# Can I have both a pigeon and a dog as pets



## Oars (Jun 6, 2006)

Hi forum,

I have a rescue king pigeon pet who likes to sit on her eggs all day in her nest on the counter in a far corner of my kitchen. She is not in a cage. She occasionally flies to the top of the refrigerator or on top of a high door to poop, then goes back on the kitchen counter for a drink and then back to her nest.

I was feeling sorry for the dogs in the shelter and want to rescue one of them from being killed. I would like to rescue a breed of dog that would not harm my bird. 

Does any of you have any experience with owning both an indoor pigeon and a dog? I would greatly appreciate knowing about your experience.

Thank you so much.


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## beatlemike (Nov 28, 2009)

It all depends on the dogs temperment. I had one pigeon that I hand raised from a baby and it and my dog were the best of friends. Wherever the dog went the pigeon followed him. I also had another dog at one time that if it had a chance a pigeon would be history in the blink of an eye.


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## Roger Siemens (Nov 12, 2011)

yes, train your dog. my collie i can leave inside my loft for a long time and see will not hurt my birds, that took a little work. my other mutt well she is not able to go it to the pen. the temperment is a big part of it, and can you trust the dog. i also have out side cats and no problems, from my cats, but i dont test them to close to the inside of the loft.


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## NZ Pigeon (Nov 12, 2011)

My pitbull and foxy both sunbath with the pigeons on the lawn, In 6 years I have never had any issues, The dogs walk into the loft hallway and the birds are fine with them but I discourage this as I don't really want the dogs thinking they own that space. Its the birds safe area. I watch and keep an eye on them when within access of each other but I can say I trust the dogs with them as much as one can. They are animals at the end of the day so one has to be vigilent..


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## Crazy Pete (Nov 13, 2008)

I would try to get as young a dog as you can, that teach an old dog new tricks thing.
Dave


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## Oars (Jun 6, 2006)

Thank you so much for your stories about your experiences. From the sound of it I have to be watching them all the time. One incident and the bird could be gone. 

I wonder if the size of the dog matters. A small dog that wouldn't be able to climb to the counter and one with a gentle nature would be my aim. I wonder what such a dog would be. The shelter's small dogs are mostly chihuahua or terrier mixes. 

Whatever type it is, I think if I get a dog it would have to be a very young dog.

Thank you kindly for your input.


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## Oars (Jun 6, 2006)

Beatlemike,

What kinds of dogs were your two dogs? Which was the breed that was nice to your bird?


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## Dima (Jan 15, 2011)

A dog it's a dog. They should always be supervised, regardless.
A sad story on PT was last year, with 2 friendly pets a dog and a pigeon. The dog didn't " kill" the pigeon but it chewed up his legs. The pigeon died after 48 hr.


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## conditionfreak (Jan 11, 2008)

Dogs will wrestle and bite each other. Not in anger, but in play, often. They also do that with their masters, or a cat. Whatever they play with, they use their mouth like a hand.

If your dog and pigeon play together. The pigeon will definitely be taking a big chance.

Not to even mention the whole "canines are meat eaters" thing.

My big question is. Do you really have a pigeon loose in the house?


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## NZ Pigeon (Nov 12, 2011)

It is a matter of opinion as to whether one needs to constantly supervise, I look away on occasion and trust nothing will happen, I am not disputing their is risk involved but there is risk in everything we do, I mean, If we all supervised or watched our children doing everything they do which could potentially result in an accident we would not have any time to ourselves. I agree getting the dog young is the best bet but you can teach a dog new tricks, IMO that saying applies to the owner, Generally you cannot teach an owner to change their behaviours which inturn means the dog won't learn new behaviours either, My dog is 7 and I have just taught her to shake her other paw, So she shakes as normal, If I say shake she goes the same paw if I saw other paw she swaps and so on, She gets it about 95% correct, she also learnt how to balance along a balance beam when she was six and I taught her not to jump on the new couch even though she used to be allowed on the old one that was in its place. She learnt her bed was now on the ground fast. Dogs are smart, Humans are sometimes not when it comes to training dogs.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

It really depends on the individual dog how he seems with pigeons ( not alone with them though) You must be a saint to have a pigeon in your house let alone in or near the kitchen hanging out and nesting.... I see you have patience .


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## Lefty07 (Dec 30, 2009)

If your pigeon is normally loose in your house, I think adopting a dog means _*minimally *_that either the pigeon gets caged or the dog gets crated, whenever you are not home or are not supervising them.

