# Aggressive pigeon behavior



## JennyM (Sep 21, 2015)

Hi everyone,

As I described on my other thread, my little Lucy has become aggressive. At the beginning she was aggressive ONLY if I got near the bed she sleeps on, but now it has become worse. She now follows me around my apartment trying to pick a fight! 

I live with 2 other people and she only does it with me, they have told me that when I am out she acts normal, but the minute I walk in the door she starts cooing and waiting for me to get near her, when I do, she grabs my hand with her beak as trying to rip my skin off and wing slapping me, it's like she's wrestling with my hand. If I move, let's say to the kitchen, she follows me and waits again for me to get close and if I go to the bathroom, she waits for me outside the door LOL it's like she wants to fight with me all the time! Every morning, as soon as there is some light coming through the windows, she flies to a couch that's next to my bed and she just stays there (sometimes she lays down) waiting for me to wake up so she can fight me with me again!!

At the beginning I thought it was cute and funny, but it has started to worry me as I have no idea what she's trying to say. Is she just being territorial? but why only with me? does she consider me a threat? does she hate me because I used put medication on her wound? Is it maybe that she has become stressed from being kept indoors and without other pigeon friends? should I just set her free? is she maybe looking for a husband? or wife is she is a male? 

Sorry for all the questions but I am confused. I can take all the pecking and wing slapping, but I don't want her to get sick from being angry all day. If any of you have an idea what's going on, or how can I calm her down please let me know. Thanks in advance!

And by the way, let me tell you guys that I am surprised of how smart pigeons are! she not only recognizes me but also my voice! they are amazing little animals.


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Lucy wants you to be her mate I think.


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## wiggles and puddles (Sep 3, 2015)

Agree with cwebster. She thinks, or wants you to be, her mate. She is showing you dominance as if to say, you are mine. She does not act that way to the others because she does not care if they are with someone else or not. It should lighten up once she feels secure in her new position. Ha, your a pigeon mate! That's what I think is going on.


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## JennyM (Sep 21, 2015)

her mate? that's kind of funny and sad because I cannot be her mate  What can I do to make her cool down a little bit? I don't want her to be like this because when I'm home, she doesn't eat because she only wants to follow me and fight! I've tried holding her to calm her down but it only makes her more upset. 

I believe this all started because last week I put a mirror for her, I thought "to keep her company" but she started cooing at her image and moving in circles, I then removed it and then she became aggressive. 

Should I just release her back outdoors? I was waiting to release her after winter but I think I should do it sooner. She clearly needs other pigeons around her. It's never too cold here in L.A. today it's 78 degrees, but it gets a little cold and windy at night.


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Would just be patient and give her a chance to calm down. Our pigeons go through pj phases where they wing slap but it generally just passes.


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## JennyM (Sep 21, 2015)

Thanks cwebster, she has been like this for about a week, I will wait a little more. I'm just worried because someone told me that pigeons release some hormones when stressed that can kill them. How long do you think this will last?


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## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

Unfortunately this will probably last forever. I've been abused for 2 1/2 years for now by my 2 handraised males, but lives with it.

Your bird is totally human imprinted, setting him free will mean certain death. Either from starvation or getting caught by a predator. Lucy must be a male, and is either frustrated cause he wants to mate with you and have you produce eggs or you are the intruder in the house.

What are you're living conditions? Are you able to build him an aviary outside where you can visit him regularly (like I do with mine)? If you live in a apartment best will be to get a cage for him to spend time in and that will be his space. Seems like he's got the whole house where he wants to dominate you. 

You said he became aggressive after you removed the mirror, so maybe you can put that back in his cage and see how things go. Has he tried mating with your hand? Makes me sad when they do that, but at least they get rid of their frustration and acts better afterwards. 

But then there will be better days. Mine sit on my head and groom my eyebrows when they're in a good mood. And then I immediately forgive them for all the abuse.


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## JennyM (Sep 21, 2015)

Thanks Marina B, unfortunately I cannot build her an aviary outside because I live in a small apartment, I don't have a balcony either and I don't have any access to a backyard. I could definitely get her a cage, but I was hoping to release her back outdoors, but you say that she is human imprinted so I don't know if that will be possible now. She has been with me for about 2 months but as you can see she is not tame, she's been scared most of the time (flying away from me) and she just started being aggressive. She also goes to the kitchen (and other rooms) and looks for food on the floor, so it's not like she depends on me for food. But I don't know, you definitely know more than me as I have never cared for birds before. 

