Protecting ringneck doves from snow?

[J3172]

I live in michigan and was told that ringneck doves could be put out in flight pens all year round. How much, and what kind of winter protection do they need? Also what do you feed them?

 

[PheazAnts]

I have Ringneck Doves with my Red Golden Pheasants. I have a bird shed off my aviary where the doves could get in out of the snow. Plus I had a heat lamp on a timer to take the chill off in the evening. This past Winter was a cold one and they seemed to enjoy being able to get into the shelter of the bird shed and roost. I had 6 at the time and they would all perch side by side to stay warm near the light.

 

[PheazAnts]

After I posted last evening, I realized I forgot to mention make sure the perches are large enough so that their feathers cover their entire feet to keep them from freezing. Hope this helps you out.

 

[PheazAnts]

With regard to feeding: wild bird seed mixes. During the colder months you'll want to up the protein and fat. Mine also eat the 'Flockraiser' that the pheasants get.

Here's a reference page with good general info from the American Dove Association: http://www.doveline.com/html/dove-information.html

 

[95yj]

during winter it really helps to bump up protein and fat, lots of scrambled eggs etc. and make sure they can always fill their crop before they go to sleep, thats what keeps them warm through the night, burning off the food in their crop. I'v had people around me say they've kept them in open aviaries all winter with only a few losses, and they probably did, however in my opinion this is inhumane and shouldn't be done, they need some kind of shelter. In the winter the smaller the better, a largish modified rabbit hutch with solid sides would be great as long as it wasn't too open to the elements and the birds all got locked in at night. Heat lights are not usually necessary, but you may need them, i only use them on the coldest nights of the year (below zero, we usually only have 10 or so of these) in Michigan you may need to use them more, I'd try to keep the temperature at or around 10 at least. In the winter the more birds the better, they can all bunch together and add warmth to the shelter, with 5+ birds in a small enclosure the temperature starts going up. Always use flat perches or else they will lose toes to frost bite. I'd suggest feeding a balanced dove food, like kaytee, or if you can find a cheaper wild bird food mix with the same composition of seeds use that, you can also try adding stuff, i feed my doves and pigeons a 1:1:1 mix of cracked corn, dove seed, and gamebird feed, they all seem to be doing fine. Around fall start giving them lots of fat and protein, hard boiled or scrambled eggs, old bread (crumbs), pretty much anything they'll eat. good luck