He is 45 years old, lives in Reșița, Caraș-Severin County, and is one of the best and most appreciated pigeon breeders in Romania. Pigeon fancier Daniel Pîslă, because we are talking about him, is the living proof of the fact that when you are really passionate about something, nothing can stand in your way. He has dozens of national trophies, two participation in the Olympics and a national record with the pigeon M 0098851-14, which won 5 national cups in 2017, three 1st place and two 3rd place. At the end of last season, he received the title of the Breeder of the Year 2018. "It is a very important title for me because it is given to a single breeder and highlights your mastery of a breeder", says the pigeon fancier Daniel Pîslă. What are the pigeons that helped him get the prize, what food does he give them and what are the principles that guide him in this sport, read the following lines.

Daniel, when did you start raising pigeons and competing?

Pigeons have been owned since the age of 12, but they have been participating in official competitions since 2005. Since 2009 we have started to obtain notable results at national level. That's when I won the first national cup, the 1st place in the General Pui category, and I've been on the national podium ever since. It's been 10 years in a row. All the while, I created my own line of pigeons - the DASH Daniel line. They have the same physical characteristics, which is why my arrivals are mostly spectacular, with many pigeons arriving in a short period of time.

This fact is demonstrated by the results in the 2018 season, which gave you the title of Grower of the Year 2018.

Yes, the Breeder of the Year is a very important title for me because it is given to a single breeder, it is the second most important after that of Master Columbophil. Both are titles that enhance your mastery of breeding. It is the first time I get this title, I hope it will not be the last time, because I am very happy.

Tell us a little about the pigeons in your farm that helped you get this title.

The most important is the pigeon DV-01489-08-1609 - "THE OLYMPIC" - my best breeder, a pigeon bought from Germany, from my friend Lungu Eugen.

In addition to being a very good flier, he is also an excellent breeder. He and the female 290711-08 - "SWALLOW" - are the parents of the pigeon 290711-16 F - "ARROW" - and the granddaughters 2027713-17, 2027714-17 and 6099944-17.

All four helped me a lot in forming the team, both in the Speed ​​and Demifond stages, and in the "7713" Fund, occupying the 1st place at 668 km and the 5th place at 669 km. And the other nephew - 100747-14 "ROTWAILER" - helped me on the team in the 750 km stages, as well as in the Marathon.

Pigeon 254774-12 ATHOS also an excellent bird, with 27,000 km ranked, 3rd place National RECORD Mature 2018.

Last but not least, the pigeon 290708-16 "CRAZY", which unfortunately is no longer from the penultimate stage of the Fund, but helped me a lot in 2018 for the title of GROWTH OF THE YEAR.

All these pigeons are treated the same as the others in the farm, without any additional motivation, because I believe that the best pigeons will stand out and their competitive value will be seen only if they are treated on an equal footing with all the others.

We know that you have won a lot of national trophies, we no longer take into account the county or zonal ones. But what if you were to summarize all of them?

National trophies are many, around 30-40, only in 2017 we took 11 - most of the country. But I think the most important thing is to take at least one every year, because the hardest thing is to stay. More representative trophies would be with the pigeon DV-01489-08-1609, which participated in the Poznan Olympics 2011 as A, with the pigeon F 111790-13, which participated in the Brussels Olympics 2017 and with the pigeon M 0098851-14, the one that obtained 5 national cups in 2017, three 1st place and two 3rd place - national record.

What game system do you use?

The game system is widowhood, I think the pigeons are more motivated with this system, they recover very quickly and train better around the farm than the natural ones. I mate all the queen and flying pigeons in February, they all raise two chicks and separate them in the first stage. I believe that everyone should make their own system according to daily problems, work, leisure, etc.

What do the pigeons in your farm eat?

My birds have been feeding Beyers since the 2016 season and I can say that the changes were visible after the first administrations. My pigeons look impeccable in the hand and train themselves from one hour up. Over time I have used food from various producers and I have come to the conclusion that food from Beyers is the most complete and efficient food. I use the whole range and I am satisfied.

Using quality food such as Beyers, I solve a significant part of the weekly recovery / conditioning / loading program only from the healthy diet offered daily to my pigeons. Thus, they intervene very little in recovery with products such as Electrolyt, Amino or Recovery as the distances and flight hours of the competitions increase.

With what conclusion did you end the 2018 season and with what thoughts are you preparing for the next one?

The 2018 season was a very difficult one from my point of view because I lost a lot of pigeons at the end, pigeons with norms concluded 13/14/15 rankings, pigeons of 1st, 2nd, 3rd county, but also national. However, in the end I got 4 national cups, three 1st place and one 3rd place in the Breeder category and three more pigeon cups which I gave up for personal reasons, because I considered that the RNS is not good at some chapters. One of them was the non-awarding of a pigeon at national level if it is no longer alive, even if it has met its rules. Let's hope that those who lead us will change something in this regard in the future, because there have been many problems related to this aspect. Overall, it is a fair and transparent RNS, but I think it can be improved. So, a year with ups and downs, but which in the end was rewarded with the 4 national titles and the title of Raiser of the Year. In the new season I leave with confidence, I will participate in all competitions, from 100 to 1100 km, because there is no competition or category for which I do not fight the same and I hope to be healthy, because that is the most important, but also to lift at least a national cup. I wish this success to all pigeon lovers in the country in the new season.