Once pigeons have had sex....

Heaven knows jingl!
Perhaps she's just enjoying the sun in peace and quiet before her OH comes back

Yes, that's it! I know just how she feels, DBH is back at work today. It's bliss. I'm just sitting here, chilling, meandering occasionally, trying to do nothing without feeling guilty...

I didn't think they ever actually stopped having sex from what I've seen going on in my garden . They're worse than penguins in that respect [and that's saying something...]

I've seen them just flop down onto the grass, wings spread out from exhaustion, on occasion. I always thought it was the male!

They are the most flirtatious birds! The collar doves run them a close second and I can't help wondering if the pair that arrived on my bedroom window sill (outside) this morning were scouting around for a likely nesting site.

How nice to see a thread about pigeons that isn`t condemning the poor, and in my mind, beautiful things to a horrid death, hardly anyone seems to like them, but it`s not their fault that they aren`t as healthy and hygienic as they should be, or that they exist at all.

And they taste delicious!

I have to admit to nursing one with a poorly wing for days, then a week later, spotting the ravages to my purple sprouting broccoli, dispatched DBH to go and shoot as many as possible. He did look a bit at the time! But I explained that it was a bit like taking in a poor stray in from the storm and then have them steal from you. Not that I would normally shoot soggy light-fingered house guests. But the thought would be there.

A different bird but on Saturday we found a chaffinch sitting just outside our kitchen door - we walked very near to it and it didn't 't move. On close inspection we could see that he had some sort of growth on a foot - across all toes. OH went out and picked it up - bird just let him do it - we then decided to put Aloe Vera on the foot - so with a blob on his finger OH started applying it and the chaffinch opened out his toes so he could apply it all round and to the bottom of his foot! We put him in a large shallow box and he flew off and perched on a tree. We think it was the chaffinch that has been hoping around feeding for some weeks.

I never see any baby pigeons where do they go?

Neither have I!!! That's odd.

We sometimes see finches with what you describe, Bez in our garden.
This is what the RSPB says:

"Chaffinches are often seen with a parasitic condition known as bumble foot or a fungal attack called 'fur foot'. The infection is not directly fatal but it can cause a loss of agility and make the individual vulnerable to predators."

Grandson, when he was eight, went into a butchers whilst on holiday, and bought a pigeon. (Oven ready thank God) His dad helped him cook it and he ate it all.

He is such a carnivore!

Oh the poor things.

I think baby pigeons have to stay with their mum till they are quite old as they get some sort of milk from her. I'm questioning my own memory about this but I'm sure I found an orphan pigeon once and when I asked someone who had racing pigeons for suitable food they said it wouldn't survive cause it needed it's mum.

Breast fed pigeons!

Yes I can see that but for instance we get loads of baby birds all fluttering and demanding food from mum and dad but never pigeons? So do they stay in the nest until adult - sounds a bit like my son

The female regurgitates cereal and grass after it has been stored in the pigeon's crop. It's partially digested and looks a bit milky.

I love the thought of a breast fed baby pigeon.

I was wondering how the babies get their beaks through all the feathers.

Just googled it and they call it 'crop milk' which is where I got the 'milk' bit from. But it sounds as though it's very difficult to make a substitute for it if the baby bird is orphaned as there are special secretions from the mother bird in it and it also has to be a certain temperature. Flamingoes do it as well.

The big fat woodpigeons that literally trudge around my garden are lucky I am a veggie, or I might be inclined to take a pot shot!

We never see them until they are young, streamlined teenagers. We do have permanent residents, but of course as each generation grows up, they try to come home and nest in the area. That is not approved of and they are driven away, we see them sadly cooing in the cherry tree, looking mournfully towards their old homes. After a week or so they give up, but it is quite sad.

I know no-one has posted on this thread for a month or so, but does anyone know anything about homing pigeons? We have had one in our garden for almost two weeks when bad weather forced it down. It has a ring on its leg. I had hoped that once it had dried out and had a meal from my bird table, it would continue on its way, but no. It seems quite happy to feed alongside the resident woodies and collareds. I phoned the Royal Racing Pigeon Association who said remove all food sources and see if you can catch it to get the number off its ring! As if! To add insult to injury, today we have another feral pigeon who seems to want to hang out with our visitor. I can see a trend developing here which I am anxious to discourage before my patio starts to resemble Trafalgar Square! Any ideas?

You have encouraged him to be a garden bird. I would go along with removing all food sources, but not the catching bit! (eurgh)

I guess there are plenty of insects about for the other birds now.