I've had both dogs and birds for years and I only rarely have them loose together in the same room. My dogs are mostly desensitized now - I can now have a free flying bird in the room with them, _with me montoring things _- but I would not trust them out of my sight with my birds. And to get to this point, it took months, if not a year or two. The first year was just getting the dogs used to birds in cages- and having the caged birds get used to them, without freaking out.

Luckily, I have a backyard and can leave my dogs outside for hours in summer when my birds are out. But in winter, I go so far as to put my dogs in "daycare" on Saturdays so my birds can have free flight time.

My dogs are rescues and I've had them 2 years now. There have been no bird accidents but I don't temp fate. Think carefully before you get a dog, if you want a loose free-flying pigeon.


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## beatlemike (Nov 28, 2009)

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/picture.php?albumid=1887&pictureid=19524


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## Roger Siemens (Nov 12, 2011)

dima i agree a dog is a dog, and should be watched , i do have a very good old collie and i trust her not to hurt the birds, how ever leaving her in the loft is just risky, it has happend and i ve bin lucky. i spent alot of time training but the risk is there all the time. 

the dog pictures are looking good lefty07


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## Roger Siemens (Nov 12, 2011)

beatlemike that says yes YOU can HAVE dogs and BIRDS together


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## Oars (Jun 6, 2006)

Thank you very much, everyone, for your kind input.

Beatlemike, that looks like a poodle mix you have; I assume this is the one that got along well with your pigeon. Roger, your collie got along with your pigeon too. According to Dogs 101 the border collie and the poodle are the two most intelligent types of dogs. I wonder if there is any coincidence that they got along with your birds.

I have to think very carefully about getting a dog. It depends on the dog's personality.


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## Oars (Jun 6, 2006)

Lefty, your dogs are beautiful. The one in the lower picture looks a little hyper but the photo does show a dog's potential to get excited sometimes. Some dogs get excited around other animals, and this is something I have to avoid, sadly, because I like hyper dogs like terriers.


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## Oars (Jun 6, 2006)

Beatlemike, to see your dog and your pigeon getting along so well makes me happy.


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## Oars (Jun 6, 2006)

To answer the folks who asked about my pigeon not being caged. No she in fact is not.
Mostly she just sits on the counter on her eggs in the nest. Every now and then I come over to pet her and she coos and bites softly at my fingers. She only poops from the top of the fridge and from the top of a door in my living room.

When she gets to her "friendly" stage of the monthly cycle before egg laying, she acts very much like a dog.


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## Oars (Jun 6, 2006)

I'm going to try to attach an image.


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## Oars (Jun 6, 2006)

Trying again.


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## Lefty07 (Dec 30, 2009)

I didn't mean to be a "wet blanket" about dogs and birds. It's not impossible - just somewhat risky and not to be done lightly. I just meant to warn you to be cautious about it - _AND_ I really think you should not trust a loose dog and a loose pigeon in the house together when you are not home.

Like I said, I even got my 2 Terriers to _tolerate_ my free-flying birds to a degree. But it took a good year before they all got used to each other. And you need to be there, supervising things - *correcting* your dog _not_ to go after the bird (and _try_ doing it with 2 dogs at once!). I guess the most important thing my dogs learned about my birds was that I don't react when they fly around. If I chased or even followed them, that might be seen as a predatory action. Instead I am very calm. But my birds avoid my dogs - they tend to fly back to their cages when the dogs are in the house. 

Also, consider that rescue dogs have unknown pasts - you have to get to know them and figure how they react to stuff, considering some were mistreated etc. My previous Jack Russell Terrier (Sparky, shown below) learned to be bird tolerant also - but she had trouble ignoring my white dove. I think the *white* bird flapping around was just too much stimulation. She always got agitated when the white dove flew around and seemed "too interested". But... she never hurt it either. It can be done I guess - just make sure you can really "read" both your dog and bird, so you can avoid problems before they happen.

Here is Sparky. Although she had trouble dealing with my white dove, she never hurt any of my birds. In fact, one evening I left the house forgetting to put my 2 Diamond Doves back in their cage. When I got home and turned on the Living Room light, Sparky and 2 Diamond Doves were sitting together on the floor! Maybe Sparky was protecting them? Sparky made it past her 17th birthday - I still miss her!


