Post by: sirfunkeybut on June 16, 2012, 06:36:39 AM
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on June 16, 2012, 07:57:44 AM
Post by: wildweeds on June 16, 2012, 09:42:31 AM
Build a nice loft for them,supply with fresh water and feed,worm them about every 3 months and you'll have more birds to train with than you can shake a stick at,they propogate like rabbits or rats.The birds are going to cost you some money but then they pair up and bam you got free birds,to use and sell off.
True Homing Pigeons have been extinct for nearly 100 years. If you mean the normal Park Pigeons, or Rock Doves as the game pamphlet calls them, they are in the same category as Starlings. I shoot any that come around my place, because of the mess they make once they take up residence. they are raised domestically, and I know of no laws against it. They are the closest thing to wild birds for dog training purposes, and escapees will generally return to their pen. I'd check the health laws, as the wild ones have been known to carry diseases.
Post by: Stilly bay on June 16, 2012, 12:52:34 PM
also, build them a proper loft that gets lots of light and minimal draft. there are lots of pigeon loft plans on the internet. for birds to be happy healthy and breeding like rats they need to have plenty of space, so try not overcrowd. two square feet of floor space per bird is the general rule of thumb. you can get by with more in less space if you pay attention to ventilation and general health.
my pigeon lofts are pretty simple. 4x8x6 with wire windows I can open and close for better ventilation. I can squeeze 10 pairs in there, but really five is ideal.
don't build one of those rabbit hutch lofts you see advertised. IMO you really need something you can walk into, the birds are much healthier for the extra space.
I have seen some people retro fit those furniture moving crates into serviceable lofts, either way you should be able to come up with a decent loft for a couple hundred bucks.
or visit a neighbor with grown kids and talk him out of the school bus stop at the end of his driveway.
Post by: ghosthunter on June 16, 2012, 01:16:44 PM
Post by: Stilly bay on June 16, 2012, 01:25:53 PM
Post by: JJD on June 16, 2012, 04:11:48 PM
With young dogs, be careful how you use them.
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on June 16, 2012, 08:39:56 PM
Misinformation here.............. I got a coop full of Racing homers.Racing homers can have a registered pedigree just like a dog.I've seen racing birds for sale for as much as 500 dollars a bird.The birds I have are racer rejects,but they still home.I just built a new loft,my old one bit the dirt after 10 years,the hawks got all my birds because I was lazy and free ranged them.I just bought 15 "squeakers" for the new loft,you'll get a ton of mileage from homers.Redneck hickerbilly homers are feral pigeons that are kept in a loft until they have a couple of batches of younguns,those younguns will always consider their birthplace "home",they will not have as strong as homing instinct as purebred racers,maybe 10 miles or so.Racing birds race up to 500 miles.My neighbor guy won a pigeon race from redding california back home to bellingham.
Build a nice loft for them,supply with fresh water and feed,worm them about every 3 months and you'll have more birds to train with than you can shake a stick at,they propogate like rabbits or rats.The birds are going to cost you some money but then they pair up and bam you got free birds,to use and sell off.
True Homing Pigeons have been extinct for nearly 100 years. If you mean the normal Park Pigeons, or Rock Doves as the game pamphlet calls them, they are in the same category as Starlings. I shoot any that come around my place, because of the mess they make once they take up residence. they are raised domestically, and I know of no laws against it. They are the closest thing to wild birds for dog training purposes, and escapees will generally return to their pen. I'd check the health laws, as the wild ones have been known to carry diseases.
Your pigeons may be called "Racing Homers", and all pigeons will "home", but the Species of pigeon that was a wild native pigeon of North America named Homing Pigeon was hunted to extiction by the early 20th century. That's why I specified "TRUE Homing Pigeons". The ones that are wild and kept domestically I've heard referred to as "Rats with Feathers".
