Effects of Droppings on Varnished Wood Floors?

[ryannon]

My little feathered friend of a House Pigeon is the world's busiest poop factory, and since he's totally destroyed the carpeting in my place, I'm thinking of replacing it (the carpeting, not him) with new, factory-varnished wooden flooring.

Does anyone have any experience with the effects of pigeon poop on varnished wood? Is it acidic enough to mar a layer of varnish and leave a slight (or more) visible trace?

I have visions of hundreds of little circular marks progressively appearing on the new flooring - the involuntary creation of some new and strange variety of patterning on the wood.

On the other hand, I'd love to think it would be impervious, with all traces vanishing after a swipe with a damp cloth.

Does someone know which it will be? Am I doomed to living with a bare cement floor which I'll have to hose down every few days? If so, I might as well just move into a pigeon-coop myself.

I sense this would be seen as a great victory by the little guy....especially if he kept the apartment all for himself....

[pdpbison]

Hi ryannon,



To a certainty, any commercial Wood Flloring which is pre-finished, would be 'Varnished' inly in a figurative sense, as Varnish proper has been long out of fashion...instead, it is a Verathane or some other in-effect 'plastic' coating/finish, and most are very scientific so called 'water borne' or other now, far form the old Solvent based Organic based ones.


The major aspect to consider regarding Pigeon poop, in this regard, is the simple moisture content of it, far more than that it posesses any special chemical or acidic propertys.


If the Flooring will handle having wet things on it, long enough for those little wet things to dry by ambient Air without harming the finish...if it is Mop-able Flooring, it should be fine.

If it is not Mop-able, it will almost certainly get 'spots' where the finish is injured from moist dabs being on it.


If it were me, I would elect Tile, Mexican Tile, some sort of Pavers, sealed Concrete...stained and sealed Concrete...polished, tinted and sealed Concrete, or Linoleum-substitutes of some kind ( as genuine Linoleum, last I looked, was also long gone but for some drab and ughy colors available in some Eastern Bloc countrys who still manufactured it).


Various so called 'Tiles' made of Linoleum substitutes, can be had in really great colors and patterns, and can be combined in various ways for fields and boarders, or however one likes. They are easy to set on any clean level Concrete slab or stable Wood subfloor, and wear for ever, and Mop splendidly from anything getting on them.


Good luck..!


Oh, it was for sure for the best you got rid of the Carpet.

Carpets are a horrid resivior for endless irritating, dangerous, toxic and all round unpleasant Molds, Spores, Nematodes and their disused husks, and endless minute else, to say nothing of their off-gassing toxic fumes, enbrittleing with age to release edless mocriscopic filiments then getting into your Lungs and so on...so, good riddance there in all counts...


Phil
l v

[Margarret]

ryanon,

You have had me in stitches with your description of life with your pij. Welcome to PT.

Pij poop can be corrosive, but if it is washed off the floor every day it would probably be fine. The poop has to sit there awhile before the corrosion begins. I have wood floors in my loft, varnished with plain old verathane-the water based kind at that which is not as durable. I don't wash it every day, I scrape it a couple of times a day. But when I do wash it, most of it comes clean. And that is 28 pijs doing what they do on it.

Do think about a day cage for him as well. He might grumble and flatten himself against the sides for awhile until he figures out the program has changed and he doesn't get his way 24/7. He might even like having his own private "room" where he can have his food and toys.

Margaret

[ryannon]

Thank you for your advise, Margaret....it's clear that things have to change around here. If I discover that the varnished hardwood flooring is indeed poop-proof, I should be fine with a combination of diapers and a little cage-time.

I'll keep the forum posted on my progress: at the speed at which I generally move, this is probably going to take a few months.

But I'll be lurking here as I have since first registering, enjoying the posts, the information-sharing, and above all, the love the people here express for these wonderful little creatures.

The very idea of separating from The King of Poop has made me aware of how much I've bonded with him - and how much of his well-being and very existence is in my hands.

Perhaps one day I'll relate how my interest in pigeons got started some twenty or so years ago: it's very similar to many of the other stories I've read here, insofar as it was a pigeon who initially chose me in a time of great need. As time passed and my involvement increased, it got to the point where one guy literally fell out of the sky and into my hands. With no warning, but just like that: we were both in the right place at the right time. Just one of many amazing and improbable 'co-incidences'.

