Tameness Evaluation, Please? Also, cage bar width.

[MizLiz]

Hold on to your hats, folks..... He's healthy!

The new vet shone a light in his eyes and mouth, listened through a stethoscope to both sides of his chest and on his back, examined his rump and spread out each wing. Feathers were pulled out and broken, but there were no other injuries and no infections. He also lost a few tertiary wing feathers on one wing.

After explaining to me that the white part of the poop was white enough to be healthy-looking, she also looked at his feces under a microscope, and said he had almost no parasites, certainly not enough to harm him.

So, she said, after a few days getting three squares a day, he would be good to release.

He's so docile I wonder if he's wary enough to avoid getting attacked like he was. I wonder if it's safe to release him. But I did find him on a college campus, so maybe that's where he got used to people. And the vet said he was strong enough to struggle against being examined, so his docility isn't because of exhaustion, starvation or disease.

I'd like to keep him. I really like getting to know him. But I don't have the facility keep him after he regains his strength and some tail feathers. If all goes well, I'll try the reccommended soft release in our back yard. I only live four miles from where I picked him up. He should be able to find his way back if he wants to go. And find his way back here if he wants. I'll keep some of his food in the freezer in case he comes back to visit.

I think his name is RiffRaff. RiffRaphael.

I don't suppose any of you want to adopt him?

[Dezirrae]

That's wonderful new MizLiz Sounds as if it was a good & productive exam - what a relief huh?

I wonder about her saying he'd be releasable after a few days of rest though - Pidgey mentioned it taking a few weeks for the tail feathers to grow back and they do need that to help with maneuvering. So I do hope you can keep him at least until his tail feathers grown back. You know, building something to house one or two pigeons really is not very difficult Are you in a house or an apartment? Either way - there's a thread here about buidling an indoor aviary (use the search feature at the top for "indoor aviary). And there's a member here that makes flight suits for pigeons that are indoor pets (aka "diaper). So there's lots of options if you do decide to keep him. But I suppose I am "jumping the gun" Gotta make sure your house guest stays 100% healthy while them tail feathers are growing back.

Oh and by the way - would you mind PMing the name of the vet and address / telephone number to Charis (screenname) -- or send it to me. I believe she's assembling a list of resources in various states and sounds like you found a good one.

[MizLiz]

Okay, assuming he lives long enough to be our pet... my husband is hoping I keep him for keeps, and we both think using a flight suit (trademark!) would be great.

THe real difficulty would be with our two current pets. My husband's loving but very predatory cat (he brings us kills all summer long), and my loving but predatory dog (a terrier who I saw get very exicted once by a cage of finches). We will have to keep the pigeon totally seperated from our first two pets.

A pigeon is social. How many hours a day should a lone pigeon have people time? Should we adopt a second pigeon to keep him company (oh dear what am I getting into)?

[pdpbison]

Hi Miliz,



Very glad to hear the good news from the Vet.


Figure to keep him another three weeks before 'release', and by then in 'safe'
surrounds, make sure he seems strong and well able to fly strongly indoors anyway...


The College where you found him would be best...



Good luck..!


Good Work..!!!



Phil
l v

[bweaz]

If you wanted to keep him, pigeons tame down really easily. And it sounds like your pigeon is already mostly tame.

I get my pigeon up when I get up in the morning - I take him with me when I get ready (usually around 45 min), however, do not spray anything (hairspray, perfume, whatever) around him - that could kill him. Anything with a strong odor, teflon, cigarette smoke, an oven on self clean, any cleaning chemicals could kill him. It sounds like a lot to remember, but it is really common sense - anything that could emit fumes (even if we consider them light fumes) could do damage to a bird's lungs. So, if you are going to clean, just tuck the pigeon in his cage (in another room), crack a window and clean. If you are going to cook with teflon pans, same thing, tuck pigeon away, crack window and cook. However, they do have great cleaning solutions on the market that are "bird safe". You can find them readily on the internet.

I put him in his cage for the day.

