Ideas to mitigate losses loft flying after locking down for winter

[LamarshFish]

Years ago I made the decision to keep my birds locked in the loft from about late October through March, due to losses from hawk predation as they migrate. The resident redtails present year round and through summer, while they will kill and eat pigeons, seem to prefer ground critters. It's really those migratory goshawks that will dwell in and fly through trees to eat their favorite prey--pigeons and doves.

Anyways, I'm hoping to loft fly them for the first time since fall soon. I seem to always have a loss or two the first few times, and I'd like to avoid that. I was planning on wetting and/or soaping their wings. Just wondering if anybody has tried this with success? I just want their first few flies to be limited to the loft roof and my yard, if possible.

And to be honest, I am a bit paranoid as to what may be the consequences of the new 5G network recently installed in my neighborhood.....

 

[sourland]

I would think that soaping their wings would only make them more vulnerable to attack.

 

[Old_Strain_Lover]

Years ago I made the decision to keep my birds locked in the loft from about late October through March, due to losses from hawk predation as they migrate. The resident redtails present year round and through summer, while they will kill and eat pigeons, seem to prefer ground critters. It's really those migratory goshawks that will dwell in and fly through trees to eat their favorite prey--pigeons and doves.

Anyways, I'm hoping to loft fly them for the first time since fall soon. I seem to always have a loss or two the first few times, and I'd like to avoid that. I was planning on wetting and/or soaping their wings. Just wondering if anybody has tried this with success? I just want their first few flies to be limited to the loft roof and my yard, if possible.

And to be honest, I am a bit paranoid as to what may be the consequences of the new 5G network recently installed in my neighborhood.....

By the looks of your avatar picture, it appears you are talking about homing pigeons here. Do you have a flight cage or aviary where the birds can get out and look around? And to be clear, these are all old birds which have flown in prior years? I can't imagine losing old birds which have already flown and been settled to your loft... unless of course they were taken by a hawk or falcon. Wetting or soaping them would definitely help keep them from flying off, but also makes them sitting ducks if a hawk swoops down on them. Best thing is to have an aviary/flight cage where then can always look around their surroundings. If there is an aviary and they still get lost and don't return, I would probably be questioning the background of those birds.

 

[backyard pigeons]

Years ago I made the decision to keep my birds locked in the loft from about late October through March, due to losses from hawk predation as they migrate. The resident redtails present year round and through summer, while they will kill and eat pigeons, seem to prefer ground critters. It's really those migratory goshawks that will dwell in and fly through trees to eat their favorite prey--pigeons and doves.

Anyways, I'm hoping to loft fly them for the first time since fall soon. I seem to always have a loss or two the first few times, and I'd like to avoid that. I was planning on wetting and/or soaping their wings. Just wondering if anybody has tried this with success? I just want their first few flies to be limited to the loft roof and my yard, if possible.

And to be honest, I am a bit paranoid as to what may be the consequences of the new 5G network recently installed in my neighborhood.....

A new article was written in the most recent issue of The Racing Pigeon Digest, talking about a supposedly fool-proof way of keeping hawks from attacking while close to the coop.

https://www.google.com/aclk?sa=L&ai...wj3u9qWn8DvAhWUUs0KHY1NCigQwg96BAgMEAo&adurl=

I'm sure your neighbors would LOVE this!

I kinda thought it was silly until a experienced racer in my area has one soaring by his lofts! It got me thinking!

 

[LamarshFish]

Do you have a flight cage or aviary where the birds can get out and look around?

Yes.

And to be clear, these are all old birds which have flown in prior years?

Yes.

I can't imagine losing old birds which have already flown and been settled to your loft

That, in essence, is what I was wondering. Will old birds that otherwise knew their way around the prior fall have any trouble the following spring, if they haven't flown in 5-6 months? I suppose we may never know, and it varies from bird to bird. But if anybody has some observations or experience on this, I'd love to hear it! Thanks

Wetting or soaping them would definitely help keep them from flying off, but also makes them sitting ducks if a hawk swoops down on them.

I would think that soaping their wings would only make them more vulnerable to attack.

