# Unwanted house guests



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Hi, I have pigeons nesting on my house. Last month I saw them nesting and I was trying nicely to make them leave. Threw big red bouncy balls at them. Good work out for me. Usually they leave, but this couple stayed and persisited. I even caged them off. But they got through. Then I heard babies squeeking. So I stopped. 

I am in Sacramento California and West Nile virus wiped out lots of birds in this area (Magpies indigineous to this area are now extinct). Pigeons, crows, bluejays, pigeons, etc. were litterally falling out of the sky. I actually caught two birds on separate occasions.

So, I was being kind and allowing the parents to have this clutch. It wasn't until today that I read up on pigeons and discovered that they will lay eggs throughout the summer with more babies to come.

Well, a month has gone by and I think the babies are big enough to fly. 

What is the best way to discourage the parents from laying more eggs?

Can I go up and completely remove the nest and cage off the area better?

Letitia


----------



## John_D (Jan 24, 2002)

Hi,

It's nice of you to allow these two to carry on nesting.

You are right - pigeons often will raise several clutches if they find a convenient place and can find food in the area.

They fledge around 35 days old. Once the youngsters are flying, then by all means continue your pigeon-proofing.

It is just possible they may have started a second set of eggs, sometimes they will, sometimes not. If they have, do get back to us.

John


----------



## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Thank you for allowing them to raise the little ones before they are evicted. You know, it is good luck, to have a pigeon nest on your premises.

When the youngsters are 14 days of age the couple will start another nest, hopefully elswhere, but it is possible you have another set of incubated eggs up there. If so, please don't remove them, just allow them. If they don't you can wait till the babies are fully fledged and close off the area once the family leaves. 

Make sure to remove any other eggs as soon as they are laid, there won't be any life inside if they aren't incubated.


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Hi again, here is a picture of my house and the red circle is where the nest is. When standing on the first story roof, my 6'4" husband cannot see to the back corner very well. That is why we didn't see the nest the first time and did a very bad job of caging off. He didn't see any sticks or any sign of anything. 

There are 3 pigeons hanging around the nest now. Normally you don't see the parents at night, because they are roosting deep into the corner. Now with three, one sleeps on the outer edge and you can see it. I think the kid gets to sleep on the edge. I used a webster on a really long window washing stick, and waved the webster head near the nest. 3 big healthy fat pigeons flew out.

My problem is that my roof is really scary to walk on, even on the first story. We really don't want to get up there and I am hard pressed to hire a real roof person to go up there. None of my friends want to attempt this. 

The original thought after the kid grew up is that we would use a pressure hose to clean out the corner.

Now with a possible another egg, I am at a dilema. My question is

*How big is this possible egg and do you think we can see it from the first story if we climb up again??? Or should I just give up for the summer and cage off in the winter.*


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

I just learned why I have pigeons. About 40 years ago, a rich kid named Tommy released 300 homing pigeons into the wild. Of course, they came back, the rich parents burned down the pigeon house. Tommy got in trouble with juvinile hall, but Tommy was excedingly rich. So he got away, and now we have pigeons. Talk about rich kids an no responsibility. In any case, I am not blaming my current house guests. These are probably the only 3 left in town due to West Nile Virus. 

West Nile is scary, the birds get seisures while in flight and fall to the ground. That is why a few years ago, birds were falling out of the sky and fields would have all sorts of dead birds.

Letitia


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Also, can we get sick from being around these birds???? Does anyone have a good information source? Letitia


----------



## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Hi Letitia,

Thank you for sharing the history of the pigeons in your area.

That does look like a very good location for a nest,I'm sure they could find none better.

The eggs are smaller then chicken eggs, but not as small as a finch egg. They may decide to nest year round, so if you can check without too much trouble that would be best.

Pigeons carry no more disease then any other bird, contrary to popular belief, they are not infested with disease and are not carriers -where you can catch what they have.


----------



## Margarret (May 3, 2007)

West Nile virus is carried by mosquitos. If you are having birds, especially pigeons, fall out of the sky, then the mosquito abatement in your area is not working. In general, pigeons are not very succeptable to West Nile. Crows and the rest of the corvid family are highly succeptable. I don't think the pigeons on your roof pose any danger from West Nile or any other diseases. The diseases that pigeons do get are mostly pigeon specific and don't transfer to humans.

