Many a good cock produces working sons and daughters, so far as actual racing is concerned. Very few prove capable of siring hens with the 'Nicking Factor' or, if you prefer the term, "brood hens". It is a matter of breeding potency, or genetic domination. A Stud Cock who is capable of siring a Producer Hen guarantees you a long career as a fancier of fame and repute. He projects his power beyond the first generation and, unimpaired, right into the third generation of breeding. What does this amount to in pigeon racing years? Thirty to forty at the least! Who asks for more?
Taken from The Strain Makers
by Old Hand
