guess what I just won on tombola

[pelly]

Just been to one of the local fetes; came back with 3 pigeons me and the girls won on the tombola; know nothing about pigeons; anyone help; have put them in a spare chicken cage at present;

[Connie]

I'm sure Tina can help with your pigeons....she's a dynamo when it comes to birds ;D She helped an injured Dove recover and she's raising baby finches. She knows a lot more about raising birds than I do, which is, Not Much

[tina]

Hey that is great news. Congrats! Pigeons prefer to be in a large cage so they can spread their wings and flap them. They can be kept singley in a cage as small as 20 inches square, but if you have more then one, you will need a much larger area. Sorry I do not know the metric system.

Are you planning on keeping them indoors or outdoors? How big is your spare chicken cage?

I think you will find that all birds in the pigeon family are very relaxing and fun to keep. You will want to feed them a good wild bird seed mix that includes cracked corn and safflower seeds along with milo and millet and black oil sunflower. They also enjoy sprouted seed, and tiny bits of fruits and veggies, but I would have to look up what kinds are good for them. Only in small amounts of those things. Also you will need to supply the birds with a constant supply of hi cal grit so they can digest their food since they eat their seeds whole.

If you plan to breed them let me know and i can find good info for you if you like.

[pelly]

thanks for help; the cages are about 36ins by 18 ins;maybe bigger; I get 6 chickens in them so they are probably bigger; I'll have to have measure up; one is grey and two are white with reddish brown splodges on them , one has leg tag on it: We will have to keep them outside with all our cats;I bought some wild bird seed today; and also have maize for chickens; Ive got grit for chickens so that may do;I dont know if they are a pair or all the same; they are called BIlly, Weller and Elvis,

[Connie]

I'm SO glad Tina was able to help with your pigeons I knew she would be the only one to go to for help since she knows SO much about Birds

[tina]

Thanks Connie. I have just always had birds in my life, and I always research for more info.

Pelly, the cage you have sounds big enough. You are doing great. They only way to check the bird is to hold it and try to see if you can feel the space between the bones near where the vent on the bird is. A narrow space is a male, a wider space is a female. Sometimes this is not accurate because the female pelvis is very movable due to laying eggs, but females will put out larger droppings then males. Nomally 2 times the size of a males droppings. I hope this helps.

[pelly]

thanks for help; down to two birds now; as I was putting the food in cage; one of the cats jumped up; one of the birds pushed; and managed to get out; he was in the tree most of the day but had gone by morning; We think they were homing pigeons; so hopefully its gone home:

[tina]

OMG that is so sad. I hope he does find his way home.

[Connie]

Ohhh.....me too poor little pigeon