The Pigeoncote Standards

The King: NPA Standard 1993

WEIGHTS AND MEASUREMENTS Old Birds 30 to 37 ounces
Young Birds 28 to 34 ounces
The above must be adhered to in weights.
WIDTH: Extremity of chest, five and one half inches (5 ½").
DEPTH: The depth to be four and one half inches (4 ½").
LENGTH: Tip of tail to chest extremity, nine and one half inches (9 ½").LEGS: Legs to be of such length as to show approximately two and five eighths inches (2 5/8") from center of one shank to center of other. Cocks should be masculine in appearance. Hens should be feminine in appearance. Birds of unkempt appearance, or birds that refuse to show good station of proper manners, may be cut up to 10 points. These ten points to be floating and not upset the original 100 points total.

• SCALE OF POINTS
• BEAK (5 pts.): Short, stout; to be carried in a horizontal position.
• WATTLE (3 pts.): Small, smooth, powdered or frosted in color, in keeping with size of face.
• HEAD (10 pts.): Moderately large and broad with skull well rounded in proportion to a full neck an broad body. Must not be pinched above wattle or snaky in appearance.
• EYES ( 3 pts.): Prominent, round and bright, set approximately three fifths forward from back of skull.
• EYE CERE (4 pts): Perfectly round, fine in texture, not over one sixteenth inch wide, to be visible between the eye and feathers, and beet red in color.
• NECK (5 pts.): Moderately stout or thick to balance with broad shoulders and well rounded body of the bird, to be carried perpendicularly. Back of the neck enters the shoulders as near as possible on a line with the hocks. Beak should recede slightly from the extremity of the protruding breast. Neck should not cut back excessively under the beak. Cocks should show more massive neck than hens; neither shall show any evidence of thinness.
• BREAST (10 pts.): The breast is that part of a pigeon Iying or being in front of the legs and extending to lower part of the neck, but does not include that part of the body around the keel back of the legs. The breast shall be prominent, broad and well rounded, showing well beyond the wing butts. It shall be carried symmetrically with an erect station of the bird, with lower portion of front on a horizontal line with rear of keel.
• BODY (10 pts.): Short, broad, firm, moderately deep and well rounded.
• KEEL (10 pts.): To be straight and centered between the legs and as long as possible in a short, well-rounded body, curving in a rocker shape to end as close to the vent as possible.
• BACK (5 pts.): Short and broad from shoulders to tail, must not taper too quickly before reaching the rump but curving smoothly into back of neck and slightly tilted tail.
• WINGS (7 pts.): Wings to be held snugly to the body and Iying smoothly on the rump and tail, tips spread covered by breast feathers. Ten primary feathers are the correct number.
• TAIL (5 pts.): Short in proportion to a short body. To be approximately one and one -feathers wide at tip of tail, tapering smoothly from a thick and broad rump. To be carried at an angle above horizontal to complete the bottom curve formed by body and breast, but not so high as to cause crossing or dropping of wing tips. Twelve primary feathers the correct number.
• SHANKS (10 pts.): Stout and straight so as to give the bird an erect appearance, set well apart and in line to intersect with the curve of the back of the neck at the point in the curve which is on horizontal line with the base of the beak. To be free from feathers and beet red in color.
• TOES (3 pts.): Straight, clean and well spread; beet red in color.
• PLUMAGE (10 pts.): Feathering to be close and smooth but not as hard as a flying homer's. Should have a little give when the bird is handled. Shall have smooth feathering under the vent. Birds must be in full natural plumage.  Colored birds to be cut from one to ten points for faulty color when judged in their own classes. These ten points to be floating and not to upset the original 100 point total.

