Rescued a pigeon, next to no knowledge

[backyard pigeons]

Hay there @ChickenTenderKesha ! sorry I couldn't reply sooner.

Great job saving the little guy! he's awfully cute! For housing, I would do what @cavemanrich said. In the cage, give them their own food\water, so that they won't be bullied. They will likely spend most of their time in their. Lock them in when the flock free ranges, but only for a week or two. Then let them out (after they have seen their surrounding a for awhile outside) and they will return after a little flight. If you don't want to risk them being taken by a hawk, don't free fly them. But I think it's worth it in the end. For food, give them some bird seed for now. Eventually, you should get them some pigeon mix, with higher protein grains in it than bird seed. I hope this helps! Ask any more questions you need. Oh, and also, feel free to hang out on here, where a lot of the pigeon fancier hang out on! You'll learn alot! https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/pigeon-talk.1276029/

 

[ChickenTenderKesha]

Hay there @ChickenTenderKesha ! sorry I couldn't reply sooner.

Great job saving the little guy! he's awfully cute! For housing, I would do what @cavemanrich said. In the cage, give them their own food\water, so that they won't be bullied. They will likely spend most of their time in their. Lock them in when the flock free ranges, but only for a week or two. Then let them out (after they have seen their surrounding a for awhile outside) and they will return after a little flight. If you don't want to risk them being taken by a hawk, don't free fly them. But I think it's worth it in the end. For food, give them some bird seed for now. Eventually, you should get them some pigeon mix, with higher protein grains in it than bird seed. I hope this helps! Ask any more questions you need. Oh, and also, feel free to hang out on here, where a lot of the pigeon fancier hang out on! You'll learn alot! https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/pigeon-talk.1276029/

Thank you for the reply!!
Unfortunately the two pet stores/farm stores that are near me don’t sell pigeon feed. I looked up the ingredient/nutrition labels for pigeon feed and then I compared it to what was available to me. The closest thing I could find was Budgie feed that’s the same brand as the pigeon feed I had used for comparisons. I’ll attach a photo of the budgie feed. I’ll be back after work

 

[Qwerty3159]

They can and will eat the budgie mix but its not ideal for them.
I recommend buying a bag of this. Its what I use, my local feed stores don't have pigeon feed either. It's a very good price and will last your two the better part of a year.
https://www.chewy.com/browns-breede...9pBDHCvg_Nlsa7C6v_kdYealEdYJlfcIaApIcEALw_wcB

 

[backyard pigeons]

Thank you for the reply!!
Unfortunately the two pet stores/farm stores that are near me don’t sell pigeon feed. I looked up the ingredient/nutrition labels for pigeon feed and then I compared it to what was available to me. The closest thing I could find was Budgie feed that’s the same brand as the pigeon feed I had used for comparisons. I’ll attach a photo of the budgie feed. I’ll be back after work

that would work, if you added some whole corn, and maybe some dried peas. What qwerty suggested would work. Keep it dry, and cool, and that's would last probably a year for the two of them.

 

[ChickenTenderKesha]

They can and will eat the budgie mix but its not ideal for them.
I recommend buying a bag of this. Its what I use, my local feed stores don't have pigeon feed either. It's a very good price and will last your two the better part of a year.
https://www.chewy.com/browns-breeder-kafir-premium-pigeon/dp/187428?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=f&utm_content=Brown's&utm_term=&gclid=Cj0KCQjwrfvsBRD7ARIsAKuDvMMlCpgjGSe69LAgzKO8ptT9pBDHCvg_Nlsa7C6v_kdYealEdYJlfcIaApIcEALw_wcB

I’m in Canada so shipping from the states, especially for bird feed, is pricey. Personally I’d rather avoid having to ship feed, the farm store I can get to has a selection of mono bags and mixed bags of seeds. I was thinking I could create my own pigeon feed ? That way I know what they like and don’t like

that would work, if you added some whole corn, and maybe some dried peas. What qwerty suggested would work. Keep it dry, and cool, and that's would last probably a year for the two of them.

I had noticed from the bag of mixed seeds (not the Budgie feed) I bought they ate all the crushed corn but didn’t touch the shelled sunflower seeds (ate the ones not in shells). They really like the Millet seeds, they seem like the easiest for them to eat. They just throw the stuff that’s too big or difficult to eat and it ends up going all over the place from them just dropping it.


I’ll have more time to type what I want to say when I go on my lunch break!

 

[biophiliac]

I had noticed from the bag of mixed seeds (not the Budgie feed) I bought they ate all the crushed corn but didn’t touch the shelled sunflower seeds (ate the ones not in shells). They really like the Millet seeds, they seem like the easiest for them to eat. They just throw the stuff that’s too big or difficult to eat and it ends up going all over the place from them just dropping it.

For a cheap, waste resistant feeder - take a 2 liter juice container and cut a hole about 2" above the bottom where the bird can put it's head in to get the seeds. Makes it much harder to fling seeds about and keeps the poop out as well. Also encourages eating more of the seed types for a better balanced meal.

 

[Qwerty3159]

Didn't see your location, whoops.
In that case mixing your own seems like an excellent idea. Mine enjoy the smaller black sunflower seeds that comes in wild bird food, they don't like the larger black and white striped ones I eat.
When I mixed my own feed I used about 5 equal parts of whole corn, wild bird seed, wheat, dried peas, and chicken pellets (the ones with the least sodium I could find)

 

[ChickenTenderKesha]

Be back after work, I read the messages and got a quick sketch and plans down for the waste resistant feeders ... chickens are also going to get one

 

[ChickenTenderKesha]

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving everyone!!

As you see, it’s Thanksgiving over here lol. I’ve been held up with family stuff and work so I haven’t been able to do anything to the coop yet. I also got completely distracted in the pigeon talk thread ... I’m getting through it, I’m on page 185/861
It has so much knowledge in there I can’t wait to learn from everyone and pick their brains for knowledge. I’ve learned so much already I’m so happy to have such knowledgeable people just a few clicks away. So many different ideas and suggestions too, I love it!!

I posted a little photo and comment update on my other thread but I’ll copy it here so I’m not spamming the injury chat as he’s basically healed! I’ve supplied a slight heat light to help warm the front porch up a little for them as it dropped a little lower than wanted and the injured pigeon seemed to be shivering. It stopped after the light was supplied and I haven’t seen it shivering again while in the cage.

Photo of the one babies back! The wounds are all sealed and there have been pin feahers coming in for the past day or so now!

I still have both babies but I did see what I think was a pair on the barn’s roof the other day.. they took off when I went to take the horse’s fly mask off and I didn’t see them again. Still unable to tell if they are apart of the [banded] ones missing from the nearest town, they just don’t hang around at all anymore

Edit: to fix spelling

fixed a term as well for this post