# Can a Pigeon Be This Smart!



## goulian (May 15, 2007)

Hi everyone,

It has been a while since I posted anything, but something happened this morning that I thought I would throw out here. But before I do, I want to say that, even though I know pigeons are quite intelligent, I do not believe they think as a human does, nor do I believe that they can perform any complicated reasoning, however, listen to this:

As I was throwing out the feed for the pigeons, I felt a tap on my right ankle. This is not unusual because there is always a few pigeons around my feet to get the seeds that drop before I throw them out to the flock. After at least another minute, I realized that I had been feeling the same tapping on my ankle repeatedly. Curious as to what was happening, I looked down at my right foot. A pigeon was standing there and as I looked down I saw it tap my ankle with its right wing. Not like a pigeon slaps your hand, as many do, but more like it was just opening it's wing with enough force to hit my ankle. Then after it saw that I was looking down at it, the pigeon attempted to walk away, but fell over instead. I reached down and picked it up only to find that both its feet were tied together with string. Not tied in knots like someone had purposely done that, but the regular type of string emcumberments normally found on pigeons. It took about fifteen minutes to cut and undo the mess of string that was wrapped around both the bird's legs and feet (mainly because I was alone with no one to hold the bird as I worked on it). Anyway the string was removed and the bird released. My problem with this whole thing is that I certainly looked like the pigeon was intentionally tapping on my ankle to get my attention. Like it knew that I could free it's feet. Another thing is that this bird was not a regular member of the flock because I would have noticed it as it flopped around eating with the other birds. The string was too tight to be been there only a short time. It had been there for some time. Perhaps it just stayed on the overpass, like many do, because it knew it was injured and would have trouble eating with the flock. I don't know. All I do know is that it looked like that bird came there intentionally to get me to cut the string from it's feet. I can not fully believe that a pigeon has that high a reasoning power, but it it seems like too much to be a coincidence. 

I though I would share that with you folks. The bird is OK and was last seen eating with the rest of the flock. Strabge stuff, these pigeon happenings.


Take care, All, and happy pigeoning.


Mike


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

goulian said:


> All I do know is that it looked like that bird came there intentionally to get me to cut the string from it's feet. I can not fully believe that a pigeon has that high a reasoning power, but it it seems like too much to be a coincidence. Mike


Well, pigeons DO have an uncanny ability to pick people who will help them when in trouble. I've seen dozens and dozens of birds who ended up with me that literally sought out a particular human who could, would, and did help the bird. I have no idea how they do this, but they do. I've had people bring me pigeons that came up to their patio doors and pecked and wing whacked the glass until someone came and let them in and helped them.

To me, your experience is wondrous, but also an experience that I know happens all the time. Just read the posts here on Pigeon-Talk .. so many of our members were literally sought out by a pigeon that needed help.

Just tonight I got a call about a banded racing pigeon that has been roosting in a garage for the past few days .. it took up residence just a few houses down from my friends at the Lily Sanctuary parrot rescue, and they got called about the pigeon. My friend, Ven, went on down .. got the band #, caught the pigeon (easily), and all is well. I've already sent an e-mail to Foy's as they sold the band, and will go pick up the pigeon tomorrow from my friends and tend to it until the owner is located. The moral of this story is that the pigeon picked a safe roosting place with pigeon friendly people who also knew the local bird rescue place .. 

Pigeons are very smart cookies when it comes to judging humans (IMO).

Terry


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## Ivor (May 12, 2008)

Wow, that happen to me a couple times, my friends always say that I find injured or sick pigeons all the time, and most of the time they come home, I was feeding my birds one day in my back yard, and noticed a new pigeon there and was not eating, I noticed right away that was sick or have something, anyways he noticed that I was close and start flying not too high, so I waited, went inside made some time, and when I came back, he was there again, so this time I was quicker and when I saw him he had a big hole he was not able to eat, is when I found this website, I didn't know what to do, but I clean him and close the hole that way he was able to eat a little bit, it didn't last, he die during the night, it was late when I found him, but how he knew about my back yard? I found another pigeon outside from my house very sick, I remember that after she was healthy she was still visiting my house and sleeping inside my house, she was leaving in the morning and coming back around 5pm everyday, so someone at home have to be at that time waiting outside for her, one day we forgot the time, and when I left she was right there in my door still waiting I was opening the door and she was coming inside, she had a big box with holes and that was her bed, she did that at least for a month until she left the house.

