# HELP! Scared pigeon!!!



## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

So I went to get myself a pet pigeon (9 months old) and he's really scared of me. He lets me pick him up but occasionally backs away and sometimes he starts trembling (I approach him slowly, of course). Whenever I let him out of the cage he flies towards the glass screen in my house as if he wanted to escape so I put him back in his cage after letting him out for a bit. Now he starts flailing in his cage and he wasn't like this when I first got him. Anyone got any tips to bond with him to make him less afraid? The only improvement he's made is that he'll eat when I'm around, he used to eat when I wasn't in the room.


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Takes time. Would offer chopped peanuts to make friends and just use patience.


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

I've tried that (and corn and carrots) and he's too scared to eat from my hand but I guess I do need to be patient.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

How much out of cage time does he get?
corn and carrots are good for him, but not treats. Chopped unsalted peanuts are the best treat. They love them. Most birds do. But at first they won't even know they are food. Not familiar with them. You need too mix some into their feed. Eventually they will try them, and when they do, they will love them. I mean LOVE them. They will eventually come to you for them. But it will take more than treats for him to learn to trust you. That means letting him out of cage and spending a lot of time with him. They do not like to be grabbed or chased. That will only serve to hurt the trust. If you let them out a couple hours before dark, then you just turn the lights out and pick him up and return him to his cage. No chasing. They can't see well in the dark and generally won't fly in the dark, which makes it easy to pick up and return to the cage. 
You need to move slowly around him, and don't force him to be held. They like to be able to come to you when they want to. This all takes time, and impatience will only hurt the whole thing and scare him.
Can you post a picture of him and his set up?


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

I can't provide a picture but his cage is a 24"L x 20"W x 19"H dog crate (I'll eventually move him into something bigger when I can afford it). Everytime I let him out of the cage he flies towards the glass door that leads to my backyard and just stays there and doesn't move. He's terrified, I'm not sure how to interact with him while he's out of the cage, so if you can offer some tips that'd be great!


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Just spend time in your room with him out of cage. Talk to him gently and let him get used to you. He should get a couple hours a day out of the cage. Mix the peanuts into the feed like I told you about, and let him try them. It may take a little while, but eventually he will, and he will love them. Just a little as they are high in fat. After a while he will come to you for the treat. You just be there and talk to him, and offer treats. The point is to get him to want to come to you. A lot of how afraid they are is because of how they were handled before or not handled at all. Where did you get him from? It is easier when starting with a very young bird.


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Our girl Lucy is an adult homer. She was terrified for months but now has become very tame with patience.


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

Ah, I got him from a flea market so that explains alot. Thank you for the advice!


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

cwebster said:


> Our girl Lucy is an adult homer. She was terrified for months but now has become very tame with patience.


Then I guess I shouldn't rush it. Thank you!


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## dj19988 (Jul 14, 2017)

When the pigeon is 1-2 weeks old its the best time to start taming the pigeon. Pet him/her when its about to sleep. under the beaks, around the eyes and top of its head but when its get older you should stop it because it will want to start mating. so, the best time to tame a pigeon is 1-9 weeks or until its starts dancing and cooing that what a male pigeon does to impress a female pigeon. its not good for him/her to think that your hand is his/her mate.


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

He's 9 months old.


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## dj19988 (Jul 14, 2017)

For how long you got him?


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

I've had my pigeon for 4 days now


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

It takes a while for them to learn to trust you and that you aren't going to hurt him. Some take longer than others.


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

The only improvement he's made is that he'll eat when I'm near (usually when he sees me adding peanuts to his bowl) and he coos occasionally (maybe because I added a mirror to his cage?) but not in front of the mirror. I'm not sure what that means or if it's bad.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Four days is nothing. It would be amazing if he were already friendly. You will need patience.


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## dj19988 (Jul 14, 2017)

If you get him a female pigeon he will be happy and less scared. When you're buying a pigeon first get your hand closer to the pigeon if its get scared keep looking until you find the perfect one.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Pigeons are happier with a mate of course. But if they have a mate, you will not be able to get him as tame. He will have the mate and will not need you for companionship. I don't care for keeping pigeons as lone pets because they are happier when kept with other pigeons, or at least a mate. That's true for all birds actually. That's the way they are made.


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

Ah well I'm making progress with her (I think?) my stepdad who used to breed pigeons told me she was a female. Whenever I call her she gets a close to me and backs away. After having her out for a while she starts sticking her head through the cage so I open it for her to get in which is an improvement since she's not flying away anymore.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

That's great. Let us know how it goes.


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## 57821 (Mar 28, 2018)

Mochii, I had the same worries as you. I just got my first pigeon two months ago and he was the same way. He was terrified of me for the first 2 weeks or so and had a case of the runs. He didn't eat if I was there, if at all. He also had feather lice that I had to treat him for, which he didn't like too much lol. This is pretty normal. Especially if they're from somewhere questionable like a market or feed store, they've usually been through a lot and are not used to being treated as "pets". 

