# Meet Dakota!



## JoeA92 (Feb 11, 2013)

Video

He/she was thought to be 11 weeks old at the pet shop I picked her up at, but wasn't totally sure, nor are we really sure of her gender.

He/she can perch up on us but not always sure-footed, if she is captive (not free roaming around) he/she will almost always step up. sometimes she steps up right away, sometimes she needs a little bit of time (usually less than 20 sec), and a occasionally she will have 1 foot on my hand and 1 still on the perch. She doesn't seem to mind hands TOO much but does not like to be held or touched much inside the cage. However shes much more accepting outside the cage, until she gets antsy to walk and explore the room (Like a two year old child wanting down). When she does get time to explore she can be hard to catch when its time to go back in. Today I tried lying on the floor while she was out while holding seeds in my hand and some next to me on the floor. She doesn't outright avoid me when I'm down there, and ate the seeds on floor but didn't eat out of my hand with the food in it like she would otherwise. When I do return her to her cage, I'll leave something extra in her food tray to reconcile, such as millet or pieces of red bell pepper have both been a success( I try to give her something different to try each day in her food bowl as she will not take anything other than seeds from my hand as of yet). 

She doesn't coo much at all, but occasionally in the morning or evening she will let out two quiet coos. Shes quite comfortable with people sitting by her cage. Sometimes I pull up a chair or a stool and talk to her as she does her thing.


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## Trish in Dallas (Jun 5, 2012)

What a cutie! Have you tried tempting her to take a bath with a pie dish or similar dish filled with a little warm water? I never met a dove that didn't love a bath!


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## JoeA92 (Feb 11, 2013)

Trish in Dallas said:


> What a cutie! Have you tried tempting her to take a bath with a pie dish or similar dish filled with a little warm water? I never met a dove that didn't love a bath!


Kind-of, I used a large oblong lid that had an inward lip to it as a shallow bath and let her do her thing. I did try to temp her to get in, but it took her a while.


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## mookeeman (Dec 11, 2008)

males have a coo like hoo hoooo hooo hoooooooo in short breaths and ocaisonaly do like a ha haha ha lol its deff hard to explain without voices lol also males will develop a purpleish head when they reach maturity he-she looks good tho..


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## Lefty07 (Dec 30, 2009)

It's too bad they clipped your dove's wings at the pet shop. Doves should not be wing-clipped like parrots because they are totally defenseless and cannot climb. They can be injured by falling or can also be stepped on - and who knows what else, if a dog or cat is in the house. Plus it makes them nervous and afraid of things. I hope you plan to let his/her wing feathers grow back in. Flighted doves are more confident, a lot of fun, and will stay tame if treated kindly.

Keep in mind, doves can get very tame but usually don't like to be grabbed or handled. It's always better to have it calmly step up on your finger or arm when you need to put it back in the cage, than chasing and "catching" it with your open hands. That will just un-do the taming you've already done. And most doves don't care to be petted or stroked - that's a "mammal" thing. Birds don't normally touch each other except when mating. I would just be aware of that, especially if your dove is running away from you or otherwise avoiding you. Too much handling can hurt the taming process. Better to train it to step up and perch on your arm or finger and leave it at that. Then it will grow to like you and will fly to you, when its wing feathers grow back.

Hand-feeding it is good for taming and bonding with doves too. Mine are very fond of hemp seeds and baby frozen (thawed) green peas, which I feed them from my hand. 

Here are 2 of my flighted doves, flying to me when I call them.





Mine get free flight time in my sunroom and they really enjoy it. And they stay in better physical (and mental) condition. Doves are meant to fly!


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## JoeA92 (Feb 11, 2013)

Yeah we are looking at indoor flight cages, her current home is larger than what she had in the pet shop but fairly small. I'm aware of the clipped wing controversy and most likely will allow her feathers to grow back when she's more familiar with her surroundings. 

Having her in a flight suit would be ideal, but if she absolutely hates it and struggles with it then yeah that's probably a no.


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## Lefty07 (Dec 30, 2009)

Maybe if you get her a parrot play pen or bird stand and she learns to sit on that now, she will go to it (as a "hang out" place) when she gets her flight back?

However, with a dove, you have to expect that they will like walking around on the floor and exploring a little too. But dove droppings usually dry nice and solid and don't stick to things! I can't imagine any bird would like a flight suit - and it could be a safety hazard too - someone here posted about their bird drowning when it was in a flight suit unattended and fell into an aquarium. That's why I like my birds fully-flighted - they can save themselves some of the time! 

Well, good luck with her/him. If you can buy some hemp seed (try eBay), I've found my doves LOVE it. It is a rich fatty seed so it should be reserved as a treat - but it could be a treat that it only gets from your hands, which will help reinforce tameness.


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## JoeA92 (Feb 11, 2013)

Quick question.
Is a basement that's generally colder than the rest of the house an OK spot for exercise? I keep her cage in my living room because it's the most stable temp wise, I spend most of my time there, and it gets the most sun. 
I ask because I worry about her and windows, mirrors, ceiling fans, doors, etc

The basement is fairly large with less hazards.


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## quailRcute (Jul 12, 2013)

What breed of dove is she?


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## JoeA92 (Feb 11, 2013)

quailRcute said:


> What breed of dove is she?


He/she is a ringneck dove. I think the color is blonde or ash. A very light color like cinnamon/sugar. She has a very thin/faint dark ring that's hard to see unless she has her head down and extended.


