New here, questions re: pigeon that adopted me

[Debi]

Hello Everyone,
This is a great place! and I am very happy to have found you.
I have several questions and concerns about catching and moving a pigeon which adopted me 15 months ago.
I apologize for a very long post but feel I should give a bit of history...

A friend of mine allowed me to keep my miniature horses and donkeys at one of the ranch locations her and her husband lamb. They have a large facility there and no one lives at the location. I used an older barn at the back of the property and some acreage for about a year when one day a beautiful white pigeon landed on the low hanging wire right above my head. I looked at him/her, greeted him, and he flew to my feet looking at me, and proceeded to walk into the barn with me. He has been there ever since. He will sometimes eat from my hand and roosts in the eaves. I have not found anyone missing him. He is not as friendly with others.
A few months ago, the family will was settled and my friend and her husband lost their lease on the property. We all have had to move. I moved my minis Dec. 31 and do not have a barn yet where they are. This is a temporary move until our road to our own land is completed.
Beauty, as I have named the pigeon is still in the barn of the old place. He comes and goes as he wishes. I periodically stop and fill a large feeder for him and he appears super healthy
I am very concerned that I won't be allowed to do this much longer as the new people are not nice....
I am at a loss on where to take Beauty and how to even catch him. He lives free but chooses to be at this barn. Do I take him to the temporary place for the minis and then move him again in about a year?? If I should take him to our land, it is alot of wilderness (we are in the Black Hills). What would I need to build for him to be safe? We go out there about once or twice a month. If I take him to the temporary place, how do I keep him there without a barn (there's just tiny mini sized shelters). How do I safely catch and transport him?? I don't want to risk harming his flight feathers either.
Again, my apologies for such a long post but I have lots to think about here. Any and all suggestions are very much appreciated. I told Beauty I would not abandon him. His freedom is important to me as well. Thank you so much for reading this and your thoughts and advice.

[pdpbison]

Hi Debi,



How far is the new place going to be, from the 'old' place?



Phil
l v

[Debi]

Hi Phil,
The temporary place is 3 miles south of town and our land is 25 miles northwest of town. Where he is now is 13 miles north of town.

[Trees Gray]

Hi Debi!

Welcome to Pigeon Talk and thank you for helping Beauty.

Here is a link to an easily assembled trap:


http://www.racingbirds.com/ptrap.html

Use it if you cannot pick him up by hand, but remember he will be harder to catch if you miss.

Feed him only from the trap until you catch him.

Once you move him-don't release him, as he will probably fly back to the barn, so I recommend you keep him inside an aviary or loft type set-up.

It might be easier to catch him at night if he roosts in the barn-and if you can close all openings, as he will have limited vision. If the bird is banded you need to report the complete band number to 911 Pigeon Alert, and they can help find his home. He would have flown home by himself by now if he wasn't lost, so its best to report the band #'s and letters.

Thanks again for taking care of him.

[Debi]

Thank you so much for your help. I will check out the link you posted next. No, he is not banded. That was one of the first things I looked for when he found me. I think he must be very smart and a survivor as there are many raptors in our area from falcons to bald and golden eagles. In fact, we have an abundance of bald eagles. Here is a pix of him right after he came.

[maryjane]

He certainly is a beauty. I would do as others have advised; catch him and move him to where you are. He will probably return to the barn if he is let out and with the "not-so-nice" people living there, that's not a great idea. If you can build him some sort of coop or aviary that he can fly around in (doesn't have to be huge), and spend time with him, that should keep him perfectly content. Possibly you might add another pigeon to the picture if that's an option. A lot of people don't want to keep a pigeon caged, but with enough room to fly in an aviary, they adapt very well and don't pine away all day trying to get out. At least, the majority of them adjust very well. I have had several pigeons come in that were otherwise fliers, and they settled right into my closed-in aviaries without a fuss at all. It would just be important to spend time with him if you did so, or as I mentioned, think about getting another pigeon. Good luck!

[Debi]

Thank you MaryJane! I appreciate your thoughts and advice.