[livelifelight]

Hi there, This bird appeared in our back garden about three weeks ago. It wasn't injured, ill or overly hungry or tired, that we could see. It didn't have a band on it's leg. We thought that perhaps it took a shine to our chickens(or their food) but other than that, know nothing about it. I talked to the local pigeon fanciers and noone is missing a bird that they know of that fits this description.

Since then, it has been well rested and fed, and certainly likes to "fly the perimeter" at great speeds, also showing off with some breath taking flybys. It seems relatively tame, often hovering above our heads and has no problems being moved once it has roosted for the night.

The roosting issue is that it chooses to roost on a ridiculously thin steep piece of metal above a south facing (Chilly Antarctic winds) sliding door which has no shelter and little room to manover. My husband built it a "loft" but it doesn't seem to like roosting there, although it's quite happy to feed there and perch occasionally.

So, this is the wee house he built, it's just over 2 meters off the ground, is about 30cms in height(also has a layer of insulation) and about 60cms in length, with fresh hay at the back and about 30cms of covered space inside. Then there's about 10 cms of covered outside space. with food and water and at the very edge, a perch, which hubby is thinking of extending the whole way round the loft.

Its about 3 metres away from the chickens now, it was about 1.5ms away before but every cat in the neighbourhood seems to have been competing to see who'd get it first so we witnessed some wild attempts of cats launching themselves at the loft.....none succeeded but there was a slim chance...and they're getting cheekier and cheekier.

So, what exactly is our new visitor(Dove/Pigeon, male/female)?
We're feeding it wild bird sood(mostly seed) and wheat that the chooks get.
Any tips of the positioning/building/retraining of the roost?
I wondered if it looked a bit "Spooky", hovering above ground...or if the entrance to the actual inside part was too big?Thanks in advance for any feedback.
D

 

[Skyeking]

Thank you for adopting this lovely bird.

That is definitely a homing pigeon, perhaps a highflyer/roller.Depends on exactly how he flies. Does he fly and then drop and roll?

What a nice little house you have built it. Pigeons do need a bit more room in their enclosure and security.

He should be enclosed with any openings larger then 1/4 inch covered by strong hardware cloth. There should be plenty of ventilation, protection from rain and standing water. If the cats are already hanging about, it won't take no time for them to catch him when he is most vulnerable, at night when he is asleep. It would be best to have a door that can open in the morning.

I also have to warn you that pigeons are safer in numbers, and he is very vulnerable to hawk attacks flying around by himself.