snacks for doves and pigeons

[lotsofloveforchickens]

what are some snacks that I can give my homing pigeon and my dove to eat? I have giving them apples and bread but I want to give them something that they really love that I haven't found yet

 

[Tiana's chickens]

Maybe try kale or silverbeat? Mine enjoy ripping them up and gobbling them down haha, some of mine have also enjoyed mealworms

 

[lotsofloveforchickens]

Maybe try kale or silverbeat? Mine enjoy ripping them up and gobbling them down haha, some of mine have also enjoyed mealworms

I have tried mealworms but no luck will try kale

 

[LamarshFish]

There is NOTHING pigeons love more than peanuts. Make sure they are unsalted and raw though. The best place to get them is a pet store, they have bags made for putting in bird feeders.

Another treat that they love and helps their nutrition, but isn't as adored as much as peanuts, are greens. Romaine lettuce is pretty much a staple, but things like parsley and other stuff like that work as well. Mine LOVE dandelion leafs, which are easy to find and are free and packed with more nutrition than romaine and other greens, just make sure you wash them off (well, wash off all greens before giving it to them). The neatest way to give it to them is in a bundle tied up somehow, but you can just plop a pile of it in the loft or aviary, they won't mind that, but they'll make more of a mess that way. To make sure pigeons have the right nutrition from things like greens all the time, without having to constantly offer fresh greens, is to put a separate dish or feeder in the loft with alfalfa pellets (I prefer the organic ones that only have alfalfa and not all the additives like in many rabbit pellets). Tractor Supply sells an organic alfalfa pellet 40lb bag for like $20, only down side is the pellets are a bit large and need to sort of be broken up, but not a big deal, takes 5 mins.

Acknowledging that green poop usually signals some kind of illness, keep in mind that sometimes when they eat a lot of greens their poop is green for a bit. It is a different green poop than illness poop as it is more solid and looks like a healthy poop, just green. Just don't be alarmed.

They need grit, but one way to turn it into sort of a treat is to get the grit that has anise oil added to it, or just buy anise oil and/or garlic oil and add that to pretty much anything you want them to love and they should go nuts over it. Not sure what it is, but pigeons just love anise and garlic.

I would not give them bread.

 

[LamarshFish]

I have tried mealworms but no luck will try kale

I offered a brick thing of meal worms sort of molded together with shelled sunflower seeds and my homers wouldn't touch it.

 

[lotsofloveforchickens]

There is NOTHING pigeons love more than peanuts. Make sure they are unsalted and raw though. The best place to get them is a pet store, they have bags made for putting in bird feeders.

Another treat that they love and helps their nutrition, but isn't as adored as much as peanuts, are greens. Romaine lettuce is pretty much a staple, but things like parsley and other stuff like that work as well. Mine LOVE dandelion leafs, which are easy to find and are free and packed with more nutrition than romaine and other greens, just make sure you wash them off (well, wash off all greens before giving it to them). The neatest way to give it to them is in a bundle tied up somehow, but you can just plop a pile of it in the loft or aviary, they won't mind that, but they'll make more of a mess that way. To make sure pigeons have the right nutrition from things like greens all the time, without having to constantly offer fresh greens, is to put a separate dish or feeder in the loft with alfalfa pellets (I prefer the organic ones that only have alfalfa and not all the additives like in many rabbit pellets). Tractor Supply sells an organic alfalfa pellet 40lb bag for like $20, only down side is the pellets are a bit large and need to sort of be broken up, but not a big deal, takes 5 mins.

Acknowledging that green poop usually signals some kind of illness, keep in mind that sometimes when they eat a lot of greens their poop is green for a bit. It is a different green poop than illness poop as it is more solid and looks like a healthy poop, just green. Just don't be alarmed.

They need grit, but one way to turn it into sort of a treat is to get the grit that has anise oil added to it, or just buy anise oil and/or garlic oil and add that to pretty much anything you want them to love and they should go nuts over it. Not sure what it is, but pigeons just love anise and garlic.

I would not give them bread.

thank you so much maybe my pigeon will like me much better after I make a run to the store to get him new snacks he should love

 

[lotsofloveforchickens]

I offered a brick thing of meal worms sort of molded together with shelled sunflower seeds and my homers wouldn't touch it.

mine will not eat mealworms also

 

[lotsofloveforchickens]

There is NOTHING pigeons love more than peanuts. Make sure they are unsalted and raw though. The best place to get them is a pet store, they have bags made for putting in bird feeders.

Another treat that they love and helps their nutrition, but isn't as adored as much as peanuts, are greens. Romaine lettuce is pretty much a staple, but things like parsley and other stuff like that work as well. Mine LOVE dandelion leafs, which are easy to find and are free and packed with more nutrition than romaine and other greens, just make sure you wash them off (well, wash off all greens before giving it to them). The neatest way to give it to them is in a bundle tied up somehow, but you can just plop a pile of it in the loft or aviary, they won't mind that, but they'll make more of a mess that way. To make sure pigeons have the right nutrition from things like greens all the time, without having to constantly offer fresh greens, is to put a separate dish or feeder in the loft with alfalfa pellets (I prefer the organic ones that only have alfalfa and not all the additives like in many rabbit pellets). Tractor Supply sells an organic alfalfa pellet 40lb bag for like $20, only down side is the pellets are a bit large and need to sort of be broken up, but not a big deal, takes 5 mins.

Acknowledging that green poop usually signals some kind of illness, keep in mind that sometimes when they eat a lot of greens their poop is green for a bit. It is a different green poop than illness poop as it is more solid and looks like a healthy poop, just green. Just don't be alarmed.

They need grit, but one way to turn it into sort of a treat is to get the grit that has anise oil added to it, or just buy anise oil and/or garlic oil and add that to pretty much anything you want them to love and they should go nuts over it. Not sure what it is, but pigeons just love anise and garlic.

I would not give them bread.

do the peanuts need to be shelled or not shelled or does it matter?

 

[LamarshFish]

do the peanuts need to be shelled or not shelled or does it matter?

Raw, shelled, unsalted. Most pet stores sell them bulk by the pound or in big bags of like 20lbs or so.

The pigeons won't know about them right away, you sort of have to get them hooked before they'll go nuts and eat them out of your hand or fly on your arm or head trying to eat them. Best way is to just put a pile of them on their perch or nest box, or just put some in their feeder. After a few days of discovering them, they should be hooked. But don't expect them to just start eating them from your hand day one.

 

[lotsofloveforchickens]

Raw, shelled, unsalted. Most pet stores sell them bulk by the pound or in big bags of like 20lbs or so.

The pigeons won't know about them right away, you sort of have to get them hooked before they'll go nuts and eat them out of your hand or fly on your arm or head trying to eat them. Best way is to just put a pile of them on their perch or nest box, or just put some in their feeder. After a few days of discovering them, they should be hooked. But don't expect them to just start eating them from your hand day one.

ok I'm gonna give it a try