kain, he settled in this village in 1977. There, he built his own pigeon loft, where everything was designed with the pigeons' well-being in mind. Functionality was also a key consideration; Patrick has utilized the space ingeniously. The pigeon loft is built of brick and consists of two floors: the ground floor/basement (first floor) houses all the breeding pigeons, and the upper floor (second floor) houses the racing pigeons (old birds and yearlings), as well as the aviaries for the hens at the rear of the loft. Next to this brick loft is a wooden shelter where the young pigeons are housed after weaning and trained for competitions. Patrick Dubois has been passionate about pigeons since he was six years old and obtained his first pigeon license in 1960 at the Kain pigeon club. This allowed him to perfect his sprint racing skills before switching to longer distances after his retirement. He eventually specialized in national extreme middle distance, long distance, and marathon races, which are now his three favorite disciplines. Patrick Dubois has consistently placed his pigeons at the top of national races for years and competes weekly in the Tournai region against the elite of Belgian pigeon racing, including lofts such as Harchies Christian & Cyril (1st National General Champion KBDB 2023), Casaert-Sénéchal (5 x 1st National), Nottebaert Christophe (2 x 1st National), Baert-Debusschere (2 x 1st National), Pelliterri Anthony (1st International Barcelona 2025), Masure Thierry, Casaert Maurice, Casaert Grégory, Claes Francis & Sylvain, Allemeersch André, and others.

Patrick Dubois is no stranger to the pigeon racing world. In 2015, he won 1st National Agen (743 km) against 3,598 old birds and 2nd International Agen against 6,025 old birds with pigeon BE10-9046538. Despite numerous offers, this pigeon was not sold, as Patrick preferred to keep it for breeding.

As if that weren't enough, Patrick Dubois is also the breeder of the famous champion pigeon of Christian Harchies & Cyril de Warchin: BE19-1097345, also known as 'Patrick'. He, yes, won the 12th National Brive (8,807 pigeons) in 2021, the 7th National Limoges I (15,547 pigeons), and will close his season in style with the 1st National Limoges II (6,986 pigeons). This 'PATRICK' became 1st National Ace Pigeon Long Distance KBDB 2021 and achieved an 'incredible and record' coefficient of 0.1956%. In doing so, he broke the best Belgian coefficient of all time (0.2396%), which was previously held by the famous pigeon 'ARMANDO' (1st National Ace Pigeon Long Distance KBDB 2018) of Joël Verschoot. It goes without saying that 'PATRICK's' record coefficient will be very difficult to beat.

Some results 2025 

16/6/25 Cahors
Prov :  1, 3, 6, 13, 14, 18, 25, 29, 32… de 479 V (soit 17 prix de 20)
National : 20, 37, 64, 136, 150, 172… de 5.226 V (soit 17 prix de 20)

28/6/25 Tulle
Prov : 1, 7, 30, 61, 68, 69, 75…de 528 V (soit 8 prix de 12)
National : 49, 216, 593…de 5.912 V (soit 7 prix de 12)

11/7/25 Dax
Prov : 3 de 102 Y (soit 1 prix de 2)
National : 14 de 1.482 Y (soit 1 prix de 2)
International : 29 de 2.683 Y (soit 1 prix de 2)

12/7/25 Souillac
Prov : 1, 5, 16, 28,38, 55…de 456 V (soit 9 prix de 13)
National : 43, 61, 210, 346…de 4.577 V (soit 7 prix de 13)

18/7/25 Marseille
Prov : 9 de 100 V (soit 1 prix de 2)
National : 57 de 1.812 V (soit 1 prix de 2)
International : 182 de 7.269 V (soit 1 prix de 2)

26/7/25 Libourne
Prov : 1, 3, 4, 8, 14, 17, 18…de 339 V (soit 12 prix de 16)
National : 25, 53, 57, 74, 110, 152, 175…de 3.261 V (soit 11 prix de 16)

The foundation of the colony

Although the original bloodlines originate from Monin (Cul-des-Sart), Janssens (Arendonk), Bricoux (Jolimont), Mencke-Haelterman (Zandbergen), Louis Vanderdonckt (Lessines), Marcel Lekeuche (Maubray), Wilfried Vandemaele (Heule), and Roberto Panza (Ans), these have been supplemented in recent years with pigeons from Yvon Deneufbourg (Estinnes), Gino Clicque (Welvelgem), Jelle Jellema (Nijverdal, the Netherlands), and Noël Peiren (Zedelgem). Recent exchanges have also taken place with Carlos and Xavier Vandemeulebroecke (St. Léger).

