help! i have a baby pidgeon on my balcony

[Pigeonpal2002]

Ok...here are Patricia's pics of the "bucket pigeon"

Looks very good and healthy Patricia, hopefully he will continue to do well and soon fly off on his own

[Pigeonpal2002]

And the last pic....

[patricia]

thank you for all your assistance, i am glad that the little guy looks healthy to you all. forgive my idealism, but isn't the internet amazing, that you could see this little british columbia bird, and isn't it wonderful that we care about other species. surely no other animal other than the human would plan and execute a terrorist attack........why are people afraid of the animal world? I am always mystified when people recoil from the sight of my big black beautiful dog when we are walking. he is the gentlest of creatures and only shows his teeth when approached in a hostile manner. surely almost all other animals are less unpredictable & dangerous than all of us. i guess we are a great bunch as well...just a little kookier than the rest. and truly less evolved, not more. perhaps in the next life some of you will come back as a bird and be well taken care of just as you have taken care of so many.
goodnight all. sorry to wax philosophic....

[TAWhatley]

Great photos .. thanks for sharing them Patricia and thanks to Brad for posting them!

Terry

[PidgePidge]

Hi Patricia,
Your philosophical thoughts are definitely in good company with the group here! Animals are so wonderful, and there's also something so special about baby animals too, and watching parents watch over them so carefully. Did you know that the parents of your baby on the balcony will probably be mated for life? I've always thought that was sweet about pigeons too. But anyway yes, animals give us perspective!!!
Thanks so much for helping the baby and for keeping us posted. It's been fun reading your thread.

[patricia]

thank you for your response.
i thought a made a terrible 'faux pas' by bringing up a subject other than pigeons since no one said anything. the little guy is so cute now, he just sits on the side of the bucket and stares out at the world, and squeaks a lot when his parents are near. the adults are so frightened of us, but the baby isn't really. or maybe it's just that he can't yet fly. when he flies away, will they ever come back, or should we say our goodbyes soon?! that is amazing that the parents will mate for life. i will never see pigeons the same way since this experience...

[AZWhitefeather]

Many thanks for the update Patricia.

the little guy is so cute now, he just sits on the side of the bucket and stares out at the world
Yes indeed, they are too adorable.
I'm quite sure, in his eyes, he enjoys viewing nature much more than the inside of the bucket.

when he flies away, will they ever come back
Since he is so young, there is a good chance he may return to say "Hi".
I still have some pijjies that I rescued & released 2 years ago, that come by for a visit.

Please do keep us posted.

Cindy

[patricia]

it's very hot here on the balcony and i was wondering if i should put out bowl of cold water that maybe he could cool off in. what do u think?

[Skyeking]

Hi Patricia

Bucket Baby is just beautiful.

Offering the birds some drinking water and a clean pool to swim in would be great! Baby pigeons love to swim, and it is fun watching them swim, too. He may be reluctant at first, but will soon enjoying it. Any kind of tub, like a clean cat litter box or big bowl that won't spill when he perches on it, will do.

On these hot days I'm constantly refilling my birds water, as they drink more and I fill their pools too, as everyone enjoys cooling off. Maybe the parents will join them.

Thank you for being so kind and thoughtful.

Treesa

[patricia]

i put out a nice cool tray of water today, but neither s/he nor the parents will go near it! he is really growing, and he flapped his wings today. they have really good vision or hearing a? when i near the balcony through the doors on an angle, the parents get jittery and move away from him/her. soon i think he will be flying away, i'll be happy to see it but sad to see him go.

[patricia]

hello everyone. not unlike the recent post "when will they leave" i am wondering if i should remove the nest at some point. the building managers have put up a notice regarding a fine for anyone harbouring pigeons.. while that is not my primary concern, it is very warm and i would like to be able to open the balcony doors and go out there, but the family has pretty well taken over! i can't because of our cat. the " bucket baby" walks around but doesn't fly. he does flap his wings if we approach too closely. i don't want to upset his development, please let me know if i should begin to clean the area as well to avoid another hatching. it's not that i don't love this little cutie but with a cat and a dog, this would not be a good home for him!
thx

[Pigeonpal2002]

Hi Patricia,

Yes, you can go ahead and clean up the nest material and the balcony in general. Just go slowly and try not to scare the baby too much. He shouldn't be there too much longer really so you'll be able to give it a thorough cleaning soon as well as reclaim it

Thanks for all your concern and patience while this little guy gets ready to take to the air and join a flock

[patricia]

thank you very much, i will do this later today or tomorrow. is there some little characteristic that i can look for on him/her so i could recognize him/her if/when s/he comes back for a visit. not knowing pigeons very well, he is adorable but looks pretty much like other pigeons to me. i have named him pidgywidgydingdong which is not very noble but just comes out naturally. he is not very afraid of me anymore. i can water the plants and hang out a bit with him but his parents freak out if i am near, so i don't want to upset them. can i touch him just once before he goes away if he would let me?
thx for all the help.

[Pigeonpal2002]

Hi Again,

LOL....what a cute and endearing name for this pigeon Yes, still try to keep the activity to a minimum on the balcony for now but clean up a little at a time. You can touch him if he'll allow it. I don't know what kind of balcony you have but some have an opening at the bottom so just make sure he doesn't try to run from you and scoot through such an opening and fall down to the ground and his death.

Unfortunately it will be hard to "know" him if he returns because the feathers will change even more so in about 3 months. These are his "baby" feathers and won't look as shiny or dark as the new ones that will replace them. His eye colour will change as well and THEN he'll look just like all the rest of them. Perhaps if you see one come around again, that is a little tamer and lingers more than the rest, you'll know it's him stopping by to say hello and thanks

[patricia]

thank you. secretly i don't want him to go at all. i just love looking at him and the way he looks at me, like he's building trust and i feel good about it. not that i don't love my cat too, but it really bothers me how he wants to get out there and do i don't know what to him.
i don't think i have the heart to take the bucket away, he just loves sitting in it. so i will tidy up a bit and maybe just sit out there anyway once i clean the chair and ground a bit!
if he makes some quiet sounds and seems to be looking at me, is that a good sign, or is he scared?
reading this site daily has made me even more want to move out to a farm and live with pigeons and birds (who didn't used to be in the fantasy!) and dogs and horses for the rest of my life. but alas, i am a prisoner of the city....work and all..