# smelly pigeon



## jacobsshygrl (May 3, 2006)

My pigeon smells. i was wondering if there is anything i can bathe her with in order to get he to stink a little less. i clean her cage about every day, shes an extremely clean bird, constantly preening herself, but for some reason she just smells. lol. its kind of gross. anybody know what to do?


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Hi jacobsshygrl,

Instead of giving you the link, I'm gonna explain how to get it for yourself, so you can get familiar w/the site and look things up when you want to. From the menu up above on the left upper corner, click on Pigeon-Talk. It will bring you to the main categories. Choose Resources. In the resource section, there is a 
thread for Pigeon Supply Houses in the USA. Select that. This will bring you to 
a selection of companies that provide products for pigeons. Bath salts should 
help you with this problem. They love regular baths even if just water....but the bath salts also help w/other feather issues as well. Some folks put a little 
Apple Cider Vinegar in the bath water as well. Try one of these....Dawn liquid is basically used in a diluted format for birds w/oiled feathers, otherwise, it is best not to wash birds w/soap, they lose their 'powder' otherwise.
Hope this helps. Others will be along w/other suggestions.

fp


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Hi jacobsshygrl,


Can you describe the smell?

And, describe the poops and their odor and appearance?

What is the Bird's diet?

Have you examined the Bird all over it's Body to see if there are any odd places or boo-boos or places where the skin is not looking right?


Let us know...


Best wishes...

Phil
Las Vegas


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## John_D (Jan 24, 2002)

Hi,

Can you also check inside the bird's beak to see of it is a healthy pink colore in mouth and throat, and let us know if there is anything unusual.

John


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## jacobsshygrl (May 3, 2006)

Thanks for the site fp. 

And phil and john...

her mouth and throat is a normal pinkish redish color (or at least what i believe to be normal...haha, it looks like mine i guess. lol. 

as far as diet...this is my first pigeon and it was all sprung on me suddenly so I started with what I had and it proved successfull so i just keep using it. She hatched on easter, so shes not that old at all so I still have to hand feed her every few hours. Her main diet is chick starter which is ground in my blender and made into a paste like form and served out of an edited syringe so she actually eats out of it like she would a mother bird. I'm not sure thats what smells, because i'm actually quite fond of the smell of the dry stuff like when I open the tub of it in my garage, it just smells like...i'm not even sure...grains and corn? who knows...whatever is in that stuff. She also eats seeds on occasion, I've been trying to introduce them for a few weeks now and shes getting better at pecking them up, as well as pretty much whatever i eat she likes to investigate. Shes in love with crackers, and i've even caught her trying to eat pieces of my hamburger buns and waffles. Like I said, she investigates but doesn't eat much, if any...its pretty much just the chick starter and a few seeds here and there. 

poop....i think its normal. i dont know what normal is though. I mean, i've hd quail but thats as far as my bird knowledge goes. Hers are a lot more snotty than quail poop....formed, brownish with a green hint now and then, covered in a clear liquid boogerish stuff. she poops regularly, every half hour to hour or so...shes actually pretty trained. I brought her to my cousins house for a family get together and i'd take her outside every hour or so. We were there for at least six hours and she didn't poop at all in the little carrier i had her in, but as soon as i'd put her down in the grass she'd go. god these birds are smart. Anyway, i'm not sure if its her poop that smells, because like i said, i clean her cage all of the time, and she really doesn't even spend too much time in there, just sleeping, i pretty much take her with me where i go. I can't really tell if her poop even smells at all, i dont think it does. 

The smell i'm talking about though, well, there are two different ones...the first is an almost ****ery thick and heavy sickeningly sweet smell. The second is "wet bird smell", from when i give her a bath...its similar to wet dog smell i guess, its musty. This is as best as I can describe it. 

Thanks again for all of your help and advice guys. I dont know what I'd do without this board helping me out with my little chick (still unnamed...any suggestions? I want something really good)


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## minimonkey (Apr 7, 2005)

I thought I posted this answer last night, but it doesn't seem to have posted. 

I'm rather a beginner with pigeons myself, but....

The sicky-sweet smell sounds bad to me..... (the wet-bird smell is normal) Could it be your pigeon's breath that smells bad? If so, i'm guessing she may have "sour crop" , which can happen if a bird's crop does not empty completely-- an infection inside the crop area (from yeast, decaying food, bacteria perhaps) . Is her crop emptying completely between feedings? How thick is the mash you are feeding her?

