Recently adopted pigeons

[Lavenderice]

Hello I recently adopted a pair of pigeons from my local rescue. They were originally feral pigeons but have both injured their wings and can't fly and therefore can't be released. I was wondering if pigeons who are adults and were feral can be "tamed"? It hasn't been that long since I've had them but I'm wondering what the best approach is to bonding with them. They are very scared when I am around them. Currently I talk to them everyday and I've tried providing different fruits and veggies but them don't seem interested.

I'm pretty new to having pigeons/doves as pets so any help would be appreciated thank you!!

[Marina B]

Pigeons love chopped up raw unsalted peanuts. You can sprinkle some on their food for them to develop a taste for them. Then start offering them the peanuts from a small bowl and move the bowl closer to you every time. Eventually they will learn to trust you and start eating from your hand.

They might never bond with you, but will start feeling more comfortable in your presence. Just spend a lot of time with them. If they are in an outside aviary, spend some time in there reading a book. Rather let them come to you than the other way round.

[Jay3]

Adult ferals may also never become tame. They have spent their lives viewing people as predators. You can enjoy them for what they are without needing to tame them. As Marina has said, the more time you spend around them, without handling them, the more they will get used to you. Birds cannot be forced. We have to accept them on their terms.

[cwebster]

Our beloved Phoebe was a critically injured feral who had a broken wong and was nearly decapitated and was nonreleasable. We got her fixed up and tamed her. She started trying to bite me and would bite on a straw toy i stuck into her cage. After a while, this became a friendly game, and soon she was an affectionate shoulder surfer who dearly loved to sit on our desktop computer printer and dance to tv show tunes. Ferals can be tamed but it takes a lot of patience and every bird is different. Hope your ferals get tamer soon.