She/he has not tried to mate with my hand, I have left it still to see if there's another reaction, and the only thing she does is stop pecking it, walks away while cooing and them comes back to peck a little more. I will try to put the mirror again tomorrow and see what happens, I just hope it doesn't stress her even more. Thanks again!


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

JennyM, Phoebe acted like that off and on for weeks and it never hurt her. Would try giving her the ,mirror back. She won't be hurt by any stress hormones. Pigeons just are feisty sometimes. Agree that she is imprinted on you and it would be certain death for her if you release her. Would get her a nice indoor cage and let her out a few hours per day. She can't hurt you with her pecking, unlike a macaw or bird with a serious beak. Her mood will shift soon. Pigeons are moody creatures sometimes. Just be careful never to pet her back as that encourages the bird to think you want to mate. We had Phoebe an adult feral for eight years. We had to discourage breeding and she could not have a mate on the advice if the avian specialist, because Phoebe had internal egg laying problems early on. She went through phases where she would bite my significant other. He would grab her beak gently and it became play. We hung toys with bells on the printer by our desktop computer and she would come out for hours on our shoulders and just play and we would sing to her. We just redirected her aggression by calling her attention to her toys and she would comically attack the toys. Just redirect her aggression so it is play. She also liked to grab old feathers we would hold out to her, or grab and bite straw toys. She then would paste herself in breeding position with her wings spread out like climb on me, which we would not encourage, that is, we would not touch her when she did that. Are you sure you have a female and not a male? She also would run around the room as she had old injuries to her wings. We would chase her but would not touch her because touching her was saying we wanted to mate as apparently males chase the females. Pigeons have some strange but comical antics. Their behavior changes though if you are consistent and redirect them. You are her flock. She obviously loves you a lot.


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## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

Another option will be to find someone with a aviary to adopt him. But what's going to happen if the pigeon does not adapt to other pigeons? 

Have you read the thread about the tame pigeon that was found and started biting the new owner's face. And he think that's why the bird was just released, cause of the aggressiveness. So if you release the bird and he ends up in the wrong person's hands, just imagine what will happen.


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Please get her a cage and see if you can redirect her aggression. Phoebe was sometimes aggressive but was the love of our lives and the aggression disappeared after a while. You may have a male rather than a female. Still people here have male pet pigeons and they say they are the best because youndontbhave to worry about eggs or reproduction issues.


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## Altair (Nov 25, 2015)

Yes it's very risky to let a pigeon go if he's not afraid of humans. They keeps sticking to people and as you know people usually don't like pigeons and he might end up killed by some lowlife.
Mine was probably abandoned by the person who raised him beause he bites people's ears and face in a way that it really hurts, and there is no way to keep him away because he'll fly to their face all the time.
However with some patience the problem is very manageable, you just need to figure out what triggers, or what reinforces the bad behaviour.
For example, when he has his biting moments, I wear a piece of fabric around my head, or a sky mask, so he can't bite me.
Then, I noticed that if I talk loudly, that might trigger his aggressive behaviour or make it worse, so I can't scold him or say "NO!" because it will just make things worse.
Keeping him in his cage, and letting him out only for a few hours daily makes him happier when he's out so it's easier for him to find someting other than my ears to entertain himself, like taking a bath or grooming.
Hand feeding is also something that helps keeping the bird busy.
Doing houseworks and moving around with the bird on the shoulder also keeps him entertained because he tends to observe what I'm doing so he doesn't think about biting.

Now, I don't know if your pigeon is imprinted on humans or not but if he is, and you care about him, don't release him because the first thing he'll do is to fly to another human and if this human isn't an animal lover, he might harm the pigeon.
.


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## LeeLu (Sep 23, 2012)

JennyM said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> As I described on my other thread, my little Lucy has become aggressive. At the beginning she was aggressive ONLY if I got near the bed she sleeps on, but now it has become worse. She now follows me around my apartment trying to pick a fight!
> 
> ...


ANSWER: i have one of those aggressive hens....she likes to fight with me when i give her water/feed....it's like saying i want your attention...so i play with her, as she fights me...then i pick her up and stroke her neck with my finger...she LOVES it....that is what she is asking for....TO BE HELD---
so, if your lucy is following you....give her some TLC! that is what she wants from you!

try holding her more, and talking softly to her. i have another hen, Sarah....she is sooooo sweet...she has been setting on wooden eggs for almost 1-1/2 years...so i decided to give my PMV hen a mate and let her have her first egg, which i believe will be a male. when sarah gets up and lets dad take over, she always comes find me....why? because i ALWAYS recognize that she has just gotten up for the day...i speak to her and let her know that...she loves the attention... she is my "rat pack" she finds things she likes and puts them in her nest....yesterday, i found a new toy...she has found one of my olive plastic holders that i save ...it's a small cup...i found 2 of them in her nest....hahahahahahah (i guess she is gonna put food in them for late night snack!  She is truly a treat, and is the sister of the roudy hen who likes to fight to get my TLC!


