Pigeon behaviour

hi frnds,

iam having 5 pigeons. how can we know a pigeon is ready to lay eggs? what all changes will happen to its behaviour? can anyone help me?

Hi Adarsh, and welcome to the forum!

One of the first signs is that they start collecting materials to make a nest, but some couples start doing this many days before.

Do your pigeons have access to grit and sunshine? This is very important for them to produce good eggs.

thanks for the reply..

only litlle sunlight.. and its also not direct..

i hav another problem. i had a lonely male, so i bought a female for his company. but they fight wen i put them together. is there any season for a pigeon to start mating? if not can u help me by sayin some tips of how can i make the male mate that female?

Hi Adash,

There isn't a season for kept pigeons to mate -- they get food and shelter all year round, so they mate all year round, but more frequently in the spring and summer.

However, there is a technique for introducing pigeons so that they get used to each other and don't fight:

1) First they must be placed so that they can hear, but not see, each other. This is usually done by putting them in cages, or other housing, next to each other but with a solid partition wall. This way they will hear each other's voices and become accustomed to that sound.

2) When they both spend a lot of the time next to the partition wall, like they want to walk through it, replace it by a pannel that allows them to see each other, made of metal bars or a wire mesh (but not chicken wire, that can cause nasty injuries to pigeons; the best is made up of plastic-covered wire forming small squares).

3) When they spend a lot of the time 'talking' to each other and wanting to be together, it's the right time to remove the last obstacle and let them be together.

Occasionally there can be cases of domestic violence, even when you've taken all the precautions. Some males are just quite aggressive. When that happens, I remove the male and put him in solitary for a couple of hours until he's cooled down. If he does it again, he gets solitary for a little longer. Eventually he'll act like he's sorry (even if it's only that the mating instinct is stronger than his bad mood) and bows to the female and coos to her. When she 'forgives' him by cooing softly, bowing back, or grooming his face, all is well again.

Having said that, it's not common for females to fight back against a male. Are you absolutely sure the new pigeon is a female? Has she ever laid eggs?
If that's the case, and she had another mate until recently, it can take her a long time to consider having another mate. Pigeons mate for life, and when one loses a partner they feel depressed, even aggressive sometimes.

PS. You can't make "the male mate the female" if she doesn't accept him. It's a two way thing.

thanks.

yeah i am sure its a female because i bought it from my friend where she had laid eggs and also she had a mate there. Her mate was sold i think. So how much it wil take her o accept a new partner??

I have another problem with the male i just said.

I started this with 2 pigeons 3 months ago(one which i said above and another one). At first i had 2 pigeons and i thought it were male and female since they spend the whole 3 months in a single cage. One day morning i found them fighting each other for the cage and at that day i found out that they were males. i also saw the male (which i said above) climbing top of the other pigeon and kissing him and all. what is the reason for this behaviour?

When your hen lost her mate she felt like a widow, and she needs time to recover from that. Birds can feel unhappy and depressed, just like people, and they are often a lot more loyal than humans.

It's a shame the person who sold you the hen separated the pair, because if you had been able to buy both of them, you would have had lots of eggs by now, and happy pigeons too.

As for the males' behaviour, that sort of thing can happen when you have two males together in a very small space and no females. The same often happens in prisons, I believe.

thanks for the reply.

so you are saying the behaviour of the male pigeon will not change??

how can i make the male pigeon change its behaviour??

also how can i make the female pigeon like the new male pigeon??

ADARSH VIMAL wrote:

thanks for the reply.

so you are saying the behaviour of the male pigeon will not change??

how can i make the male pigeon change its behaviour??

also how can i make the female pigeon like the new male pigeon??

Teresa has given you good advice, but you don't seem to be listening. You are asking a lot of questions on how you can make him do this or make her do that. You don't make birds do anything. If you handle them in the right way, and make things nice for them, the way they want, then you may get them to do what you want. In this case mating. But you cannot force birds to do what you want. As Teresa has already told you, you don't just put them together and expect them to want each other. Your friend broke up the pair. They choose a mate, and stay together for a lifetime normally. When you broke that pairing up, you messed them up. She probably doesn't want another male. She feels bonded to her original male. Some pigeons can take a long time to get over that. You have got to put yourself in the place of the pigeons. They are not inanimate objects. They have feelings and needs. You need to try again with them and introduce them slowly. Let them take their time getting to know each other. Then she may except him. Or she may not. IF not, then try slowly
with another hen. Taking care of them, and breeding them takes time and patience. You may need to learn patience. Give them time, and you will probably get them to mate up. I cannot stress strongly enough how important it is to be patient. If they are fighting, then they should not be put together, as the male can really injure her. Start over again, only this time put them in 2 different cages beside each other until she starts acting as though she is interested in him. Let us know how it goes.

sorry. i didnt mean to be hard. thanks for giving me valuable advice. iam new to this field, maybe thats y i lack patience.

i hav good news. the male climbed over the female today morning. so is this the sign that the female liked the male?

And for a successful intercourse does the female also have to climb over the male pigeon?

Well, it seems that luck is on your side and they've decided they like each other!

yeah.. And now i have to buy another female pigeon for my lonely male one. He is very desperate and i feel sad when i see him.


Wen the female is about to lay eggs can we feel the eggs in her stomach??

ADARSH VIMAL wrote:

yeah.. And now i have to buy another female pigeon for my lonely male one. He is very desperate and i feel sad when i see him.


Wen the female is about to lay eggs can we feel the eggs in her stomach??

She will only produce one egg at a time, with 2 days between them. Just before she lays you should be able to feel one egg.

ok thanks.. after successful mating how many days will the female pigeon take to lay eggs?

I think it's about 9 days, but I don't let mine raise babies, so perhaps someone else can confirm.

y u don't let them raise babies? u raise pigeons for pigeon racing?