Another pigeon had a baby in my house, we had a big plant between the main door and the door that goes outside, so she found that plant and had eggs, one of the babies die, but one survived, she was feeding the baby and the father, until we start taking care the baby, he learned how to fly, and right after he left with his parents.

other pigeons die, others survived, but I always find them, or I should say they find me, so I think the other pigeons told her that I have a lovely pigeon in my house and I will take care of him or her.

They are so smart, more than what will think, and I think is a gift, that animals find us attractive.


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## Charis (Feb 11, 2007)

Mike...I love your story. It is just amazing.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Yes, I believe pigeons are smart, and you certainly have a good example of one such bird. He knew you were a friend and would help untangle him from the string. Thank you for sharing.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

I do think this pidj asked you for help, and it is so wonderful, thanks for sharing this story...humans think we know it all sometimes but then things like this happen....great to hear from you Mike.


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## lwerden (May 31, 2008)

Mike..........What a wonderful story. You saved his life!!!! Pigeons are smarter than most people think. My house pigeon sends me messages all the time. He lets me know when he wants to take a bath, eat, drink. Best of all he lets me know when he wants to be hugged. He gets on my shoulder and pecks at my cheek until I pick him up with both hands and hold him close to me and he will fall asleep in my hands.

Thanks so much for helping & saving this bird.

Louise


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## bweaz (Aug 1, 2008)

I think pigeons know who can help them. The first pigeon I ever had, I found walking down a sidewalk in a strip mall. She was so young - didn't have all of her feathers, still had yellow down attached to the feathers she did have. She had pretty bad injuries on her head and beak (obviously feel out of the nest), but they looked a few days old. She was literally, just walking straight down the sidewalk looking at everything. When a box was put on its side, she just walked right in. It's like she know that someone was there to help. She was the best pigeon in the world, I still think about her every day (she passed away almost a year ago). It's funny, I had parrots before I had her, but I never noticed birds in the sky until she came along. She is the reason I could never be without at least one pet pigeon!! Pretty amazing that one "scrawny, beat up, feral pigeon" changed my life!!


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

bweaz said:


> I think pigeons know who can help them. The first pigeon I ever had, I found walking down a sidewalk in a strip mall. She was so young - didn't have all of her feathers, still had yellow down attached to the feathers she did have. She had pretty bad injuries on her head and beak (obviously feel out of the nest), but they looked a few days old. She was literally, just walking straight down the sidewalk looking at everything. When a box was put on its side, she just walked right in. It's like she know that someone was there to help. She was the best pigeon in the world, I still think about her every day (she passed away almost a year ago). It's funny, I had parrots before I had her, but I never noticed birds in the sky until she came along. She is the reason I could never be without at least one pet pigeon!! Pretty amazing that one "scrawny, beat up, feral pigeon" changed my life!!


my eyes are teary...sniffle...


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## KIPPY (Dec 18, 2003)

> Curious as to what was happening, I looked down at my right foot. A pigeon was standing there and as I looked down I saw it tap my ankle with its right wing. Not like a pigeon slaps your hand, as many do, but more like it was just opening it's wing with enough force to hit my ankle. Then after it saw that I was looking down at it, the pigeon attempted to walk away, but fell over instead.


That is wild. Then he walks and falls to show you whats up.

Long while back while watering my plants there was an injured pij on the side of the house. Not sure if he was going to take off when I would try to catch him I went in my house to get a towel. When I went back out to catch him there he was at the door. Wrapped his wing kept him for awhile and let him go.