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## LeeLu (Sep 23, 2012)

i would NOT release your dove back outside....she/he would probably not survive...

if you don't want the dove, find a home for her, or if you cant...go to PETCO and put up an advertisement you have a dove for sale. 

If you truly don't want this dove please DON'T release this dove into the streets, the ferral pigeions will kill her...if she is white, she is a setting duck for crows and hawks to have her for breakfast.


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## LeeLu (Sep 23, 2012)

cwebster said:


> Lucy wants you to be her mate I think.


It's just the only way they know how to get attention...i have a male dove who is
super smart...he likes my white tennis shoes and thinks he can mate with them...
i simply pick him up and hold him and stroke his neck feathers which he LOVES.

the other male doves stopped him from doing that...they wouldn't let him get on
my tennis shoes...now he just likes to greet me by flying and standing on my shoulder...i think it's a thing he does to show the other doves he is the KING of the flock!


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## JennyM (Sep 21, 2015)

Thank you all for your replies and help, I really appreciate it!  I'm also starting to think that Lucy might be a male, but I don't know for sure.

I wouldn't mind keeping her, but that would have to be my last choice as I would prefer to set her back free. And not because I don't want to keep her or because I don't love her, because I do! she is so cute and fluffy, I'd be crazy if I didn't want her! The thing is, I have never had a pet bird before because I feel that birds should be free, not in cages or indoors. Every time I see a caged bird I can't help to feel sad because it feels that they've been taken their wings away! In my opinion, they are meant to fly freely and be happy with other birds. But like I said, if there is no other choice I will keep Lucy and will try to give her the best life possible (hopefully like Phoebe's  ).

As for the biting, I actually don't mind it at all, it's not like I want to get rid of her because of that. I used to have a rabbit (Snowball) and he was a biter too, and believe me, rabbits bite hard! he would make my skin bleed really bad, but we loved him so we learned to live with him like that. I could definitely learn to live with Lucy too! 

The problem with Lucy is that she seems upset or unhappy. And she doesn't eat as much because all she wants to do is follow me wherever I go. She doesn't follow me to attack me (like Altair's bird), she just follows me to get my attention, she then flies to her bed and starts cooing (like calling me there), if I follow her and touch her then she will bite, otherwise she will just stay on the bed cooing really-really loud, which is what worries me, because she will coo for long periods of time and looks upset! when this happens (the long and loud cooing) I usually give in and touch her so she can bite me, in hopes that she will calm down but it doesn't! the moment I remove my hand from her and the bed, she will start cooing once again! I feel like she will get sick from this and I don't want that as she already suffered so much with the bad injury she had.

I also want to add that she doesn't act tame, if she's on the floor and I run towards her, she will run and fly to get away from me, she also doesn't let me pet her, the moment she sees my hands she will bite and she doesn't like to be held either. She only acts feisty when she is on her bed and only towards me. Oh, and whenever I follow her to the bed, she spreads her tail feathers like a fan.

Sorry for my long post, I just want to explain as much as possible what's going on in hopes that you guys can help me understand "pigeon talk"!


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

I don't believe that you cannot release this bird, as it was an adult when you caught it. I think he's a male as well, as they usually will react like that to a mirror, and the females normally don't. I think if released back to his flock he would be fine. 
They get imprinted when raised by humans from squeaker stage, and don't even know they're pigeons, but this one was already grown and with a flock, and knows he is a pigeon. He had already learned the skills he needs to survive in the wild as that is where he was living. I would give him the opportunity to leave and let him make the choice.


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Would be careful releasing him. He probably is imprinted on you. Releasing him would be a death sentence I fear.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Imprinting happens with babies who are hand raised. This bird was feral, got hurt, and now has been healed. Why would he not go on to join his flock now that he can?

That is what people do who take in rescues. If an adult bird is healed, then he would be released. 
He was free before and deserves a free life now.
He may be more used to people now, but so are the pigeons in the park that people feed. Sometimes I think our instinct to protect and mother everything clouds our judgement. If he is now fine than he should be okay with the flock. He would be happier with other pigeons and a mate.


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Imprinting also happens when a bird spends time with people. Rehabbers try to,avoid contact with the animals they are going to,release so they don't get dependent and lose their fear of people. I worry that this pigeon no longer fears people and has imprinted on people.