As far as West Nile goes, the rule of thumb is don't handle any dead birds without gloves. And make sure than anywhere mosquitos can breed around your house are dealt with. Here is a link to the California West Nile page where you can find out about your area. http://westnile.ca.gov/

Seeing how inaccessible that area is on your house, I, personally, would simply leave them alone. Yes they will raise chicks, but space is limited and only a few can use that area.

Margarret


----------



## John_D (Jan 24, 2002)

Is it possible to rig up a mirror on the end of something (on a still day!) and check what you have up there? If there are no more eggs, then it sounds like all your visitors are fit to move on.

John


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

letitiashen said:


> West Nile is scary, the birds get seisures while in flight and fall to the ground. That is why a few years ago, birds were falling out of the sky and fields would have all sorts of dead birds.
> 
> Letitia



There are more likely things than West Nile virus that would cause the birds to fall from the sky with seizures. Avitrol, a extremely toxic chemical, is used to kill birds that are an inconvenience to agriculture or architecture (pigeons, crows, starlings, grackles, sparrows etc . . . . ) One of the features of a nerve poison (which is how Avitrol works) is that is causes seizures in its victims and they literally fall from the sky. These anti-bird campaigns are usually not broadcast as the people poisoning the birds do not want the average citizen to know what is going on.

Colorado had West Nile sweep through here a few years back and the jays, magpies, crows were dying in droves. The state, county, and city health departments were interested in getting bird carcasses of any species the first year because West Nile was so new. By the next summer, the departments weren't interested in the finches, sparrows, doves, or pigeons only the corvid type birds, because they had found not one single bird from those other species had West Nile. 
I'll try and find some references for you later today and post some links.


----------



## Margarret (May 3, 2007)

I think Flitsnowzoom is right on target. Birds don't get seizures from West Nile and fall suddenly. They usually will find a perch or go to ground where they die more slowly. The likely culprit is poison. At the risk of sounding paranoid, I wouldn't be surprised if a number of people decided to poison the birds at the same time West Nile was being publicized, knowing that West Nile would get the blame.

Margarret


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

I agree, the pigeon I caught was probably due to Avitrol. I found that pigeon in down town Sacramento and there are flocks and flock there.

I do miss the magpies in my area though. I haven't seen one in a few years. They were indiginous to our area. I think West Nile took out the Magpies. It makes no sense that they were poisened because they were not a nuisance. Letitia


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

Yes, the magpies were very hard hit by the West Nile virus. It was terrible here for a couple of years but it seems like the most virulent form has waned throughout the state but is still found in a few isolated areas in the state. The remainder of the state is afflicted with a less virulent form of the virus. The magpies took a couple of years to return, but they are again, everywhere. They should be coming back in your area assuming that their food supply returns as well. 

Magpies will eat just about anything so it is possible that they ate baited grains that were set out for other birds, or that they ate birds that had been poisoned and ingested the poison that way. Sacramento is surrounded by agricultural areas so it is quite possible that that they picked up stuff in the fields.


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Here is my plan, I am too short to do anything, and my husband is leary. So I am just going to have to discourage them with big red balls and the webster. Maybe in the fall I will get a gutter guy to do my gutter and get rid of the nest and cage off the nest.

Do big blow up owls and snakes work?

I am only finding one pigeon on the roof now. Who do you think is there? Mom trying to lay egg, kid????

Letitia


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

flitsnowzoom said:


> Sacramento is surrounded by agricultural areas so it is quite possible that that they picked up stuff in the fields.


Well, I am in Folsom, and the City Council has made sure that all the ag land turns into housing development. So at the time the Magpies disappered, there was much less ag land. Aerojet has pasture type land and in winter cows hang out there. 20 miles away between Sac and Davis are the rice fields. I am not sure what the radius is that the Magpies fly around in. 

Here is an article from the Sacramento Bee newspaper about how Sac got hit worse than other counties.
http://www.msmosquito.com/SB081305.html

Letitia


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

What a sad story. Your area is a bit further behind Colorado in the timing of the West Nile, but hopefully, enough magpies have survived that there will be a resurgence of a resistant group. We can hope that the virus itself is becoming less virulent.