There's also a perfect symmetry, in as much as things turned out, I needed them as much as they needed me: I'm not sure I'd still be here were it not for the energy I had to find to keep them going. The same energy also served to keep me going when there was little will in me to do so.

I suspect that many of us have been more or less in similar places, which may explain our devotion and love for these birds. Would it be the same with sparrows, jays, crows or hawks? I'm not sure: there's something about the humble vulnerability of a pigeon, their age-old relationship with humans, their intelligence and sense of humor, and unfortunately, their persecution, that makes them irresistable to those with the eyes and the compassion to see them clearly.

In a larger sense, it is the same with all the planet's animals, of which pigeons are a particularly visible part. Like canaries in the coal-mine of our days and works, our awareness of their needs and existence reflects the chances of our own survival as a species.

[Charis]

You are very kind, insightful and funny. I hope you stick around so we can hear from you. Definitely, you add more laughter and spice to this forum. There's always room for more.

P.S. Polished concrete floors are all the rage in Oregon.

[ryannon]

Thank you, Charis.

By the way, you've got a great signiature....


ASK THE VERY BEASTS
AND THEY WILL TEACH YOU
ASK THE WILD BIRDS-
AND THEY WILL TELL YOU.
JOB 12.7


Another of my favorites, but unfortunately I don't recall the name of the member who uses it:

Talk to me,
Coo to me,
Bow to me,
Listen to me.
And I'll teach you
To fly with me
And I will love you
Like no other....

[Trees Gray]

Hi ryannon,

I thoroughly enjoy your posts.

Please do share the history of how you got to this point, sometime when you can.

Please give the King of Poop a hug and a kiss from me, he reminds me of Rosco, another adorable and overbearing lovable bird, I was privlieged to get to know.. you have to read his story also, if you haven't.

Thanks for everything you do to make this world a better place for our noble feral pigeons in France. I commend you for your thoughtful and tender care of them all. They are mistreated by many and considered as second class (even third) citizens in the world of birds.

[Rooster2312]

Hi Ryannon,

I just read your post tonight about your house pigeon. I loved it, laughed at it, and definitely agree with everything regarding major carpet poop, seed tossing, and sleeping with a pigeon!

My first pet pigeon Jax has always been a house pet since being found as a squeaker. She became tame very quickly and I remember how much I couldn't 'deal' with the excretion issue in a small bedsit. I looked into re-homing her, but couldn't go through with it. Like you, I became very attached to my pigeon and accepted that this birds love for me and my love for her far outweighed the 'downside' of endless poop scooping .

I moved into much larger rented accomodation in May with my sister Jude, but the downside of this is having to keep my birds in my bedroom due to living with 3 cats now. I purchased a large cage for Jax but since she was used to living 'free range' she has never accepted cage life (apart from her last egg-laying period). In July I aquired another pigeon (Paddy) who is a former racing homer. He is an 07 bird who was lost and injured but is now healed and well. He is not tame (but is getting there very slowly) and also refuses to go into the very large double cage. The cages are, in their terms only for eating and drinking in. I place their food bowls within a cat litter tray to contain the majority of seed scatter which helps. Having a light-coloured carpeted room that belongs to my landlady (who doesn't know I have one pigeon, let alone two) means that I have to be fairly inventive in terms of pigeon proofing the floor. I tried glueing immitation wooden laminate flooring vinyl to thin boards but they are always moving around. I then bought clear carpet protector strips which can be easily cleaned. They don't look great though, and I've lost that nice carpeted bedroom feeling beneath my feet. I have enough to cover most of the floor and have cheap carpeted rugs on other areas. My floor at present looks like a patchwork mess as I have all 3 'trial coverings' in place till I find another alternative

I go through packets and packets of cleaning wipes each month but the carpet beneath is largely protected with ease of cleaning. My biggest problem is the amount of feathers all over the place and seeds from my other birds' cages. I have 2 pigeons, a cockatiel and 2 parakeets = lots and lots of feathers!! Jax and Paddy also go into my tiel's cage and steal seed tossing it everywhere!

Welcome to PT and the joys of having a house pet pigeon!

