# Willing to adopt unwanted racing (?) pigeon but have questions...



## GSinIL (Sep 7, 2010)

All,

First off, I never owned a bird in my life but consider myself an animal nut...

About 8 weeks ago, a fairly tame pigeon showed up in our backyard under the bird feeder. Initially we thought it might just be on its way home but despite being out for a day or so it always returned back, probably because we started feeding him. "Homer" has 2 bands (yellow and blue) and we were able to read the information to contact the club he belongs to. The secretary of the club said he would contact the owner and get back to us... Well, we never heard back so we assume that Homer is not really a thoroughbred racer  or the owner is at least not willing to drive from Detroit to pick him up here in Chicago.
Long story short, we are willing to adopt the bird if it makes sense and can be done by someone not experienced with pigeons.
So if this is possible, there are of course a few open questions that I would like to throw out here on this forum:

1. Most important: kit box 
We live in a townhouse and have very limited space, so I have to go for a minimum size home. Since Homer is obviously a racing bird, would something like this Ware Mfg Premium Small Animal Hutch - after performing the necessary modifications - be sufficient or is it too small? We are in Chicago, so winters are cold and I am aware that I would have to insulate it properly and potentially provide some heating as well.

2. Need for exercise and time out
I read here on the forum that it might be too dangerous to let Homer out and fly during the winter time due to predators like hawks etc.
If that's the case, I assume the kit box above probably would be too small. 
What would be my options?

3. How to catch Homer?
Like I said, so far Homer has been fairly tame but he's not allowing me to pet or touch him. He's OK with eating out of my hand but if I try to touch him he responds with a short, bark-like noise, maintaining about 5 inches of distance. I think it would be fairly easy to grab him while he's eating but I don't want to traumatize him.

4. How to get him used to his new kit box?
Once built, how do I get him to accept his new home? I could catch him and put him in the kit box but I don't think that this would be the right approach to get him used to a new home.​I might have more questions down the road but that's it for now.
Any help is appreciated.

I also attached a picture of Homer for some insights about what kind of pigeon etc. All we know is that he's only about a year old since it says "2009" on the yellow band.

Thanks
GS


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

First things first.. you have to catch him before you do anything else.. then go from there.. you certainly can make him a pet! he will never beable to be let out as he may at some point just fly off back "home" where his x owner's loft is... too bad he did not want to make an effort to get him back.


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## Jaysen (Jun 21, 2010)

On number 4.

The hardest part is not "catching" but holding a pigeon. I'll let someone else explain holding because it is too hard for me to explain without a picture. If needed I will go grab one of ours and post some pics. Others may have them here already that I don't know about. 

Since home is eating from your hand you can "bait" him by letting him get a few seeds, then raise your hand a bit. Do this until he hops up on your hand or arm. From there is is pretty easy to just reach out and hold them.

If that doesn't work you can use the old "Acme Box Trap". Get a large, but not high box. Get a piece of card board or other material (a bed sheet would work) larger than the box opening and place it on the ground. Take a stick with a small y and tie a long piece of string to it. Prop box up with stick over the cardboard. Toss seed under box. Wait. When bird goes under box pull string.

Since he is a racer he who was lost on a race he will be pretty strong and will probably move the box around a bit. Just put a little pressure on the box to keep it down then SLOWLY turn it over keeping it closed (the cardboard is now a lid). 

Congratulations! You are now the proud keeper of homing pigeon.


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## GSinIL (Sep 7, 2010)

Thanks, so are you saying I should lock him up for the rest of his life?
Not sure that is what I want to do. I'd be totally OK with Homer changing his mind at some point deciding to fly back to his original home. 
At this point, I just want to make sure that if he decides to stay, he has an adequate home that protects him at night (he's currently sleeping on the gutters in a protected corner of the house), especially when it gets cold...
My thought was to let him fly during the day (except maybe during winter) and lock him up at night - maybe this is a little too much wishful thinking???

Cheers
GS


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

correct way to hold a pigeon in this pic.. the feet are put between the fingers and the tumb holds the wings in place, and support the breast.. I dunno, that is all I can come up with...lol.. link: http://www.pigeonblog.mapyourcity.net/img/documentation/testflights/bob_holding2.jpg


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## Jaysen (Jun 21, 2010)

GSinIL,

There is a point where you have to ask how humane our view of animal freedom really is. Is it humane to let him wander in winter looking for home? Is it humane to risk him becoming prey to some other animal? Is it humane to send him back to a home that didn't want to spend $20 in gas to get him back?

Keeping a pigeon "locked up" does not have to be traumatic for you or the bird. The birds do not require huge amounts of space and you will find caring for the bird quite relaxing. One the bird gets used to you (and it sounds like you are not far off) you will find him to be very friendly. This might take some time though, just to warn you. 

You _can_ resettle a bird to a new location. I have a bird from canada that just showed up. Won't leave. It flies with my birds now. Very friendly bird. Since we are preparing for racing, we know the risk that we create not just for this stray, but for all our fliers. I also have birds from other parts of the country that will never be let out to fly free again. It is tough to do, but we realize that these animals are not fit to survive in the wild. They will get eaten or will starve unless they find their way home. 

BTW, your bird is lost. He didn't find his way home last time he was released. 

I would suggest that if you catch this bird and go to the trouble of setting up a home for it, that you keep it at home. Permanently. This is for the birds own good. 

Let me know if you would like me to get a picture of showing hand placement for holding a bird.