Sometimes these guys would fly into the patio door to get our attention to go out and feed them. Not hard but just enough to get our attention. Then you got the other pigeons standing around egging this pij on.

There definately not stupid.


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Those are wonderful stories. I don't have anything as wondrous to tell, although I find a lot of injured and sick pigeons they have never come to me, I just come across them, this often happens when for some reason I have wandered off my normal route.

But I do have a "pigeon communication" story. Many years ago, when I only had 5 rescues in the aviary, I noticed that one cock bird was on a perch, straining his neck to make eye contact with me. Then he flew to the hardware wire, looked out and once again made direct eye contact. I knew nothing at all about pigeons, but the message that I got was "twigs! I need twigs!". So I gathered a handful of twigs and put them in the aviary. He was delighted and immediately started to take them back to his lady on the nest. The only time he has made the same sort of eye contact since then is when the supply of twigs in the aviary has run out...and he doesn't only communicate his need to me, he has done the same with John.

Cynthia


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## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

Mike, great to hear from you. I'm a believer that pigeons seek help and seem to know that the place/person they choose is safe. We have taken in many pigeons that walked into businesses or up to people for help. 

We have doves that come to our house for safety when they are sick. Sadly though, the canker they have is usually so far advanced that saving them is very hard. They get under our deck or come in the garage. We have had a crow climb the steps to our back door for help. We looked out the kitchen window one morning and there was a beautiful white pigeon in our garden. Although there is a huge feral flock less than 1/2 mile from our home they don't come over the house or in the yard. Katie, as we named her, is happily living with the rest of our pigeons. I don't know how she found us. We even had a cockatiel land on our aviary.

Sometimes our aviary pigeons will also let us know they don't feel well. They come up to us and stand, waiting for us to notice them.

I really enjoyed reading of your adventure.


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## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Wonderful story Mike. And, yes, pigeons DO know. Tooter found us, I agree, they are smart.


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## goulian (May 15, 2007)

Hi, again,

I want to thank you all for your comments and stories. I have an amazing feral flock that never ceases to redefine the meaning of trust and friendship between humans and birds. Just this morning, as I was preparing to cross the street after feeding the flock, one bird refused to leave my hand. Each time I would gently shake it off my hand, it would hover around and return to the hand. This happened several times, when I finally realized that this bird wanted something. Not knowing what it was I began to massage its crop between my thumb and index finger. After a few minutes of this, I began to stroke its back, followed by scratching the top of its head. As soon as I touched the top of it head, the bird crouched down into my hand as turned its head a bit to the side, then it closed its eyes. All the other birds were walking around the feeding area while this one got petted for at least a good five minutes. I missed the walk light to cross the street, but that's alright. I hope this scratching becomes a regular thing as I loved doing it. When the light turned green once again, I gently tossed the bird into the air and crossed then street, which, gave the flock the signal that I was leaving. They then flew away as they do each day when I cross the street after feeding them.

I can not imagine going through a day without the few minutes I spend with these wonderful birds. It is a great experience and those who never have the opportunity to share their lives with the lives of one or more pigeons are really missing out on something grand.

Take care, All, and happy pigeoning.


Mike


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## Lilito54 (Aug 24, 2008)

*Yes! They are brilliant*

Thank you for sharing that wonderful story, I know the feeling it gives you.
I have experienced a similar situation few times myself. 
Just last week, as I was feeding in a tinny park close to my apartment in Manhattan where members of about 5 flocks gather when they see me there. A very cute pidgie came flying and literally sat (as a mother over her eggs) next to me on the bench and looked at me right on the eyes. I knew her from previous feedings and call her "Teary Eyes" because she has marks coming down on both eyes and they look just like white tears over her grey color face.
Well, I offered some special seeds just for her, thinking she wanted one on one attention, but she did not want to eat! I looked more closely and there it was, in pain due to an almost invisible threat tied many times around both her delicate feet. My neighbor was with me, so she held the birdie up as I took all the threat of her, very carefully. One amazing thing that I realized is that I had taken threat off her mate (a big very dark male) a week earlier.
I usually kiss them on the head before I release after a "foot operation" like that (I get to do this about once a week), and they always stay around and continue eating. Some go up on a tree and look down but come to continue eating after a few minutes. 
On the other hand, I have had a pigeon come to me (when I was alone in the communal backyard of our building) very sick, terminally, and passed away on my lap (I do not know what was wrong with her). I would like to believe that she was looking for a safe place to die, and somebody that would shed a tear for her. May be wishful thinking but I like to think it, pigeons have feelings too
Aren't they amazing?


