Pigeon's

[DonF]

I keep reading stuff about guy's looking for pigeon's and can't find them. Fellow from WNY is looking for some now but also indicates he's gonna have a loft in the future. He's a smart guy! unless ordinance's where you live don't allow them, why are guy's with bird dog's without them? They are everywhere and relatively easy to catch. Lot's of people raise homer's even if they don't race, good source of birds to start with if your willing to pay. But then a lot of guy's go buy some, don't want a coop and take them home as kill birds only. Why is that? Pigeons are great training birds, not to expensive to keep, have several pair and you'll never have to look for birds again so long as you don't shoot off your breeder's and to keep the number's in line, your going to have to either shoot some off every year, give them away or sell them. They don't require fancy or expensive living space or even a large living space, thrive well on chicken scratch, layer feed even game bird feed if you want to pay for it. Not so sensitive to surrounding as quail can be, don't kill one another as chuckars might do and don't need blinder's like pheasants to keep then from killing each other.

Unless your racing, you don't even need re-entry bob's if you don't want, just a small door you can shut to keep them in when you want to use them. I caught my first pigeons about 25 yrs ago and every feral I have was hatched out right here. Life span of these birds is something like 25 yrs or so I've read and they are very prolific. My homer's were started with six racing birds, three male and three female, from a friend that races. That was a couple years ago and I got a lot of homer's now. Not only that but if I wanted to put breeder's in a separate pen where I could watch young one's better, I could pay for all my birds by selling the surplus off. I have guy's from over 150 miles away calling me for birds and I have no idea who they are or how they got my name and phone number? Tell me, unless you have ordinances against them, why do you guy's spend any time looking for what has to be the easiest bird there is to raise and keep?

in his book, Delmar Smith called them the bird that keeps coming back for more. You wouldn't believe how true that is.

[S&J gsp]

Don the problem I've had is no one wants there birds to go to a dog trainer now that I've got a few I won't shoot any till I have a replacement in a nest.

[ezzy333]

Don the problem I've had is no one wants there birds to go to a dog trainer now that I've got a few I won't shoot any till I have a replacement in a nest.

I have birds I would hate to see shot and I have some that are only good for that. Many of our club members sell late hatches to dog trainers plus there are 2 in the club that are flying birds from the ones they acquired to train with.

Ezzy

[Munster]

City doesnt allow them here. But I put a coop in anyways and I now have 3 solid birds that return from 5 miles away. 6 more that im working on and one bird with ADHD that will probably be a shooter. He always comes back, but never goes in the coop. Instead he goes to the kill pen and sqeezes under the tarp for shelter. :roll:

I guess I will keep the birds until I am told other wise, then play dumb. But as long as I dont et them be a problem, I doubt I will have a problem.

[aulrich]

It is one more thing to think of, and keep track of, though for myself, it’s been sort of fun just getting them going. I started because I just could not find a place where trapping was possible winter kills a lot of them here so there is not huge amounts of feral birds and concentrations seem to always be places where I could not access. I did keep a couple of ferals from training to raise my own shooters, just go to actually pull the trigger on the ones I have now.

One thing I am wondering how long will a guy with one dog need them I don’t think I get him finished for UT testing in August so I am looking at another year for sure. I am not sure how many more dogs I will be training in my lifetime. Mind you I am just nuts enough to raise them for food.

[S&J gsp]

Ezzy I'll be up that way soon the guy sold that coop and birds before I could get there now I'm finishing mine than I'll need something to put in it

[shaneroyce]

I've been feeding and watering 6 young homers that I bought in a rabbit hutch for about a week and a half. The hutch has a door that latches closed. I was thinking of putting in a bob, but would I be ok to just open the door and let them figure out how to get in and out by themselves? I could also put in a temporary separation wall and only let 1 or 2 out at a time. What are the chances that these birds will all home after this amount of time? I'm a newbie, so any advice is great. Thanks!

[cjuve]

I've been feeding and watering 6 young homers that I bought in a rabbit hutch for about a week and a half. The hutch has a door that latches closed. I was thinking of putting in a bob, but would I be ok to just open the door and let them figure out how to get in and out by themselves? What are the chances that these birds will all home after this amount of time? I'm a newbie, so any advice is great. Thanks!

I have had good luck with young birds after having the homers locked up for 2 weeks on free lofting and short tosses(less than a mile). If the birds have flown somewhere else before there may be issues but I have not had that experience, most of the training I do is close to the loft. Put the bobs in it will makes it easier to control the birds exiting the loft.