Those yellow-billed magpies are beautiful birds. Magpies remind me of killer whales with their striking color contrast. 

Boy, I sure get the deal about the City Council. Our local council worked a deal with the feds to take over and "decommission" a wildlife refugee that was in the city so the city can take it over and "properly" develop it. They have started tearing down old buildings (it was an ammo factory in WWII but is pretty much open space and federal agencies now), vaccumming up the prarie dogs, eliminating the coyotes, deer, pidgies, geese, magpies, and any other wildlife that might reside there. The hawks, vultures, and ravens that were sort of on the top of the food chain are coming into the residential areas in a futile attempt to find something to eat. I've seen a hawk or two in the past twenty years come through my yard. This year alone, they've come in at least 10 times in the past month and I never saw ravens at all until their stomping grounds were disturbed out there. The fed center is about 2 miles away from me and I think the birds I'm seeing are coming in from there.


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

flitsnowzoom, We have predatory birds here because we have wetlands running through one housing development after another. Kinda like your former wildlife refugee. The big birds think nothing of grabbing a small yummy furry creature on the street.... 10 feet from kids playing catch. Or chasing a smaller bird through everyone's back yard. I think the big neighborhood owl lives across the street in a big redwood (we find owl droppings there). So I do not let my 5 pound minilop bunny roam free in the back yard. I caught a 5feet high Egrit walking around in my koi pond. I had to arm myself with a broom and annoy it. The Egrits figured out that the koi ponds are good eatting holes.

The wetlands seem to attract beaver, so the wild animal people trap the beavers and take the beavers away. Sometimes the beavers come back. 

Politically what your City Council has done was decommision the wild life refugee in town and then gave tons of money to build another refugee in another part of the state or Country. That is how it works. So at the sacrafice of the wildlife in one town, another set of wild life habitat is preserved. I guess it is better than just taking down one wild life habitat after another. If you have the energy, you can try to find out what wild life was save. 

In our town the wetland area was kinda shifted 1/2 mile for a housing development. So the new houses sit on former marshland and have drainage and foundation issues....and the new wetlands have plumbed automatic sprinklers. Kinda weird to be walking throught the wetlands and then get hit by sprinklers.

Letitia


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

OK, for the last day and a half there has only been one pigeon in my roof. The Webster and I must have scared off the other two. Actually I just left the webster leaning on the house. Who is the one pigeon, Kid, mom, or Dad. I thought that if one left, they would all go. 

Actually I don't mind having the one through summer, as long as a friend doesn't show up. Letitia


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

What is a webster? 

I think it might be the little one still hanging around since that is home. Who knows maybe he'll up and fly off soon. He's probably building up strength and stamina before he heads out to the world. They are pretty sweet and not hard to get attached to them. 

Do keep an eye out and if it looks as if there is some interested "shoppers" of the birdie type -- if the pidgies found that area attractive, other bird species may as well, then you may have to discourage any nesting. If you do have someone come out to clean the gutters, I would definitely have that spot netted or blocked off so you won't get future residents up there.


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

This is a webster. You use it to dust cobwebs in your ceiling. 

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NNTPXC...e=380333&creativeASIN=B000NNTPXC&linkCode=asn

I put the fluffy head of the webster on the end of a long telescoping window washer stick and wave it around at the pigeon nest. Being I am short, the head of the webster is actually 3 feet short of the nest.

To a pigeon, it looks strange and scarry. Crows in the redwood tree behind my house can see it comming a mile away. There are 10 crows in that tree. 

If it is just one lonely teenager, I will leave him alone at night so he can get a good night sleep. I think I will name him/her Pat for now 

*Why didn't Pat follow mom and dad?
How long until Pat can have kid of his own?*


Letitia


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

Thanks for the webster link. 

Pat's probably feeling a bit lonely so it's nice that he has somewhere to tuck his wings in. (Lovely roof by the way, at least your guests have fine taste!). 

Poor little Pat, I have a feeling mom and dad went off on a romantic trip somewhere. Hopefully Pat will wait until he's about 4-6 months before he starts eyeing the chicks  but I'm no pigeon expert.


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Ok, I am getting the mother instinct.....My heart leaps out to abandoned kids.....I feel like I have another pet.......I almost don't want to ask this question.............Should I feed Pat????


