Pigeon loft in tractor shed... bad idea?

[OhZark Biddies]

I’m pretty ignorant about keeping pigeons, but was thinking of building a small loft...

I have a lean-to that is open on both ends and I park my tractor in there... I had the idea of building a loft on one end, making it about 6 ft x 6ft, the tractor would end up parked about 3-4 ft away..

My question is this, if I were to do this would starting the tractor and pulling it back in freak out the pigeons too much and cause them to get injured, etc.

After sketching this all out to use that end of the lean-to, it just dawned on me that this might not work due to the tractor noise

thanks in advance

 

[backyard pigeons]

I’m pretty ignorant about keeping pigeons, but was thinking of building a small loft...

You won't regret it!

My question is this, if I were to do this would starting the tractor and pulling it back in freak out the pigeons too much and cause them to get injured, etc.

I don't think so. It will take some getting used to, but they will be fine. Pigeons arent like game birds where they spring toward the roof at first sign of danger. They know there in a cage and will avoid injuring themselves MOST LIKELY. there are some pigeons that are very wild though, and may panic. I would recommend when first putting the birds in the loft having the tractor going. That way they know what's happening when it is started again.

What breed of pigeons are you getting?!

 

[OhZark Biddies]

You won't regret it!

I don't think so. It will take some getting used to, but they will be fine. Pigeons arent like game birds where they spring toward the roof at first sign of danger. They know there in a cage and will avoid injuring themselves MOST LIKELY. there are some pigeons that are very wild though, and may panic. I would recommend when first putting the birds in the loft having the tractor going. That way they know what's happening when it is started again.

What breed of pigeons are you getting?!

thanks for the reply, that’s good news...

I might end up putting it in another location in the end, but I was sorta thinking they might be as you said, like game birds...glad to hear that won’t be the case, so I have some options...

as far as what breed... I’m not sure... I was planning just to trap some barn pigeons to start with... but with a little bit of looking around I see folks selling pairs and young birds pretty reasonably so I might just go that route instead, for several reasons...

I’m sure I’ll change my mind 12 times before I settle into anything.

what about you? What breeds do you raise? Which ones would you recommend for a beginner?

 

[backyard pigeons]

what about you? What breeds do you raise? Which ones would you recommend for a beginner?

I raise racing homers and Portuguese tumblers. I love them both for different reasons.

As far as what breeds you should get,,, what interest you? Do you want to show them, fly them, eat them, do genetic projects?

Homers are pretty standard for a beginner, but most pigeons are all the same as far as care. Extra fancy ones require feather care though.

I am always in pursuit of more Portuguese tumblers fanciers, so I would recommend them. They are a good breed for flying and showing. They are also tiny.

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[backyard pigeons]

argh. This new photo system is driving me nuts. Second try: View attachment 2546851View attachment 2546852View attachment 2546853View attachment 2546854View attachment 2546855View attachment 2546856View attachment 2546857View attachment 2546858

 

[backyard pigeons]

I give up... Just know they are really cool! https://www.google.com/url?q=http:/...FjAAegQIABAB&usg=AOvVaw1ePCVYmtGCZ3rtHghICOn6

 

[OhZark Biddies]

I raise racing homers and Portuguese tumblers. I love them both for different reasons.

As far as what breeds you should get,,, what interest you? Do you want to show them, fly them, eat them, do genetic projects?

Homers are pretty standard for a beginner, but most pigeons are all the same as far as care. Extra fancy ones require feather care though.

I am always in pursuit of more Portuguese tumblers fanciers, so I would recommend them. They are a good breed for flying and showing. They are also tiny.

At this point I think I’m just trying to learn the basics... my only experience with handling and keeping pigeons was with using them for bird dog training 25 years ago, and one of the escapees became a pet ... he was pretty cool and I’ve just always wanted to have a loft.

My interest are kinda “all of the above”... but I think my place is gonna make flying risky ... I pretty much live in the forest with lots of trees for hawks to ambush from...but I’m kinda interested in homers, just for fun.

I’m not into showing, and know nothing of pigeon genetics, but I might like to try raising some for meat... although I haven’t seen any of those breeds in my area... so that might come later on, after I figure out the basics... or I might go the complete other direction and end up with something more ornamental, lol

I’m obviously very new to it all, so I don’t really know what I’m after... I’ll check out the Portuguese tumblers though!

 

[OhZark Biddies]

So I think I might abandon the idea of building in the tractor lean-to, and instead build a 3ft x 10ft loft on the gable end of the existing building... it’ll be a little more work, but I think in the long run it will be the better option...

I’m thinking of holding it off the ground 18 inches or so with 1/2 in hardware cloth on the bottom...

and having 3 ft x 4ft with 3 ft x 6ft of aviary

that would allow four rows double nest boxes on the one end ( my sketch only shows three)

Can I get done feedback on what anybody thinks might not work well or would better?

Any thoughts? thanks!

nothing is to scale, but hopefully these make sense

it would have a metal roof... in spite of what the sketch looks like

 

[Qwerty3159]

They’ll get used to it regardless of how close to to the tractor.
My aviary and loft is built right next to our shed which houses my riding mower. It startled them the first time but now I’ve even had it backfire in front of the coop and not scare them. Your plans look good so far! (Better than mine, lol) I think I probably live in similar conditions as you. My first flock did horribly and I lost many to hawks, my yard is quite bowl shaped and surrounded by trees and they really would only fly circles in the yard. Eventually they started ranging further out and up which was when they were really safest from hawks, they mostly ambush them from the cover of vegetation. Now I have the son and some grandkids of my original group and they do a lot better, they weave right through the trees even in the summer.

 

[cavemanrich]

My question is this, if I were to do this would starting the tractor and pulling it back in freak out the pigeons too much and cause them to get injured, etc.

After sketching this all out to use that end of the lean-to, it just dawned on me that this might not work due to the tractor noise

My reason for not locating,,,,,, is the tractor smoke during start-up/warm-up.

I was planning just to trap some barn pigeons to start with...

I think that would be best option to start with. I am a big fan of feral pigeons BTW. Raise a few clutches, and then loft train them to free-fly. Then let original parents free as they were before. Some may decide to stick around once they found a comfortable home with a well stocked pantry
I also think that feral pigeons are more "street smart" than other breeds. JMO. so in your consideration of flying raptor concerns, I think this would be best route to try.
I also think that feral pigeons are not susceptible to In-breeding issues that can arise with so many of the domesticated animals. These are just my thoughts, and I'm not a scientist,,, and I don't play one on TV.

Your other location on gable end of barn sounds much better option. As to pigeons for food purposes, I suggest Kings. I still do not think pigeons as such a useful food source, compared to similar size birds like quail.