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

If you value your pigeon, then I wouldn't leave them alone and loose. A dog is an animal with instincts, and you can just never know for sure. Is the life of your bird worth taking the chance? One should always be confined when you aren't there to supervise.


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## NZ Pigeon (Nov 12, 2011)

Jay3, your opinion is valid however I think your question is a little black and white for the situation. As I said, we need to let our children out into the world, there are risks but that does not mean the parents do not value their childs life for exposing them to these risks, We can ofcourse minimise the dangers to our pigeons but to claim someone that leaves a dog with a bird does not value their pigeons life is a little radical. I trust my dog won't hurt them when they are all out on the lawn, If she does thats a risk I am willing to take but my feeling on the situation is that she will not attack them so I am willing to take the risk based on that, I am not Naive, I realise it could happen but I do not believe it will, Hence my willingness to take the risk. I don't wanna argue about it and I am not trying to change your opinion on supervising birds and dogs when together BUT I would like to to rethink your claim that if one leaves a pigeon they would not leave the bird and dog alone as I can tell you now I value my pigeons 100%, hell I do not spend hours a day cleaning for something I do not value but I am realistic and maybe a bit more intune with how nature works hence my willingness to leave a little bit to chance. in 6 years I have not had an issue, If it happens I will reanalyse the risk.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

NZ Pigeon said:


> Jay3, your opinion is valid however I think your question is a little black and white for the situation. As I said, we need to let our children out into the world, there are risks but that does not mean the parents do not value their childs life for exposing them to these risks, We can ofcourse minimise the dangers to our pigeons *but to claim someone that leaves a dog with a bird does not value their pigeons life is a little radical.*
> 
> That is not what I said. Do not change my words.
> 
> ...


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


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## conditionfreak (Jan 11, 2008)

Personally, I would never, ever, EVAH, leave a bird with a canine. Not even if I was in the room. They both are a lot quicker than you or I.

Why would you? It is too easy not to. What would be the purpose for doing so? What have you to gain from doing so? What have you to lose by doing so?

Think about it. It is a life you are gambling with. A friends life. A friend that relies on you for everything, including its safety.


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## Oars (Jun 6, 2006)

Truly something for me to think about. Thank you all for your thoughtful answers. Congratulations on those of you who manage to have both dogs and birds. I wish I could. Have to think of a way.

Thank you so much for sharing your experiences and thoughts.


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## conditionfreak (Jan 11, 2008)

I have six dogs and 120 pigeons, plus 3 African Grey parrots. You can indeed have both.

But the birds and the dogs are kept apart.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

I always assumed it would be common sense to not leave the dog or what ever predator type pet alone with a bird... 
THE END.


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## NZ Pigeon (Nov 12, 2011)

I guess I place more trust in my dog than most of you, 6 years and I think I know her well enough to know she will not attack the birds while on the lawn in the sun. I suppose I could lock my birds up 24/7 and never let them out on the lawn for free time, A bath and a sunbath, Or I could lock the dog up while there out and have the neighbours cats around, Now those I do not trust to not try snatch the birds. SO from my point of view, I am keeping my birds safer than they would be without the dog there, I could not live with myself if I had pigeons locked in cages their entire life as that is so far from their wild behaviours, The way I see it, If we can let them live wild with minimal risks, why not, I suppose we are lucky we do not have BOP to contend with.

Spirit wings, I see you stated THE END, Was that meaning THE END of your story or where you telling everyone else to end it.


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## conditionfreak (Jan 11, 2008)

I think we are losing sight of what this question was about. It was about having dogs and birds loose together IN THE HOUSE. Not in the yard.

That is a totally different subject. My dogs are outside when my birds are out also.

Sadly, I have lost three birds over the years, to my own dogs.

You assume the birds would take off from sun bathing when a dog approached them But some birds will not. They get used to the dogs being around.

Five of my dogs totally ignore my birds. But one German Shepherd likes eating anything and everything. Not her fault. It is my fault. I learned the lesson the hard way. So now, I do not let that particular dog around my birds. But the neighbors have cats, (of which my dogs have killed a couple), so a dog will always be out when my birds are out. I yell at my dogs if they get anywhere near my birds, and they seem to have learned.

But that is outside, where the birds can easily get away from a dog if they want to. In a house, it is different. A bird flies into a window and gets knowcked out, or drops into a cooking pan. Or attempts to eat out of the dogs food bowl while the dog is right there. Many things can happen to a bird loose in a house with a dog.

