# How do I clean fantail pigeons?



## i_like_birdz

Their fan are really dirty and have poop on them and they don't look as nice. How do I make their fan clean and white again?


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## MaryOfExeter

Try adding a few drops of dish soap and a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar into their bath water and dip them in it. The soap will help clean them better, as well as let it soak into their feathers more (we add a little soap when dipping them for parasites so the oil doesn't repel the medicine). The vinegar will help with bugs that may be on them. A lot of people use Borax instead.

The reason I say dip them in the water rather than leaving it out for them to bathe in, is so they don't go drinking the soapy water. Although it may not hurt them, it has a tendacy to give those who drink much of it, diarrhea.


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## re lee

You can take the bird to your kitchen sink use reg dish washing liquid Give it a warm bath scrub lightly to remove stains. sponge it dry Then put the bird in a warm area. box with pine shavings or such to let it get full dry. Poeople when showing there fantails will sometimes wash them so they are much cleaner and brighter. Using the soap and letting it bath its self it will not gat as clean. But after several batchs it may. easy to bathe your self


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## spirit wings

why would they have poop on the tails ? the tails stick straight up!.... just wondering...


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## Guest

spirit wings said:


> why would they have poop on the tails ? the tails stick straight up!.... just wondering...


its very easy for them to get poop on their tails with a tail that big .. I have birds without a tail that big that get pooped on lol


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## spirit wings

LokotaLoft said:


> its very easy for them to get poop on their tails with a tail that big .. I have birds without a tail that big that get pooped on lol


very easy? I have four and they never have poopie tails.. just don't get it... perhaps it is the perch placement? I dunno.....


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## Guest

spirit wings said:


> very easy? I have four and they never have poopie tails.. just don't get it... perhaps it is the perch placement? I dunno.....


perch placement indeed  alot of my birds like to nest on the floor and right under perches and this is gonna happen when they choose to do that of all places to keep their nest :/


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## spirit wings

LokotaLoft said:


> perch placement indeed  alot of my birds like to nest on the floor and right under perches and this is gonna happen when they choose to do that of all places to keep their nest :/


so all of your fans have poopie tails? I see it could happen occasionally, but she said fans with an s... why would all of them have poopie tails, and really dirty too, so that is why I asked...


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## Guest

spirit wings said:


> so all of you fans have poopie tails? I see it could happen occasionally, but she said fans with an s... why would all of them have poopie tails, and really dirty too, so that is why I asked...


why not just help get them clean ,sh!t happens


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## spirit wings

LokotaLoft said:


> why not just help get them clean ,sh!t happens


for a reason... perhaps we could help i_like_birdz house her fans better so they are not dirty and poopie like... she already got the answer for cleaning them... hope she can keep them somewhat clean after that?.. That is why I asked... and really it was her I was posting too, so whats your problemo?


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## Guest

spirit wings said:


> for a reason... perhaps we could help i_like_birdz house her fans better so they are not dirty and poopie like... she already got the answer for cleaning them... hope she can keep them somewhat clean after that?.. That is why I asked... and really it was her I was posting too, so whats your problemo?


i knew I would get a rise outah your fries on that one lol I said it cuz if it happens once its going to happen again, why sweat the small stuff


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## spirit wings

LokotaLoft said:


> i knew I would get a rise outah your fries on that one lol I said it cuz if it happens once its going to happen again, why sweat the small stuff


because at my house..fantails will not have poopie tails.. I could not stand for it.. lol.. clean birds are a mark of good husbantry IMO.


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## Guest

spirit wings said:


> because at my house..fantails will not have poopie tails.. I could not stand for it.. lol.. clean birds are a mark of good husbantry IMO.


I have 5 fantails and only have v perches and box perches and it still happens so all there is left to do is clean them up when it happens


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## spirit wings

LokotaLoft said:


> I have 5 fantails and only have v perches and box perches and it still happens so all there is left to do is clean them up when it happens


hummm now you have me wondering why mine are clean tails and all...


