Stinky Pigeon!

[Allears]

Hi there, my Rock Pigeon is really smelly! It's not something I've noticed before now, but she's broody so coming for love and stroking a lot more, so we're up close and personal a lot more. She's drinking and eating and her poop seems normal. She lives in the wild, but comes home to eat and sleep. I've not wormed in about 4 months or so and I haven't been able to check inside her mouth yet. Do pigeons normally stink and any treatments if it's not normal? Thanks.

 

[Hokum Coco]

Do pigeons normally stink and any treatments if it's not normal? Thanks.

A healthy pigeon produces "bloom" (fine white dust like stuff) that waterproofs and protects its feathers. No dirt will stick to a healthy bird's feathers.

Here is a link to a great supply place in Australia. Click on the bird icon and that will take you to a choice of birds and products they sell for them. Click on: Pigeon Scroll down the listing to: POWER SHAMPOO They will have info. on how to use it.
http://www.vetafarm.com.au/

 

[Allears]

A healthy pigeon produces "bloom" (fine white dust like stuff) that waterproofs and protects its feathers. No dirt will stick to a healthy bird's feathers.

Here is a link to a great supply place in Australia. Click on the bird icon and that will take you to a choice of birds and products they sell for them. Click on: Pigeon Scroll down the listing to: POWER SHAMPOO They will have info. on how to use it.
http://www.vetafarm.com.au/

My girls feathers are not dirty and have a beautiful sheen.She look very clean and tidy, but she stinks. Does this mean that pigeons are just stinky by nature

 

[Allears]

Maybe she just took a bath in some smelly water... I hope that's all it is.

 

[Hokum Coco]

My girls feathers are not dirty and have a beautiful sheen.She look very clean and tidy, but she stinks. Does this mean that pigeons are just stinky by nature

NO there is a cause and it is possible it might be health related I would give her a bath and work from there.

 

[laughingdog]

Sometimes parenting pigeons do what i call "broody poop", were the nesting in not the best nests, lets them stink in one of two ways cause they hold poop in for longerthan normally should. One which most common is kinda a sweeter smell that's full of anti bad things so young won't get sick. laying hens healthy n natural diet/exercise- (free range foraging), environment get these giant soft sweetish smelling poos too. other would be slight underlieing bacterial inbalance, that's not bothering parents but could hurt young possibly. AppleCiderVinager in drinking water (two tablespoons per gallon), good but cheap cheap "probios" (its working for me n not aware of any others) like probiotic in feed cures second one, lil dawn dish soap in bathing water (original kind bird safe) before do rest). good luck and love those rock doves!
Post pics too, we looove pics especially of good racers.

 

[Allears]

Hi All,

I contacted one of our local pigeon racing clubs and took Pidgey to meet Kobie. He said the smell was probably dirty water that she bathed in, like Hokum Coco said. He gave me worming tablets and I gave her one on Saturday and I give the other 2 weeks from now. She actually seems a bit perkier today. I also got canker tablets. I give one next week and then every third week thereafter. It seems a lot of medicine! She got a multi vitamin AND bath crystals! To put an even glossier sheen on her already glossy feathers :-D Its still cold here, so I'm waiting for a warmer day to hold her spa treatment LOL.

Kobie has about 100 racing pigeons of various breeds, they are all big and beautiful, but they are predominantly grey ones. He also has brown and white ones like Hokum Coco's Piper. They are nothing like the feral pigeons I've seen in town and I must say I feel very sorry for those birds now I've seen what they could look like with a bit of love and attention.

Kobie released his birds 7 kilometers from home Saturday evening and expected them to start arriving by 15:00 on Sunday. He said he loses about four each time they fly.

I had a sneak peek into the pigeon racing / homing world and I am grateful for that opportunity.

Thank you Hokum Coco for sharing your love of homing pigeons with me.