# Another homing pigeon has joined my flock



## Garye (Feb 20, 2005)

Today I just saw a new addition to my feral flock. Another homing pigeon! I think it's a she; she's young, she wears a red band on her left leg and a light pink band on her right leg. When I first saw her, I thought it was Bronson but then I thought, Bronson must be getting smaller. Then I noticed the bands. I know there was a race from NY to MA in the past week or so for MA pigeons. I saw that article in the Boston Globe. I guess she might be part of that race.

Wish I knew the MA pigeon owners who put those colored bands on their pigeons. I can't get close enough to her to read the letters. Hopefully she'll show up tomorrow if she doesn't find her way back home.

Bronson has probably decided not to ever go back home. She seems comfortable with the flock and I think she's started a family with one of the ferals. Some of the young pigeons look a bit like a mix of homing and feral pigeons. God knows she's gets enough attention from the male ferals here.


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## alvin (May 10, 2006)

You Go Bronson!!!!!!!!!!


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## Garye (Feb 20, 2005)

I always hoped that if she decided to stay with the ferals, that she'd find someone and they'd have a life together. It looks like she has.


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## warriec (Feb 2, 2007)

what are the chances that in a few months or years time she returns to the owner. I have heard that some pigeons do even after raising a family at the new place.


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Hi Garye...

Good job you're so vigilant and keeping an eye on your flock, otherwise you might have missed the newcomer. I'm sure she will be just fine though and domestic pigeons aren't as "ignorant" as some think. She'll either rest up and move on or stay with her new found feral family as I'm sure many lost racers do quite easily.


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## Garye (Feb 20, 2005)

Well if Bronson does decide to go back home, I'll miss her but I'll understand also. Probably by then, her family will be grown and able to take care of themselves. I leave it up to her.

The newcomer hasn't shown up for 3 days. It may be possible that she only needed some food and water in order to continue her journey home. If that's the case, then I'm glad I was able to help her. They had a long journey - I think she may have been part of that NY to MA race. That's a _long _race and I was happy to give her refreshments along the side of the "road" like people do for marothoners.


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## Florencevegan (Jul 9, 2007)

I get a lot of pigeons with "bracelets" on joining my feral flock. I suppose they prefer their freedom to the racing cotes so long as they know there is food daily. On the other hand, the red pouter cock in the flock is constantly eyed up by men who race pigeons, and even though he is older, they want him for breeding. He would go mad shut in. I don't know much about racing - or 'force' breeding - is it cruel? I do wish my friends could have shelter in winter, and I suppose racing and breeding men provide that, but the birds do so love their wild, free life even if their habitat is not an idyllic "nature" setting but the rooftops of blocks of city flats, and their feeding ground a piece of waste ground covered in litter.
Florencevegan.


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## Florencevegan (Jul 9, 2007)

PS I had a pigeon I called Bronson too! I thought I was seeing things. He was tan and white, and obviously the offspring of the red pouter. He was stolen by the racing men, and re-appeared briefly with two "bracelets" on, then disappeared again. I called him Bronson because he was Brownie's son. I hope he is enjoying life as a racer but I do wish he would drop by for refreshments and to visit his old Dad, and his old human auntie!
Hope your lady Bronson makes the right decision for her future. 
Flroence.


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## SmithFamilyLoft (Nov 22, 2004)

Florencevegan said:


> I get a lot of pigeons with "bracelets" on joining my feral flock. I suppose they prefer their freedom to the racing cotes so long as they know there is food daily....... but the birds do so love their wild, free life even if their habitat is not an idyllic "nature" setting but the rooftops of blocks of city flats, and their feeding ground a piece of waste ground covered in litter.
> Florencevegan.


 Over here in the States when a person has the " Free life " as you describe....we call it being homeless... ...I think unlike the domesticated pet pigeon...the poor feral will often die from exposure to the elements or become sick and die from starvation. Much better to have a full crop at night, protection from predators and the elements, and access to medical care. I mean they must like having a home, I keep taking them away and they keep coming back !


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## Garye (Feb 20, 2005)

They must know how much of a softy you are Warren.  

But whatever care Bronson had with her former owner, for some reason she'd rather hang with the ferals. And I really don't give them that much. It's more of a snack than anything else. So she must be finding food somewhere else.

I'd hate to think that she's out flying to me for lunch and then returns home to her owner for breakfast and dinner, but who knows? Maybe she's fooling me into thinking she's staying with the ferals all the time and she's not. I can't follow her so I'll probably never know - the bird's too fast.


