Pigeon Talk

[Qwerty3159]

They are a really neat breed!

How’s everyone’s birds doing? I have one squeaker in training at the moment.

He’s doing well, managed to stay with the group when the hawk showed up and land back on the loft when the hawk split him off. He expertly landed and dove under a parked truck which completely baffled the hawk before beelining back inside when the hawk circled back. Not bad for only his 3rd or 4th time out

 

[Amer]

They are a really neat breed!

How’s everyone’s birds doing? I have one squeaker in training at the moment.

He’s doing well, managed to stay with the group when the hawk showed up and land back on the loft when the hawk split him off. He expertly landed and dove under a parked truck which completely baffled the hawk before beelining back inside when the hawk circled back. Not bad for only his 3rd or 4th time out

Biff and Blondie hatched a pair of squabs!

 

[Amer]

So my yellow atlas pair has two squabs that are about three weeks old now. They occupy one nest box but apparently the cock, Biff thinks all four nest boxes are his territory and chases Harold away. The other cock, Harold, thinks the ground is his territory and chases Biff away and encourages his wife Pearl to lay eggs there. I keep moving the eggs to the nest boxes and then locking Pearl there overnight to try to encourage her to nest there instead but when I released her this morning Biff discovered the eggs in the nest. Now he and his wife are trying to nest there. What do I do? Do I remove the eggs and birds and lock the door? Maybe I should lock Harold and Pearl in a nest together so they will lay there?

 

[calicocows]

i love pigeons!! and yours are so pretty

 

[Pyxis]

Well, I now have an Old Frill, what I believe is a white homer, and their daughter, apparently.

Someone brought them to a bird swap I was at and was trying to sell them for $5 each. When they didn't sell, the guy put them in the end of swap raffle. People were putting tickets in that had no idea about pigeons and were making dumb comments like " Ha ha my husband will kill me if I come home with them" and stuff like that, treating it like it would funny to get animals they don't have housing for or know how to care for and have done no research on.

I felt bad for the pigeons, so I put some of my own tickets in for them. And I won.

 

[Qwerty3159]

So my yellow atlas pair has two squabs that are about three weeks old now. They occupy one nest box but apparently the cock, Biff thinks all four nest boxes are his territory and chases Harold away. The other cock, Harold, thinks the ground is his territory and chases Biff away and encourages his wife Pearl to lay eggs there. I keep moving the eggs to the nest boxes and then locking Pearl there overnight to try to encourage her to nest there instead but when I released her this morning Biff discovered the eggs in the nest. Now he and his wife are trying to nest there. What do I do? Do I remove the eggs and birds and lock the door? Maybe I should lock Harold and Pearl in a nest together so they will lay there?

I would try to get some sort of fronts for the nest boxes so you can lock problem birds in / lock a pair in to get them to claim a box.

Something I’ve used as a quick-fix nest box front is old bird cage panels. The guillotine style doors are easy enough to tie open when needed (bit of a tight squeeze but the pigeons can manage) and they can’t open them themselves like a parrot or parakeet might be able to.

I have similar issues with one pair that insists on nesting on the floor and driving everyone away from the feeder all day.
Since you just have those two pairs in the coop (correct if I’m wrong) is it possible to just space the boxes really far apart for each pair?
I haven’t had success with making rows of nest boxes next to each other without pairs claiming multiple boxes. It helps to have one a foot or more higher than the other on the same wall so the dominant pair can claim the top.

 

[Amer]

I would try to get some sort of fronts for the nest boxes so you can lock problem birds in / lock a pair in to get them to claim a box.

Something I’ve used as a quick-fix nest box front is old bird cage panels. The guillotine style doors are easy enough to tie open when needed (bit of a tight squeeze but the pigeons can manage) and they can’t open them themselves like a parrot or parakeet might be able to.

I have similar issues with one pair that insists on nesting on the floor and driving everyone away from the feeder all day.
Since you just have those two pairs in the coop (correct if I’m wrong) is it possible to just space the boxes really far apart for each pair?
I haven’t had success with making rows of nest boxes next to each other without pairs claiming multiple boxes. It helps to have one a foot or more higher than the other on the same wall so the dominant pair can claim the top.

I can’t move the nest boxes, but they do have fronts, so I’ll try locking the pair in. Unfortunately the dominant pair already has the squabs nesting on the bottom.

 

[avjudge]

I just posted about my pigeon Barbara's injury, and promised there that I'd finally post pictures of my 4 pairs!

I came home one day in June 2017 and as I crossed a bridge on our road there was a white bird sitting on the railing - who definitely didn't belong, and clearly wasn't feeding himself (based on his reaction when I fed him). So I took him in, named him Milou, and later that year in an attempt to find him a mate got a pair from the Animal Rescue League down in Massachusetts. They came with the names Stevie (originally Steve) and Miraboo. Finally I got Milou his mate, named Binnie (because she was from Barnstead, and there was a 1930s actress named Binnie Barnes). An oops baby followed (actually 2 but one disappeared on their first flight), then a baby from the other pair to see if I could get a pair - but no, another male. So finally a year and a half ago I found girls for those two within an easy drive and now I'm at my limit, all nest boxes full, no more oops allowed!

Milou when I first saw him:

I think he's a king pigeon - about 50% larger than the others, and rarely flies. My assumption is someone purchased him and the other that I'm told was splatted on the road within a day of appearance, to do a dove release for a wedding or possibly graduation event in town which is just upriver.

Miraboo - he has a really striking tuxedo look to him, but he never flies out so I sadly don't get to see him on the wing. I wish I had a better picture of him.

The girls (I think) last spring - Binnie, Stevie (unless that's Milou - it's easier to tell them apart in person!), Checkers and Barbara.

Barbara and her mate, who is Stevie & Miraboo's baby. In the years I've had him I've never come up with a name for him - suggestions welcome! Though I'm considering one of my cousin's suggestions, Mocha.

I think he's really lovely. Does anyone know what this color would be called? You can see above and in this baby picture the gradation from gray at the shoulders to brown at the wingtips, so he's not just one color (plus the white of course).

And finally here is Binnie's and Milou's son Milson and his mate Checkers.

Funny story about those two - Milson is the more dominant of the two young males, especially since he has a bit more size from his dad. I figured he'd go right for one of the two girls I brought in. But no, no interest - he just continued to go after his mom! But Checkers is older, had been bred/had babies before, and knew what she wanted - and moved right into his nest box. He tried to chase her out but of course she had her way! Meanwhile the other two had a slow, quiet courtship. But they are both devoted couples now.

 

[freejpony]

My Frillback pair, watching me as I get leg bands on their babies. These are my first baby pigeons. It's crazy how fast they grow

 

[Amer]

My Frillback pair, watching me as I get leg bands on their babies. These are my first baby pigeons. It's crazy how fast they grow
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Your frillbacks are gorgeous!
Here’s some old pics of the ones my Arabian Trumpeter pair hatched in April. Now they are fledged! They haven’t figured out flying yet, though, and aren’t good at eating on their own.