[Winchey]

I think I am starting to become a pigeon fancier, I am enjoying watching them, probably couldn't shoot any of mine, if I need birds shot for some reason, they will be grouse and woodcock, or quail to keep them from freezing to death.

I actually just acquired a new bird, no clue where he came from, but he homes great, he is wild as heck and much tougher than the others to catch though lol.

Ezzy, what do you mean by having some pigeons that are no good for anything but shooters?

DonF, or anyone who knows, is it really necessary to shoot birds or sell them? It is pretty easy to notice in a small coop when a bird is sitting on eggs, you can just chuck the eggs every 2 weeks or so.

Also has anyone had any luck with those fake pigeon eggs, or ping pong balls or anything to trick the birds?

[ezzy333]

I've been feeding and watering 6 young homers that I bought in a rabbit hutch for about a week and a half. The hutch has a door that latches closed. I was thinking of putting in a bob, but would I be ok to just open the door and let them figure out how to get in and out by themselves? I could also put in a temporary separation wall and only let 1 or 2 out at a time. What are the chances that these birds will all home after this amount of time? I'm a newbie, so any advice is great. Thanks!

I would keep them shut a little longer but when you are ready just open the door and let them all go out if they want. Just don't push them. There is and old theory if you can keep them on the landing board for 30 mins. before they fly they will come back and I have found that is about true. There is no advantage in splitting them up as they do not call each other back to the loft.

Ezzy, what do you mean by having some pigeons that are no good for anything but shooters?

Winchey, You will have birds you don't want for breeders, birds that have maybe been injured, or birds that just don't do well and they should be gotten rid of. You can take eggs away from them but they will lay again in a few days. If you put the wooden eggs under them, they will set on them for about 3 weeks before wanting to lay again. They just make it a lot easier. If I had 2 pens I would separate the hens and the cocks and then fly them on different days.

Ezzy

[Winchey]

I did have one that was a little aggressive, he didn't home back though so I didn't have to shoot him lol.

I am running about 100% success with never flown birds homing after being in the coop a week or two. I think the key is to just open the door every day and let them free fly for a couple weeks. They will roost on the garage, the house, circle the neighbourhood, get a lay of the land and build their strength and get good at flying. After that I have found they will home any reasonable distance.

Also helps that I have a healthy population of crows around that keep the hawks and owls in check.

[cjuve]

It may not be useful to split them up but it is useful to be able to keep the door closed so that if it takes a couple days for the birds to return

[DonF]

Winchy, you got three choices, shoot them, sell them or get run out by them. They are great reproducer's! And the rabbit hutch's, sure that will work. Give the free loader's a decent place to sleep and free food and water and you can't run them off. They do get a bit addictive though. At this point I'd have them around even if I didn't have dogs. I watch some of the different colors I get from my ferals and it's cool. Have some grizzles in the homer's and love them. But when things get to crowded, I shoot them or sell them. I've given away ferals to people that wanted to start their own loft and all but one have done that. Used to sell them to a couple guy's, don't know haw they found me, but shoot no more than I was charging, I can shoot them myself. Some of those guy's that come looking for kill birds act like they are doing me a favor. You guy's with your own birds or getting into your own will never regret it.

[shaneroyce]

It may not be useful to split them up but it is useful to be able to keep the door closed so that if it takes a couple days for the birds to return

I'm interested in what is meant by this statement...educate me please. Thanks!

[Winchey]

He means it is probably better to fly them together, and that it is good to have a small secondary door or trap door incase a bird decides he is gonna take his sweet time coming home, you won't have to leave the main door open risking predators getting in.

[cjuve]

He means it is probably better to fly them together, and that it is good to have a small secondary door or trap door incase a bird decides he is gonna take his sweet time coming home, you won't have to leave the main door open risking predators getting in.

yes

[Stilly Bay]

Don, I wish you would post this in another forum I know of.

[aulrich]

There is a fourth option, squab. personally it beats wooden eggs, though SWMBO is leery of the concept.

But folks on that other site would have kittens over that concept as well

[DonF]

Don, I wish you would post this in another forum I know of.

I will. Where do you want it?

[GodfatherGundogs]

It may not be useful to split them up but it is useful to be able to keep the door closed so that if it takes a couple days for the birds to return

cjuve, your PM is disabled, you will have to call me for the information on the horse trailer. the number is in the ad.