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## Fever (May 28, 2007)

I think my flock has taken in someone's racing pigeon. He (or she?) is one of the most beautifully patterned pigeons I've ever seen - he's got dark brown wings, head, and neck, and his chest and a lot of his body is mottled brown and white. He looks like a pigeon in hawk or owl's clothing. He's got an orange band on one leg, but he seems to have settled with me. Every evening, he comes and sits in the exact same spot. He doesn't seem to have any especially close friends yet, but I hope he sticks around. He's my favorite pigeon ever.

I don't think they mind being feral. If the cold really harmed them, they'd be migratory. They sound like very durable animals, but I'm sure my nice, warm covered balcony, and all the food I give them helps them out a lot.

Are people really just allowed to grab pigeons off the street and train them as racers?


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## Florencevegan (Jul 9, 2007)

This is what I don't understand. Men around here trap feral pigeons, who were in a perfectly happy life with their own spouses and flock mates and homing to a certain roof each night, and take them to an indoor life. There is a shop where pigeons are kept in small shoebox type spaces and bought and sold like slaves, to make money in races. I thought this was a feral pigeon friends' site but I feel I have come to the wrong place perhaps. The pigeons have their own social groups and it must make them so unhappy to be kidnapped and taken to a strange place and strange group. I know they have more creature comforts but they are born to fly and to be free. The only reason I feel I should feed this flock is because all their habitat has been built on by humans, and people who lived here previously fed them and made them semi-dependent on humans. I can see the point of an indoor life in care if they have wing injuies to the extent they can't fly, but I leave even foot injuries to Nature because I feel the terror of being caught would kill them, and some manage very well with toes missing. But I really would like to be able to provide a shelter for them in winter, for them to sleep in if they chose. I just don't have the money and am in a rented flat in a big block, and am not allowed to shelter them. 
Florence.


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

It seems unlikely to me that the people trapping feral pigeons are doing it to obtain racing pigeons. I'd suspect that the poor little ferals are being trapped to use for dog training, target practice, or perhaps even food.

Terry


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## jdjd (Jun 10, 2007)

*....I agree with TAWhatley*



TAWhatley said:


> It seems unlikely to me that the people trapping feral pigeons are doing it to obtain racing pigeons. * I'd suspect that the poor little ferals are being trapped to use for dog training*, target practice, or perhaps even food.
> 
> Terry



I am ashamed to say that an old friend (not any more) used to do this daily taunting the ferals with food each day and trapping them. I told him many times it was wrong, that they were sposed to be free and were living breathing birds with feelings... it did no good.... He had the meanest dogs (he taught them to be that way) that he would use as his hunters. Every feral he caught never did see another happy day in its life...And then one day he shot my dog Shax,  oh and did he ever have a worse day in court. I would have beat the **** out of him but my wife that has a great trait of calmness, held me back. He was fined and my dog ended up living another very good 8 years without any saddness or aggony. He ended up moving thankgoodness. He was mean to my kids also, swearing at them when he came home drunk when they were playing in the yard.


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## Pigeon lower (Oct 23, 2007)

are the bands snap on or with a number because they can be somones and i know somone could get sued or charged for having somone elses pigeon even if they are lost


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## jdjd (Jun 10, 2007)

*Hi Pigeon lower*

I do not believe some one would atually sue or sew over a pigeon. However, you are right, if it's someones then it should be returned to it's owner becuase thats not fair to keep a pigeon thats not your own... No matter how pretty she or how handsome he is...


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

> It seems unlikely to me that the people trapping feral pigeons are doing it to obtain racing pigeons. I'd suspect that the poor little ferals are being trapped to use for dog training, target practice, or perhaps even food.


I hope not, I believe the first two are illegal in England and Scotland is often ahead of us in animal welfare matters. There was a quite a fuss in London when someone trapped pigeons, presumably to sell as food...there were questions in the House of Lords about it.

We have a beautiful homer that feeds with our flock on Thorpe Green. We know who owns it and that he paid a lot of money for it. I have returned it to him recently. But the pigeon escapes and flies straight back to Thorpe Green. He hasn't managed to keep it in the loft for more than a few days and I think that even if he was raced he would "home" to the green. He has obviously found what he wants there.