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## Guest

spirit wings said:


> hummm now you have me wondering why mine are clean tails and all...


maybe because no birds perch over them 

this guy gets pooped on alot because he likes to hang his tail over the edge of his nestbox and hes got 3 boxes over him that like to poop over the edge and not into the box itself .. I tried to tell him it wasnt a good idea but does he listen ... nooooooooooo!


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## spirit wings

LokotaLoft said:


> maybe because no birds perch over them
> 
> this guy gets pooped on alot because he likes to hang his tail over the edge of his nestbox and hes got 3 boxes over him that like to poop over the edge and not into the box itself .. I tried to tell him it wasnt a good idea but does he listen ... nooooooooooo!


over and under an inbetwixed.....maybe because I give them bath water alot...hummmm, or don't have too many birds in a small space?


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## Guest

spirit wings said:


> over and under an inbetwixed.....maybe because I give them bath water alot...hummmm, or don't have too many birds in a small space?


mine get baths twice weekly but it doesnt stop them from getting pooped on, they are the only ones that do get pooped on thou


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## spirit wings

LokotaLoft said:


> mine get baths twice weekly but it doesnt stop them from getting pooped on, they are the only ones that do get pooped on thou


ok, the tail does stick out pretty far or alot of tail target to catch all that perch pooping .. I think Im getting it now...still do not know why mine stay clean..


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## Guest

cuz you are lucky lol funny thing is I ment to post a picture two post back but forgot lol here it is








he is the one that gets pooped on alot


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## spirit wings

well he does not show it and he is not dirty either....looks like a clean happy bird to me.. pic must of been on one of his good days when life does not sh!t on you..lol...


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## MaryOfExeter

My males tend to get dirty tips on their tails when they drive their hens around the floor. I have indian fantails though, so their fans aren't held up as tight as normal fans, so I think the birds perching above them do drop presents on their feathers sometimes too  But mine are generally pretty clean.


And Lokota, that's one pretty bird


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## i_like_birdz

Lol, if you guys were wondering why their fans were dirty was because I just received them through shipping today. So they all were cramped and had poop and junk all over them. Thanks for helping me everyone! Will clean them with dish soap tomorrow!


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## spirit wings

i_like_birdz said:


> Lol, if you guys were wondering why their fans were dirty was because I just received them through shipping today. So they all were cramped and had poop and junk all over them. Thanks for helping me everyone! Will clean them with dish soap tomorrow!


well there ya go! I knew something did not seem right... a bit of perch poop once in awhile is pretty normal... mine just must be on the top perches...lol... good luck with your fans... they are nice birds.


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## Guest

spirit wings said:


> well he does not show it and he is not dirty either....looks like a clean happy bird to me.. pic must of been on one of his good days when life does not sh!t on you..lol...


well if you look on the left side you will see a little poopage on the underside of his tail there lol


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## Guest

MaryOfExeter said:


> My males tend to get dirty tips on their tails when they drive their hens around the floor. I have indian fantails though, so their fans aren't held up as tight as normal fans, so I think the birds perching above them do drop presents on their feathers sometimes too  But mine are generally pretty clean.
> 
> 
> And Lokota, that's one pretty bird


lol thats my bucket bird , everytime I go into feed my birds he jumps right in the bucket to get a head start on all the other birds lol hes funny and has alot of good qualities


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## Guest

spirit wings said:


> well there ya go! I knew something did not seem right... a bit of perch poop once in awhile is pretty normal... mine just must be on the top perches...lol... good luck with your fans... they are nice birds.


the american fans like the top perches but the indian fans like the bottom perches and thats never pretty lol


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## spirit wings

LokotaLoft said:


> well if you look on the left side you will see a little poopage on the underside of his tail there lol


ahhh I might see a spot where there is or could be poopage...hard to tell, Im sure he would be alot poopier if he was in a box for three days...lol...


