[Rachie]

Freezing conditions. Not sure if pigeon is trapped or clever

Hi!
Yesterday I found a pigeon between my house wall and garden wall. It is in a space a few inches wide, but the opening to it is only 430mm wide. There is not enough room for it to spread its wings to fly out. I am not sure if it is taking shelter on purpose and can fit through the gap when it wants to, or if it has somehow got stuck there? It is snowing here (South Wales Valleys) and I just had to unfreeze my boiler outlet pipe with boiling water so its well below freezing out there.

I tried to poke a stick in to help it climb out but it ran out of reach, so I put a fat ball and some bird seed and nuts inside the gap for it. Last night I couldn't see it, but I can't see the whole space. Today it is there, puffed up, in an inch or so of snow. I knocked the fat ball out of the snow and nearer it. I tried taping a snow shovel to a broom handle to make something to lift it up on, but it wouldn't come near the shovel even with bird seed on it and I can't reach the back of the gap. I have left my back door open to warm up the little conservatory type space which might heat the wall and thus the gap where the pigeon is.

Do you think it is stuck or clever, and do you have any more ideas for things I should do for it please? As far as I am aware it is a normal everyday British pigeon.

Thank you,
Rachie

 

[bootface]

I would assume it’s stuck. Pigeons don’t usually take shelter at ground level, plus it’s not very sheltered if it’s being snowed on. I assume it’s open at the top. Could you reach something down and herd it towards the gap, or block off most of the area?

 

[Jay3]

He must be injured or sick to be staying in there. Can you get a long broom or something to reach in behind him, which should get him to come closer to you, rather than going further in? You need to get something behind him, rather than between you and him. He will freeze to death out there.
Not sure if he could get through that narrow opening at the bottom, but you need to try.

 

[Rachie]

Thanks for your replies.
Not good news then. I will get out there with a ladder and my broom shovel and see what I can do now, it's getting dark soon.
Thanks again.
Rachie

 

[Jay3]

If you can get a net on a pole, and get it in where you can, then lift him up to where it is wide enough to get him out, and pull him out.

 

[Rachie]

Ok, I went out and climbed up a ladder onto the wall and roof with a squeegee mop and the shovelbroom I made before. I managed to get the mop behind him and chase him onto the shovel. First he escaped when I tried to lift it, I tried again and he took a bit of a tumble off the shovel head over heels down the plank of wood, but third time lucky I got him onto the shovel and blocked him onto it with the mop and he perched there as I lifted it really slowly all the way up to the top. He got onto the wall, looked around, then flew a few metres onto next door's garden wall and gave me a funny look for a minute or two. I went and put the ladder away and topped up the bird feeders and then he was gone. So I hope he is happy and soon to be reunited with his pigeon friends, he will have a lot of stories to tell, including a near death experience last night when I checked on him with a bright torch from above in the dark!

Thanks for your replies and helpful ideas, you may well have saved a pigeon as it is going to be a very cold night here.

 

[Jay3]

Good job! Hopefully he somehow just got stuck and isn't sick or injured. Keep an eye out in case you should see him hanging around your feeders, as he could be injured or sick.

 

[Rachie]

Ok I will try to keep an eye out.
In terms of sickness/injury am I basically looking out for bird having trouble walking/flying, wings/feet looking wrongly shaped, bird sitting around on ground, that kind of thing?

 

[Jay3]

Ok I will try to keep an eye out.
In terms of sickness/injury am I basically looking out for bird having trouble walking/flying, wings/feet looking wrongly shaped, bird sitting around on ground, that kind of thing?

Yes, exactly that kind of thing. Thanks for caring enough to help him out of that predicament. He would have died in there. Great job!

 

[Rachie]

That gap is full of snow this morning so it is a good thing you guys got me to get him out in the nick of time yesterday. Hopefully he found somewhere better to shelter.

 

[Jay3]

Thanks for the picture. You saved his life. No idea how he got in there to begin with. He may have been chased by a hawk or something. He is very lucky that you found him. And that you took the time to act for him. Thank you Rachie.