# First time father problems?



## BHenderson (Sep 8, 2011)

"Baby" and "Blondie" have hatched their first pair of pigeons, after three attempts where the eggs were abandoned because Baby would not do his part when Blondie came out for a break.
All seems well, except some strange behavior by Baby. I never got past calling him Baby, he is the first baby I ever had and is the son of the first pigeon I rescued "Squeaker".
Baby keeps dragging his throat along the floor backwards as if he is trying to get to an itch that he can't reach. Could this be a side effect of him producing crop milk for the first time?

On another point, I do feel sorry for Gerty, she was a really good mother to Baby, and the way she behaves I think she is at her happiest when she is knocking out one baby after another. Unfortunately Gayser does not look like he is ever going to recover enough from PMV to mount her properly, he just ends up mating with the ground, despite Gerty's attempts to get under him lol. I don't know if she will eventually leave him if he does not mate with her properly? I give her plastic eggs to sit on because Gayser keeps smashing the ones she lays. I am getting a little suspicious of Gaysers behavior in this regard, maybe he had figured out that if he smashes the eggs then Gerty is ready to mate again?

Brian.


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## Dima (Jan 15, 2011)

BHenderson said:


> "Baby" and "Blondie" have hatched their first pair of pigeons, after three attempts where the eggs were abandoned because Baby would not do his part when Blondie came out for a break.
> All seems well, except some strange behavior by Baby. I never got past calling him Baby, he is the first baby I ever had and is the son of the first pigeon I rescued "Squeaker".
> Baby keeps dragging his throat along the floor backwards as if he is trying to get to an itch that he can't reach. Could this be a side effect of him producing crop milk for the first time?
> 
> ...


Gayser is a smart PMV, i hope he doesn't get abandoned by his mate.
What's about Baby dragging the throat on the floor? Can you describe more?


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## BHenderson (Sep 8, 2011)

Yes, I don't want to cause confusion here, although my naming of my birds is not helping. Baby is an adult male who has paired with the white female Blondie that I have. They have two babies not long hatched(still blind) and I guess Blondie has done this before, but I have raised Baby from a baby!!! and this is his first successful hatching. Recently, in the past couple of weeks, I have noticed him suddenly walking backwards and dragging his throat on the floor(thats what it looks like he is trying to do). When he first did this, I thought he was being bitten by fleas because of the sudden way it happened, so I sprayed him with permethrin. It seems to have made no difference and he has started to do it more frequently. It is not PMV season yet, although I suppose an early case is possible? I don't know what to make of it? I thought it might be some kind of crop irritation caused by him producing crop milk for the first time? He does not seem to be showing any other odd behavior, although I have noticed he will do it several times in a row recently. He never does it when he is in a balanced position on the bar or sleeping up high, only when he is on the ground.

As a secondary matter, I have decided I do not think the 1% oil based Ivermectin is a good way to give Ivermectin to feral pigeons. It requires that I catch them, and some of them are more afraid than others and I do not like doing it, plus I am beginning to feel that it is not always effective. I make effort to get it on some pink skin under the feathers but it is hard to do. I would like to treat all the birds simultaneously on the same day and I like the idea of the water soluble Ivermectin that can be administered in drinking water. Can anyone give me a link to the water soluble ivermectin, as I cannot find a water soluble ivermectin that is for pigeons?

Thank you,
Brian.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Ivermectin isn't water soluble. What are you treating them for? Are these loose wild birds?


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## BHenderson (Sep 8, 2011)

Yes it is for feral pigeons. Occasionally I get an outbreak of fleas or I just suspect worms or something. Some of these London birds are living in very rough conditions, little spaces is motorways etc where they get covered in a layer of oil and loose their condition. They then often become vulnerable to parasites of various types. Also as I'm sure you know, birds that are weak and close to dying are often heavily infested. I need a good way to clear all these conditions.

If you do a search on google for 'water soluble Ivermectin' you will find pages on this site and others where people are talking about the use of water soluble Ivermectin. The problem is in none of the articles I have read have I seen a link to an actual product, Unless they are talking about diluting the Ivermectin dip? even if this is correct I would like to be directed to the correct product if I am going to treat the birds this way.

Thank you,
Brian.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Moxidectin plus will kill most bugs in or on the bird, and can be mixed in their drinking water. The problem with doing it that way is that you can't be sure they drank enough of the medicated water. Feral pigeons can just go somewhere else to drink. Don't see how you would treat them without catching them.


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## BHenderson (Sep 8, 2011)

Sorry I haven't made myself clear. I have turned my bedsit into a sort of pigeon hospital. I take in the worst of the birds I see and I often find sick birds hiding in the porch, like someone has told them its a good place to go. I have got used to living with several pigeons here and I also has a baby crow here for a while. I treat many and am able to release most, some like those with long term PMV disabilities end up staying permanently.

I will look at Moxidectin, although I liked the idea of Ivermectin because it is supposed to be hard to do any damage to the bird with it, but I am open to options.

Thank you,
Brian.


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