# I found a beautiful white dove with leg band on my ranch in tx



## MariposaRanch

Hi, 
I found a beautiful white dove on my ranch in brenham, tx today. He/She was sitting outside by my guest house... it allowed me to pick it up and carry it to my house, it was very calm and didn't try to fly away.... i put it in my dog's crate. I gave it water and some wild bird seed. What should I do? It has a blue and white leg band on it with the #47 on it. Where does a bird like this come from? are they pets? what should I feed it? How do i know if it is hurt? (no visible signs of injury) We have many hawks and eagles and coyotes out here, so i cant imagine it was out loose like this for long, but then again, our closest neighbor is very far away for a bird that doesnt fly! Any help or advice is greatly appreciated!
Thank you!!!


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## Hareloft

there was a bird on here earlier today with a similae band. Maybe some one is trying to train them to youmg and losing them. The water and seeds will help give him/her these for a few days and then you can release it as soon as its healthy enough to fly. It should go back home


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## Charis

I wouldn't release the bird. As you say...there are hawks around and a single white bird will stand out and be an easy target.
Do you have a feed store near by where you can post a found notice? Don't give the band number. If someone calls, let them tell you the number on the band.


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## MariposaRanch

*Dove*

I would be happy to keep the dove.... I love all animals, and have many rescued animals at my ranch. What do I need to know about keeping the dove? Where can I get good info on taking care? Should I take it to a vet to have it looked at? Is it possible that this is someone's pet? Do these doves make good pets? Also, is there any way to tell if it is a boy or a girl?
Thanks so much!!!!


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## MariposaRanch

*dove or pigeon?*

How do I know if this bird is a white dove or a white pigeon? are they the same thing? I have no idea! Thanks!


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## Charis

They are not the same thing and the birds used in white dove release are actually pigeons. If you post a picture we can tell you if the bird is pigeon or dove.


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## MariposaRanch

Here is a picture:










<img src="http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x220/orologgi/White%20Bird/whitebird.jpg">


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## PigeonVilla

MariposaRanch said:


> Here is a picture:
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> <img src="http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x220/orologgi/White%20Bird/whitebird.jpg">


you have there a white homing pigeon for sure


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## Charis

I agree....beautiful bird.


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## MariposaRanch

ok wow a white homing pigeon! Thank you so much for your help! So does this mean that this is someone's pet bird that got lost? Do you think I should put up signs or something if someone is looking for it? If nobody claims it, Is this a bird that is kept as a pet?


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## MariposaRanch

is there somewhere I can look up the pigeon's owner from its leg band?


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## PigeonVilla

MariposaRanch said:


> ok wow a white homing pigeon! Thank you so much for your help! So does this mean that this is someone's pet bird that got lost? Do you think I should put up signs or something if someone is looking for it? If nobody claims it, Is this a bird that is kept as a pet?


If that band cant lead you to where that bird is from, keep it as a pet or find it a happily ever after home that will .

heres a page to help you find its home thru a band : http://www.npausa.com/foundpigeon.htm


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## Charis

Do you have a feed store near by where you can post a found notice? Don't give the band number. If someone calls, let them tell you the number on the band.


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## TylerBro

look at the bird is there anything on the band other than just 45? if so post it and you will have contact info before to long ... the AU or IF has every band sold listed. ... and if so the owner may let you keep it ... and if u want it then take down the post and start reading all the info on this site


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## Charis

How far is this from you?

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/f20/found-dove-white-pigeon-in-arlington-tx-61637.html


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## TylerBro

it kinda has a cross look to it ... the shape of the head .. i bet it was a wedding dove and is not a pet ... maybe a diff pic of it not hunched down will help...


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## Charis

http://houston.ebayclassifieds.com/birds/brenham/white-dove-release-brenham-tx/?ad=14434403


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## MariposaRanch

arlington tx is pretty far from me.... but that story sounds just like what happened to me... the bird was standing on the ground, my dogs ran up to it, expecting it to fly away, and it didnt fly. I picked up the bird before my dogs could really start playing with it. The band on its leg is a white stripe in between two blue stripes with the #47 on it - no letters.


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## Charis

Did you look at the link I posted for wedding release doves? They are in your community and the pigeon may be theirs.


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## MariposaRanch

Thank you all so much for the help!!! I left a voicemail for the person in brenham that does the dove releases. I have made a bunch of calls to see if anyone knows who it might belong to. No luck yet but Im going to keep trying!


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## MariposaRanch

I found the owner!!! It was the person with the wedding doves! He is coming to pick it up soon. Thank you guys so much for your help


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## almondman

Nice job Charis! Thanks to all posters. Another happy ending. 

Thank you MariposaRanch for taking care of the bird.


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## spirit wings

MariposaRanch said:


> I found the owner!!! It was the person with the wedding doves! He is coming to pick it up soon. Thank you guys so much for your help


That is great, hopefully the owner will start banding the ones he breeds with a seemless permanent band so he can be traced easier when a bird goes astray.


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## DeeDee's Mom

MariposaRanch said:


> How do I know if this bird is a white dove or a white pigeon? are they the same thing? I have no idea! Thanks!


No, they aren't the same thing. Doves are smaller, for openers, but there are a lot of differences. 

More specifically, all Pigeons are Doves, but not all Doves are Pigeons. A common pigeon is actually a Rock Dove, but it's a dove the same way a Zebra is a Horse.

One other difference is that Doves have no homing ability. If your dove escapes, it will come back and hang around, especially when it gets hungry. 

But if it flies far enough to get lost, then Lost It Will Be, no matter how hungry it gets!

"White Doves" released at weddings, are actually white homing pigeons. If they were actual Doves, they would just fly away and die within a couple of weeks, or days.

That would not only be expensive, but their white color would be like them pulling a banner behind them that reads "Easy Food!". 

No pet dove has what it needs to survive in the wild, even if it's a Whitewing that was raised by humans, and white birds of any kind are at a particular disadvantage.

White animals are easy for predators to spot, so they become particular targets. 

Also, white predators are easily spotted by potential prey. That's why there are so few albino animals. 

White predators starve to death and white prey gets located the most easily.


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