Edit: OOPS! My Bad--on thinking about it, the extinct species was called the Passenger Pigeon. I still stand by my opinion that any pigeon except Mourning Doves falls into the Starling category, especially those recent escapees called Eurasian Collared Doves. Many dog trainers raise the common pigeons to use for bird dog training, and they are excellent for that purpose. When they go wild, they seek out barns, bridges, underpasses, etc. for nesting colonies. Years ago, my grandmother became enamored with pure white pigeons, and acquired a pair and put them up in the henhouse. She soon found out how quickly they multiply, and a pair of white pigeons does not reliably pass on the white color gene. before long, the farm was overrun with pigeons of every color phase imaginable. The love affair ended abruptly, and I can't recall what became of the birds. One of my bird books says pigeons have been associated with humans for thousands of years, so their progeny is no doubt living around there someplace.
Post by: sirfunkeybut on June 17, 2012, 12:51:53 AM
Post by: bearpaw on June 17, 2012, 01:29:13 AM
I saw someone a while back in the Classifieds had pigoens advertised, not sure if they are still listed.
Post by: Stilly bay on June 17, 2012, 04:04:48 AM
Thanks for the input guys, BUT, or more question. If its legal would it be safe to try and catch pigeons? I know where a crap load are, I know the adults probably wouldn't come back to the coop but I heard the chicks would. Or do I have to find someone to buy some from.
as long as you have permission from the landowner its perfectly legal to trap them. you can come in at night and pick them off their roosts like apples, they will keep still if its dark and you are quiet.
:twocents: trying to get feral (aka bridge/barn/city pigeons) to breed so that you could have young birds that would re-home to your loft would be way more trouble than its worth. they are mangy disease ridden birds that will just be a pain in your rear to do anything with besides shoot.
its totally doable with feral pigeons... but IMO if you want to breed and raise your own birds, you would save yourself a ton of heartburn just looking on craigslist for young birds or old breeders.
your training a lab right? Homers that can be used over and over again are mainly used for training pointing dogs.
what I would do is build a holding pen and catch all the feral birds I could, anytime I could and work with your pup all summer long . your not going to get a whole lot accomplished trying raise your own birds this summer. its going to take a month or two for young pigeons to rehome and learn their surroundings enough to be of any use to you, and its going to take breeders even longer lay eggs and raise young birds of their own. :twocents:
Post by: sirfunkeybut on June 17, 2012, 04:19:28 AM
Inputs on the breed mix?
(https://hunting-washington.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi437.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fqq99%2Fsirfunkeybut223%2F724cec43.jpg&hash=d75bdb6c52932ee877b909266ce0bbff84eed9bc)
(https://hunting-washington.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi437.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fqq99%2Fsirfunkeybut223%2F55914516.jpg&hash=ac9feb49dd7ea816db6ca11f7e89fccbcb7ea592)
Post by: sirfunkeybut on June 17, 2012, 04:21:51 AM
Post by: wildweeds on June 17, 2012, 07:42:01 AM
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on June 17, 2012, 10:59:31 AM
GSP would be the cross I would think is most likely.
:yeah: Her facial features look just like a friend's GSP.
Post by: RC3 on June 18, 2012, 12:40:17 AM
Post by: jetjockey on June 18, 2012, 05:13:59 AM
Post by: billythekidrock on June 18, 2012, 06:23:16 AM
Your pigeons may be called "Racing Homers", and all pigeons will "home", but the Species of pigeon that was a wild native pigeon of North America named Homing Pigeon was hunted to extiction by the early 20th century. That's why I specified "TRUE Homing Pigeons". The ones that are wild and kept domestically I've heard referred to as "Rats with Feathers".
Edit: OOPS! My Bad--on thinking about it, the extinct species was called the Passenger Pigeon. I still stand by my opinion that any pigeon except Mourning Doves falls into the Starling category, especially those recent escapees called Eurasian Collared Doves. Many dog trainers raise the common pigeons to use for bird dog training, and they are excellent for that purpose. When they go wild, they seek out barns, bridges, underpasses, etc. for nesting colonies. Years ago, my grandmother became enamored with pure white pigeons, and acquired a pair and put them up in the henhouse. She soon found out how quickly they multiply, and a pair of white pigeons does not reliably pass on the white color gene. before long, the farm was overrun with pigeons of every color phase imaginable. The love affair ended abruptly, and I can't recall what became of the birds. One of my bird books says pigeons have been associated with humans for thousands of years, so their progeny is no doubt living around there someplace.