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## JennyM (Sep 21, 2015)

Thank you for your comment, Jay3. I also don't think he has been imprinted and he is also not tame. He doesn't likes to be petted or held and he also does not eat from my hand. 

I haven't had much contact with him either, yes, he sees me every single day because we live in an apartment and he is range free. But for almost a month he lived caged and I only handled him to clean his injury, he then became range free and it was impossible to hold him as he would always fly away, it was only until last week that he became aggressive that I was actually able to touch him. 

I would like to set him free after winter since we are expecting lots of cold weather and rain due to El Nino storm, plus he's still limping a little bit. The reason I wanted to set him free now is because of his behavior, and again it's not that I want to get rid of him because of that, it's that I think that maybe it would make him feel better.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

He probably isn't as tame as some of the pigeons that are fed daily in some parks. I understand that people may worry about a pigeon who has gotten used to people, and I do not mean to just dismiss cwebsters concern about that, or others who feel that way. But it isn't like when you bring in a baby and raise him, and he bonds strongly to humans. This is different in that this bird was not a baby. He had foraging skills, and was used to living in a flock, and was part of one. I don't feel that being used to people would in any way put him in danger. He would go back to living with his flock as he was before. A baby pigeon raised with people, often doesn't even know that he _is_ a pigeon. And they don't know how to survive in the wild. They never had parents or a flock to learn from. Then on top of that, bonding with people. They would probably fly right to people for help, and to be fed, as that is all they know. Releasing those human raised babies, really doesn't give them much of a chance at survival. Not so with this bird. He had a life, and was injured. Jenny was kind enough to take him home and nurse him back to health. She actually gave him a second chance at having a life. Without her he would surely have died. She did a wonderful job for him. But her doing all that was to save him and give him back his life. The life he is used to. Is it fair to now take that life away and keep a lone bird who wants to be with the flock he knew and have a mate and raise babies? That's the life he knows and wants. Ferals taken in as adults often do not adjust well and are not really happy. Different when you keep a bird that knows nothing else. Keeping something safe isn't everything. We can also smoother something by doing that. 
Being used to people isn't the biggest reason not to give a pigeon his life back. Living free for a few years is better than living for 10 years in a way that you are not happy. 
Not always longevity, but quality of life that matters. I know people who feel he should remain in captivity really mean well, but if you could ask the bird, what would he want?


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## Whytpigeon (Sep 14, 2015)

*Y*



JennyM said:


> Thank you for your comment, Jay3. I also don't think he has been imprinted and he is also not tame. He doesn't likes to be petted or held and he also does not eat from my hand.
> 
> I haven't had much contact with him either, yes, he sees me every single day because we live in an apartment and he is range free. But for almost a month he lived caged and I only handled him to clean his injury, he then became range free and it was impossible to hold him as he would always fly away, it was only until last week that he became aggressive that I was actually able to touch him.
> 
> I would like to set him free after winter since we are expecting lots of cold weather and rain due to El Nino storm, plus he's still limping a little bit. The reason I wanted to set him free now is because of his behavior, and again it's not that I want to get rid of him because of that, it's that I think that maybe it would make him feel better.


Pigeons can adapt pretty quick to many situations, that is why they are so successful in the feral living. IMO, I think he should fulfill his natural pigeon desires dictated by genetics by being with a flock and have a pigeon as his mate, that can be in a feral flock, which you may find near where you found him OR in a loft situation where the pigeons have room and freedom to fly and nest and have a mate. So either will work for him.


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## LeeLu (Sep 23, 2012)

Jay3 said:


> I don't believe that you cannot release this bird, as it was an adult when you caught it. I think he's a male as well, as they usually will react like that to a mirror, and the females normally don't. I think if released back to his flock he would be fine.
> They get imprinted when raised by humans from squeaker stage, and don't even know they're pigeons, but this one was already grown and with a flock, and knows he is a pigeon. He had already learned the skills he needs to survive in the wild as that is where he was living. I would give him the opportunity to leave and let him make the choice.


i agree with you jay; she should open a window and give the pigeon the choice...yes he will probably fly out and take a spin around for awhile...but i'd leave the window open, if he comes back...he wants to stay. I agree, he is a male, probably a young male since he obviously has never had a mate, thinks she is his mate....that's typical of males who are very young and have no mate.

picking up pigeons...that's pretty hard to do in daylight....but if you really want to get close to him....pick him up at night with the lights out...and snuggle with him...he won't fight you then, he needs the stroking, gentle touching, especially around the neck ear area....they love it; it's soothing; he will probably fall asleep as you hold him if you do this..Enjoy!