----------



## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Yes you can feed Pat. But only leave a little bit of seed at a time, otherwise you may be inviting all kinds of uninvited guests.

I do encourage feeding of pigeons, but sometimes it leads to their ultimate demise as their population increases and the wrong person and takes notice, they are the worst predator.


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

Hurray!  I'm sure that Pat appreciates that. You might want to put a small dish or plant saucer of water out as well especially if there's no fresh water in the near vicinity (besides the koi-flavored pond  ) at least for a few days. 
If there are no pigeons elsewhere in the neighborhood, Pat will likely move on as they need a flock to really survive well. Safety in numbers. A pigeon in a flock of doves or smaller birds might as well hang a sign around its neck that says "Eat me!".


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Well, I feel like a bum, his only flock was his parents. As a matter of fact, my pigeons are the only ones in my neighborhood. I usuallly don't see pigeons in folsom. More like I don't pay much attention to them unless they are nesting in my roof. You see wild egrits, cranes, jays, crows, finches, wild turkeys, cock fighters, peacocks, not too many pigeon. There are tons of little birds making mud houses on the big Costco Sign. Costco couldn't remove the nests for years. Finally they got a permit to get rid of the nest. The bird just built the mud nest two weeks later. With the exception of the story of Tommy letting loose his 300 pigeons 20 years ago, I really didn't pay attention to the pigeons. Our Costco and Sam's have their food courts inside the building so there never were any pigeons there.

Oh this is a good one. Wild turkeys laid eggs in someone's front yard a block away. The babies took 2-4 months to get big, in the process, they hammered the lawn, and all the other lawns in the vacinity. My lawn was too far away.

As for Pat, I am in a residential comunity which means lots of houses with lawn sprinklers and water running down the street. I saw Pat and his parents bathing in the area where my water runs out a drainage pipe. So we are good on the frest chlorinated water. Keep in mind the wet lands are not far. Wetlands by nature have water, ducks, mosquitoes (despite the small mosquito eating fish, city adds more in every summer). They also have several birds of prey.

*What exactly am I feeding Pat? * I can put the food next to the drain pipe on the sidewalk. Pat should be able to see it when he takes his morning bath.


I have the linseed for finches and the black safflower seeds for the bigger birds. I pretty much avoid any seeds that sprout ugly weed all over the place. But for Pat, I could make a small exception.


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

Pat would be very happy with millet, safflower, lentils, peas, small uncracked corn, stuff that they sell for doves over at the local petsmart. I feed the doves in the driveway and in a part of my yard that gets so much sun nothing grows (so all those little bird feet pounding on the yard don't make much of a difference, but I know what you mean about the yard getting beat up  ). 
You might get some of that already shelled bird seed or some of the sunflower chips. Less mess for you to clean up after, although doves and pigeons are very neat eaters. They just scarf it down and don't seem to shell their seeds unlike most of the other birds. I think you can either scatter it on the ground or put it in a dish. If he's learned to peck and pick up the seeds, scattering them works fine. If he's still a bit of an amatuer, then the dish will be easier -- not to mention that they love to wade in their seeds  
If Pat hasn't come down from the roof yet, you might want to put the seeds pretty close to the area he stays in.
I had some pigeons visiting for awhile and they were very careful before they would come down and eat so it might take a little time.


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Thanks, actually Pat is my third baby pigeon. My first two were when I was in high school. The painters came to paint the outside of the house and found pigeons. The cleaned out the nest and the babies. The babies were about 3-4 weeks old. Not very strong fliers. My dad actually raised pigeons in China, not sure why, could be for food or sending messages. He showed me how to feed them by hand and we just put the whole seed in the pigeon's mouth. Cupertino was rural back then and he actually got pigeon food for me. Bascially the pigeons were mine. He showed me what to do and then it was up to me. After about 2 or 3 week, the pigeons had all their flight feathers. We took the two birds to the park with lots of other pigeon and let them go. My two pigeons just disappeared into the mob. 

In this case, at least I don't have to hand feed Pat. My neighbor says that Pat has been hanging around in her front yard near her water drain too. I threw some safflower seed there too. And in a handing plate in my maple tree in the front yard.