This pigeon I speak of was already a few years old and he was an iranian highflyer from someones loft so hes pretty aloof. It took him almost a month to be okay with eating from my hand. He is still sort of skittish around me but he doesnt freak out and fly away anymore when I get near him, he just sort of gets annoyed now. Pigeons naturally don't like being handled especially if they haven't been raised to be, so it's normal for some birds to not want to be interactive esp if theyre older.

Last week someone gave me a young king pigeon and she was scared of me at first, but it only took her three days to hand feed; shes a lot more docile and friendly than he is. Younger birds adjust to new people and places a lot easier than older birds so I think you'll have any easier time with your bird depending on some factors. Also depends on the kind of breed, homers and highflyers/tipplers tend to be more aloof. I've found kings and lahores etc. to be more 'people friendly' 

The first couple weeks try to keep the handling to a minimum. Dont leave food in her cage for her to eat freely, only feed him once/twice a day. This way she'll learn that youre the giver of food. If she won't eat from your hand try feeding her from a measuring cup or a spoon, this is what I had to do w/my highflyer. They sort of see your hands as like...a different animal if that makes sense. I gradually started to feed him closer and closer to me until he got confident enough to eat right next to me with me sitting on the floor. Usually hunger wins over them...

Also yes they love peanuts. My first pigeon refuses to eat them chopped and wont eat them unless I give him whole ones/halves. They can swallow them whole but if you're worried you can divide them into pieces but I think he was taught to eat them a certain way by whoever raised him so I'm guessing that's why. You could also try safflower seeds even though they're usually a part of pigeon mix, honestly my birds love them more than peanuts and immediately zoom to them and pick them all out whenever I feed them the mix. Some people try sunflower seeds but my birds hate them so I would just try the peanuts and safflower seed. Pigeons are really suspicious of new foods and won't usually eat them unless they 'accidentally' eat them if you mix them with their feed so since your bird is so young, she might not even know what peanuts are yet. I'd just mix a few pieces in her regular food at first

Honestly it'll take several weeks, even months for the birds to get used to you my birds still aren't completely used to me and I've had the first bird for over 2 months. It takes a long time with them so just be patient. Oh and the way I scoop up my birds to put them back in the cage if they wont go back on their own is i coax them in the bathroom with food or something, then I turn off the light and pick them up, they can't see bc the bathroom has no windows so they won't fly away so they won't get as stressed out and tired as you trying to chase them around. Anyway good luck with your girl


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## FAGELAR (Sep 23, 2013)

I would suggest finding a flock of pigeons in a safe and secure place and letting him/her go free (along with a generous donation of seed and nuts for the new family) or selling/giving him to someone who has more adequate resources and other pigeons.
The poor thing sounds terrified.


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

Jay3 said:


> That's great. Let us know how it goes.


Today was the first day she pecked me but it's because she didn't have food. I'm also suspicious about her age, they had told me she was 9 months, she has these little balls at the "corners" of her beak that are the same color as her beak, I've been told that these are signs of aging but I'm not sure.


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

57821 said:


> Mochii, I had the same worries as you. I just got my first pigeon two months ago and he was the same way. He was terrified of me for the first 2 weeks or so and had a case of the runs. He didn't eat if I was there, if at all. He also had feather lice that I had to treat him for, which he didn't like too much lol. This is pretty normal. Especially if they're from somewhere questionable like a market or feed store, they've usually been through a lot and are not used to being treated as "pets".
> 
> This pigeon I speak of was already a few years old and he was an iranian highflyer from someones loft so hes pretty aloof. It took him almost a month to be okay with eating from my hand. He is still sort of skittish around me but he doesnt freak out and fly away anymore when I get near him, he just sort of gets annoyed now. Pigeons naturally don't like being handled especially if they haven't been raised to be, so it's normal for some birds to not want to be interactive esp if theyre older.
> 
> ...


I guess my pigeon has accepted that I am her food giver since she pecked me today when she didn't have food. Mine seems to be an (indian?) fantail, I'm not sure how those are. I guess next time I will try feeding her with a spoon. Also, when I added peanuts to her food she just throws them out of the bowl, maybe I cut them the pieced too small. Chasing my bird into the bathroom and turning the lights sounds like a really good idea, I thought there'd be no way of doing it since I let out my pigeon during the day. Thanks for the advice, I found it to be extremely helpful.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Mochii said:


> I guess my pigeon has accepted that I am her food giver since she pecked me today when she didn't have food. Mine seems to be an (indian?) fantail, I'm not sure how those are. I guess next time I will try feeding her with a spoon. Also, when I added peanuts to her food she just throws them out of the bowl, maybe I cut them the pieced too small.
> 
> Your pigeon just doesn't recognize them as food. Never had them before. Eventually he will try them, and when he does, he will love them. Just give him time. You are in too much of a hurry.
> 
> ...


It takes time. You can't rush him. He needs to learn to trust you and get used to you. That doesn't happen over night. Slow down.


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

Heh, sorry, I just really want my bird to no be scared of me but I guess I will have to be patient


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

By rushing him you _are_ scaring him. They want to come to you, not you grabbing them.


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## Mochii (May 5, 2018)

Ah well she's only calm when I have her perched on my finger or arm, if I trying to pet her she'll fly off


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Most pigeons do not like to be petted. So why do that? Her flying off when you try to pet her should tell you that she doesn't like it.


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