Pigeon Trap

[dmanzman]

was wondering if anyone made their own for cheap, or if it was more efficient just to buy one pre-made? Judging by what I've been reading I'm going to be needing quite a few here in the next couple months!

[NRA4LIFE]

You want 'em live or dead?

[dmanzman]

well i'd start with them dead but eventually move to them being live here in a couple months!

[Stilly bay]

you can make two or three of your own for the price of a ready made trap. doesn't require any special tools besides a good wire cutter and a J clamp press ( I don' even know if thats the correct name for it)
and they only take twenty minutes to build once you figure out the dimensions

[dmanzman]

cool, thank you!  i think im just gonna find some specs online and go for it!

[Bmcox86]

I think that cabelas in Lacey had one in there bargin cave last weekend for 20 bucks

[Birdguy]

Most local feedstores will have the J clips and cheap pliers to install them. The wire should be readily available at the same feedstore but you will likely find it cheaper at a hardware or home improvement store. They are not tough to build and will last along time. While you are doing it take a few pictures and post it on here like a "how to" then you can be the answer guy for the next group that want to build them  . Good luck.

[Happy Gilmore]

you're going to need a couple pigeons to catch pigeons too. Traps don't work well without live birds inside. If you can't get one, leave the trap gate open for a few days and start feeding the birds freely inside the cage so they can come and go. They'll bring more friends with them each trip. Make your trap big enough to hold a decent feeder or pan of food. A feeder is best because they can't eat all the food and spread it all over the place as quickly.

Ideally, feed them with the doors open then, when you close the door put in your decoy pigeon and they'll be more comfortable pushing open the door.

[Stilly bay]

you can usually get away with not needing a bait bird if you make your trap a little taller (14-20") and cut a couple  3"X6" slits on the top. birds will walk on top of the cage and jump down through the opening but can't fly back through it.

this also makes it easier for predators to reach in, but if one is around they will find any way in they can.

order your bobs through a pigeon supplier, not a birddog supplier. they will be dramatically cheaper.

[BOWHUNTER45]

if you can find an overpass or old train trussel where they roost you can just take a fishing net and go round some up at night ...thats how we always done it 

[Stilly bay]

if you can find an overpass or old train trussel where they roost you can just take a fishing net and go round some up at night ...thats how we always done it 

just don't get caught since thats against the law.

[dmanzman]

thanks for all the info guys!!!

[Happy Gilmore]

if you can find an overpass or old train trussel where they roost you can just take a fishing net and go round some up at night ...thats how we always done it 

just don't get caught since thats against the law.

to trespass on railroad property.

[KFhunter]

if you can find an overpass or old train trussel where they roost you can just take a fishing net and go round some up at night ...thats how we always done it 

just don't get caught since thats against the law.

to trespass on railroad property.

I been sorely tempted a time or two 

I tried to catch me some pigeons near a RR bridge....but that sign saying no trespassing kept me off - that and with my luck someone would call in a report of a suspicious dude carrying some sort of contraption on to a bridge   

[Birddogman]

I have had my share of netting pigeons under the warf.  A misnomer I heard was that pigeons can't see at night, not true!  Many frustrating misses and having to time the tides, not fun.  I wish there was a way to catch pigeons out of the dairy farms around here.....tons of birds (good flyers too). 

BTW....I have a pigeon trap I will sell someone if interested?

[RifleRidge]

https://www.google.com/search?q=home+made+Pigeon+Trap+images&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a#hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=hcF&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&q=homemade+Pigeon+Trap+images&spell=1&sa=X&ei=PBs8Ue7yDcvzrAGnioCQDA&ved=0CC8QBSgA&bav=on.2,or.r_qf.&bvm=bv.43287494,d.aWM&fp=b84c02c3b64bf7ed&biw=1024&bih=664

[Happy Gilmore]

Find a dairy farm. They'll be glad to have you.