This is a good point. I was thinking soaping their wings to avoid them flying around the first time or two flying for the first time in 5-6 months, but I suppose since they've had access to their aviary and views of the yard this entire time, maybe it's unnecessary, and leaves they vulnerable.

I actually had one cock bird fly out the door without my permission this morning. He enjoyed flying around for about 20 minutes, flew out of sight several times, and came back in. Made me feel good. He's one of my better homers though. I have a few I think are less smart, but coincidentally, they are also the ones that don't venture far when let out.

A new article was written in the most recent issue of The Racing Pigeon Digest, talking about a supposedly fool-proof way of keeping hawks from attacking while close to the coop.

https://www.google.com/aclk?sa=L&ai...wj3u9qWn8DvAhWUUs0KHY1NCigQwg96BAgMEAo&adurl=

I'm sure your neighbors would LOVE this!

I kinda thought it was silly until a experienced racer in my area has one soaring by his lofts! It got me thinking!

Lol that is clever, and may last longer than other methods, but hawks are smart and determined, something tells me they would eventually catch on. I usually fly my birds the last 2-3 hours of daylight, and I spend a good deal of time in the yard, and my dog is present as well. I only say this because they loiter on my lawn towards the end of their time out, and I'd think that is a time they are particularly vulnerable, and I can't imagine a hawk attacking on my lawn with my dog present (he is a bird dog, but is trained to leave my pigeons alone, he knows they're mine and are pets.... but I bet he'd go after a hawk if it landed in our yard). When they loiter on my roof, they are vulnerable though, and there's not much I can do about that.

 

[backyard pigeons]

but hawks are smart and determined, something tells me they would eventually catch on.

Me too. The article suggested otherwise. Not a single bird lost in their yard for 3 or 4 years.

 

[Old_Strain_Lover]

That, in essence, is what I was wondering. Will old birds that otherwise knew their way around the prior fall have any trouble the following spring, if they haven't flown in 5-6 months? I suppose we may never know, and it varies from bird to bird. But if anybody has some observations or experience on this, I'd love to hear it! Thanks

I lock down every winter as the hawks are so bad where I live, that I don't want to risk losing something valuable. In all my years, I don't think I have ever lost an old bird in the spring after doing so. I have sold young birds who have never flown and only had access out in the aviary once or twice and they returned home to me from 40-60 miles away (it's happened on a few occasions). I have sold birds which I flew and then they later returned to me after the new owner thought they could be resettled. Once I even had a bird which I sold as a yearling, return to me 8 years after I sold it. Basically, 5-6 months is nothing if the birds have any homing instinct in them.

 

[Old_Strain_Lover]

Me too. The article suggested otherwise. Not a single bird lost in their yard for 3 or 4 years.

I would imagine that's because that thing appears like it would act as a constant flagging to the pigeons and keep them in the air and flying (just as if you would manually flag the birds to scare them and get them flying).

 

[backyard pigeons]

I would imagine that's because that thing appears like it would act as a constant flagging to the pigeons and keep them in the air and flying (just as if you would manually flag the birds to scare them and get them flying).

Very good point. The person also brought it down every day so the hawks wouldn't get used to it. He also moved it each and every fly.

 

[LamarshFish]

I lock down every winter as the hawks are so bad where I live, that I don't want to risk losing something valuable. In all my years, I don't think I have ever lost an old bird in the spring after doing so. I have sold young birds who have never flown and only had access out in the aviary once or twice and they returned home to me from 40-60 miles away (it's happened on a few occasions). I have sold birds which I flew and then they later returned to me after the new owner thought they could be resettled. Once I even had a bird which I sold as a yearling, return to me 8 years after I sold it. Basically, 5-6 months is nothing if the birds have any homing instinct in them.

Are these birds you had flown/trained on tosses out several miles, or just loft flown birds.

I know one racer who lives by me here in Michigan who sold a bird to somebody in Maryland, and 6 years later it flew all the way back to Michigan and into his loft. But this was a race bird, who had presumably finished multiple 300-400 mile combine races.