Not true. The Bandtail pigeon would not fall under a "Starling category" and I am pretty sure that WDFW don't think so since they have a hunting season.
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on June 18, 2012, 08:45:20 AM
Your pigeons may be called "Racing Homers", and all pigeons will "home", but the Species of pigeon that was a wild native pigeon of North America named Homing Pigeon was hunted to extiction by the early 20th century. That's why I specified "TRUE Homing Pigeons". The ones that are wild and kept domestically I've heard referred to as "Rats with Feathers".
Edit: OOPS! My Bad--on thinking about it, the extinct species was called the Passenger Pigeon. I still stand by my opinion that any pigeon except Mourning Doves falls into the Starling category, especially those recent escapees called Eurasian Collared Doves. Many dog trainers raise the common pigeons to use for bird dog training, and they are excellent for that purpose. When they go wild, they seek out barns, bridges, underpasses, etc. for nesting colonies. Years ago, my grandmother became enamored with pure white pigeons, and acquired a pair and put them up in the henhouse. She soon found out how quickly they multiply, and a pair of white pigeons does not reliably pass on the white color gene. before long, the farm was overrun with pigeons of every color phase imaginable. The love affair ended abruptly, and I can't recall what became of the birds. One of my bird books says pigeons have been associated with humans for thousands of years, so their progeny is no doubt living around there someplace.
Not true. The Bandtail pigeon would not fall under a "Starling category" and I am pretty sure that WDFW don't think so since they have a hunting season.
Never seen a Bandtail Pigeon. I don't think they exist. I'm surprised Washington doesn't have a Sasquatch Season, too! :chuckle:
Post by: bobcat on June 18, 2012, 09:18:51 AM
Never seen a Bandtail Pigeon. I don't think they exist. I'm surprised Washington doesn't have a Sasquatch Season, too! :chuckle:
Are you serious? You must not get out in the woods much. I just saw some the other day. Always see a lot more in August and September. Definitely not as many as there used to be though.
Post by: bearpaw on June 18, 2012, 09:33:38 AM
GSP would be the cross I would think is most likely.
:yeah: Her facial features look just like a friend's GSP.
:yeah: Might be an interesting cross, will she retrieve from the water?
Post by: sirfunkeybut on June 18, 2012, 10:10:28 AM
GSP would be the cross I would think is most likely.
:yeah: Her facial features look just like a friend's GSP.
:yeah: Might be an interesting cross, will she retrieve from the water?
So far only in shallow water, my grandpa has a very small pond that she plays an retrieves in.
Post by: wildweeds on June 18, 2012, 12:20:23 PM
Have seen it happen to a dog that started out on three,transfer to four and then promptly got the rope.
Dogs do not always raise their leg on point
Post by: Curly on June 18, 2012, 03:44:25 PM
Never seen a Bandtail Pigeon. I don't think they exist. I'm surprised Washington doesn't have a Sasquatch Season, too! :chuckle:
Are you serious? You must not get out in the woods much. I just saw some the other day. Always see a lot more in August and September. Definitely not as many as there used to be though.
Just saw a half dozen or so fly over my house yesterday. 8)
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on June 18, 2012, 05:34:36 PM
Never seen a Bandtail Pigeon. I don't think they exist. I'm surprised Washington doesn't have a Sasquatch Season, too! :chuckle:
Are you serious? You must not get out in the woods much. I just saw some the other day. Always see a lot more in August and September. Definitely not as many as there used to be though.
No, now that I'm closing in on 70, I don't get out in the woods much. Even when I did, I never saw Bandtails. These days I see lots of pigeons around the neighborhood, and they are all the invasive Eurasian Collards and Rock Doves. The ones that get away avoid my yard like the plague for some reason! ;)
Post by: bobcat on June 18, 2012, 05:40:30 PM
Never seen a Bandtail Pigeon. I don't think they exist. I'm surprised Washington doesn't have a Sasquatch Season, too! :chuckle:
Are you serious? You must not get out in the woods much. I just saw some the other day. Always see a lot more in August and September. Definitely not as many as there used to be though.