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## goulian (May 15, 2007)

*Update to "Can a Pigeon Be This Smart!"*

Hi, everyone. I just thought I would let you know what happened to the bird I was talking about in this post. About a month after I cut the string from it's feet, the left foot fell completely off just above the toes. It was obvious that this was going to happen because the bird's feet just keep getting worse and worse after the string was removed. I would have caught him to medicate his feet, but he was not going to let me do that. It is funny that he let me pick him up when his feet were so entangled that he could not walk, but he would not let me close enough to capture him after that. He came to breakfast each day after I freed him and I made sure he got plenty to eat. For the few days just before his foot fell off, he was in bad shape, hobbling about amid the flock which would push him over and out of the way every time I threw him some food. But he did get enough and, after the foot came off, he recovered quickly and can now walk quite well on his stump. His right foot has healed but is covered with scars where the string had cut into the foot. 

For the past few days, he has been hovering in front of me, obviously wanting to land in my hand, but he never did. It was like he knew that with only one foot, he could not hold on against the others who also ate from my hand. Today, as he was hovering, I grabbed a handful of grain from the feed bag and reached out and held my hand under him as he hovered. He immediately dropped into my hand and was eating as fast as he could beore the other birds joined him and pushed him off. The next time, after he dropped into my outstreched hand, I pulled my hand in against my chest with him leaning against me. From this position, the other birds could not push him out of the way and he ate until he could eat no more. I am so glad he survived. From now on I will make sure he gets his fill.

While I have you here, I want to tell you what happened a few days ago. A friend who only comes with me on a few occassions while I feed the birds was with me. When we approached the flock, none of them flew to my hand, which was not normal behavior for that particular flock. I could only assume it was because they did not recognize the stranger (to them) with me. After a moment, I pointed my right index finger to the one who always comes to my hand first and said, a bit loudly, "You!" Then I held out my left hand, tapped it with my right index finger, and said, again a bit loudly, "Hand!" To my friend's amazement' and mine, too, the pigeon immediately flew up and landed in my hand. Needless to say, he ate well that morning. My friend is still talking about that. 

Things like this happen on an almost daily basis. I have never had a relationship with a flock of pigeons, or any other birds, or most people for that matter, as strange as this one. After the food is all gone, several of them still come to my hand and let me rub their backs or heads or massage their crops. Sometimes, when there are too many birds eating in my hand, I will actually pick one up as he falls off the hand and hold him there while he continues to eat.

People who see me feeding these creatures probably do not see that that this is not just a bird feeding session. These pigeons are interacting with me and show total trust. I guess if you feed the same flock for years, they actually get some affectionate feelings about you, even if they are feral.

Let me also so this. These birds do not ever land in front of anyone other than me. I see many folk walk by as I approach the feeding area, before the birds see me coming, and they stay put on the bridge. But, when they see me, they fly around, swirling and diving and gliding in formation. They just can't sit still knowing that breakfast is soon to be had. 

There birds have changed my life, and I can not imagine a day without feeding them on my way to breakfast.

Oh well, that's about it. Take care and happy pigeoning.


Mike


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## Ivor (May 12, 2008)

Hi Mike,

This is wonderful, is so easy to love them, and you obviously have a big heart, they already found you and decided to be your friend, you are not only feeding them, you are giving them attention and love so they just give you back what they receive.

