# Rehoming an adopted adult homing pigeon



## jcapozze (Aug 25, 2015)

Hi All,

I recently am fostering a homing pigeon. I may or may not adopt it.

I got the pigeon from a rehab center. The pigeon had a severe laceration to the left leg, which was sutured, and a significant laceration on the right leg also. Probably hit by a vehicle. The pigeon recovered in the rehab center for four weeks.

I've had it now for two days. It's in a 28inx28inx33in cage, and I have a lot of pigeon experience through wildlife rehabilitation. But I don't know anything about homing pigeon behavior.

Is there any hope of rehoming this bird? I have no way of knowing how old the bird is, but it is definitely adult. The rehab center cut off its band because it was constricting the foot, which was swollen from the laceration, so no racing history either... 

They seem to think that after three to four weeks and it learns some landmarks, that it would return. Any advice?


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## Jr Brown (May 22, 2012)

jcapozze said:


> Hi All,
> 
> ..
> 
> They seem to think that after three to four weeks and it learns some landmarks, that it would return. Any advice?


Return? Return to where? If it is a homing pigeon that has been trained and is in good health it will return to it's original loft.


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## jcapozze (Aug 25, 2015)

Return to my house.

I guess that a homer used to living with other birds in a loft would not likely rehome to a room with a cage in it, even if I managed to pair it with another bird....

The rehab center was concerned about releasing a "failed homer," since it stayed in the facility for a month. As they understand, it is likely that the owner wouldn't want a failed homer, and would probably kill it.

I guess I will see how the bird adjusts...


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## CBL (May 13, 2014)

Yes they are right, the majority will cull. They have no use for a bird that does not make it home. Best to keep it as a pet indoors or in coop. They dont like to keep unbanded birds either in loft. Someone can answer to that what the reason is as well.


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## Jr Brown (May 22, 2012)

CBL said:


> Yes they are right, the majority will cull. They have no use for a bird that does not make it home. Best to keep it as a pet indoors or in coop. They dont like to keep unbanded birds either in loft. Someone can answer to that what the reason is as well.


These are the same type of comments you have made in the past. Your ridiculous unfounded claims that the "majority" of racers would cull the bird. Have you taken a survey? Did you interview a large number of racing people to gather your information and draw your conclusions? Do you have any proof, what so ever, that would lead you to this conclusion and give you the authority to make such statements as "the majority will cull"?
And you are invited to stop by my racing loft anytime and see some of my "unbanded" birds.
You should stick to what you know, whatever that is, when it comes to giving advice on pigeons.
Please remind us, how many pigeons do you have? What breeds? And how much experience to you have with pigeons?


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Agree with CBL. Some people who race pigeons don't care about them as individuals and don't want to keep the losers, which to many of us seems heartless. Would keep the pigeon as a pet.


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## Jr Brown (May 22, 2012)

cwebster said:


> Agree with CBL. Some people who race pigeons don't care about them as individuals and don't want to keep the losers, which to many of us seems heartless. Would keep the pigeon as a pet.


Well at least you said "some". And I can agree with that statement. And add that to cull "losers" seems heartless to me as well.

I also agree that it may be best for this one to be kept as a pet.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

jcapozze said:


> Hi All,
> 
> I recently am fostering a homing pigeon. I may or may not adopt it.
> 
> ...



You are wanting to rehome the bird, but letting him fly alone isn't safe. Some predator will grab him. Pigeons are safer in a flock. Besides, we don't know that he got lost. He was injured, and maybe that is why he couldn't make it home. If indeed he actually did get lost the first time, if he tried to get home, he would likely get lost again, and be hawk bait. But, as I have said, we don't know that he got lost. He was injured, and many racers would understand it if their bird couldn't get home because of injury. Like anything else, there are good and bad owners.


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## jcapozze (Aug 25, 2015)

Thanks for the support all. 

I worry about the bird transitioning to a happy indoor life. An outdoor coop is not an option for me right now, unfortunately. 

Currently I am keeping the cage covered. Nestle (as good a name as any right haha) gets really restless and paces a ton when the cage is uncovered. But she seems really chill with the sheet over it, so I'm heartened. She took like a three hour bath today, it was hilarious. 

As I mentioned, it's just a foster bird for now. I guess I'll take some pictures and try to get the bird adopted.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

If caged they do need time out of the cage for exercise.


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## Chuck K (Jan 12, 2013)

The bird would have a better life in a loft with other birds.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Chuck K said:


> The bird would have a better life in a loft with other birds.


I agree. Why cage a bird that doesn't need to be?


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## jcapozze (Aug 25, 2015)

Yes... I just feel my options are limited:

1. keep bird as pet. 

not a great candidate as a pet bird, since needs a lot of flight time, is used to outdoor time, which I can't give it, and needs other birds, which I don't have and am not particularly planning on. 