----------



## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

I'm sure Pat would appreciate a small pile of seeds in an inconspicuous place. Wouldn't do for your neighbors to start complaining! You don't want to overdo as he will find his own food too.

Best of everything...please keep us updated about Pat... 

Hugs and Scritches... 

Shi
& Mr. Squeaks


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

I put out some seed, I can't tell if he ate any or not. I am guess it might take Pat a while.

I think Pat has been without his parents for at least a few day. 
*Is correct to assume that Pat is finding food somewhere? 
How long can Pat live without food? *


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

Let's hope Pat has been finding munchies on his own -- but if he hasn't ventured down from your roof since the folks skipped town, he's probably running on empty by now and will need some help to get going. But if he's been making the neighborhood rounds for water, he's probably finding something to eat. Now if everyone keeps their yard mowed to the regulation 1/2 " high and no one feeds the birds, then groceries may be a bit hard to come by until he figures out to go where the doves go to eat. 

Birds have a pretty high metabolism (I'm jealous  ) and they don't have a lot of reserves at that age. I would think that 3 or 4 days w/out food & water would be about all Pat could stand before starting to decline, especially if it's getting pretty toasty up on the roof and he's not found much in the way of food. But we won't go there yet.


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

2 out of 5 household feeds the birds here. When Pat gets spooked, Pat flies over a few streets, disappears and sneaks back. So Pat could see other bird feeders if Pat was looking for them. The neighbors across the street water their lawn in the evening, so Pat takes a drink there. There is a big rock area with lots of weeds, so I think he gets something there, not sure what. I threw seeds everywhere between my side of the street and the other. I throw seeds on the first story roof, half fall down, some stay up. Pat doesn't seem to venture far unless spooked.

*Would it help if I rattled Pat's cage with Mr. Webster a bit more? Or would that make things worse?* The kids in the neighborhood tell me everyday when they see Pat so that I know Pat is still around. 

Pat has been cleaning house I think. I found Pat's egg shells on the driveway. Very thin shells. I think the shell are thin because the chick gets the calcium from the shells to make their bones. 


Thanks for all your help, Letitia


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Hi again, here is Pat. Does Pat look good?


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

*Pat looks beautiful*

Nice job, reluctant mom  

Pat is turning into a lovely pigeon. I think you're doing well with Pat and giving him what he needs. He'll probably be reluctant to go too far unless a flock of pigeons comes his direction. Then he'll probably get caught up into the flock and learn from them. You'll miss him when he finally graduates.

I certainly enjoy hearing about Pat.


----------



## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

Pat looks wonderful. You did a great job with him.

Reti


----------



## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Pat is a good looking pigeon, but he is not a youngster. He has a well developed watel/cere (white above his beak)


----------



## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

Trees Gray said:


> Pat is a good looking pigeon, but he is not a youngster. He has a well developed watel/cere (white above his beak)


Wow, Treesa, you are really thorough, I didn't notice the white wattle.
You're right, this is not a youngster.

Reti


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Hi, I was able to find Pat Glover. To prevent confusion, I will call Pat Glover Ms. Glover. Ms. Gover does bird rehab and generally has 70-100 babies of all sorts and shapes (they only got 1 magpie in this year). We met when a finch flew in my hands and I took care of it and gave the finch up to Ms. Glover to put in an aviary and then released. Well I finally found Ms. Glovers phone number after much searching through my house. 

In Ms. Glover's opinion, she says that it is strange that the parents disappeared without Pat. Ms. Glover thinks that something happened to the parents. Ms. Glover says that Pat will want to search for a flock and then I will be pigeonless and sad.

On another subject, my neighbor pointed out that cats get on all the roofs here. When I had a cat, the neighborhood cats got on my roof when my cat meowed. And yes, a cat could get to Pat. If Pat doesn't meow and make a lot of noise, I think the neighborhood cats will ignore Pat. Ms. Glover said to leave Pat where he is on my roof. If I kick Pat off my roof, Pat may not find shelter from the 95oF heat now. The summer is only going to get hotter.

It is stressful having a teenager.

Pat is still flying around and drinking from the water runoff. I am putting a bowl of seed out and a bowl of water out for Pat. Soon people are going to fertilize and I don't want Pat to drink the water running down the street.


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

I think Pat is 6-7 weeks old, will that coincide with the wattle?

