A few questions (new to this site)

I just got around to joining this forum after being told about it by Floridaluv. I'm still a little rusty at this so hopefully I'm within the guidelines. A couple of months ago I rescued a lost pigeon who now lives in our house (the whole story is on Pigeon-Talk under my username: relford). He seems to be doing fine but I have a couple of questions perhaps someone in this forum has the answer to.

!) Should I clip his nails? They are pretty long and we have a rabbit who's nails must be cut periodically so he can walk properly. Is this an issue with pigeons?

2) He spends his nights sleeping on a perch in the basement and I notice most nights he will coo loudly for short periods of time. I'm a poor sleeper anyway so it doesn't bother me that much, but it's the only time I've ever heard him make a sound. Why does he do it? He doesn't spend much time in a cage so I don't think he's trying to protest his environment. He sleeps on the perch at night and sits on our kitchen stair rail most of his days. We got him some pigeon pants (which work like a charm if anyone needs a testimonial) to keep the mess to a minimum. Is he looking for a mate? I hope he's not lonely because I don't think I'm up for another one.

Thanks in advance to anyone.

Welcome to Pigeon Angels.

I remember Jenn telling me about you and your Pigeon rescue and so I'm glad you are here.
Please do not need to clip the Pigeon's wings although you may need to trim the end of his toe nails periodically but even then...just the tip so to not create a bleed.
Male Pigeons do coo at night and I find it very comforting.
As long as he has time with you and your family, I wouldn't worry about him being alone. Actually though, having a mate seems like more work but it good make things easier for you.
Does he have some natural light ?
We'd love to see a picture.

Hi relford,
Welcome to the wonderful world of Pigeon Angels.

Yes, sometimes pigeon's nails do need to be trimmed. I'm a little gun shy about clipping my bird's nails so I file them. Does you bird have access to a brick that he can stand on? Sometimes this helps to keep the nails trimmed.

As far as the cooing at night, I'm going to have to admit, I really don't know why they do that, since they are supposed to be asleep. But one of mine does that as well as one of my doves.
The pigeon has a mate, however the dove does not.

Others will be along to help us figure that one out.

Hi, and ! Some of my males will coo at night, and I'm always running to the window to see if there is something bothering them. No. They just do that. Getting a mate for your bird really isn't much more work. They entertain each other. And are fun to watch. Sometimes I clip my birds nails, and sometimes I use a tool that was actually made for dogs and cats claws. It's kinda like a dremel, but for pets. It has a sanding thing that files them down. It has an attachment on it that you put their claw in, but I remove that part as their little claws could get caught in it. Just don't cut too much off at a time, or they will bleed and it will hurt him. You can always go back later and remove more if you have to. We love pictures here. Could you post some?

Welcome to the forum!
Cooing at dusk and early morning is ritual most of pigeons perform. Night cooing is mostly males issue I believe part of their territorial instinct and usually occurs when disturbed (can be dreams, noise etc.).
As for the nails, if you place brick, that he can perch on it, they will be naturally trimmed.

I also have a hen that coos at dawn and at some TV programmes -- she likes Stargate Atlantis best, we can't watch a single episode without her having her say!
Because of that cooing I had thought that she was a male... until she laid an egg!

Rob..... ACKKKKKK ... I'm afraid I owe you a proper WELOCME to Pij-n-angels... I'm sorry for not finding this sooner....and a long OVERDUE.....



How is Pudgey doing????

I am so THRILLED you ordered pigeon pants!!!!!!! YIPPIE...