Found a banded pigeon! Connecticut!

[Pyxis]

For permanent housing: Is there a number of square feet that's needed? Are the only needs a roost, shelter, and food and water? What should be used on the floor? I have sand and pine shavings.

Usually 2 square feet per bird in a loft is a good bet, or at least that's the general recommendation. But bigger is always better.

Individual perches for each bird are usually what's recommended over doing a single roost.

A lot of people just leave the floor bare and scrape it out every day.

@backyard pigeons keeps racing pigeons and could give you some tips on loft design for them.

 

[biophiliac]

@black_cat read this article for some basics
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/basic-pigeon-care-feeding-and-housing.68171/

 

[black_cat]

Usually 2 square feet per bird in a loft is a good bet, or at least that's the general recommendation. But bigger is always better.

Individual perches for each bird are usually what's recommended over doing a single roost.

A lot of people just leave the floor bare and scrape it out every day.

@backyard pigeons keeps racing pigeons and could give you some tips on loft design for them.

Thank you! I'm thinking that it may go something like this:
I pay *my own money* to have the pigeon at friend's house.
I care for, feed, and maintain loft
I pay for a friend for pigeon bc otherwise pigeon will be lonely. With the 2 square foot rule, a 3x3' loft would work? Is the run considered part of the loft or separate in spacing?

 

[cavemanrich]

black_cat

I will tag @Serin here, and maybe he can chime in on keeping that pigeon solo, as a house pet. He keeps one inside his home successfully, and as a house pigeon, one is the preferred number.

 

[black_cat]

black_cat

I will tag @Serin here, and maybe he can chime in on keeping that pigeon solo, as a house pet. He keeps one inside his home successfully, and as a house pigeon, one is the preferred number.

I wish I could keep a house pigeon, but my parents won't even let me have them outside at my house. This situation would be where at my friend's house (friend who found the pigeon with me) there would be a loft. My friend and I would care for the pigeon jointly, with the majority of the work going to me. I'd be paying for food, I'd help build and pay for the loft, I'd be buying a companion, but I can't have a house pigeon at their house

 

[black_cat]

For 2 pigeons:
is a 3x3 loft with a 3x3 run ok? I almost definitely can't spring for larger, so that's gotta do.

 

[backyard pigeons]

I will let BP explain his ways, since he gets new ones quite often.

haha. I do add new ones to much...

Integrating is easy. None is needed. But quarantine is a MUST for new birds

Obviously, with your new one you won't need to quarantine it, as it's the only one. If you add more, I recommend two weeks for quarantine, if possible.

We have the pigeon again! It came and landed in my friends yard. It is in a cat carrier. View attachment 2297179 They found the club/association that it belonged to yesterday, and nobody has claimed ownership. What should I do now? Friends parents entertaining the idea of keeping.

great! How close is the club to you? If it's close, and the owner doesn't want it, ask to see their setup, and maybe purchase a few birds if possible.

If you don't hear anything, it's yours if you want it!

Can pigeons eat scratch?

not for a staple diet. There food should look like this:

Thank you! I'm thinking that it may go something like this:
I pay *my own money* to have the pigeon at friend's house.
I care for, feed, and maintain loft
I pay for a friend for pigeon bc otherwise pigeon will be lonely. With the 2 square foot rule, a 3x3' loft would work? Is the run considered part of the loft or separate in spacing?

Cool! think through thing like, when you go out of town. If friends are okay with more than one bird. If they need the coop picture perfect, such as new coat of paint every year, etc.

I recommend a 3×3×3 ft cube for every pair of birds. ideally, that would be the loft, and then there would be a bump-out for them to bathe and get sunshine. (Yes! Pigeons love a bath. Give it a pan with two inches of water in it, and it might go for it!) You can also do the opposite, with the majority being a aviary (a wire cage, or its run) with a closed in area for roosting, nesting, and winter.

keep in mind, the aviary doesn't need to touch the ground like it does for chickens.

I hope this helps! Ask ANY other questions you have please!





Heres a small loft to give you an idea of what you're could be:

 

[black_cat]

haha. I do add new ones to much...

Integrating is easy. None is needed. But quarantine is a MUST for new birds

Obviously, with your new one you won't need to quarantine it, as it's the only one. If you add more, I recommend two weeks for quarantine, if possible.
great! How close is the club to you? If it's close, and the owner doesn't want it, ask to see their setup, and maybe purchase a few birds if possible.

If you don't hear anything, it's yours if you want it!
not for a staple diet. There food should look like this: View attachment 2297745

Cool! think through thing like, when you go out of town. If friends are okay with more than one bird. If they need the coop picture perfect, such as new coat of paint every year, etc.

I recommend a 3×3×3 ft cube for every pair of birds. ideally, that would be the loft, and then there would be a bump-out for them to bathe and get sunshine. (Yes! Pigeons love a bath. Give it a pan with two inches of water in it, and it might go for it!) You can also do the opposite, with the majority being a aviary (a wire cage, or its run) with a closed in area for roosting, nesting, and winter.

keep in mind, the aviary doesn't need to touch the ground like it does for chickens. View attachment 2297754

I hope this helps! Ask ANY other questions you have please!





Heres a small loft to give you an idea of what you're could be: View attachment 2297757

Thank you so much! For just one pair of birds, would a 6x3 area suffice, with half being loft and half being aviary? I don't think that friends mind looks too much. Their current chicken coop has never been painted. There are several kids in the household, all of which are very enthusiastic about keeping the pigeon, and the parents have a 'we can keep it but only if it doesn't fly away' it's in a cat carrier so I'm not sure how the flying away would happen, but yeah. My scratch looks like this:

(that's an actual picture I found for the exact brand)
It's mixed with chicken feed and birdseed right now, to make 'pigeon mix' (named by a younger sibling of friend)
Craigslist has done it again! I found people selling birds surprisingly close to me, as well as a loft, but it's a bit pricey....300$

it's 3x4x4 in the loft part, so would work quite well size wise...I'll also look for stuff marketed as chicken coops (I see a lot of TINY ones!)
I really like this specific pigeon...

same color scheme as ours but with fancy feets and tail!
In the whole 'building loft' phase, should we graduate pigeon from a cat carrier to a dog crate? More space to exist and feel less cramped.

 

[backyard pigeons]

Thank you so much! For just one pair of birds, would a 6x3 area suffice, with half being loft and half being aviary? I don't think that friends mind looks too much. Their current chicken coop has never been painted. There are several kids in the household, all of which are very enthusiastic about keeping the pigeon, and the parents have a 'we can keep it but only if it doesn't fly away' it's in a cat carrier so I'm not sure how the flying away would happen, but yeah. My scratch looks like this:

yes! That's plenty! That's would be awesome if you could do that.

That scratch almost looks close enough to be a real pigeon feed. What % is protein, fat, carbs, and fiber? Ann's what brand?

should we graduate pigeon from a cat carrier to a dog crate?

yes, if it's bigger.

 

[black_cat]

yes! That's plenty! That's would be awesome if you could do that.
yes, if it's bigger.

I don't have a dog crate myself but know that friends brooded chicks in one recently. I will be there tomorrow (we are in same quarantine bubble and right down the street, so basically eachother's only social interaction) and will suggest moving to dog crate.