killing pigeons

[The Daring Dufas]

A friend of mine put up a "scare owl" on top of his building. When he climbed up to look, he found a pigeon screwing the scare owl.

TDD

[SteveB]

I know you are a smart reasonable man. It's just that I am smarter and more reasonable (and experienced with pigeons).

So, here's my take on being a contractor where I was called on for pigeon control.

First major point is that killing them is not the answer. If you could miraculously eliminate EVERY SINGLE pigeon there now, more would move back in by sunset tomorrow.

Three things are necessary.

ONE Remove all nests and nestlings from wherever they are now. Parents will always come back to babies, and new couples will be attracted to the scent of nests.

TWO Clean as much as you can the nesting area, using bleach, 409, Soylent Green, Whatever you can use that will clean somewhat, but not leave big streaks that are more unsightly then the nests.

THREE Block off the nesting areas. Netting, hardware cloth, sheet metal, whatever. They really do not want a perch, which only makes them pests for the day. They want nesting sites that make them pests for weeks. They're apartment shopping.

I have gotten rid of major infestations of pigeons. If you study pigeon behavior, it is the nesting part of it that is the lynchpin. Eliminate that, and you may have some stopping by for a while (and that will diminish with time), but the nest is the KEY element. Block off the access to the nests, and the pigeons will go elsewhere. It can be a PITA and a couple of weeks work, but two years down the line, and you look up there, and there's no pigeons, you will know you did the right thing. THEY'RE NOT LOOKING FOR A PERCH, THEY'RE LOOKING FOR AN APARTMENT.

MHO from years of dealing with pigeons. YMMV, let me know how it works.

Steve

[SteveB]

Rice? The stuff commonly available to birds in any state where rice is readily available? That rice? It is a common food that has no effect on birds. If so, the EPA in its infinite wisdom would have shut down all rice farming in the world.

Rice? What have you been smoking? Do yo have any left?

Steve

[SteveB]

Yeah. Have lots and lots and lots and lots and lots of dead pigeons laying around. And then someone calls the law. Then the law calls the feds. You want to get hooked up with EPA and State Wildlife?

I didn't think so.

Steve

[SteveB]

[SteveB]

Killing them isn't the answer. It's just like evicting the current population and then putting up the sign,

HOUSING AVAILABLE

[SteveB]

Most worthless thing there is. Unless you're selling them, that is.

Steve

[Kurt Ullman]

I think this is an outgrowth of the urban legend or whatever that lead to weddings using soap bubbles instead of rice throwing because it allegedly expanded in the birds causing them to explode. I know that after our wedding we had a bunch of problems with starlings blowing up.. but that was probably more related to my sociopathic best man and his affinity for M-80s (grin). The Snopes stuff on this is at

[Nicole Bischoff]

Just tell the EPA and wildlife that Stacey Chuffo spread her legs and all the pigeons dropped dead.

[Stormin Mormon]

I do believe it's possible for rice to expand in the bird's stomach. However, most people don't have the patience to raise a pot of water to rolling boil, and spend 9 to 11 minutes boiling the bird.

[Stormin Mormon]

My father tried one time to get the squirrel out of his bird feeded. He did trap and release. He describes it as trying ot make a hole in the ocean by bailing from one side of the boat to another.

Your description is excellent, also.

[Nicole Bischoff]

Ain't that the truth.

[Oren]

Never found a study on exploding birds, but Cornell University (lab of ornithology) states:

"If birds eat uncooked rice, can it swell up in their throats and stomachs and kill them?"

"Lots of birds eat uncooked rice in the wild. Bobolinks, sometimes called rice birds, are a good example. While rice is okay for birds, many wedding parties now throw bird seed instead."

Even bird watchers debunk these myths.

"You should not throw rice at the bride and groom at weddings because birds eat it and it swells up in their stomach and kills them. Sometimes the myth goes that it causes them to explode."

"Not true. If it were, there would be exploding bird stories all over the national press every June. Think about it. Lots of birds feast in rice fields every year, irritating rice farmers to distraction. If eating rice caused birds to explode, most rice fields would look like a popcorn machine in the harvest season, with little puffs and explosions providing constant entertainment. Quite a vision, and one that the press would never miss."

"And there is no difference between rice in fields and rice in bags from the supermarket. Birds have no trouble digesting rice, or any other "expanding" vegetable. I am all in favor of throwing birdseed at weddings, which is what proponents of this myth urge as a solution. I like the symbolism of throwing birdseed. But rice is fine, too."

Essentially, those comments support Snopes, ime.

[Oren]

Not true in all surveys. Girls don't fart, they "fluff".

[jeff_wisnia]

This may not be germane, but when SWMBO and I were in Quebec City about six years ago we learned that they were aiming at keeping the pigeon population under control with feeding stations containing food which didn't kill the pigeons, but made them sterile so they couldn't breed new generations.

I have no idea if it worked or not.

Jeff

[Oren]

This is true. Prison officer heard a noise in the cell block clothes drier. He went to investigate and found that a Cuban prisoners was tumbling a pigeon in the dryer (cooking). I can imagine it sounded like tennis shoes tumbling around.

The Frenchastans and Quackastanes like pigeon.

[Red Green]

Oren wrote in news:m9bp651ojbb250jb44j8skj84h9t6d0bi0@

4ax.com:

And that's not always true. My ex ripped one once in an Ames (K-Mart type store) and it rattled the bottles on the shelf. Of course, I immediately disowned her and bolted elsewhere.

This should have been a sign that things would not go well in the future :-(

[SteveB]

Probably be a breath of fresh air compared to that pie hole of yours.

[SteveB]

It DOES work, but all the pigeons do not ingest the bait. And then new pigeons are arriving sans green cards every day. So, it does reduce the number of pigeons, but doesn't do much about their nasty living habits.

Steve

[HeyBub]

"[GINZA, Japan] At last count, the city has exterminated 105,392 crows, with an estimated 21,200 still at large. Most were caught in traps baited with mayonnaise or lard."