But pet bird is the safest option. And it could reasonably live a good life as a pet, though not the best life.

2. find someone to adopt bird.
not so easy, since its an unbanded adult homer. I don't know anyone else who does pigeons, though I will get in touch with a few folk from the rehab center.... I have called a few local clubs and they can't do much for me.

If I do find an adopter, I can't say anything about its quality of life. It would still be a prisnor bird, from what I understand, either in a loft or in a house. Or the worse case scenario, it gets stuck in a poor living situation. Or best case scenario, it rehomes to the adopters loft and lives a homer life. 

however option 2 can easily turn to option 3: 
3. release bird and hope for the best

it's definitely able bodied, so I feel it is reasonable to assume that it would get home safely. then the owner may or may not accept the bird back. It may kill the bird, or be happy to see the bird and welcome it back. There's no way to know what will happen. 

If released, I would send it with a note as best I could, explaining it was grounded from injury, since some have suggested that it would make the owners more sympathetic. And I could leave a phone number if the owner is opting to cull. That is about as responsible as I could be in that scenario. 



A big dilemma I am having is that if I do find someone to adopt it, and if they ever let the bird out or if the bird escapes, it will "self-release," and fly home. I feel it is very likely that this bird will either escape or be set loose, eventually, and that caging it now unecessarily delays an inevitable conclusion. Why give it weeks more of caging, if it is very likely to be released or self-release?


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

I wouldn't release him. If he can't make it home, then he will be a sitting duck for predators.
There are situations where people have birds and have aviaries for them to enjoy the outdoors, and he would be with other birds. If it were a safe loft that he couldn't escape from. Many people keep lofts of pigeons, it's just finding the right one.


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Agree with Jay3. The bird would be snack food for predators. Would be better off in an aviary. Or as someone's pet.


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## E.W.S. Lofts (Jun 15, 2021)

jcapozze said:


> Hi All,
> 
> I recently am fostering a homing pigeon. I may or may not adopt it.
> 
> ...


I have had success re-homing many birds.
This Includes both my own birds from moving homes and stock birds I got from others.

I was only 12 back then.

I had 100 + birds, in that time i only lost 2 birds, but was probably due to hawks, our new home then had lots of hawks.

Thing is they need lots of time, took rougly 6 weeks to 2 months, some older birds took nearly 6 months before i was confident to let them out for a fly aftwr their flights grew back.

I Had to clip every birds Flights off and let them roam every day. Them them naturaly moult out their clipped flights and repeat if not confident yet.

Its not safe for the birds but i was there with them everyday watching them like a hawk for 2 -3 hours at a time. DAILY let them out every day for a few hours at a time.

Also the loft was on stilts so they can hide under the loft when they feel unsafe.
And the loft main doors should be open for them to go in and out whenever they like. Make sure they can get up with a caged ramp.

You can trap train them again later once they have re homed. Treat them like young birds again. But with alot more patience.

Let them bath, let them roam, and never scare them in any way, call them wirt good old food when time to come in, be very slow and gentle with them very very important, they need to become very tame around you, even sit with them and feed them out of you hand, let them walk on you, they have to feel very safe with you, i even started to call them by name outside the loft and they would fly up to my hand looking for treats after the whole process was complete, their jittery level became very low and treated me like one of them, they would even coo on my legs and and shoulders while sitting with them.

Also let all of the birds mix, dont seperate them
Cocks and hens young birds and old birds alike let them pair up to whom ever they like, place lots of nest bowles everywhere. Just destroy the eggs if you dont want them to breed, then rinse and repeat. I found that caged birds are unhappy and will fly away the moment they escape.

If a bird is very comfortable and happy and has a nest bowl to come to and a mate they will stay.

I can promise you the birds will stay.
I rehomed every one of my flyers and old stock birds that i purchased when i moved to a new home. All 113 of them, only lost 2, 1 was a young bird the other was an old bird.

I can promise you after lots of time and patience it works very well.

Very important you treat them like they are your favourite puppy, let them out to walk for hours everyday for a couple hours at a time.

When my birds became very tame and happy like this i also saw a huge improvement in their racing as well. I could even get them to land in my hands after a race and trap them quicker with my clock before they got near the loft.

Once all this i done and they have rehomed then you can seperate your birds back to how you like.

I even took 2nd place on my first race in my club and many top places after that with just a few months of racing $hit i was so stoked. I never lost a bird from racing. Only to hawks.
Thing is i started highschool soon and life happened, and i had to give my birds away.

Now heres the funny part, after giving my birds away, the new owner could never re home any of them, they always came back even after many years he had to keep fetching them.

I eventually kept my one favourite bird after many years of returning, to me. we ended up moving again, i treated him the same way i did to my 113 birds and managed to rehome him again.

Homing pigeons are very intelligent and know when their enviroment is $hit or not. 

Its not the birds, its the owner.
Happy birds turn into champions.


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