Cynthia


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## Florencevegan (Jul 9, 2007)

Men tell me they want certain ones for racing or breeding and tell me how much money they can get for them.
I don't know if the bands have a number on. I don't "have" someone else's pigeons (nobody "owns" another creature), I just throw food on the ground and the birds with bands on their legs eat it. I don't force them, I don't touch them. They join the free birds out of choice, and keep coming back. But many of the free birds have been kidnapped, and some (distinctively marked so I would know them anywhere) come back occasionaly with those bands on, then disappear again. 
Florencevegan.


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## Fever (May 28, 2007)

I'm not sure if the keeping birds comment was for me, but I don't keep them, either. They just take over my balcony, but there's no door or anything restraining them. I probably shouldn't even be calling them mine.  Most of them don't return until the evening, but I'll try to see what his bracelet says when he comes back.

I've never seen anyone trap a pigeon, or heard of them being used to train dogs. Ugh, makes me want to rethink feeding them and getting them used to people.


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## Garye (Feb 20, 2005)

I'm thinking that those ferals that are getting caught and then come back with bands on them may be part of a survey going on. Maybe they're measuring where they go, how many of them there are, and then recording all this data for a project - a government project of some sort.

It seems strange someone would try to catch ferals, band them, and then fly them in races.


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## Fever (May 28, 2007)

The Secret Government Pigeon Project.  

Maybe it's something more nefarious? He's infiltrated my flock in order to gain sensitive information on my neighbours' whereabouts.

Or what Garye said. How long would a feral pigeon need to be in captivity before it would no longer attempt to go back to it's old nest upon release?


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## Florencevegan (Jul 9, 2007)

People are very poor around here. They may see wild birds and trap them to take for racing because they have no money to buy or breed. They use the Tesco supermarket trolleys and baskets/string/bait. I take back several trolleys a week from along our street for this reason. Several men want the red pouter for breeding. Over my dead body!
Florencevegan.


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## Charis (Feb 11, 2007)

Fever said:


> The Secret Government Pigeon Project.
> 
> Maybe it's something more nefarious? He's infiltrated my flock in order to gain sensitive information on my neighbours' whereabouts.
> 
> Or what Garye said. How long would a feral pigeon need to be in captivity before it would no longer attempt to go back to it's old nest upon release?


Fever you are funny. 
I think most ferals would always return to their old nesting site.
I personally know of many that have.


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## Garye (Feb 20, 2005)

I was just thinking that the government - local government in Scotland - might've been trying to band some ferals to see how great their numbers were. I thought that maybe they were trying to get data on how great their numbers were and how far they traveled for the purpose of finding out if there were too many of them.

But I guess I'm wrong with that idea.

But I have heard about a town near where I live - Lowell - that back sometime in the past, the poor people would set up traps and catch the feral pigeons for food for themselves. They also would fish in the rivers which was very polluted at the time, sometimes seeing fish with abnormalities, but still eating them as they were too poor to pass up free food. They were mostly immigrants that did this. Lord only knows what diseases they were getting from eating fish like that from the rivers, but they were so desperate, they would fish there and eat whatever they caught. The woman who told me this used to live in Lowell when they were doing this and she said she sometimes saw fish with 3 eyes due to the pollution in the rivers. Still, those people would eat the fish anyways.

You gotta be hungry and very poor to want to eat that.


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## Fever (May 28, 2007)

Yikes Garye, that's terrible. There's a lot of poverty, drugs, and crime in my neighbourhood, but I've never seen someone so desperate for food that they resorted to fishing (even though the fish here are probably not polluted) or trapping birds. Food is easy to get in shelters, it's those other fixes I see people doing crazy things for. I guess it could also be that since I'm just across the river from Canada's capital city and tourist trap, a lot is glazed over. The millionaire businessman mayor recently declared that homeless people were 'pigeons', and that like pigeons, if you stop feeding them, they'll go away.

Pigeon Protesters


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

I rescue sick and injured ferals, if they recover and are released back into the flock then I put a plain coloured band on them so that I can recognise them again.

But I know at least one person who has taken nicely coloured ferals to breed from. My pigeon seed supplier also suggested that I could grab fantails from River Green and sell them to fund the food for the rest. And no, I would never contemplate doing anything like that. 

Cynthia


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## Florencevegan (Jul 9, 2007)

I am sure you would not, Cynthia. What a suggestion. A seed supplier could lose custom saying unethical things like that to a pigeon lover. Might even get himself arrested. I would have no qualms about reporting someone saying such things, but then you may need that supplier and need to be on good terms with him. 
What a world. Where is the compassion, the decency? The birds have a lot to teach humans. Gentle, peaceful ways. 
Florencevegan.


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