Last thing-- he is likely a she. Looks like a 2009 band (the yellow one) and the wattle and head look more like a hen/juvenile. Could just be the angle though.


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## GSinIL (Sep 7, 2010)

Thanks Jaysen, maybe it's just me but I don't see any pictures...


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## Jaysen (Jun 21, 2010)

Yeah, Picassa hates me. Give me a minute and I will have them up.


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## Jaysen (Jun 21, 2010)

Well, I give up on putting the images up on the forum, but I do have them up on picasa. 

The album here is me holding an '09 hen out of Boston MA (I want to call her bean but the Mrs won't hear of it). You do not see the supporting hand as it is holding the camera.


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## rackerman (Jul 29, 2009)

*Thats a real nice looking bird, looks like a 2009 AU Hen too? Good luck.*


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## Jaysen (Jun 21, 2010)

Rackerman,

The blue is a distance bird that "got lost" by about 500 miles. She has wins at 400, 500 and 600 (500 was YB, 400 and 600 were this year OB). The 300 she was flying had a lor of losses. The guy who gave her to us is an acquaintance of a club member. He was just happy she was still living. She is to be one of our foundation birds and we have a mate selected for her. He is also a distance bird with a win at 500 and top 10 at 400 and 600. He is a bit older though. They seem a bit uninterested in each other, and don't look like they will produce and late hatches for us this year. 

But this is not about my birds. So to bring us back on topic, captive birds are actually normal. This hen was a lost bird who is now living with us but will never fly free again. She is much safer this way.


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## GSinIL (Sep 7, 2010)

Thanks for the pictures 

Alright, I already learned a lot, i.e. that Homer (or should we call her Marge now since she's a female) got LOST; we thought (s)he might just have decided to not go home...

I can see your point about keeping her in captivity but I assume that you have a really nice loft where your birds can move around whereas the box I am planning to build would be small and more cage like.
Maybe it would make sense to reach out to a Chicago area club and check whether someone would be willing to adopt the bird???

BTW, here are some more pictures of Homer AKA Marge...


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## Jaysen (Jun 21, 2010)

By most folks standard I don't have a really nice loft. What I do have is a loft that meets the need of me and my birds. Since we will be racing the housing rules are a bit different than housing rules for a pet. 

There would certainly be no harm in reaching out to a Chicago club or two. She looks like a very good bird in very good heath but looks can be deceiving. Keep in mind that unless she is resettled (which would be tricky with a bird as old as she is) she will be a captive (prisoner is the term used). She seems to have latched on to you and you seem to enjoy having her around. Maybe you should consider giving her a home. 

Here are some ideas that might meet your needs and are a bit lower budget:
* Look for a large dog crate to use a a cage. The slide out trays make cleaning easy and the size will give her a bit of room. They are also easy to move from place to place so nothing is "permanent". I would consider this over the hutch.
* You can create a simple aviary using a "prefab dog run". These are essentially chain link fences that fold up. You will need to make sure that there are no gaps greater than 2" wide and that the top is covered. That are a few other issues that will need addressed with this solution, but they are easy to deal with. 
* Make Marge an indoor bird with freedom. Give her the run of the house and keep her in a large box. I would consider the dog create but you can use a pre-made nest box with a front on it. What ever you use you need to be able to A) get food and water in there b) lock her in c) clean it easily. There are disadvantages to this, but there are advantages as well.

Keeping Marge is very doable. You just need to find the right balance. Let us know what you decide to do.


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## rackerman (Jul 29, 2009)

Jaysen said:


> Rackerman,
> 
> The blue is a distance bird that "got lost" by about 500 miles. She has wins at 400, 500 and 600 (500 was YB, 400 and 600 were this year OB). The 300 she was flying had a lor of losses. The guy who gave her to us is an acquaintance of a club member. He was just happy she was still living. She is to be one of our foundation birds and we have a mate selected for her. He is also a distance bird with a win at 500 and top 10 at 400 and 600. He is a bit older though. They seem a bit uninterested in each other, and don't look like they will produce and late hatches for us this year.
> 
> But this is not about my birds. So to bring us back on topic, captive birds are actually normal. This hen was a lost bird who is now living with us but will never fly free again. She is much safer this way.


Your doing a great job!! I am glad you were there. This is a real good bird and I am happy for you!!
I think you'll have to keep her as a prisoner though, not a bad thing, you can raise some good racers, if thats what you want to do. I am just glad it is safe and sound!


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## GSinIL (Sep 7, 2010)

*Sad news...*

After reading through all your guys' advice and recommendations, we decided that the best thing would be to adopt "Homer" and to keep him in our backyard as most of you suggested. 
I spent the last 2 weeks on designing and building a small loft for our new little friend but unfortunately, he was killed today by a hawk in the backyard before he could move in. I was almost there, needed one more trip to Home Depot and tomorrow or the day after his new home would have been finished and we could have locked him up. 
As a matter of fact, he already accepted the unfinished loft to eat and drink, last time this morning...   

Thanks for all your help!
GSinIL


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## rackerman (Jul 29, 2009)

Jaysen said:


> GSinIL,
> 
> There is a point where you have to ask how humane our view of animal freedom really is. Is it humane to let him wander in winter looking for home? Is it humane to risk him becoming prey to some other animal? Is it humane to send him back to a home that didn't want to spend $20 in gas to get him back?
> 
> ...


I agree, looks like a hen with an AU 2009 band. Real nice looking bird!


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## rackerman (Jul 29, 2009)

*Sorry, didn't see the post on the hawk. I am so sorry........*


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