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## Lefty07 (Dec 30, 2009)

I think the basement is a great place for exercise but you may have to be there too, to make your dove feel comfortable there. Read a book or work on the computer, while he/she is flying or walking around. Just make sure there is nothing toxic, like mouse poison, that he/she could eat. And it's OK if it's a little cooler than upstairs.

Before I had my sunroom, I used to let my dove exercise in my garage.


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## JoeA92 (Feb 11, 2013)

Lefty07 said:


> I think the basement is a great place for exercise but you may have to be there too, to make your dove feel comfortable there. Read a book or work on the computer, while he/she is flying or walking around. Just make sure there is nothing toxic, like mouse poison, that he/she could eat. And it's OK if it's a little cooler than upstairs.
> 
> Before I had my sunroom, I used to let my dove exercise in my garage.


Well garage here we have too, but right now Michigan winter ain't really shorts and t-shirt weather.
Also she doesn't seem super athletic. When she's out she'll do a couple laps in the protected area before soaking in the sun and preening by the sliding glass door and the vent. At first we thought she was trying to find a way outside, and I was afraid she would hurt herself. The glass is probably too dirty to fool her lol.

It's not easy to get her attention when she's out. In her cage she'll attack a millet spray, but rarely peck at it outside. I figured at that time would be an excellent interaction/bonding time. She doesn't avoid us though unless we try to put her back in, although it's actually becoming easier to capture her and calm her after. I used to have to hold my hand over her head when putting her back in which would have scary for her a few days ago. Now she has learned to put her head down then jump to her perch when I put her back in.

I thought about making some sort of nest or bed specifically for sunbathing. Sometimes she'll walk into shade for a moment then go back into the sun. 
Anyone know a good Small DIY project for that? An outdoor enclosure isn't really possible where I live.


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## Lefty07 (Dec 30, 2009)

You said your dove is not "super athletic". But I was under the impression your dove was wing-clipped? If he/she can't fly, there's not too much exercise she can do. Once she is flying again, she will be able to exercise more.

But, in general, Ringneck Doves are not that active. They do like to sit around sometime and they love sunbathing. So if yours is trying to lay in the sun, don't discourage it because it is perfectly normal. For sunbathing or just hanging out, doves sometimes like a couple bricks, side by side (or anything with a flat wide surface a few inches above the floor). So try leaving a brick or two near the sliding glass door, when the sun is out - you might find she likes it.

If you want to get her to like you, try getting some hemp seed on eBay or else mash up a hard-boiled egg into tiny crumbs. Those are 2 treat foods you could offer your dove occasionally - first in a little dish and then, after she likes them, from your open palm.


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## JoeA92 (Feb 11, 2013)

I was thinking of something like this
http://youtu.be/bvrg4Uk5dq8
By the window on the table I keep my laptop on.
Would also provide a good opportunity for the morning mist baths, and potentially potty training. 

Also, does it matter if the surface is smooth or coarse?


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## Lefty07 (Dec 30, 2009)

Joe that might work for a baby dove but I think an older dove will probably want a raised perch in addition. It's just not going to be comfortable in a "bowl" or "nest". It will try to find the highest spot for safety and security. So it might try _unsuccessfully_ to perch on the rim of the basket. So I'd say your idea will not be good unless you offer it a higher perch in addition. Also, it might like a flat surface to sunbathe on too - so maybe a brick on there as well.

Something like this might work, inside a basket thing like you posted, if it was low enough that he/she could jump up and get on it.









or this (maybe with the brick in front of it as a stepping stone?):









See the problem with wing-clipping doves? They can't even get on a slightly raised perch without help because they cannot climb like a parrot! They become totally vulnerable and disabled by wing-clipping. Once he/she is flying again, you could get something nicer like this:










I bought one of these things for my doves and they took to it immediately!


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## JoeA92 (Feb 11, 2013)

She doesn't seem to have too much of a problem with perches. She's able to get on furniture. We recently got her a new perch in her cage. It has more texture than the one she had and is thicker in some areas so that she can perch or stand. It's put up higher just below eye level when we stand. It took a while for her to get used to before she tested it. We made sure she could transfer between perches. She's capable of going up and down.
I've put bricks and other small ledges and she seems to ignore them.


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## JoeA92 (Feb 11, 2013)

*Update: a bit of a scare.*

Today was a crazy day! First off ill say she's fine since this is a long post

We thought maybe she had injured a leg today. My mother was downstairs with her back turned to the cage while I was taking a shower. We think she fell off her perch or had a mis-step in landing. Mother said she made an unusual sound like the air went out of her. She was lying on the floor and walking with kind of a limp. We took out her perches and moved water and food closer to her. She got up and ate and drank. Eventually she started walking more but we took her to the vet to be safe as birds can hide pain.
We called the vet and gave them her info and filled an online form. (This was her first vet visit). An appointment was set up for 4:20 which was actually a little while after an appointment I had for myself at 3. As we left for the first appointment, we had a flat tire (and it was a new tire!) so for the time being we weren't going anywhere. My moms ex came to put up a spare tire but not correctly. When we drove out it was already 4:05 and the tire was grinding like metal on metal, and there was a burning smell. At 4:15 we called my grandmother to pick us both up, and called the vet clinic to tell them we would be a little late by 5min (more like 7-10min). My grandmother pulled up exactly at 4:21. 

At the vet, Dakota was quite understandably scared and putting up a bit of a fight to be handled. They weighed her in what looks like a pasta strainer, and the vet checked her over while the shadow (student), held her upright and by the neck. There's a bit of an abrasion on her leg but everything else checked out fine. The vet thinks when she fell she was just disoriented for a while.


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