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Post by mynicehome on Oct 30, 2015 22:12:06 GMT -5
Hi dtesposito. , you were after a parakeet and got a pigeon. Teachers come in all shapes and sizes and just when we need them. I'm so happy you've taken this creature in.
Have you had any sightings of the parakeet lately?
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Post by dtesposito on Oct 30, 2015 23:00:07 GMT -5
Hi mynicehome, no, we never saw the parakeet after the second day--I was afraid of that, but I try to hope that he lived somewhere nearby and his owner saw him and lured him back home!
You know, I don't seek out stray animals to help--I probably should, but I don't. But when one literally ends up on my doorstep, I figure that somehow, this one is my responsibility. This is my "meaningful" effort for right now.
Diane
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Post by shellsncheese on Oct 30, 2015 23:06:34 GMT -5
I'm that way with dogs and cats. I always seem to find lost pets. Since I moved to this apartment (4 years) I've had a cat sneak in and refuse to leave, until I found her owners, had 4 dogs approach me while walking my own dog (I took all of them home), helped my neighbor find her dog that escaped the yard, and spent an hour trying unsuccessfully to get a lost dog to come to me.
I think the animals must know who they can trust.
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Post by dtesposito on Oct 30, 2015 23:16:30 GMT -5
I've had a cat sneak in and refuse to leave
Oh, that's so touching! Yes, maybe they can sense by a person's first reaction to them whether or not it's safe to ask for help.
I just read a second pigeon rescue site that talked about domestic pigeons realizing they're in trouble when they find themselves outside, and going to people for help.
Diane
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Post by shellsncheese on Oct 30, 2015 23:41:57 GMT -5
Apparently this cat likes to visit people. The family has since moved out of the neighborhood, but he used to come back to visit.
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Post by hollyhock on Oct 31, 2015 4:57:49 GMT -5
Diane - I'm not sure if this would work as a veggie for your pigeon, but all of my budgies loved fresh spinach leaves. With my former birds, ones that never came to me would land on me if I was holding spinach and many ate it out of my hand. So you might want to try that. My new birds love spinach as well - but they go to it best when I clip a leaf inside the cage. Later on my old birds would eat it out of bowls, but not until they had eaten it from a clip. I also try frozen kernels of corn, or peas. I let them thaw out before I give them. (Or you could give fresh, but this is what I had.) I'm not sure if the birds ate them or played with them, because all would be tossed out of their bowl, and it was hard to see if the veggie dried out or the insides had been consumed. Good luck.
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Post by dtesposito on Oct 31, 2015 11:51:49 GMT -5
Thanks hollyhock, I will try spinach leaves when I have some--I tried a plain piece of iceberg lettuce yesterday, as well as some chopped peanuts (both suggested on a pigeon site) and he ignored both of them. I'm going to give him more time to settle down and try treats again later--he was outside for who knows how long, then in my bathroom, had a traumatic vet visit, and now is in a new cage in a new room. Plus I'm having to handle him to give him the medicine, and I don't want every interaction to be associated with getting medicine, so this morning I just grabbed him and held him for about 60 seconds without doing anything else, so he knows that my grabbing him doesn't always mean something unpleasant is going to happen. I have faith that he will relax and enjoy the attention after a while.
Diane
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Post by dtesposito on Nov 1, 2015 21:43:19 GMT -5
Just found this on yet another pigeon site, under the section "how to help a lost pigeon": many found pigeons will look to a human they deem as safe for assistance.I just find this so touching. This line was there too, and I had to laugh: you need to grab a commercial mix of food suitable for pigeons from a neighbor or the store. Oh yes, ALL of my neighbors have pigeon food lying around their houses! This morning I was able to approach the pigeon VERY slowly and touch the side of his neck--he didn't look thrilled but he didn't move. Then, I put my hand just above the front of his legs, and after a little fumbling, he climbed onto my wrist! Domestic birds have an instinct for this, they don't have to learn it, if you touch them there they step up--but that's for TAME birds! So I was thrilled that he climbed up there. I just kept my arm perfectly still and talked to him, then lowered it a little and he hopped off. I think that's wonderful progress. Of course, then I had to grab him again this afternoon for his daily medicine. I'll see if he'll hop on my arm again tonight. YES, I'm getting attached already. Diane
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Post by mynicehome on Nov 5, 2015 23:48:31 GMT -5
What have you named him dtesposito? Fess up, he has a name.
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Post by dtesposito on Nov 6, 2015 15:39:05 GMT -5
No, actually I haven't given him a name--I realize that's because I'm still not convinced I'm keeping him. In the end, if there's no choice, at some point I'll admit that I'm keeping him. But I'm not there yet. I've been calling him pidgie. Diane
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Post by mynicehome on Nov 13, 2015 23:23:18 GMT -5
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Post by dtesposito on Nov 25, 2015 9:57:15 GMT -5
Mynicehome, I'm sorry I didn't see your post--I guess I've kind of abandoned this thread, and when I got up this morning, I decided I'm going to start using it again so came back here and saw that you had asked about Pidgie (aka Mr Pooper). After this week, which is very busy with holiday pet care jobs, I need to take him back to the vet, because I suspect he has feather lice. I'm not positive that's what it is, but there was a little tan insect of some kind on one of the feathers that fell out of the cage. I also keep plants in this room, so I thought it might be a plant related bug, but after looking up external parasites of pigeons, feather lice seem to fit the description. And the treatment is an insecticide powder, so the injection he got doesn't kill them. So, I haven't been pushing the socialization, since it's going to involve a lot of handling, which I don't want to do if he has some kind of lice. I don't know if they would even bite a human, but still... I still pet the side of his neck everyday, sometimes he's okay with it, sometimes he does the feather thing and pecks me--but it's not a hard peck, even though his beak is very pointy and could easily break my skin if he tried. I also still make him stand on my hand or wrist. I don't want to lose ground while waiting to see the vet. Also, I checked out the 3 companies online that make pigeon pants. They range from $25 to $45. And, I imagine you need 2 pair since you'd be washing them a lot. There's a little pouch for the poo so it stays away from the bird's body, and you're supposed to cut panty liners in half and put one of those in the pouch--but what are the chances of that working perfectly? Anyway, I guess he's staying, since I haven't made any huge effort to find him a place to go. OH, and I think I forgot to mention anywhere that my dog walking friend called a couple of weeks ago to tell me that about 5-6 blocks from here, she saw a white pigeon that had been killed by something or someone (head was missing...) She described it and it sounds JUST like this one. So, either someone in the neighborhood is raising pigeons, hopefully not for any kind of weird rituals, but you never know--and this one escaped. Or, perhaps this one was part of a pair that was released for some kind of event, and one made it to my porch and the other didn't. Diane
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Post by dtesposito on Nov 25, 2015 10:06:10 GMT -5
Wednesday, 11/25/1510:30 - 12:45 Senior client 12:45 Dog walk 4:45 Cat care visit 5:30 Dog walk 6:20 Dog walk TODAY: Maintain over these next 4 busier days Complete cleaning of pigeon cage and floor Challenge RemindersBook job Pantry goal Trade books/Trade CDs Taxes Knock knock Diane
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Post by Chris on Nov 25, 2015 10:32:26 GMT -5
Hi Diane -- I just wanted to say good luck with your 4 busier days! I hope everything goes smoothly for you!!!!!
~Chris~
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Post by dtesposito on Nov 25, 2015 17:34:50 GMT -5
Thank you Chris! So far I made it through half of one day! Diane
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