Pigeon Trap

[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.