The experts should have better advice than I on how to care for this condition (if that is what it is) or you can do a search on "sour crop" on here -- I know there are meds available to treat this, and some probiotics can only help, too.


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

I have a bird that once had that odor like you describe. It was a bird that I named "Winston". I'd finally gotten sick of the odor and made a bath up that had both Dawn dishwashing liquid and a capful of Clorox. You will REALLY get the feathers wet with the Dawn. I mean it'll absolutely ruin the waterproofing characteristics for quite awhile. Anyhow, I found a place on Winston's chest where he had a small patch of CUD (Chronic Ulcerative Dermatitis) or call it a sore that wouldn't heal. It was infected with a species of bacteria that makes that smell like you're talking about. The Clorox really helped at taking the smell away but I also began treating the wound that I found as well. It's possible that your bird doesn't have a hidden wound but that it has a skin infection somewhere on it. 

Anyhow, you might try the Dawn and Clorox and see what you can find as well as giving her a heavy duty cleaning. It's sometimes very difficult to find a sore like that on a bird on account of the feathers but when they're that wet, it's pretty easy. Just try to keep the eyes, ears and beak out of the water but also try to submerge the entire bird and scrub everywhere with your fingers under the water. Make sure it's pretty warm and dry the bird with a blowdryer or wrap her completely up in a towel afterwards.

Pidgey


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Here's the thread where I gave Winston the bath:

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=11280

Pidgey


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## jacobsshygrl (May 3, 2006)

gosh, now i'm kind of scared with all of these things, the sour crop, the CUD....

I'm pretty sure her crop empties all the way but i dont know how i can be sure. Shes actually started eating regular food now, I only have to hand feed her once or twice a day just to make sure shes getting enough nutrients. 

As far as the CUD...shes always had this spot on the front of her neck, which looks similar to an atoms apple...I assumed it was normal, because I dont know anything about pigeons, like i've said. The spot has gone down with time, or feathers have covered it more I guess, and the smell too has gone away a little. Can I ask what u used to medicate your bird other than the bath? Was it something over the counter, like a bactroban or neosporine or something along those lines? I'm not sure if she needs it but It can't hurt to try. I know bactroban works really great for boinking head wounds on my quail.


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

Hi jacobsshygrl,

They do sometimes get a strong, well, pigeon odor, this is what I had thought you originally meant. But apparently there is another odor you are referring to as well. I also didn't realize that your pigeon was a baby that you have been hand raising. Sorry for not asking more questions. Is it possible that there could be food remnants on the bird that are causing the odor? When you open the babies mouth and smell do you notice any unusual odor? It seems that you are saying that the poops themselves have no odor, so I'm just trying to get a fix on where the odor may be coming from.

fp


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Oh, don't be so nervous about CUD--that's about the same thing as an infected abrasion on your arm. There are some places on a bird that don't heal that well when they get that way--they don't much get any worse or better until you find them and get some antibiotic ointment or something else on them. Anyhow, the bath did a great job on Winston.

Pidgey


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## jacobsshygrl (May 3, 2006)

ok, I haven't smelled the odor in a few days so I really dont know if it was sour crop or not. I tried opening her mouth, though she pretty much hates me doing that, and I couldn't really smell anything. She has been eating a lot more on her own, the solid food, and drinking a lot of water so I think the paste was just funny on her digestive system or something, though I really dont know what the difference would be with the solid stuff, however there seems to be some kind of difference. I dont know, I guess I'll just keep paying close attention and smelling her often (hahaha, that sounds so weird, but whatever works I guess). Thanks so much all of you for the help and support in figuring out why my Winnie smells. 

BTW Pidgey its cute that you named your pigeon Winston...we named mine Winifred....but for short Winnie. Winnie came from what my friend Dan was calling her "Worst Neck Ever...WNE" because for a while there all of her adult feathers had come in except for the ones on her neck all the way around so she looked quite dorky. WNE turned into Winnie, like Winnie Cooper from the wonder years (I loved that show). lol. So Winifred and Winston are quite similar yet uncommon names and I thought that that was just adorable and had she been a boy (which I'm pretty sure shes not) I think that would have probably ended up being her name as well.


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

The 'chick starter' as her exclusive diet for a month, from babyhood on, might very well make a Pigeon smell odd or sour or rancid or stinky in some way or something.

Many chick starters or chick feeds are made of reprocessed, vat-and-heat-digested animal proteans, from everything a rendering plant gets to render, which would not be good for a Pigeon.

