Point of raising dove

[cdog49ers]

Hello, I was just wondering the point of raising dove is

 

[Kleonaptra]

Im not sure how to answer your question...Right now Im raising 2 squabs just because the parents are bad at it and to me its extremely rewarding. I dont mind being tired from 4 hourly feeds or stressed about if they'll pull thru, to see their little chirping faces is enough for me.

Pigeons as opposed to doves in general have many purposes. They are raced and can be worth a lot of money. Some people say if the world ends you should have pigeons for their homing skills so we can go back to using them as carriers of messages. Apparently their dung can also be used to make gun powder! They are also eaten but I know nothing about raising them for that purpose.

I know in Australia people raise doves specifically for weddings and other decorative purposes, to hire the birds out for occasions. They can be trained too.

Mostly I think they just make great pets.

 

[Hokum Coco]

I raise White Homing pigeons (in a perfect world) and here are some of my experiences in doing so.
.
White Homing Pigeons as a rule are hard to tame and do not like human contact.
Where doves are the exact opposite in almost all respects including homing ability..

However I am that exception to the rule.

When I enter the loft all I have to do is sit down and I am swarmed with pigeons.
When I am out in the yard I can call close to 15 birds on my command (In a perfect world if few people are around and keep their distance). If you bought an adult homer from me you would have only on alternative. That would be to keep the bird prisoner the rest of it's natural life.

Check out the link and see what one bird accomplished when it escaped.

https://maps.google.ca/maps?saddr=2...vE1FfsgXOTDHtFd0x4VFqig&oq=Ott&mra=ls&t=m&z=7

I do enjoy dove calls but out side of that give me a good homing pigeon any day.

On another note:
Here is a recount of a memorable day in our household


Piper

My grand daughter's hand-raised, orphaned-homer failed to return on a 20 mile toss. It was one of the few times she did not accompany me on a release. She suffered tears and heartache when I told her of the loss.

Amazingly when I went to close up the loft at dusk what should come flying in but (her pigeon) Piper!

I checked him over and he was tore open from his neck to his tail feathers.

My first instinct was to put him out of his misery. I however brought him into the house for a better look. My wife flushed out the wound with a saline solution and I glued him back together with crazy glue. He was good to go in about 5 days

This is him incubating eggs after his ordeal. .

My grand daughter was On The MOON when I told her of Pipers return. Grand daughter has experienced love, loss, heartache. first aid, joy, responsibility, and kinship with yours truly. She has also developed special bonds with some of our doves who prefer her company over mine when she comes into the loft with me.

It has given her a good subject for presentation at school as well.

We also are starting up a small enterprise with white dove releases (Pipers parents were both solid snow white just for the record).




Pipers Parents

Grand daughter did her first dove release at a wedding last fall also another release for an anti bulling campaign at her grade school.

With the aid of the Internet she has also become somewhat of an authority on homing pigeons. She definitely knows more than the average 12 year old on the subject and can talk your ear off.

This was relayed to me by her teacher after she was forced to cut off a presentation she made when the question period looked like it was not going to end.

She would rather hang out with Hokum (her name for me since she was one) then any of her friends or parents (for that matter).
However she will be entering her teens next year (make-up and boys will probably soon shove me aside).

I know however that these birds have made her a better person regardless what comes in the future.

Plus I have another grand daughter who is only turned 3 and calls me Coco (since she was one).





Picture of Back Yard

 

[cdog49ers]

Ok, I was just curious to what they do. Thank you!