Patrick Dubois owns a golden breeding pair whose descendants are largely capable of finishing in the top 100 of national long-distance and marathon races. This formidable breeding pair is the parent of, among others, the 4th National Ace Pigeon KBDB Long Distance 2013, the 6th Belgian Ace Pigeon LCB 2014, the 5th National Ace Pigeon KBDB 2015, and grandparents of the famous 'Patrick', 1st National Ace Pigeon Long Distance KBDB 2021, and great-grandparents of the 2nd National Ace Pigeon Long Distance KBDB 2025.

This exceptional pair consists of:
- Sire: BE05-9028249 Blauw (Marcel Lekeuche de Maubray)
Grandfather: BE97-9161590 Stud (Benoît de Pottes)
Grandmother: BE95-9169310 Blauw (granddaughter of the 1st National and 1st International Dax of Fernand Frédéric)

- Dam: BE06-9106435 Geschabd (Wilfried Vandemaele, purchased/raised from eggs in Gaurain
GP BE06-3002027 Scaled (son of PIJL)
GM BE06-3002008 Blue

What a pleasure to own such a breeding pair, and it goes without saying that the colony consists of over 75% of this winning line. The few new arrivals must first prove themselves in competitions before they can be accepted into the breeding loft. The selection process used by the owner is therefore very strict, and places in the loft are very expensive.

Composition and Care of the Colony

The colony consists of 20 breeding pairs and 80 widowers (40 old pigeons and 40 yearlings) kept according to the traditional widowhood system. From the breeding pigeons and the best racing pigeons, approximately 100 young pigeons are raised, 80 of which are for our own use. The remainder are given away as vouchers or to young, aspiring fanciers.
The breeders and racing pigeons are paired at the end of December. When the youngsters are 20 days old, one youngster and one hen are removed, after which the widower raises the second youngster alone. The pigeons are then paired again in early April. Then the first training sessions begin, and after a week the hens are removed, before they lay eggs. The hens are never shown to the racing pigeons; only the nest dishes are shown during basketing. The widowers are released twice a day from the end of May.

Regarding nutrition and feeding methods, the racing pigeons are fed ad libitum in the communal feeder with Columbia and Versele-Laga mixtures. After returning from races, they are given a lighter mixture, which is gradually increased to a higher-calorie mixture. Corn, green peas, and canary peas are also added to their last meals before being basketed. Grit and small seeds are also available to the pigeons in the communal feeders, which are always open. As supplements, Vincent Schroeder's "Recup Forte, Extra Energie, and Immunol" products are mixed with the seeds, along with an oil mixture prepared by Patrick (sunflower, rapeseed, corn, hemp, cod liver, oregano, and linseed oil). A tablespoon of another mixture prepared by Patrick (made with honey, propolis, red onion, garlic, ginger, turmeric, thyme, rock sugar, apple cider vinegar, and aged juniper berries) is added to their drinking water weekly. Patrick prepares these oils and mixtures at the beginning of the season and stores them for use throughout the year.

For veterinary care, he calls upon veterinarian Nicolas Schoonheere (Tournai) or Pascal Lanneau (Moen) as needed throughout the season. The pigeons are vaccinated against paramyxovirus, paratyphoid, and smallpox, and the young pigeons against rotavirus. Patrick Dubois opposes indiscriminate treatment and, according to him, a small case of trichomoniasis in pigeons is not serious and does not necessarily require treatment. All pigeons, including the breeders, also receive a bath every Tuesday, year-round.

Through this report, Françoise and Patrick would also like to sincerely thank Carlos and Xavier Vandemeulebroecke from St. Léger for their valuable assistance in 2025.

On behalf of the Herbots team, we would like to thank Patrick and Françoise once again for the warm welcome. Considering the high quality of the pigeons I've had the pleasure of handling, we'll definitely discuss the results from this loft again in 2026.

Bernard Henry

Patrick has bred and selected  - especially for online auction Pigeon Bids - a magnificent group of 2025 pigeons

This auction ends Tuesday, February 24th at 2:00 PM.