[dmanzman]

thanks for all the input guys 

[wildweeds]

Ive tried to trap at dairy farms and can tell you don't waste your time with a trap,there is far to much free feed around for them to consider your fake trap and corn setup.For Dairys you got to go under the cover of darkness and get them with a net from their roosts,been the only way I've been successful at it.Even with a seed bird in the trap it's not productive.

Find a dairy farm. They'll be glad to have you.

[HighCountryHunter88]

go down to the railyard office behind the bars and ask them if you can set up a trap

[huntingfool7]

I've used bob type traps in the past.  They work, but you need the birds to want in there really bad.  The next trap I build will be along these lines-----

[Stilly bay]

 

good old Sputnik -that trap is for racing birds that want to return to the loft and stay in the loft, not for ferals that feel, well... trapped. but thats the right idea; drop in traps can be a lot more effective than bobbed traps, since there is no "training" involved. the birds simply drop in from the top and can't fly out because there is nothing for them to grab onto and their flapping wings won't fit through the slit. its also a great way to accidentally catch hawks and owls.

as far as actually attracting them and trapping them, like any other type of hunting or trapping you have to put it where the birds want to be or else there is no point. you can catch them at a grainery if you put the trap in a place they feel safe from predators, getting to that safe place is a different story.

[huntingfool7]

I've always liked the starling trap idea.  Just not sure where I would leave a 6'x8' trap.

Stilly- if you were going to modify the drop through board in this photo, what would the dimensions be?

[huntingfool7]

A couple more.

[Stilly bay]

I had one that was -roughly- four feet long, three feet wide, and about 3-4 foot tall. the top was flat (not inverted like the pic) and there was only one entrance.  it worked like a champ. I watched it trap a few birds and they didn't seem to hesitate like they did with bob style traps that everyone else uses.
it was just wire with a plywood floor, I would set an old cookie sheet in there and load it with corn. the top with the entrance was ply wood as well.
the most i caught in one shot with that setup was 12. caught some well fed hawks too.

hunting fool, if you know where to get a used sputnik I might be interested, im too lazy to trap birds and just raise my own.

[huntingfool7]

Stilly, I don't have a line on any used Sputniks.  It doesn't look like something that would be hard to fashion. 
I have been raising my own birds as well.  Currently I have homers, rollers, kings and horseman pouters.

I am thinking I might build a new coop down here at the shop and use homer/horseman crosses to lure the local ferals in.
If I do, I'll build a removeale sputnik for the coop.  I think the ferals would suck right in.  Anything without a band will be a bonus trainer.

On the trap that you had.  Was the entrance centered on the roof? 
I think the advantage of the inverted roofline is that you can run a couple of roost poles up high in the trap.  This would allow for more birds in the space available, make the caught birds decoy to the trap door and caught birds would not have a line of flight to the doors because they'll roost above the trap entrance.

[Stilly bay]

if you really want to suck ferals ( and lost homers) in, try and find a spanish thief pouter. they are totally oversexed and will go to great lengths to chase females (and some males) into your loft. in europe they fly thief pouters against neighboring lofts and people have to buy back their stolen birds. anyway they are relentless bird finders if you keep them in a loft by themselves or with other males.
I had a couple, and if there were no hen pigeons around to hit on they would go after the chickens and try and chase them in the loft.

On the trap that you had.  Was the entrance centered on the roof? 
I think the advantage of the inverted roofline is that you can run a couple of roost poles up high in the trap.  This would allow for more birds in the space available, make the caught birds decoy to the trap door and caught birds would not have a line of flight to the doors because they'll roost above the trap entrance.

the entrance was centered, otherwise they would be able to possibley reach the inside sides of the trap with their feet and claw out.

I never worried about roosting for decoying purposes because all those ferals will be hopping around and fluttering trying to get out once they had their fill and it seems to draw other birds attention pretty well, but the sky is the limit on what you can build.

the nice thing about this particular style trap is; you can throw a rope over a rafter in the barn and suspend it just below the ceiling and the birds feel more comfortable about trying to get in. although it does take some playing around to get it to hang right.