RECOGNIZED STANDARD COLORS

• SOLID PATTERNS
  • White - Pinkish white beak; bull eyes; beet red eye cere; white toe nails; color is white and free from off colored feathers.
  • Red - Horn colored beak; bright orange eyes; beet red eye cere; horn colored toe nails; color is a dark, rich red over entire surface with richness of color carrying down as near the skin as possible, showing no foreign color or ticking. Yellow - Horn colored beak; bright orange eyes; beet red eye cere; horn colored toe nails; color a dark yellow over entire surface with richness of color carrying down as near the skin as possible, showing no foreign color or ticking.
  • Black - Black beak; bright orange eyes; beet red eye cere; black toe nails; color a rich solid jet black with a brilliant sheen. The neck and upper part of the breast to show a green metallic luster. Richness of color carrying down as near the skin as possible, showing no foreign color or ticking.
  • Dun - Horn colored beak; bright orange eyes; beet red eye cere; horn colored toe nails; color the dilute of black, gun-metal color over entire surface with richness of color carrying down as near the skin as possible, showing no foreign color or ticking.
  • Brown - Horn colored beak; pearl eyes; beet red eye cere; horn colored toe nails; color a rich chocolate or cocoa over entire surface with color carrying down as near the skin as possible showing no foreign color or ticking.

• BARRED PATTERNS
  • Brown Bar - Horn colored beak; .pearl eyes; beet red eye cere; horn colored toe nails; color a clear, silvery blue. The neck is still a darker shade of silvery blue with a brilliant greenish metallic luster. Wings show two well defined bars running in a curved V-shape across the wing coverts. The bars to be dark chocolate in color, approximately one inch apart at the bottom of the wing coverts and come nearly together as they approach the top of the wing. A similar dark bar approximately three quarters of an inch wide at tip of the tail. silver is preferred, but white is permissible over rump.
  • Blue Bar - Black beak; bright orange eyes; beet red eye cere; black toe nails; color a rich even
  • shade of sky blue. The neck is a still darker shade of clear blue with a brilliant greenish metallic luster. Wings show two well defined bars running in a curved V-shape across the wing coverts. The bars are to be black color, approximately an inch apart at the bottom of the wing coverts and come nearly together as they approach the top of the wing. A similar black bar approximately three quarters of an inch wide at the tip of tail. Blue is preferred, white permissible over rump.
  • Silver Bar - Horn colored beak; bright orange eyes; beet red eye cere; horn colored toe nails; color a rich even shade of silvery-gray. The neck is a darker shade of gray with a brilliant greenish metallic luster. Wings show two well defined bars running in a curved V-shape across the wing coverts. The bars are to be a dark dun color, approximately an inch apart at the bottom of the wing coverts and come nearly together as they approach the top of the wing. A similar dark dun bar approximately three quarters of an inch at the tip of the tail. Silvery-gray preferred, white permissible over rump.
  • Ash Red Bar - Horn colored beak; bright orange eyes; beet red eye cere; horn colored toe nails; color a rich even shade of ash-gray. The neck is red with a brilliant greenish metallic luster. Wings show two well defined bars running in a curved V-shape across the wing coverts. The bars to be a chestnut red, approximately an inch apart at the bottom of the wing coverts and come nearly together as they approach the top of the wing. The darker tail bar is absent. Black or brown flecking is permitted in wing flights and tail rectrices. Ash-gray is preferred but white is permissible over rump.
  • Ash Yellow Bar - Horn colored beak; right orange eyes; beet red eye cere; horn colored toe nails; color a rich even shade of light gray. The neck is yellow with a brilliant greenish metallic luster. Wings show two well defined bars running in a curved V-shape across the wing coverts. The bars to be yellow approximately an inch apart at the bottom of the wing coverts and come nearly together as they approach the top of the wing. The darker tail bar is absent. Dilute color flecks permitted in wing flights and tail rectrices. Light gray is preferred but white is permissible over rump.
  • A.O.C. - Any color or pattern not recognized in the American King Club Standard may be shown as an A.O.C. King.

Any deviation from this standard shall require point cuts in proportion to the extent of the defect.