Domestic pigeon/dove? ... also wounded

[Ratwings]

Thanks for the info!

Hmmmm... any hints on how I can safely let it exercise it's wings before I release it? There is no way my parents are going to be okay with a wild pigeon flying around the house!

As for a release site... the bird was found on my street, just a few houses down. Across the street is a building and parking lot where there has always been a flock of pigeons hanging around. I'm assuming this is where the pigeon came from, so I will be releasing it in this area.

[feralpigeon]

Originally Posted by Ratwings

Thanks for the info!

Hmmmm... any hints on how I can safely let it exercise it's wings before I release it? There is no way my parents are going to be okay with a wild pigeon flying around the house!

As for a release site... the bird was found on my street, just a few houses down. Across the street is a building and parking lot where there has always been a flock of pigeons hanging around. I'm assuming this is where the pigeon came from, so I will be releasing it in this area.

Well, do you have a garage or basement that would be appropriate to let him fly for a couple of hours a day?? If not, maybe go in your bedroom w/him and close the door.

Good idea about the flock accross the street. Just try and do it at a time when they are around and try and aquaint him with that area beforehand.

Also, good for him to know how to find you again just in case.

fp

[Ratwings]

Basement is a no. It would be way to dangerous. Lots of boxes and tools and pipes and piles of junk for it to fly into/behind. We won't even let our dog out there.

I suppose I could let it in my room... but it is a wild animal and it does have lice, and I do keep my pet rats in my room. It's a very small room and my rats have free range (not all the time... but I'm worried about them getting pigeon germs.) Maybe I'm just being a wimp, but I don't like the idea of pigeon poo and those gross pigeon lice all over my bed. :-/

Okay, I just typed all that out, and then I got a revelation. I don't how I didn't think of it. I have a pet chicken, whoe lives in a screened in enclosure, with a roof. It's big, since it used to be a screened in porch. In fact, about 9 years ago I had raised a baby pigeon out there. It's a perfect aviary. I guess I didn't think of it until now because it's "occupied" at the moment. But my chicken gets to roam around our yard during the day sometimes, and I could just let birdie flap around while she's out. I certainly wouldn't want them to be out there together. My chicken is a little... territorial. There are these squirrels that have chewed a hole in one screen and always eat her food, and now she chases them off. She probably wouldn't like an intruder.

OKay now I have an actual questiona after all that blabbing! How does one safely catch a very frightened bird which flapping about in one's porch? I can hardly catch this bird in it's little rabbit cage, that's how much it really doesn't like me. And now it squeaks at me when I pick it up.

Also, this is kinda funny. A few days ago, my sister and I were in the livivng room and we hear this odd noise... which we realised was the bird flapping! My sister ran downstairs to check on it, thinking it was caught on something... but no, it was just sitting on it's rock, flapping it's wings. And apparenty my dad has been hearing it doing that too. It's like it's doing physical therapy, lol.

[feralpigeon]

Hi Ratwings,

Minimonkeys call that the Hellicopter thing, which would be a pretty good description. I swear, DD must have been getting tips from Jack LaLaine or something...she'll get on a bookshelf, back up to the edge so that her heals are hanging off and helicopter. The other thing she'll do is get on the floor and helicopter on her tippy toes. It is so cute I can't stand it.

If you can afford some scalex, maybe 6 or 7 bucks, fashion a little hood out of an old sock cut off somewhere around the arch and put over head, then spray under wings and tail and flip side, pull hood off and pij should be feeling much better for mite stuff in a short while.

So glad you figured something out for the young one to practice with. You'd be surprised, tho, the last one I released ended up practically leading the flock. She flies so high and did right off the bat when I brought her back to the flock, that is, once she decided to get off my arm and go with them.

Best,

fp

[Lady Tarheel]

Hi Ratwings - you've done a great job with your pigeon. One word of caution though - if the screened in outdoor cage has holes in it don't leave the pigeon out there at night. He'd be a "sitting duck" for predators. maggie

[Ratwings]

Heehee! Helicopter, lol.

Oh yeah, I forgot about Scalex. I might even have some left over someplace. I used it once to treat my rats for mites (worked great!).

Oh yeah, I was going to do supervised play time only. Definately not overnight. (gotta let the chicken have her home back at night anyway!)

[pdpbison]

Hi ratwings,


It is easy to grasp or gently catch a roosting Pigeon if it is night, or at least fairly dark.

When I have recovered adult Ferals in here, free flying indoors for their final time of me making sure they are fine now, who have not decided that letting me pick them up is smething to go along with, that is my recourse in here - when I am ready to release them, I just grab them gently in the very dim light of night-time from their high roosts and set them in a cage then for the next day's release.

So getting your's back in from the screened in pen or porch, should be easy if you do it that way...



Phil
Las Vegas

[Ratwings]

Thanks I'll keep that in mind!