# How does one tame a terrified exotic dove?



## Dalamar (Jul 10, 2017)

I got a pair of blue ground doves 3 days ago. USPS delayed them to 3 days, and the male died ~15-20 minutes after unboxing. (male should be reshipped in a week...)

The remaining female is absolutely terrified. Just looking at her from 6+ feet away will make her pace the corner or sometimes fly, even for a while after I leave and obviously I've never seen her eat. Her poop is green, wet, and tiny, hardly any if any water or food appears to be missing. 

Should I just treat them as completely wild and wait for babies? Would birds this wild eventually tame down? Even adult mourning doves aren't this wild..even the most nervous gruntiest cranky pigeon I've ever seen wasn't this wild..

I'm guessing nobody has experience with these?


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

That is really sad about the male that died. I never ship birds, but have them flown by plane. It's just not safe through the mail. 
It's normal for her to be terrified. She has gone through a horrible experience, half starved, lost her mate, and in a strange place with you who she doesn't know at all. You also don't know how they were handled before you got them. Maybe none to gently. She should be terrified. You are going to have to go slow with her, and with the new male also. You can't just put them in a cage together, as they aren't mated. They should be put in 2 separate cages next to each other, and allowed them to get used to each other. Once they both start showing signs of wanting to be together, you can let them out together in a room that is safe for them to fly in. Watch and see how it goes. Maybe they will eventually go into the same cage together. Just give them time to get used to each other, a new home, and you. They are used to being with other doves remember. They will get used to you in time if you go slowly. You can try to win them over with treats and patience. But mostly patience.


----------



## Ladygrey (Dec 10, 2016)

Gosh, I wish the exotics trade would leave wild species alone.


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Ladygrey said:


> Gosh, I wish the exotics trade would leave wild species alone.


I agree.


----------



## Dalamar (Jul 10, 2017)

Unfortunately, the only way to domesticate a creature is to take it from the wild. It's a shame the only domesticated doves are ringnecks and diamonds, I'm not super fond of either for various reasons(ringnecks will wake the dead in adjacent apartments/rooms!), and don't want to deal with the constant hassle of licensing for native birds (mourning tame very easily, and imo are unquestionably best bird). It's also a shame that people prefer loud, smelly, destructive, intensely demanding animals that require strict regiments and training to be calm and quiet like parrot family or dogs over simpler easily cared for pets like rats or pigeons/doves, ultimately contributing to the cancer landlords who hate pets. (and seriously, all the dog owners on my block don't deserve their dogs, waking the dead at nearly all hours, properly trained dogs of any breed are calm and seldom bark)

The real problem lies with USPS being incompetent, underfunded, etc, and our hypocritical government not allowing people to breed native pigeons freely while you can shoot them in droves in every state. There is no excuse for them to fail to provide or guarantee timely delivery when all the private companies have a good track record. Airlines are good but require being able to travel to a hub city, which may not be an option for either sender and receiver.

For what it's worth she seems a bit more settled in, she started making a cheep when she perches or lands when she can't see me, food does look properly disturbed although I doubt she's eating as much as she should.

Can't really try to tame her down until landlord starts and finishes work in livingroom, then they need to be moved and adjust again. So she will likely have a month or two to get used to her new man and house by the tracks without seeing me too much. Letting birds this wild loose is an absolutely great recipe for fright death and crash damage, I can tell it will take weeks to months for them to adjust, their new environment is just way too different.


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Well keeping a bird that is wild and must be kept in a cage 24/7 is really not fair to the bird. Things that should be wild and free should remain that way. Just because people want them, they feel they have the right to keep them in a cage. And sending them through the mail is a nightmare for the bird. Why can humans not enjoy the beauty of something and enjoy it for what it is, without having to own and control it? If people didn't buy them, there would be no market for selling them.


----------