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## Guest

here is the other guys dad , his tail seems to never get pooped on thou which is nice if you ask me lol


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## spirit wings

oooooooh purdy....!


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## Guest

spirit wings said:


> ahhh I might see a spot where there is or could be poopage...hard to tell, Im sure he would be alot poopier if he was in a box for three days...lol...


yes boxes and poopage dont mix , now here is my pair of americans that I got from texas 4 years ago , they layed one pair of eggs and never layed agian .. they have a top nest box and have less poopage problems lol


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## spirit wings

LokotaLoft said:


> yes boxes and poopage dont mix , now here is my pair of americans that I got from texas 4 years ago , they layed one pair of eggs and never layed agian .. they have a top nest box and have less poopage problems lol


see, that is what I have and they are always clean also. too bad about the eggs they are nice looking birds. Ive got the black saddle fans.


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## Guest

spirit wings said:


> see, that is what I have and they are always clean also. too bad about the eggs they are nice looking birds. Ive got the black saddle fans.


yeah I keep hoping they will lay another egg but I dont even know how old they really are lol as they have no bands on them and I didnt ask at the time .. I thought they laid an egg once and let them hatch it but it turned out to be a tippler who just layed an egg in their nest lol

all my fans are so tame and I would say to anyone that wants to start out with pigeons that fans are a great starter breed to have


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## sreeshs

MaryOfExeter said:


> Try adding a few drops of dish soap and a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar into their bath water and dip them in it. The soap will help clean them better, as well as let it soak into their feathers more (we add a little soap when dipping them for parasites so the oil doesn't repel the medicine). The vinegar will help with bugs that may be on them. A lot of people use Borax instead.
> 
> The reason I say dip them in the water rather than leaving it out for them to bathe in, is so they don't go drinking the soapy water. Although it may not hurt them, it has a tendacy to give those who drink much of it, diarrhea.


Its better to do it on a sunny day, so that you can leave them in the sun shine so they dry fast.


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## re lee

Saw a several post about fantails and perches. When i had fantails i never offered any perches. The breeder section had breeding compartments. 22x 30x18 And the other sections had only pine shavings on the floor No perches The tails and the birds very rarely evr had any droppings. The shaveing would asorb moisture and droppings would get covered Tails would stay in better shape. As the more a fantail flys It will catch wing butts in the tail cause feathers to twist and open cause split tails It will cause the tail to funnel scooping the tail back. The fans do well just on the floor. Or if you really want some perching. I would recomed the perches be at least 16 inces wide to accomindate the fantail. But agin ground is better for the fantails. But people do as people do


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## DannysDoos

re lee said:


> As the more a fantail flys It will catch wing butts in the tail cause feathers to twist and open cause split tails It will cause the tail to funnel scooping the tail back.


I have a pair of garden fantails (plus others). I purchased the birds as an older breeding pair. The previous owner had kept them inside along with his other pigeons and they were never let outside. This meant that they didn't fly a lot. Their tails weren't very erect, either. 
However, since I've had them and they've been free-flying a lot their tails have improved. I mean, they're still not very big but hey-ho, they're pretty! My fantails regularly join the rollers when they fly around the house. So, maybe free-flight isn't so bad for fantails, after all?

Also, when breeding Indian fantails, is it necessary to cut their tails for breeding? Although I'd like them to breed now and again, but I don't think I can bring myself to cut their tails!


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## Shadybug Lofts

What do you people do when its cold out and you want your birds to bath, do you use cold water or warm water.


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## Libis

Shadybug Lofts said:


> What do you people do when its cold out and you want your birds to bath, do you use cold water or warm water.


I don't bathe my birds when it's cold. Even though they're in the house. I think this comes of being raised with parrots though....


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## DannysDoos

I give mine some lukewarm tap water and make sure they go into their boxes straight after.


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