Then at night, I get him out when I get home. Usually he is out with me from 6 pm to 9:30 pm. Most of the time he does his own thing. I let him wander around my apartment (I keep him in view). He investigates things (I have bird proofed my apt) and when he is done he comes back over to me and lets me pet him.

I have a big "cat/ferret" cage for him to stay in while I am gone. He lives by a window so he can see out and can get some sunshine - sunshine is the only way pigeons can metabolise calcium. Since this is a feral pigeon - mine is an american racer - be careful of the bar spacing on the cage. I wouldn't get anything over 3/4"-1" wide (when you start looking at cages the spacing will be part of the description). If you get wider than 1" you run the risk of having the pigeon sticking his head through the bars and snapping his neck. The pigeon I had previously (a feral) could get her head between the bars of my current cage, however, she unfortunately passed away (not from anything to do with the cage) and since the pigeon I have now is bigger, he can't get his head between the bars.

If you were worried about him being lonely while you are gone you could get another pigeon. Sometimes you can adopt pigeons from agencies around you or you can go on-line and have one shipped to you or you can see if there are any hobbiests in your area (there always are).

I have a cat also and he hasn't ever bothered the pigeon. HOWEVER, he is an indoor cat, he is really old, he only hunts house flys (after they are half dead) and I have other birds that scare the daylights out of him. I do always watch to make sure my cat hasn't taken an unusual liking to the birds. I never leave the cat and the birds alone together unless the birds are in their cages. AND I WILL SAY, that dogs are just as aggressive around birds, if not more, than cats. A cat's saliva will kill a bird quickly, but a dog bite will normally kill a bird instantly (due to the strength of dog jaws). In the beginning, you may have to be a little extra vigilant but soon it will seem like second nature. My birds ride around on my shoulders and that is how I keep track of them.

This may seem like a lot of info, but I like to type ... just kidding. Really, it is SUPER, SUPER easy to keep a house pigeon or pigeons. Way easier than keeping any type of parrot -parakeet, cockatiel, conure, etc (and I've had most of them). After my first pigeon, I will NEVER EVER be without a pet pigeon. They are the greatest pets ever!!! Hope this helped.

[lizz]

sounds to me, sister , that you and the hubby would be GREAT pigeon parents!

i rescued and rehabbed a little guy and i agree on the whole 'i will never be without a pigeon' statement - i love my little trooper passionately. really. i completely get why pigeons/doves are the symbol for peace - i pet him and his little eyes squint up and he hunkers down like a grey feathery cow pie....ohhhhh....it just kills me.

and they are ridiculously easy to take care of. much less messy and/or destructive than parrots, that's for sure!!!

and you found THE right place to discuss anything pigeon-related, believe me!
i love these people!!!!

i'm glad you're taking care of him. somehow i think they know it, and appreciate it - funny how he seems so tame, huh?

[John_D]

That was a great result, MizLiz. The vet you saw sounds like someone who has a better idea how to check over a pigeon than your 'fido and tiddles' vet

At least while the tail grows back you'll have a chance to see how tame he really is.

Many pigeons seem to settle in and adapt to our homes very quickly, and are unafraid, but just want to be pigeons and do pigeon things. I have one now who doesn't mind how close I am - I talk nose to beak to her - but really hates to be picked up or have my hand too near her. But then, she is a young adult feral who lived with the flock until she fell ill, and wants to be with other pigeons.

John

[MizLiz]

I have lots of questions, but Fred (I tried other names, that one fit) is no longer in a state of emergency, so I will post in the other areas.

Thank you, everyone who commented! I couldn't have helped Fred without all of you.

[MizLiz]

Hello there. I have no experience with pigeons, and am tending a rescued feral who is out of danger, healthwise, for at least six weeks (until his tail feathers grow back). My husband and I are impressed with how tame and nice he is and woud like to keep him as a pet. Therefore, I have a lot of questions. Any info you can share with me would be appreciated!

The pigeon's name is Fred. I tried other names, but that is the one that stuck.