Thank you for sharing these stories, is so nice to hear about people like you in this forum, it make my day.


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## corvid (Oct 16, 2008)

Those beautiful stories make me cry. I love them


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## Larry_Cologne (Jul 6, 2004)

Mike, 

Thanks for sharing these stories. Wonderful!

Unfortunately, if I happen to "drop" something a pigeon is interested in, i have to look away, walk away and ignore them as if nothing happened. I study the clouds, billboards, whatever. City regs don't permit feeding pigeons. Too many people become quite aggressive about it. I had one guy yell out quite loudly _"Ich habe ein Handy. Ich rufe die Polizei!"_ (I have a cell phone/mobile. I'll telephone the police).

Drawing attention to myself will counteract my attempts to monitor and rescue. 

Several German friends have commented that Germans (in general) dislike pigeons more than the French dislike pigeons, or are less tolerant of pigeons. (There may be some subtlety in the actual phrases used, a difference which I missed, hence the two interpretations). 

Larry


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## Ivor (May 12, 2008)

Wow Larry, that is what happen to me where I work, I feed them but I just walk and put some food and ignore them like it was not me, but they know me so they fly and arrive just next to me, and it is obvious that something happen, and the bad part is that everybody knows me around my work, because I work for the building office and we own the 3 buildings around, so the tenants are walking all the time, I was catch by one tenant today, but he didn't say anything, he even start talking to me and the pigeons next to me, it was funny, I know he saw me but he didn't say anything, I just need to be careful, but again, the pigeons are happy when they see me, even when I'm not able to stay there, too bad that we always find people that hate pigeons, but I try to be careful only around my work, if I'm in a different area I don't care I learn that people are just people and the only one that can say something to me is the police. =)

Ivette


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## psychopomp (May 5, 2008)

Yes, they are THAT smart!! sorry you can't feed them officially in your area....I am sure that one you helped will remember you always. its like being part of a forbidden group feeding and caring for ferals.

once when I helped a bantam chicken who was nearly henpecked to death ( I stictched her, nursed her back to health)....I found how intelligent birds are...every year I went to the farm she remembered me and would fly to my shoulder for protection from the other chickens.

good luck !
Jen


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## Grimaldy (Feb 25, 2007)

Hi Larry,

I think the proper reply is, "Lass mich in frieden. Das gehoert nicht dir."

People who threaten are basically bullys who believe that you will run away if they threaten you. I have found that if you walk right up to them and ask them if they have a problem of some sort, they are the ones who leave. Quite frankly policemen have more to do than answer emergency phone calls about someone feeding a pigeon.

Besides if you are trying to capture one to rescue, it can usually be done within a few seconds, a minute at most. Nobody is going to go looking for you.


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## corvid (Oct 16, 2008)

This feeding and hiding thing takes all the pleasure from interacting with birds. All the happiness, which we have , seeing them fly to the food, waiting for you and calling (Crows).

I thought about it for a long time, because I do that here with the Crows and believe me the are louder and more then visible to passing by people. I can have in some places flocks of 100 following, when I go to the "feeding stations"
Which got me at some point to think, that I actually may harm them in the future as a outcome of that. You know people calling City or some other place one does in such situations.
So I stopped doing this every day, I m going with food to feeding stations only now and 
then. I dont want end up making them more harm then helping. Altho they are under law protection and nobody should kill them, people around here in City limits do. They shoot BB guns, poison them I had a few in rehab, my Crows, the ones I feed. Just because people did not want them around, they just shoot and kill. When You think about it, how sad, those birds are hungry, they want from us just a bit of food. And we are the ones , who do have plenty to share...And yet...there can be a such consequences to them. I have to stop, cause I m crying right now..sorry


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## psychopomp (May 5, 2008)

I adore crows..that is so sad...here they are anyone's pest, no protection ....same for magpies, starlings , pigeons, coyotes...kill as many as you want, throw them in the ditch.