Letitia


----------



## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

letitiashen said:


> I think Pat is 6-7 weeks old, will that coincide with the wattle?
> 
> Letitia


Hi Letitia,

I think at about 3 months when they sport such a nice wattle.


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

*Handsome*

Regardless of Pat's age -- (and he could be a physically advanced teen  ) he still needs some friends (people) in the neighborhood.

You can set out a deepish dish or saucer of water along with Pat's food. If fresh water is there, he's less likely to go for the "enriched" water flowing into the gutter. Moving water tends to attract birds so if you have a way to make your water move perhaps Pat will be lured to drink from the best  
(they sell water wiggling devices (not the Whamo version  ) at bird and pet food stores)

Believe me, if Pat leaves, you will be pigeon-less and sad. And we love hearing about Pat. It certainly brings a smile to my heart.


----------



## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

Trees Gray said:


> Hi Letitia,
> 
> I think at about 3 months when they sport such a nice wattle.


My youngest young bird from this year is 3 1/2 months old and to the untrained eye, they look like an adult. And my 4 1/2 month old cock birds think and look like they are GROWN!!


----------



## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Well....from my own birds... it's usually after three months ...give or take a week they start to look like that.


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

My goodness can time have passed that quickly. Wow. Letitia


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Hi, today I saw another Pigeon eating up Pat's seed on the sidewalk. Pat was in his corner and flew out to the neighbor's house to see what was going on. The visiting pigeon then flew to the neighbor's house too. Both Pigeons watched me watching them. Then Pat flew back to his corner on my house. The visiting Pigeon flew away. I don't know if the visiting pigeon is related to Pat or not. The visiting Pigeon had more white on its back. More striking.

Attached are a few more pictures of Pat. Could Pat be one of the parents and not the kid? Letitia


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

*Love those Pat updates*

Maybe Pat is exchanging gossip. I'm glad that there is at least another pigeon for Pat to talk to. 
If Pat has been up on your roof all that time, more than likely Pat might be the young 'un. You just might not have noticed him when he was really small. 
Birds can hide pretty darned well when they want. There's doves, finches, jays, flickers -- all kinds of birds that live in the trees and shrubs at my house, but I'll be darned if I can ever find one of their nests. The only nests I ever see are those darned pesky squirrels that make their nests out of the stuffing they swipe from my outdoor chair cushions -- white fluff everywhere. They even try and dismantle my cat's sleeping area  , sneaky critters.


----------



## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

I have a definite squeaker, fully feathered, who still has the non-white cere (new thread to be posted at another time). He(?) looks like an adult.

When I found Mr. Squeaks, he was only about 30 days old and a squeaker (hence his name! ). I could NOT believe he was SO young because he looked like a FULL grown bird...a BIG full grown bird! He's a racing homing pigeon and, I swear, must have been bred for LONG DISTANCES!  

Over 3 years later, he's still a hefty guy, although nowadays he _runs_ instead of flies!  

Shi


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Hi Shi, I am assuming that your avatar is Mr. Squeaks. The visiting Pigeon looked a lot like Mr. Squeeks. Do Racing home pigeons breed with wild ferral pigeons?

Yes I was hoping that Pat would socialize with the visitor, but alas, Pat was keeping his distance from the visitor. 

Letitia


----------



## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

letitiashen said:


> Hi Shi, I am assuming that your avatar is Mr. Squeaks. The visiting Pigeon looked a lot like Mr. Squeeks. Do Racing home pigeons breed with wild ferral pigeons?
> 
> 
> Letitia


Yes, they certainly do. A pigeon is a pigeon and will breed with any pigeon.

Reti


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Hi, here is a picture of Pat and the visitor. The visitor is on the left, and Pat is on the right. As you can see, Pat isn't being too social. But at least he is closer to the visitor than yesterday. When the coast is clear Pat returns to his room in the attic. And the visitor returns to eating the seeds on my driveway. I wish I had put Pat in preschool when he was younger, then his social skills would be better. 

Letitia


----------



## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

Well, don't give up hope! Pat may be young AND shy...or just SHY...  

Let's see what time does. Bet he gets more interested as he gets older!  