No, I don't raise them, I just rescue them, and only keep the ones that can't fly and the rescued babies that get used to living in the house and don't want to go away!
Even if I had enough room to raise pigeons, which I don't, it would not be permitted in the middle of the city.

Buttercup is eatting and drinking on his or her own. I clean buttercups perch and buttercup is fine with that, but it not okay for me to try to put anything on the perch or buttercup nips at me... Is this territorial behavior, anyway I am wondering how do I know if buttercup loves me? She seems to talk to me and least I think he or she does when I come into visit with him or her..... it is a kind of quite type talking and sometimes buttercup is confortable enough to lay down on her perch when I am in the same room. Plus I can get very close and spend a lot of time talking to her.... I do not know buttercup's sex.... yet... Buttercup lives in my bathroom and I am wondering how do peigons show their affect to people and can I safety pick buttercup up without it seem like a threat to her... I would also like information on how to introduce a bath to buttercup? I do not want to push buttercup to do anything... Just hoping that Buttercup understands that I am only trying to help make her life better. Thanks
Amina I am also amazed at how Cleo my cat notices Buttercup, but not attack... I am glad my family gets along so well. I was going to let Buttercup go when he or she got stronger, but now I think that Buttercup likes it here. I clean her perch and I have put her a hand's legnth away from her perch and she seems to know that is where she wants to be.... as buttercup feels safest in that spot. I don't know why... Thanks Love and light. Amina

Buttercup for what ever reason either can't fly or is not flying- possibly not strong enough to fly. I just know that she does not live in a cage and yet is not flying around in the batheroom or my apartment. Any explainations.

Hi Amina,

When you say Buttercup has a perch in the bathroom, what's the set-up like, does she (Let's just say 'she' for convenience) fly up to it at all, or is it low enough so she can jump or climb? It's been 12 days since you first posted about her ( http://www.pigeonangels.com/t3057-i-am-a-new-mommy-i-have-a-male-peigon-and-found-him-buttercup ) so she should be old enough to have started flying. Any idea of her age? If not, a photo would help.
And what arrangement do you have for the window now? Do you have a mesh that can be fitted over it so she can get some direct sunshine but not be at risk from predators or from the dangers of getting out without being able to fly?

As for showing affection, very young babies brought up in captivity usually get very affectionate, older ones that have learned 'pigeon ways' from their parents, not nearly so much, but you can encourage that if you mean to keep her. Treats are a great idea, especially shelled sunflower seeds and bits of raw, unsalted, peanuts. Once they get a taste for them, pigeons love them, but they should only have them in small quantities because they have a high fat content.
Talking to Buttercup, being in her company, are great too. Remeber to keep your voice low and soothing, and approach her slowly, and below her eye level -- pigeons freak up a bit when something or someone approaches them from above! See if she will let you tickle under her beak and behind the eyes.
If you need to pick her up and she doesn't like the idea, dim the lights right down (pigeons usually stay still when it's dark) and pick her up very gently.

About baths, all you need to do is provide her with a little swimming pool! An empty cat litter tray with one or two inches of water is perfect.
Some pigeons, even young ones, know exactly what to do and jump straight in, even without being taught. Others need a little encouragement: if she will stand on your hand, just slowly lower your hand into the water, until her feet are in it. You can agitate the water a bit with your other hand, so she feels the water lapping at her feet.
Those who don't seem interested can be picked up and stood in the water. They may jump out, and if so try again. Whatever happens, there's no need for stress, there's always another day,and she'll eventually get the idea and splash away of her own accord.

The thing with pigeons, and most other pets, is not to force the issue. Patience and gentleness are the key, and trust will eventually follow.

Your Cleo seems a very classy cat! It's brilliant that she's friendly to other animals, but I agree with you that it's best to play safe. My three cats are very friendly too, but I keep them out of the room when the pigeons are exercising, because stuff can happen, and it's better to be safe than sorry!

Thank-you for the reply. The set is a wire grid is attached to the wall that holds baskets for my batheroom towels.
Buttercup is using one of the baskets that I have lined with a towel and folded one end of the towel like a pillow like perch that she lays or stands on. The basket is high on the wall near a window, but the window has a screen. I open up the window so that buttercup can get some fresh air and light. When I get wake up and get home from work I open up the door and turn on the light and change the towel if it needs it. I am not sure if I should buy her a huge wicker cage or what. I would like to take her into the main room of my apartment, but still be safe from Cleo. I will send a picture. She is not a baby and should be able to fly, but has not taken to flying even in the batheroom.
Thank-you for the suggestions. Amina

I want to keep her but my landlord is anti peigon and I don't want get kicked out of SF apartment. At the same time I hoping to help Buttecup and I am not sure why she is not flying when she has plenty of freedom.
Any rules that I can be aware of about peigons/ pets and SF laws/ rules landlords.

Today I opened to widow wide open and put Buttercup infront of it and she would not fly out so I guess she is staying at her new home. Today she let me pet her under her beck, but at first she pecked at me and then stopped, so I pet her for a bit more and then I backed off. I learned also today she can fly by taking her off her perch and putting her on the curtain rod. Buttercup flu back to her perch and stayed there. She never flys away from her perch and I don't know why. Probably a stupid response, but I don't know much about peigon behavior. Thanks Amina

I wouldn't open the window to see if she will fly out, for as long as there's any doubt about her flying abilities. If she can fly just a little but not enough to escape a predator and manage to live a normal pigeon life outside, she won't survive long out there.
If your landlord is anti-pigeon you may need to find a permanent home for Buttercup. Laws regarding pigeons change from area to area in the US, so a local animal organisation would be the best to give you the information you need. Try Mickacoo Pigeon and Dove Rescue, even easier if you are on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/groups/160198601451/