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## corvid (Oct 16, 2008)

Psychopomp I did not know that..

That is even worse ,than , for those animals there.I LOVE Magpies, we dont have them here were I live, on the other site of the mountain I heard, that is were one can find them. Will there be any chance to pass some protection laws in Canada, or nothing you heard so far?? 

Nell


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## Arryndel (Sep 12, 2008)

I had never thought of having any type of bird as a pet before we got Pudgy. I had always thought of them as the type of pet that ppl got if they wanted something they only interacted with occasionaly. 

When my father in law decided to cut down the pine trees in his back yard and a nest fell out of one, with a baby dove in it, they called me to care for it (I had hand raised a puppy for them, the mother dog had killed the rest of her puppies at birth, they only managed to save the one).

This is when Pudgy came into our lives, and from the first day I knew that Pudgy would be a part of the family so I treated her as my own. She's now three months old and is the smartest pet I've ever had!

Pudgy will pack at my feet or hands when she wants something. My feet when she knows her food is somewhere other then on my desk and she wants me to go get it for her. She will peck at my hand when she wants me to hold the dish while she eats from it. She will even climb up my arm slowly, to my shoulder, then strech her neck to get my attention. Once I look her way she will carefully rub her beek against my mouth telling me "put some seeds in there mom, I want special treatment". I will actualy put a few seeds in my mouth just under my tongue and she will ever so carefully eat them.

She even tells us when it's time to go to bed. She starts flying around the room, making sure she has our full attention, then she will fly into the bedroom and land at the foot of the bed, as if saying "I'm sleepy now and you have to get up early, time for bed"

She tells me when she wants a bath as well. She knows that I use a fairly large deep frying pan as her bathtub (every one in the house knows it's off limits except as Pudgy's tub), and that I keep it in the kitchen window (it's a bay window, looks like a mini green room almost). She will fly onto my head and dance around a little, then fly into the kitchen and land near the sink. She will keep doing this till I get up and fix her little bath for her. 

And she seems to know when I'm talking about her, either on the phone with my mother in law (who happens to have a parrot) or on this site. Any time I'm typing about her she has to come to my computer and watch, as though she's trying to read what I have to say about her. Right now she is sitting on the top of my monitor "making faces" at me. Meaning she is tilting her head and moving her neck and the only way that I can describe it is as if she is saying "what did you just type? Do you really think I'm that smart?"

She even let me know that she did not like the birds outside being able to see her nest box that sits on my desk. She would go behind my monitor and dance around and fuss at them, then she would walk around to the front so I could see her and fuss some more, she continued to do this untill I put the curtains back up (we had taken them down while I was repainting the house) and secured them to the wall so that wind and such could not blow them open. She has been a happy dovey ever since.

I've had lots of pets, dogs and cats and even had ferrets, but none have been as smart as my little dove. She amazes me in so many ways and she shows me something new about her almost daily. From the first day we got her I have searched the internet for as much information as I could find about doves and pigeons and I have found so many different sites that talk about the amazing intelegance that they show. I don't know if they have uncanny intuition or if they can actually read our minds to some extent, but sometimes the things they do make you truely wonder "does he/she actually know what I'm thinking?"

And now that I have her, I can't help but think "it's a good thing they live so long, cause I can't imaging her not being in my life"

I wish every one could spend some time with these little angels, they would learn what amazing little creatures they are, and there would be a lot less dislike for them, if only they could see for themselves how special and wonderful they truely are.

Venecia


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## Ivor (May 12, 2008)

Venecia,

I'm in agree with you, people don't know what they are missing because people don't even stop to see what is around, Pigeons are very smart, the one that I have at home is so lovely, and like yours he let us know when is time for bed, or if he wants to go out he let us know, he flies from my head to my mother's head and likes to repeat that until I take him out to the yard with the other pigeons, and the funny thing is that he doesn't like to be close with them, he just enjoy been around, or watch them while he is my shoulder, he likes to give me kisses, loves to dance of course he is a male, and for a long time we thought that was a female, is easy to love them, because they love you, and when I get home he can hear my car in the garage, and start making noise and flies like crazy before I get upstair is like having a dog I think is so cute and they give us so much happiness at home, he has a blanket that he loves and is in my mother's bed, and likes to go there and bring things, earrings, rings and all things that he finds, is his spot I guess he is ready for a nest, too bad that we can't have more pigeons, but I hope to have more in the future.