Hugs and Scritches

Shi
& Mr. Squeaks
(Yes, that's Squeaks, the Caped One (a.k.a. Flight Suit) in my Avatar)


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

*I love Pat!!*

Pat in preschool. LOL!!  
They both look like they need the practice. 
Oh, boy!


----------



## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

letitiashen said:


> Do Racing home pigeons breed with wild ferral pigeons?
> Letitia



Hi Letitia,

Pigeons do not discriminate against race, color, or ethnic origin, they are smart birds.


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Here is an update. My neighbor, Erica, across the street where Pat gets his evening drinks has been befriending Pat. Erica has the amazing ability to make Pigeon cooing sounds. I am in awe. Well, when Erica coos at Pat, Pat coos back. Do both girl and boy pigeons coo? I heard that only boy pigeons coo. Well Pat let Erica get within 10 feet before flying off. Pat doesn't let me get that close to him because I usually have an evil webster. 

The visiting pigeon at one point tried to have a sleepover with Pat. Well, no sleep overs until Pat is grown up. So, the webster got to work and the visitor flew away. Pat sleeps every night in his room alone. I sprinkle seed out on my drive way, sidewalk, and Erica's sidewalk where Pat gets his evening drink. After a few days, the seeds are all gone and I put more seed out. I know the visiting pigeon eats the seeds, I just have never seen Pat eat the seeds. 

I think Pat is increasing his territory to more than my roof, neighbor's roof, and across the street at Erica's. A couple of times I was checking to see if Pat was in his room and he wasn't. I didn't see him anywhere. I got worried. In the evening, Pat was back in his room. Then I was relieved. 

When Pat grows up and flies away, I hope he comes to visit. I think I will continue to throw seed on my driveway.

Letitia


----------



## flitsnowzoom (Mar 20, 2007)

Leave the evil webster home when you talk to Pat  . I'm so glad you're making sure there are no sleepovers until Pat is much much older. Pat seems like he is very happy at your place and he has lots of people entertainment.

I hope Pat continues to visit once he is on his own. 


Adventureous Pat always brings a smile to my days.


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

If Pat coos, does that indicate if Pat is a girl or boy? Letitia


----------



## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

letitiashen said:


> If Pat coos, does that indicate if Pat is a girl or boy? Letitia



Well, Letitiashen, unfortunately, some females can mimic males and vice versa, or so I've read on this site...

The consensus seems to be: if the pigeon lays an EGG, then you KNOW you have a HEN. To our knowledge, no male has yet laid an egg!! 

I guess we will just have to wait and enjoy Pat and his "friend" for now. 

Of course, we will all be watching for more (provocative) updates! Keep 'em comin'!

BTW, Squeaks is now in "mate" mode. Follows me everywhere and moans (coos are probably in there somewere too!) up a storm!  

Hugs and Scritches to ALL

Shi & Squeaks.


----------



## Margarret (May 3, 2007)

Alas, both sexes coo and spin and make all kinds of pigeon noises. Most of the time it is the male who does the head down, spin in circles and cooing. But my hens do it too, especially when they are being provocative and trying to get the attention of a desired male. As Mr Squeaks said, an egg is the definitive indicator of sex. All other behavior is seen in both sexes. Pigeons are really into equality for the sexes except when the male starts driving the hen. How old is Pat now?

Margarret


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

I am guessing that Pat is around 8 weeks old. Pat seems very unsure of himself. When he is on the ground and I see him, he stares back at me for a long time. I talk to Pat nicely, but Pat either stares at me or flies off. When the visitor is on the ground and sees me, the visitor looks at me, pecks at the seeds, bobbles his head, walks around a bit, etc. 

I will let ya all know if a fresh egg comes rolling out.
Letitia


----------



## letitiashen (Jun 9, 2007)

Well, the visiting pigeon is around so much that we decided to call him or her Tracy. I do believe that Pat is Tracy's baby because I saw Pat eating something out of Tracy's mounth the other day. 

It is 100oF out and Tracy is sitting and cooing in the sun on top of our roof, with Pat in his room. I think Tracy is crazy. Later in the evening Tracy is in Pat's room. Tracy and Pat are seen eating the seeds I put out and drinking sprinkler water. Pat is still very unsure of himself and skidish. 

As far as I can tell, Tracy does not spend the night with Pat. I am not sure where Tracy goes to spend the night.

Letitia


----------

