pigeons pigeons! tell me about em! i love them!!!

[augiedranch]

i rescue pigeons,, anywase, i LOVE THEM they are marvelous creatures.. i am just wanting to learn more about them. i let mine "free" . they can fly wherever they want, and have full acess of food and water on top of the barn.... they are starting to um... multiply, but alot!! do they mate for life? how long until they fly etc... whats just some more info on them so i can take care of them properly.. i also have one that is all white and smaller than the rest.. a dove? i am feeding chicken scratch and sunflower seeds... anything eles that they like/

 

[NoelTate]

What fun! I'm jealous! I wanted to get pigeons, pen them for a while, then turn them loose. Unfortuantely, two things came up-a pair of hawks started nesting in the woods behind my house every year about three years ago, and my dad developed some pretty severe lung problems. Apparently, people with lung disease should not be around pigeons due to the effects the birds have on their health. Guess I will have to be satisfied with seeing the wild ones in other places for a while. We have them at the school where I work, and I love to throw out food for those. Unfortunately, we have a large hawk there too now, so i guess we won't have the pigeons for long

 

[seedcorn]

You can buy grains especially for pigeons. You can give them scratch grains and supplement their diet w/layer crumbles. Pigeons are tough and flying loose like you have them, they will survive very well.

Now hawks, they will get quite a few but they will probably learn to adapt.......If you hand feed them, they will become very tame and will look for you.

 

[edgarmongold]

i rescue pigeons,, anywase, i LOVE THEM they are marvelous creatures.. i am just wanting to learn more about them. i let mine "free" . they can fly wherever they want, and have full acess of food and water on top of the barn.... they are starting to um... multiply, but alot!! do they mate for life? how long until they fly etc... whats just some more info on them so i can take care of them properly.. i also have one that is all white and smaller than the rest.. a dove? i am feeding chicken scratch and sunflower seeds... anything eles that they like/

They’re known to mate for life doesn’t always work that way.
When confined to loft there’s some males that cover more than 1 female.
I break up my males and females after I am done breeding.
All the males in one pen females in another.
Next breeding season I mate them as I see fit.
Not sure if free flying.
The rate pigeons multiply it would be a good idea to think about how you are going to thin them down to where you can enjoy them.