Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Armavir short face shaggy.

This breed was developed in the 18th century.
City of Armavir is located in Krasnodar region ( South Russia ) or North Caucasus.
The story goes, that the breed actually was not developed in Armavir but in the surrounding area. There was a small ethnic group called Cherkas, who first developed the short face shaggy, after them people in small towns like Labinsk and surrounding towns, got the "bug" of the new breed and bred this breed with great enthusiasm.
Armavir was the biggest city around, and people brought this breed to sell and trade at the pigeon market in Armavir, so people called this breed Armavir short face shaggy even though the breed was not developed in Armavir per say. In the 70s two men were writing about this breed and after the research of its origins they had a hard time to come up with a fair name. They asked breeders around and every one without exception called them Armavir short face shaggy. After they published the article, the name, Armavir Short Face Shaggy, became official in Russia.   
People ask me, why "shaggy". Even though this breed belongs to the family of tumblers, is bred to preform very well, and tumbling ability is very important, the large muffs are called by the standard; no less then 8cm and up to 20cm long. Also, the direct translation from Russian to English is shaggy, so I think it's a pretty catchy name..."Armavir Short Face Shaggy"  maybe it will stick, maybe not, but it is a good beginning.
About tumbling; yes and yes,  some of these birds can perform in the small cages, even with extremely large muffs, but it is very rare. They need space and freedom to fly. To train them to fly and to perform you need time, like with every other flying breed. Because this breed is rare not just in America but also in Armavir, breeders do not fly them, but keep them under the nets. My desire is to promote them here in the US to more breeders, and maybe one day see them fly and tumble, which is a beauty by itself.
by Daniel West