# Pet pigeons - to allow on shoulder, or not?



## kamz (Jan 23, 2010)

I have recently taken my pet pigeon bong bong to the vet. The vet at first thought 'Bong Bong' was a female ...until he nearly lost a finger  i believe the his descriptors were 'demon' and rottwieler!

Bong Bong is fine with me 90 percent of the time - but does seem more 'pecky' on my shoulder. I think he has chosen me as his mate because when my boyfriend is around he stands on my boyfriend - ready to attack, and do his little 'dominance' dance! I am the only one he will allow to pat him. 

Just wondering whether other people let their pigeons on their shoulder, and their experiences of a pigeon bonded to one human - out of a human couple! How do you deal with the aggressive behaviour towards one partner?


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

kamz said:


> I have recently taken my pet pigeon bong bong to the vet. The vet at first thought 'Bong Bong' was a female ...until he nearly lost a finger  i believe the his descriptors were 'demon' and rottwieler!
> 
> Bong Bong is fine with me 90 percent of the time - but does seem more 'pecky' on my shoulder. I think he has chosen me as his mate because when my boyfriend is around he stands on my boyfriend - ready to attack, and do his little 'dominance' dance! I am the only one he will allow to pat him.
> 
> Just wondering whether other people let their pigeons on their shoulder, and their experiences of a pigeon bonded to one human - out of a human couple! How do you deal with the aggressive behaviour towards one partner?


LOL...Sounds like a wonderful bird!

Well, I would be VERY careful having him on my shoulder just because he may accidently peck you where you don't want to be pecked. My Skye almost pulled out one of my little round ear rings possibly thinking it was something good to eat, and I had to remove him quickly because that could have been a disastor. Now I am more careful.

It does sound like he has sight bonded to you, and considers you his love interest. I think he is defending more his territory. Male pigeons will consider any area they are free to roam in...their territory, therefore he will defend it against the intruder- which he considers your boyfriend, and he allows you access because you are his "mate".


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## cvarnon (Mar 8, 2010)

My hand raised pigeons (6 of them) are only agressive when in their cage. When I take them out they aren't mean at all. Although they do have a tendency to peck interesting things like moles, they aren't really fearsome when on your shoulder... they just sort of hang out.


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## sreeshs (Aug 16, 2009)

Keep a towel on your shoulder or you will soon be dealing with poop stained shoulders on your clothes  Left or Right ?


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## Larry_Cologne (Jul 6, 2004)

*Shoulder status: pigeon is on top, shoulder is mere mobile pedestal*

My pigeon rescues felt safer on my shoulder, where they made sure I saw eye-to-eye with them that a major threat to them was THE HAND, and when the HAND was subservient and didn't pester them, all was well. You need a shirt or shoulder material which they can grip on, for comfort. 

Your shoulder becomes a poop zone. Teaches you humility.

My brother Jimmy's quaker parrot *Paloma* (which means "pigeon" in Spanish), quickly removed some of the plastic earpiece on my eyeglasses. My brother wears a poopy shirt around the house. 

However, if you are out in an open area such as a field, a pigeon probably won't feel safe on your shoulder from overhead raptors (or raptor shapes or silhouettes), and will probably follow his instinct to take to wing. Others may have differing opinions and experiences. Something to consider, though. We had one of our first pigeon rescues, rescued as a four-day-old chick and hand-raised eight-month-old male *Pidgiepoo* (my avatar) fly off at noon on a snowy January 14, 2005, when my wife was jogging in _Volksgarten_ in Cologne. She wanted to give Pidgiepoo some fresh outdoor air, so she would shrug Pidgiepoo off her shoulder, and he would fly to her shoulder every twenty yards or so. He was on the ground ten or fifteen meters from her when my wife heard a terrible racket from some crows, and Pidgiepoo flew off, never to be seen again. 

Larry


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## kamz (Jan 23, 2010)

thanks for your replies guys. sreeshs, usually on the right shoulder  i think i will not allow him on peoples shoulders anymore - if startled, his response is to attack, not fly :/ 

mm poop wise I am ok if i am not lazy because he will poo on paper if told to...unless i forget to tell him and put him on the paper...too much hassle! so i am getting him a snazzy pigeon suit from birdswear. 

trees gray, i better not explain that theory to my boyfriend - he wouldnt be too happy realising that bong bong thinks its 'his' counch and 'his' lounge room! 

i want to get him a friend asap or asaicth (as soon as i convince the boyfriend) is that a bad idea with a sassy, aggressive, hormonal 4 month year old male pigeon? will he potentially savage a mate, even with slow introduction?

i would like to add this bird gets lots and lots of time out of the coop. at least 2-3 hours - every single day. sometimes all day out of the coop. He has toys (which again, he attacks) balls, soft toys, cat balls. He has a nest with soft clothes and sometimes straw which he can play with, and a big bath. He has taken to compulsively shaking the cat toy for hours on end when in the cage. Sigh. Just want to make the little guy happy! instead - i have a rottweiler (which, i might add, the vet seemed to think he would stay that way even if i took him to a bird behaviouralist) 

any more ideas would be muchly appreciated.


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## Lonelybadger (May 1, 2010)

*He poops on command?!*

You MUST tell me your secret!! In the meantime, I've got some pigeon pants being made by Boni at BirdWear as well.

(I can feel something slimy and cold dribbling slowly down my back right now. Eww. EWWWW! ).

We have had "Corny" for two months now. It looks like he's a boy, simply because of the assertive behaviour. He has taken over the broom closet. This is his "house". When my husband lets him out in the early morning (I am a shift worker, trying to sleep then) there's demonstrative hooting and carrying on as his space is invaded, but no violence. When I wake up at lunchtime and let him out again, there's more hooting, puffing up and circling. And then he follows me around most of the day, sitting on my shoulder or head. If I try to stroke him, he often hoots and pecks me quite violently. If I were another pigeon it would certainly hurt. If he is sitting nearby, rather than on me, he will try to do the spinny-dance display (which is hilarious to watch if he's balanced on the back of a chair). He doesn't do this to my husband. I am not sure if he is trying to impress me, attract me, or if this is just a "dance of anger".

I was starting to take this abuse personally. But he's not always like that. He was tender and sweet all day yesterday, full of feather-light nibbles and gentle grooming. He pecked the buggery out of my hand this morning, obviously punishing me for something, but now he's gently tickling my fingers with obvious affection as I type. I am not sure if he's in love with me or not, and am not sure why my husband doesn't elicit the same behaviour. Husband gets sat on and occasionally groomed, but that's it. 

I need consistency! I need to know where I stand! Is Corny treating me mean to keep me keen, or what? 

I am able to pet him right now, and he's crouching down happily and scrunching up his eyes. (Maybe "he" is actually a hen with aggressive tendencies. I don't know).

I think that he's just a growing boy and throwing his weight around. And maybe he does practise this on the one he loves most. Do mind the advice that if you have a pigeon with pushy character, mind your eyes! And they do seem to hate jewellery. I think they see it as a bad foreign object that should be removed; the pigeon is trying to do you a favour. But it hurts if it's an earring! 

I prefer Corny to sit on my shoulder, rather than my head. (ie. I would prefer to change my shirt than wash my hair five times a day). I also rather like that he has "moods". It makes him a more interesting guy, and I can certainly relate. As long as he's not truly unhappy. Perhaps letting him feel like he has some power over the big bald creatures is important to his development as a healthy bird in an unnatural environment.


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