If I tell you guys what Fred does, can you tell me how tame he is? I'm wondering if this is a normal way for a feral pigeon to be.

I found him on Friday September 5, about 5:15 p.m. You can read the adventure of his rescue if you want here: http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/f20/fe...-up-29874.html

I was able to spend much of the weekend with him, but I work full time during the week. So I haven't spent as much time with him since Monday.

He does not bother running away when my hands come for him. He's always been okay with my slowly picking him up, scooping with both hands under him.

Often, he steps onto my hand when asked (gently prodded), and rides in my hand when I carry him slowly across the room.

He voluntarily walks around on my lap, and walks under my arms and behind me to get somewhere. He chose to stand on my hand to lean down and drink out of a tub of water.

He has allowed me to give him some index-finger scritches, but I don't know where pigeons like to be scratched, and I don't think he understands what I'm trying to do.

Sometimes he takes my finger in his beak and holds on for about a second. I do not know what this means. Is there a guide to pigeon language anywhere?

My husband was surprised I haven't already ordered Fred a FlightSuit diaper, but geeze, I don't know if I'll be able to convince Fred to tolerate putting it on. It would be wonderful, though! Do you think he's a good candidate?

Also, the wire dog crate I keep him in has bars about 1 1/4 inches part. He can easily get his head and neck though, and back out again. The width of his chest and shoulders keeps him in the cage. I am looking for a better cage for him, but in the meantime, is he in immediate danger from this cage?

Thank you!!

[brentjohnf]

good story, sound about how I would feel if my tail feathers were pulled out also probably would have "runny yellow droppings."LOL

Can you post some photos up for us to see wut he looks like... Sound like you have a pet, The cage he is in, sounds ok as long as there no hungry animal around... if you keep him, one weekend project you can buy are build him a small coup to live in...

[Trees Gray]

Yes, the cage does pose a danger, as we have a member who's bird got his head stuck thru it while he was away. The rabbit cages seem to have the bars spaced closer together, and the cages are longer which is better for pigeons.

[Lovebirds]

I think that for now everything seems to be going pretty good. I would caution you though, that maybe his tameness is due to his injury or maybe not. It WAS a wild pigeon, and I would say that if anytime in the near future, the attitude changes and it seems that maybe it's not REALLY happy being confined, to let him go back to where he came from.
Domesticated pigeons and babies that are found and raised and imprinted on humans is one thing, but to take a pigeon that up to a certain point in it's life had been living just fine in the wild, and try to make a pet out of it when there are countless pigeons that can never be released back to the wild that need homes, isn't the right thing to do IMO.
Having said that, Fred just might like the good life and never look back and everything will be fine for years to come.
I guess what I'm saying is take it a day at the time and see how it goes. He sounds like he's taken up with you just fine and if that's the case, then good for him and good for you. If he's happy and you're happy, that's what matters.
If however he ever gets that "look" and gets antsy like he want to return to where he came from, then it would be the kindest thing of you to release him.
I"m sure you've already thought about all of that.....but just in case...
As far as the cage..........inside it's fine. Outside, he wouldn't last long if a cat or hawk came along.
I would also make a perch out of a 2 X 4. They really prefer something flat to roost on as opposed to round.

[Trees Gray]

Originally Posted by MizLiz

I have lots of questions, but Fred (I tried other names, that one fit) is no longer in a state of emergency, so I will post in the other areas.

Actually it might be best to combine the two threads, that way we have the history on your bird. We get alot of threads here and it is easy to forget and get confused. You can consider it if you would like.

Thank you.

[MizLiz]

Originally Posted by Lovebirds

If however he ever gets that "look" and gets antsy like he want to return to where he came from, then it would be the kindest thing of you to release him.

You're right Lovebirds. I knew that when I took him in, but I needed the reminder. Thanks.

[bweaz]

For bar width, I go with something about 3/4". Someone said rabbit cage earlier, and that works. If they get their heads between the bars they can snap their neck.

My pet pigeon steps onto my hand and loves to have her head scratched.