# Help please!! Pigeon stuck 3 floors up in light well....



## QueenMab (Apr 1, 2016)

Hi, after some help please!!

I work in an office; we have a light well that runs up past our office, and there is a wood pigeon stuck at the top. We are 3 floors up. 

The bird has been there for at least 4 days now that we know of and might well have been there over the bank holiday weekend as well. There is an arched plastic covering to the well, so he flies about every now and then trying to get out, but obviously can't. 

There is extremely limited access to the light well; the windows don't open very far and there is no access at all from the roof. There is some piping that runs up the walls, but again no access to climb or anything until at least one floor up (not that it would be safe to do so).

We've tried sort of tapping at the windows, opening the windows and clapping (there's a good echo so we hoped the noise might frighten him down) but all he does is fly from one side of the well to the other and get upset, understandably.

Does anyone have any ideas at all of how we could get him/her out?? I know there are bigger things perhaps to worry about but the thought of this poor bird starving to death when freedom is so close is really sad  All it needs to do is fly down!!! 

Thanks if anyone can help.


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Have you tried putting food and water at the bottom of the light well at night, so he can find it early in rather morning when he is alone? Am just trying to think of a way to entice him down and keep him going. Thank you for caring about him.


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## QueenMab (Apr 1, 2016)

It's difficult really, as the bottom of the light well area (don't know what else to call it) is wide open over a public walk through area, right next to Reception, so there's nowhere really that we could safely put food where he could see it..... As for water it's right next to a koi pond so there's plenty there... 

The light well itself is quite dark, whereas the top with the plastic covering is very light, so there's nothing to encourage him to fly down and out. The roof panels don't open that we can see, even if we could get someone willing to go out on there - I don't know if there's any access.

We're really clutching at straws now, trying to think of ways to get him to fly down 3 floors. We can't scare him down, we can't reach him (even if we could safely get hold of him), there's nowhere really that we can leave food. Someone suggested trying to entice him inside with food, but we've been told that health and safety laws won't allow it, in case we couldn't catch him once he was in the office! I think one of the maintenance guys tried with a mop or something out of the window to sort of dislodge him, but the light well is at least 10 ft across and so the bird just flew to the other side.... and the more panicked he is I guess the more likely he is to injure himself. *sigh*

Daft thing is that if you go outside and look up the well you can see the bird really clearly, there's lots of space, and he even looks down now and then but won't fly down!

Someone has wedged a plastic tray under the window (so it's sort of shut in the window, if that makes sense) with water in it but I don't know if the bird knows it's there.... I really don't know what else we can do. The RSPCA are worse than useless.


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## c.hert (Jan 15, 2010)

Call the fire or police dept --"they might have a good heart" and help you. But call the phone number that is not on a emergency basis...Good Luck to you...


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## CBL (May 13, 2014)

Not really understanding the light well issue, if you can SEE a bottom and there IS one, just toss a handful of seed and a bowl of water there, he can decide to fly down and if it is a 10 foot span all the way down by width I mean then he should be able to navigate it. Also I would give a rats "blass" what health and welfare or whoever had an issue and what is legal or not, I would open that window, entice the bird in and worry about laws later. You would simply be able to pick up the bird at night and carry it outside. Even in day light with a towel, you can catch the bird that must be good and weak by now with not food. Is there a way you can take pictures and post where this bird is and possible escape or capture options. Also if you can get to the top glass, that is lgiht, is this a sky light? Can it be covered to be dark and a light lit at the bottom with seed there and or bread so the bird can SEE the food and the light and go towards it?


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Eventually he will be sick enough and weak enough where he will hit a wall and fall down. Unfortunately you may have to wait till he gets that weak. I know it sounds awful, but if he cannot be gotten any other way..................................................Sometimes you just have to wait.
What is he roosting on?


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## Whytpigeon (Sep 14, 2015)

QueenMab said:


> Hi, after some help please!!
> 
> I work in an office; we have a light well that runs up past our office, and there is a wood pigeon stuck at the top. We are 3 floors up.
> 
> ...


How do you think he got in there? That is the way he has to go to get out. Because it is a wood pigeon and a native species I would call the wild life department or what ever you all call it in the uk and let them know.


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## QueenMab (Apr 1, 2016)

I don't know what else you would call the bit that runs up past the office, but it's really easy to see how it got up there. It's almost like a hollow square in the middle of the office. The bottom of the area is wide open, outside, about a floor up, so I think he's flown along and then just gone up inside it. It's really hard to describe! He was roosting on some pipes that run up inside the open area.

There's no access to the office buildings after 7pm so not possible grab him in the dark.

I went back to the office Friday evening at about 8-ish, as it was getting dark, and put down a load of seed etc on the flagstones underneath the open bit, as well as leaving some in a tub. I have no idea whether it was able to find it.

The bird was gone this morning, so as we don't know for certain what's happened to it, we are choosing to believe that it made its own way out!


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Hope he got out and is doing ok. Thank you for caring about him.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Yes, I hope so too. Thanks for your concern for him.


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