Update on my pigeon

[esdoody]

Well, the pigeon is doing good. He or she, (not sure?) happily eats the seeds and I also got some grit and i mix that in with it. He drinks water from a shot glass and is pretty happy. I take her(he?) out of the cage every day and she has been slowly learning to fly. My friend said she will take the pigeon once she(he) can fly well. My friend has a few pet pigeons and has made a home for them in her barn so I think Betty(the birds name) will be happy there.
The only thing is, Im still not sure how old the bird is and should she be able to fly all around now?
Here are some pics i took of her the other day.

http://people.delphiforums.com/EMILYSDOODY/DSCN2406.JPG


http://people.delphiforums.com/EMILYSDOODY/DSCN2409.JPG


Also, she is getting mean now, slapping me with her wing and trying to peck at me.

[Trees Gray]

Thank you for the update.

What a cutie!

Betty is still very much a youngster, as her flights are not even fully grown in yet, and her tail feathers haven't grown out. She is barely 4 weeks old and still sporting some fuzz on er head.

Practicing for now will help strengthen her wings and help her co-ordination, but she will need a few weeks before she can actually practice flying with all the necessary feathers still coming in.

[bklowe]

Rock Doves fly @ 35-37 days after hatch. Your pigeon is not that old yet. From the pictueres it looks as if Betty has something going on with the left wing as it looks droopy in the pictures. When looking @ the bird from the front, both wings shpould be high and held tight to the body and in exactly the same position. Has Betty practced flapping her wings yet?

[esdoody]

Thanks for thar info, I had NO idea how old she was, I was guessing 3-4 weeks. It'll be to see her learning how to really fly

Originally Posted by Trees Gray

Thank you for the update.

What a cutie!

Betty is still very much a youngster, as her flights are not even fully grown in yet, and her tail feathers haven't grown out. She is barely 4 weeks old and still sporting some fuzz on er head.

Practicing for now will help strengthen her wings and help her co-ordination, but she will need a few weeks before she can actually practice flying with all the necessary feathers still coming in.

[esdoody]

I was wondering if there was something wrong with her wing too. What does that mean? Could it be broke? I noticed its often droopy. She does use it with no trouble when she flies. I hold her about a foot away from her cahe and she "flies"in it. I think she practises..

Originally Posted by bklowe

Rock Doves fly @ 35-37 days after hatch. Your pigeon is not that old yet. From the pictueres it looks as if Betty has something going on with the left wing as it looks droopy in the pictures. When looking @ the bird from the front, both wings shpould be high and held tight to the body and in exactly the same position. Has Betty practced flapping her wings yet?

[Trees Gray]

Originally Posted by bklowe

When looking @ the bird from the front, both wings shpould be high and held tight to the body and in exactly the same position. Has Betty practced flapping her wings yet?

Thanks, Bruce for mentioning the wing, I was going to and forgot. that may or may not be an issue, I would keep my eye on it.

Perhaps she needs to strengthen the muscles in that wing, but it should be in the same position as the other one.

[Pidgey]

Esdoody,

Has his wing always drooped like that? We really don't know how he ended up in your shed. He certainly had a life of privation there for a few days and he was thin. Sometimes, if they're half-starved when they're young, they have a bit of a hard time developing and he may have hurt himself in falling from wherever because it's been over a week since you found him and he sure couldn't fly back then.

Pidgey

[esdoody]

Yes, Im pretty sure its wing has always drooped. I dont think it'll be a problem tho because she/he can fly a bit already. Ill def keep a close eye on it.