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## Altair (Nov 25, 2015)

My male ignores the mirror, that's because he was hand raised by someone and he doesn't even know he's a pigeon.
If your pigeon reacts to the mirror, that probably means he knows which species he belongs to and he probably can be released. He'll live a shorter life like all feral pigeons but if you believe he's unhappy indoor, it's probably better for him to be free.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Altair said:


> My male ignores the mirror, that's because he was hand raised by someone and he doesn't even know he's a pigeon.
> If your pigeon reacts to the mirror, that probably means he knows which species he belongs to and he probably can be released. He'll live a shorter life like all feral pigeons but if you believe he's unhappy indoor, it's probably better for him to be free.


This bird was an adult when caught a couple of months ago with an injury. So he definitely knows he is a pigeon. He probably had a mate out there.


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## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

So now you have a decision to make. Jay3's comment makes sense. If he was an adult, he might be releasable.

Start by putting out his seeds and water by the window you're planning on releasing him from (if you decide to do that). And then one day when the time is right, just leave that window open and let him go by himself. Hopefully he will return for feeding.

Good luck with you're decision.


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## flintst0ne (Oct 18, 2015)

Jay3 said:


> This bird was feral, got hurt, and now has been healed. Why would he not go on to join his flock now that he can?
> 
> That is what people do who take in rescues. If an adult bird is healed, then he would be released.
> He was free before and deserves a free life now.
> He may be more used to people now, but so are the pigeons in the park that people feed. Sometimes I think our instinct to protect and mother everything clouds our judgement. If he is now fine than he should be okay with the flock. He would be happier with other pigeons and a mate.


This raises an interesting moral dilemma.

What would happen if the bird never properly heals?

Where do you draw the line between a bird being healed enough to be freed or not?

Would he find his flock??

I am not a pigeon expert; I have seen online how males like to dominate the females and I wonder if the OP pigeon is trying to treat her like a mate.

Also do we consider racing pigeons to be morally the same as feral pigeons?

And what if the rescuer gets on well with the pigeon and wants a companion pigeon? I think I know what you will say to that.

This is a very interesting thread.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

flintst0ne said:


> This raises an interesting moral dilemma.
> 
> What would happen if the bird never properly heals?
> 
> ...


...................................................................................................


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Agree with the questions raised by Flintst0ne. Just because a bird used to be feral doesn't mean it has healed enough to be released. They don't magically just rejoin their flock. Phoebe was a former feral who would have died if released. She bonded with us and lived out her life happily. Freedom is nice but not if the bird has bonded with people, needs medical care on a regular basis, or can't defend itself from predators and feed itself. Maybe a compromise like life in a large aviary with other pigeons would work for this bird.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

I didn't say it had healed enough to be released. I can't know that as I'm not there. What I did say was that once healed, he can be released. And yes, they do rejoin their flock. They know where they are. If he needed medical care on a regular basis, then of course he can't be released. But as far as bonding with people, which it doesn't sound as though he has, that isn't a reason to not release him. He was with pigeons first, and will do fine with them. Don't know why you feel that he can't defend himself from predators, or can't feed himself. That makes no sense, as he was feeding himself before captured. No pigeons can defend themselves every time from predators. That is unfortunately part of life.


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## flintst0ne (Oct 18, 2015)

> Also do we consider racing pigeons to be morally the same as feral pigeons?
> 
> What are you asking here?


What does it take for a racing pigeon to be back to 100% or put it another way how would breeders assess or view one that has been injured?


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

flintst0ne said:


> What does it take for a racing pigeon to be back to 100% or put it another way how would breeders assess or view one that has been injured?


Many birds get injured. If the bird is eating and drinking well, and is flying well and acting like he is okay, then that is really all you can go by. Keep him a while is get weight back on and watch him. If he seems fine then he is probably fine.
Depends on what the injury was. This was a wound. The wound is healed. Wasn't a broken wing. 

You seem to forget that he was feral and part of a flock. He had a wound. It healed. Why do you now want to take away the life that he knows and wants and keep him in captivity? Some of you loose sight of that and want to be able to mother him forever, whether that is in the best interest of the bird or not. Let him go where you found him. He would have no problem finding his flock. He is a feral pigeon, not a human baby. Give him some credit.


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## Albayrak (Dec 13, 2015)

guys how do i start a new thread? please help i need to make it really quick


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## flintst0ne (Oct 18, 2015)

Albayrak said:


> guys how do i start a new thread? please help i need to make it really quick


Click on general discussions just above here (and before "Aggressive pigeon behaviour") then when the page has moved click on "New Thread".


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Albayrak said:


> guys how do i start a new thread? please help i need to make it really quick


I'll PM you on it.


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