It is 'dead food' also, as distinct to their natural diet of 'live' food, which Seeds and incidental Greens and small fruiting bodys, are...

I know the Pigeons I get sometimes who have been eating bad diets from parking lots and so on, smell rancid and unpleasantly sour, and they do not like how they look or smell either.

If I keep them long enough, and let them have a good diet, they end up smelling like a bowl of 'Malto Meal'...and not because I feed them that, but, they have a sweet, wholesome grain smell, that is very nice...

They benifit too sometimes from a Little Olive Oil, for their skin, their preen gland probably and for asimilating certain Vitamines. Garlis on some form or other also seems to be good for them...

Of course, 'good' wholesome Seeds, and ideally, various kinds through out the Seasons I suppose, will have certain Seed Oils in them which the Pigeons need. But as Seeds age and are stored and so on, and are not-so-fresh or optimum anymore, the quality of their internal Oil likely declines...so, a litle Olive Oil now and then I think is a good idea no matter...

It most likely IS his diet, and if now, he is JUST eating Seeds, this might prove the matter soon.

Direct out-door Sunshine also is important for them of course...

As are various kinds of fresh Greens or shoots and so on...

Excercise....flying...bathing...

But do part the feathers where-ever you think there may be, or have been, any questionable areas of skin, and make sure they look allright, on his Keel especially...

If they are healthy, and eating right, you should be able to bury your nose in their Feathers anywhere on them, and find that they smell very nice, like fresh, sweet Grain...

The Healthy ferals here are that way...they smell good...

But not the Parking Lot Birds...

Lol...

Phil
Las Vegas


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## jacobsshygrl (May 3, 2006)

wow Phil, thanks, thats a lot of good information. I'll definately try some olive oil just to keep her healthy. That makes a lot of sense, the chick starter being what smells and all. I didn't even think of that because you are right, it really isn't all that natural. Shes not a big fan of seeds really, its kind of sad, i've tried a lot of different kinds and she just kind of pecks and drops...yet goes crazy over the starter. I'll try and push the seeds a little more, and some greens. Shes so curious which is a good thing. I take her outside for a few hours each day just to flap around (shes not yet flying but is hovering a foot or so off the ground). She catches bugs and eats them which astonishes me. Thanks for all of your help, i'll look into all of your suggestions. I just want to keep her happy and healthy because she is such a perfect little bird.


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

You can also lightly crush some Anise or Fennel Seeds, hopefully, getting some which are not all dried out as most store's little packets of them will be...

But this sometimes is interesteing for them to have on their Seeds, in their Seeds, and can stimulate appetite or interest.


Your little one probably got a somewhat corrupted with the chick-starter, and it did not allow any continuity for pecking seeds or recogniseing Seeds, and has conflicted with her instinctive pre-disposition to wish to peck at Seeds.

They will all 'think-about' pecking little semi-Seed-like 'Bugs' but normally, they just pause, think about it, and do not do it, because at some level they judge, that while kinda-close, it is not the right configuration to BE a seed, so...

If she is still Nuzzleing to be fed, or will nuzzle to be fed if encouraged, you could try having a little Shot Glass or the likes full of Canary or Finch Seed, and with keeping your finger tips on the sides of her Beak, guide her nuzzleing Beak into the Seeds so she 'gobbles' about like she would have been doing when her Beak was in the end of the cut off Syringe, eating her chick-starter.

She might like it, and it might help set or adjust the pattern-recognition feeling for Seeds as something to be interested in in this kind of experience, which will soon lead to recogniseing them and integrating the progression for seeing them as something to peck at.

That, and or if you can let her spend time with other pecking Pigeons, ferals or as may be, she might benifit from seeing them doing it, and or wishing to emulate their activity.

Good luck...!

Phil
Las Vegas


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## minimonkey (Apr 7, 2005)

She'll learn to love seeds, believe me (we raised two babies last year). They do the "peck and drop" bit at first, when they are first learning to eat -- and then one day, like magic, they only want the seeds, and they look and you and your mash-feeder like "what on earth are you thinking??" 

Enjoy the hand feeding while it lasts! And don't be distressed if she starts becoming more independent as she grows a bit older -- that is a good sign. She may not want to be handled as much, and may even peck at you and slap you with her wings. That is all normal and good -- it means she is becoming a grown up. 

Phil -- your description of the "healthy bird smell" is just perfect -- I must say that our two "healthies" smell just wonderful -- both of us like to nuzzle our noses into their feathers and snuggle....grain smell, healthy feather smell...


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