Staff Writer
Soft coos and a murmur of constant motion fill
Monroe Loewen's workplace.
The 300 breeding pairs of pigeons in a specially
designed hoop barn outside his home may not be a typical
way to make a living. But for Loewen, raising the birds
is ideal because it not only speaks to his
entrepreneurial spirit, but allows him plenty of time at
home with his family.

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A pigeon takes flight recently inside the
hoop barn at Monroe Loewen's
acreage near Prague. Loewen raises the birds
to 20 weeks old, when they head off to their
new life as racing pigeons.
ED BLOCHOWIAK / STAFF
PHOTOGRAPHER
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Loewen, who lives in rural Prague, came to Oklahoma from
Canada, where he had been raising parakeets. His wife's
brother lived in this area, and in 2003, they struck a
partnership and formed Exotic Wings USA, which is
currently housed near Paden and breeds parakeets,
finches, lovebirds and cockatiels. Loewen has since
begun breeding pigeons on his own acreage, with plans to
bring the exotic birds on site to be raised near the
pigeons.
It's a life that can be a little noisy and slightly
messy, but full of accomplishment and a good work ethic
for the whole family, he said.
"I was already in the bird business, and it looked
like something I could do here. My three little boys
help me. It's very much a family-oriented business,"
said Loewen, whose wife is Jocelyn and their sons
DeAndrae, Jourdain and Girah.

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A baby pigeon
ED BLOCHOWIAK / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
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Loewen's job with the pigeons is to breed them, then
he ships them to his buyer at 20 weeks old. His pigeons
are called "high fliers," a type of homing pigeon, bred
to be able to find their way back home from a place
they've never visited before. His birds are ultimately
used for pigeon racing, a sport in which the birds are
dropped off at a point and the first pigeon to make it
back home is the winner. A 300-mile race is not
uncommon, Loewen said.
"An example is taking the birds to Dallas and letting
them go, then monitoring to see who comes home first,"
he said. "Or taking them to Brownsville, Texas, letting
them go in the morning and they will arrive in the
evening in Tulsa."

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Monroe Loewen talks about his business.
ED BLOCHOWIAK / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
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Loewen has 300 male and 300 female pigeons in a large
barn, both ends featuring ventilation screens. Inside
are nest boxes, essentially wooden drawers that can be
pulled out to check on the birds. There are twice as
many nest boxes as birds because females will lay eggs
in one nest while still feeding babies in another nest,
he said. Otherwise, the pigeons are mostly
self-sufficient.
"They pair up on their own and will stick to one
mate," he said. "Both birds will feed and sit on the
eggs."
In addition to feeding, watering and cleaning the
nests, Loewen puts leg bands on each bird to designate
age. Each month, according to their age, birds get
different-colored bands. So at 20 weeks, he knows to
gather the birds with pink bands, for example. He
captures them at night while they're roosting, on roosts
specifically built within arm's reach.

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Pigeons fill a large hoop barn on the
acreage belonging to the Loewen family near
Prague.
ED BLOCHOWIAK / STAFF
PHOTOGRAPHER
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His pigeons, while all the same breed, are
multi-colored. They are quiet, their soft coos never
increasing above a murmur.
In contrast, parakeets are a noisy bunch, matching
their showy colors of green, yellow, blue, white
everything except red, Loewen said. Parakeets make up
the bulk of the Exotic Wings part of Loewen's bird
business because they're relatively inexpensive as pet
birds, they bond to people and have been known to talk a
little bit. Loewen and his Exotic Wings partners, Randy
and Stacie Plett, sell the birds to pet shops and
brokers.
Parakeets require a little more oversight than
pigeons, Loewen said. Putting a male and female together
in a cage is required for matchmaking. Parakeets also
require more climate control in their habitat, about 70
degrees, whereas pigeons can acclimate to all
temperatures.

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Pigeons fill a large hoop barn on the
acreage belonging to the Loewen family near
Prague.
ED BLOCHOWIAK / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
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In addition to his pigeons and exotic
birds, Loewen plans to begin processing bird feed on
site and serve as a dealer for the hoop barns his
pigeons call home.
His Web site for Exotic Wings is
www.exoticwingsusa.com.
April Wilkerson may be reached at 214-3926 or
april.wilkerson@news-star.com.