Found pigeon w/ hurt wing....help!

[spritesister]

Hello everyone,
I found a pigeon with a hurt wing, and I don't know much about pigeons, except some of the things I've read on here. I need some advice for caring for "Polly". (I am calling it "Polly" although I don't know if it is a girl or boy). I know what to feed it and I have it in a cat carrier (without the cat..ha-ha). Anyway, I don't know how I should handle Polly. What I mean is I tried to take her/him out of the carrier to clean it lastnight, and it tried to peck me. I know that is a natural reaction, but this is a wild pigeon, so don't know what kind (if any) diseases it might have (plus I don't really want to be pecked regardless)! Is there a certain kind of gloves that someone could recommend? I hate to sound dumb about it, but I have absoulutely no idea how much damage a pigeon can do! Also, is there a certain way I should hold it? It has a hurt wing. Does anyone know how I would fix Polly's wing? And one more thing....how are pigeons as pets? My husband thinks I am nuts, but I've thought about keeping Polly (especially if here wing is not fixable). What are your opinions on this? Thank you soooooo much for any help you can give me!

[TAWhatley]

Hello and welcome to pigeons.com. Thank you for helping this needy bird!

As long as you are careful about your hygiene when handling and caring for the pigeon, there is little chance of you getting any type of disease from the bird.

If you will click on the link to Resources at the top of the page here at pigeons.com you will find the answers to your questions about food and overall care and housing for the bird.

Pigeons don't have the ability to really hurt you by pecking or wing slapping (which they also do at times). I really wouldn't use gloves as this would be more frightening to the bird than your hands.

Is the wing broken, drooping, injured ??? Depending upon what is wrong, the wing may need to be set by a vet or wildlife rehabilitator.

Pigeons can and do make wonderful pets though it might take some time for a feral pigeon to gracefully accept living in captivity. If the wing can't be repaired, then Polly would definitely need someone to take her in for the remainder of her life.

Please let us know the details of the wing problem, and we'll see if we can help with further advice.

Terry

[Feefo]

Hello,
There could be an injury under the wing that needs treateing. A preliminary visit to the vet might be best, they can show you how to handle her.

Hopwever, if you feel a bit more confident about the handling there are instructions on how to support a broken wing in Julie's album :
http://community.webshots.com/user/jujubear29

Look in the wing taping album, but read it carefully as there is one type of fracture that shouldn't be taped in this way. It is explained in the album.

Cynthia

[Nooti]

Thanks for answering that one Cynthia. I didn't know Julie had saved these photos. Good for her. My poor long suffering Scops pays dearly for being so tame. He's used for all sorts of demonstrations.

[Feefo]

Yours are the best illustrative photos I have seen, Helen. I had one of Scops and the wing binding but was delighted to find that Julie had the whole series. Now we need the foot one to link to!

Cynthia

[turkey]

Helen's foot splint is on the photo album too.

Or are we talking about a different one?

Julie

[Nooti]

Helen's foot splint is on the photo album too.
Or are we talking about a different one?

********************
Is it? You mean the most recent one? I think that's the only one I've done anyway. Wow Julie - you are super-efficient! :-)

[turkey]

Yep, that's the one.
http://community.webshots.com/user/jujubear29

You are the super one Helen.

Julie