One thing for sure. A bird will not harm a dog. Unless we are talking eagles, or kung-fu pigeons.

Weird story about the first time my dogs killed a neighbors cat that had come onto my property after my birds. I felt totally upset about it, and went over to my neighbors house to let them know what had happened. I expected harsh treatment, but instead the man of the house said to me, "Oh, that's okay. It ain't my cat anyway. It belongs to my kid. I'm glad it's gone".

The following week they had another cat, they got from the humane shelter in town. That one died also, at the hands of a car. Then they got another, which my dogs killed.

Now they have two adult cats, that are too smart to come into my yard. The first three cats they had, were only half grown cats.

Some people....


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## beatlemike (Nov 28, 2009)

Im not advocating putting dogs and birds together. I do however know my dog like the back of my hand. I have also lost pigeons from other pigeons. We all know how agggressive some cock birds are. Is that to say we have no common sense for not keeping each bird separated from each other? Yet I know you make some very good points but sometimes common sense also allows us to do with a certain dog that we would never do with most dogs.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

NZ Pigeon said:


> I guess I place more trust in my dog than most of you, 6 years and I think I know her well enough to know she will not attack the birds while on the lawn in the sun. I suppose I could lock my birds up 24/7 and never let them out on the lawn for free time, A bath and a sunbath, Or I could lock the dog up while there out and have the neighbours cats around, Now those I do not trust to not try snatch the birds. SO from my point of view, I am keeping my birds safer than they would be without the dog there, I could not live with myself if I had pigeons locked in cages their entire life as that is so far from their wild behaviours, The way I see it, If we can let them live wild with minimal risks, why not, I suppose we are lucky we do not have BOP to contend with.
> 
> Spirit wings, I see you stated THE END, Was that meaning THE END of your story or where you telling everyone else to end it.


Yes It was in jest, as there is not much more detail to attach to my "story".. 

I was also thinking of a house bird and a dog left together, not loft pigeons, those can trap in and get away from a dog....but yea, a cat could climb in there, mine does when she has a chance, so she gets put in the house, I have not many strays so far, so that's good. In your situation I would feel comfortable doing how you do, but I don't leave my dogs out when I'm not home anyway....I know them and they would find trouble ...


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## Woodnative (Jul 4, 2010)

I think they can be put together. Years ago I had a great dog and a nice group of pigeons. The dog, which was very obedient in all respects, knew not to harm/chase/snap at the pigeons. I could fully trust her. She was a shep/collie type mix. I could walk her anywhere offleash to adn she would stay by my side. If a car was coming down the road and we were walking I would tell her to get up on the curb and she would. I never had a small, terrier type or otherwise a dog with a strong prey drive but I think a lot of dogs would be fine with the proper training, once they were past the rambunctious puppy learning period.


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## NZ Pigeon (Nov 12, 2011)

Conditionfreak - I was just giving my experience with dogs and pigeons, I was clear it was in an outside situation but surely it has some relevance to the conversation, I agree however 100% that a bird and dog inside is a lot different. I just taught my pitbull to ignore the pigeons and if one came near here I would tell her to move, Similar to how we taught her to respect the old fox terrier, by trying to instill that pack mentality with her being at the bottom ( the pitbull that is ).

Spirit, I would not go out and leave them alone together, I am always near by but I do not watch like a hawk.

Chris - It is good to hear another story of a dog that can be trusted, I will not say until the day my dog dies that I 100% trust/trusted her with the birds as anything could happen over the coming years but I am as trustful as I think one can be with her, The foxy was lukes childhood dog and has always been around pigeons and chickens so she is great, I think the pitbull learnt from her to an extent. She just completely ignores the birds, as a puppy she was interested but she got told off for simply looking at them until we trusted her to investigate a little bit without getting close, Now she walks away as a habit if one comes near here, I also think the feisty pet magpie we had taught her to stay away. He used to chase her tail/bum area which was a bit scary hence the reason he was passed to a new home, I worried he would take away her kind nature towards birds and one day take it out on a not so tough pigeon.


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## Oars (Jun 6, 2006)

NZ Pigeon, I see what you are talking about. On youtube, there are multiple examples of people keeping their pigeons outside any cages. Among the best examples are individuals going by the handles of PigeonsAsPets, leah383, and John Farque. My pigeon has lived free in my home for the past 3 years without any problems. As for dogs, it looks like it very much depends on the dog. Thank you so much for sharing your experience. Peace and blessings


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