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## corvid (Oct 16, 2008)

I m just poping in to say I LOVE THOSE STORIES......


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## driftwood (Oct 29, 2008)

Well I have finally registered. The first thing I Wanted to do was to share my story regarding how I found Mr Miyagi in teh abandoned hospital with my friend Xahtep. 

After climbing on our bellies to get into a window at 4am in thr morning, into a huge, sealed abandoned hospital and landing in a dark, damp gymnasium, I knew I was goign to be in for a surprise. Little did I know, walking through floors and corridors of a derelict, dead hospital was I going to find another creature who was alive. 

It occurred after an hours exploring. I had lost my orientation, and insisted to my friend that we had to go up another floor , that we were underground. It was so dark, every nook and cranny being closed a sheets of metal, that I had completely lost my bearings. He insisted, no Chris its down this dark corridor. Already slightly panicked, that the batteries on my only light were faiding, I ignored his please and meandered back to the dark dtair way. I waited for him to follow me. Whilst I stood there, I noticed a curious object, on the first step. The first step, wasnt really a step, it had crumbled, and formed a little slope, and at the top was a dark round object.

Next to me stood Miyagi, a PMVed bird, just standing, waiting, next to my foot. 

I would have noticed him on the way down the stairs ( or should I have said up!).

He hadnt been there then, he must have wondered to it and waited, after hearing us, from god knows where in that prison.

I immediatly knew 2 things. 
The pigeon was not afraid. 
It was because he had never met another dangerous creature in his whole and short life. 

I wont harp on, as my friend described how we brought him up in the next few months - on another thread, ( http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/f6/i-...t-he-seems-retarded-and-confused-29793-2.html )
but I want to leave you with this. 

I spent my childhood with an air rifle blowing birds - albeit selectively - and only when I didnt think I could score a hit - up in my forest.

I will never hunt another bird again for sport.

Its not that Miyagi needed help, its not that he is a fascinating bird, its simply, his total trust in us, on that night, when I found him and put him in my hoodie, to now, months on , when he sits on my arm as I wander around the garden doing DIY.

His trust, which has irrevocably disarmed me.


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## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

Chris, what a fabulous story. We all just wish that others would come around to your way of thinking. These birds want to live and survive just like all other species, but they really get a bum rap. 
Thank you for opening your heart and mind to this little guy and helping him out. You will never regret it.


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## conditionfreak (Jan 11, 2008)

Seems to me that if the human population produces Einsteins, DiVinci's, etc, etc, then the animal world (inslcuding the pigeon species) would produce their versions of Einstein, etc.

On the whole. Animals (especially those that have had thousands of years of exposure to humans in a sense not associated with being human food), would learn to assume certain things from humans, and some of those certain things, may include the human ability to help in a time of crisis. I have experienced birds "asking" for help once or twice, and dogs asking for help numerous times. In ways that one would assume they did not have the ability to comprehend that we could help them with their problem.

Sad part is. Many humans may not understand what is happening when an animal "asks" for their assistance. Many times humans will take advantage of animals in dire straights, and destroy them. Out of fear or out of meanness.

Had a snake once, approach me, and I discovered it had a twig stuck in its mouth, holding its mouth open and the snake (I would assume) would not be able to eat. I pulled it out with twezzers and the snake was bleeding a little, but I let it go. It was a common Gardner snake. I have seen many around here, but they always go in the opposite direction of me when I do, unless they are attempting to hide. This snake came up to me. Coincidence? I don't know. Desperation? Maybe. An Einstein Snake? hmmm


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