So I got these pigeons...

[Terri O]

I got a racing homer that was found by a shelter in Chicago...so he came to live with me. I got him a girlfriend at a swap. They had a few clear eggs and then all of a sudden A BABY! I was so excited! They fed the baby and he was growing like a weed and then one day I went out and they were both outside the nest...the baby was dead. It had all it's pin feathers on and it's eyes were open. What went wrong? Do I need to give them something else to eat when they have a baby to feed? They had pigeon food with no corn, grit and fresh water daily. Is something else needed? They have 2 more eggs now...thanks! Terri O

 

[Mary Of Exeter]

Was the baby skinny or did it look perfectly healthy? As long as they have protien, they'll be fine. We feed a "breeder" mix but it's just regular food with more protien so the babies grow big and healthy

 

[Terri O]

Well, it looked perfectly healthy to me...It was the first baby pigeon I had seen--besides the ones that fall out of the nest in the barn....I thought maybe you had to give them something "extra" when they are feeding babies. Kind of like the egg food and powdered stuff I give my finches. Terri O

 

[sourland]

Sometimes when a pair is preparing for the next round of eggs, the hen will stop brooding the squab at night. I'm guessing nights are getting pretty cold where you are. If there are two squabs in the nest, they keep one another warm. A single squab can become chilled and die. This is why I pull all eggs and substitute with nest eggs this time of year. Either that or seperate the sexes into a hen loft and a c*ck loft.

 

[larrylofts]

Two Things Come To Mind First A Baby That Has Pin Feathers Is Sometimes To Big For The Parents To Cover When It Gets Cold They Freeze Second Was The Cock Driveing The Hen Again To Start A New Nest Sometimes They Neglect Baby So The Best Way To Prevent This Is Not To Breed Dureing The Winter Cold Unless You Cah Heat The Loft

 

[Terri O]

Ok--thanks for the insight. Perhaps that was it. The baby was getting pretty big but I didnt think it was that cold...I maybe need to knit little squab sweaters! They have 2 eggs again but she layed them on the floor of the pen. I put them in the box so maybe she will stop laying now and rest...they dont seem to be incubating the eggs at all. TErri O

 

[sourland]

If you move their eggs, pigeons will stop incubating. The whole process involves a bonding to the site as well as to the eggs. Unless you seperate the pair, she will probably lay another round within 10 days or so. Sometimes they will stop nesting this time of year, but this is a newly mated pair and the nesting instinct is probably very high.