Lindi

[pdpbison]

Hi ryannon,



Plain Concrete, which one may lighty polish so it is pleasantly smooth...then tint or stain in any of a variety of ways, then seal...makes a wonderful, attractive easy-to-clean Floor, and can be Mopped all one likes with no problem...and it costs next to nothing to do.

One can lay out and tint fields and boarders in contrasting colors or patterns, and have it all entirely charming.


Good luck..!

Phil
l v

[maryjane]

Hi Ryannon and welcome. I have been enjoying your posts so far too, I got disconnected last night reading the other one and gave up and went to bed lol, so I didn't get a chance to post on it. You describe life with a pigeon very well....it really makes me reminiscent of the good ol' days of house pigeons. If you do put in varnished floors, consider a few throw rugs here and there or a big area rug (or remnant of one), it can give it a cool look and the rugs are pretty easy to clean off as many of them are made to be durable and good for spot-cleaning. We are currently looking at flooring for the house, I have spent about a third of the last month in carpet stores (which I hate hehe) and I think we are going with a laminate flooring.....looks just like hardwood floor but cleans up like linoleum (and is moppable, too).

You might think about putting some various "houses" around the room, so that he might find one appealing and start spending time in it. Then you could incorporate that little "house" into a larger cage for part of the day. Baskets are good (like picnic baskets with a handle, mine love those), as are small, carpeted cat houses (the kind that come much larger too and are covered in carpet). When my pijies were in the house, they had one of those and it was considered prime real estate. The cats, on the other hand, were not so enthusiastic. The wire baskets that come in threes usually, and hang on chains from top to bottom (usually used for fruit and such) make nice houses too. We had one pij make her home on top of the fridge, in a large potted plant. Milk crates turned on the side with a towel or cardboard around them make a nice cubby that looks like a good nesting spot. Of course, if they had their way, the very BEST house they liked was the kitchen cupboard above the stove, which didn't work out very well at all, let me tell you. We went 'round and 'round about that!! Cupboards are inviting though, but if you leave that option open to him, make sure to line them first with something you can pull up after. : P And I've heard PG Wear does wonders and sounds pretty easy for them to get used to. Hope some of this helps, good luck! We look forward to more stories (including the one on how you got "found" by your first pij.)


I'm glad you like my signature, too, thank you.

[Charis]

Originally Posted by ryannon

Thank you, Charis.

By the way, you've got a great signiature....


ASK THE VERY BEASTS
AND THEY WILL TEACH YOU
ASK THE WILD BIRDS-
AND THEY WILL TELL YOU.
JOB 12.7


Another of my favorites, but unfortunately I don't recall the name of the member who uses it:

Talk to me,
Coo to me,
Bow to me,
Listen to me.
And I'll teach you
To fly with me
And I will love you
Like no other....

Thank you. It means a lot to me. It's from the headstone that I had made for my Airedale, Carley. I learned a lot from that wonderful dog and shortly before her death, she saved me from an intruder. I struggled with him at the back door and Carley came to the rescue, bit the guy in the butt and he ran off. Had she not been there...

[ryannon]

A big, collective hello to all those who've welcomed me and contributed their thoughts and suggestions!

You've given me the resolve I needed to see this through in the right way.

Even El Pooper has felt something new and positive in the air. With renewed confidence, he has proudly displayed his final and complete domination over my television remote-control.

It's perhaps the pigeon-gray color of the thing, or the fact it's often in my hands, but somewhere along the line, he decided that the remote control was getting too much attention. Over time, a strange rivalry developed, culminating in this evening's spectacular victory, with the little guy first lancing threatening glances at it, then growling at it, pecking at it, biting the rubbery buttons and finally standing on it with both of his big feet, before actually hunkering down on the defeated rival for a little well-merited snooze.

I had to resuscitate the Paper Tiger as a diversion so as to be able to whisk the vanquished remote-control away and change channels without causing still another battle.

Although the rest of the evening has been relatively peaceful, I sense new ideas percolating through the little guy's brain: standing on one leg on his favorite spot on my knee as I lie in bed, alternatively sleeping, sneezing and growling lowly to himself, he's doubtlessly dreaming of new adventures, new victories and new territories of my heart to conquer...