No, now that I'm closing in on 70, I don't get out in the woods much. Even when I did, I never saw Bandtails. These days I see lots of pigeons around the neighborhood, and they are all the invasive Eurasian Collards and Rock Doves. The ones that get away avoid my yard like the plague for some reason! ;)
Really? Wow. Back in the 80's we used to see thousands of them some days. Now you're doing good is you see 20 in a day. Hard to believe you've never seen even one!
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on June 18, 2012, 08:14:56 PM
Post by: bobcat on June 18, 2012, 08:20:25 PM
You talking Mourning Doves, or Bandtails? I hunted Mourning Doves from the late '60s into the early '90s. It used to be a tradition for 3 of us to stake out a watering hole with our dogs every September 1st right at sundown, and for 20 minutes we couldn't load the shotguns fast enough. Now we are old, and our dogs are dead, and we don't go any more. It's no fun without a dog anyway.
Bandtails. Now I just looked at your profile and see you're from Wenatchee. If you have always hunted on the eastside, it would make sense that you haven't seen any bandtails. They're in western Washington, mainly. I did see one just a few miles of west of Cle Elum once. But I think that's about as far east as they go.
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on June 18, 2012, 09:19:56 PM
You talking Mourning Doves, or Bandtails? I hunted Mourning Doves from the late '60s into the early '90s. It used to be a tradition for 3 of us to stake out a watering hole with our dogs every September 1st right at sundown, and for 20 minutes we couldn't load the shotguns fast enough. Now we are old, and our dogs are dead, and we don't go any more. It's no fun without a dog anyway.
Bandtails. Now I just looked at your profile and see you're from Wenatchee. If you have always hunted on the eastside, it would make sense that you haven't seen any bandtails. They're in western Washington, mainly. I did see one just a few miles of west of Cle Elum once. But I think that's about as far east as they go.
That explains it. Yep, I'm a dry lander. I grew up in a country that was hot and humid in the summer and cold and humid in winter. When I found Eastern Washington in the late '60s I thought I'd found heaven. Been here ever since!
PS: Sorry we hijacked the thread--geez, the guy just asked a simple question! Just shows how enjoyable this site is....
Post by: Happy Gilmore on June 19, 2012, 11:07:03 AM
Post by: Special T on June 19, 2012, 11:12:42 AM
Post by: Stilly bay on June 19, 2012, 12:44:50 PM
Yellow beak and hawk like yellow tallons I think. They are a little bigger but the yellow makes them pop.:yeah:
but good luck getting a long look at them unless your in a blind. I have them come to my bird feeders occasionally and they are extremely skittish.
in flight they look to be about a third bigger than a regular pigeon- but this is coming from a guy who spends a lot of time looking at pigeons in the sky. IMO the best way to spot them in flight is they will usually be flying higher than feral pigeons, in ones or twos, traveling quickly in a direct route. they normally perch on tree tops along cliff edge or steep drops. the most distinguishing characteristic for me is they have a really odd wing beat sometimes when they glide, almost like they are wiggling or shimmying their wings while coasting.
Post by: C. Cassano on June 01, 2013, 03:23:22 PM
what wild weeds said.
also, build them a proper loft that gets lots of flashlight (http://www.robustbuy.com/led-lighting-gadgets-led-flashlights-c-505_1027_730.html) and minimal draft. there are lots of pigeon loft plans on the internet. for birds to be happy healthy and breeding like rats they need to have plenty of space, so try not overcrowd. two square feet of floor space per bird is the general rule of thumb. you can get by with more in less space if you pay attention to ventilation and general health.
my pigeon lofts are pretty simple. 4x8x6 with wire windows I can open and close for better ventilation. I can squeeze 10 pairs in there, but really five is ideal.
don't build one of those rabbit hutch lofts you see advertised. IMO you really need something you can walk into, the birds are much healthier for the extra space.
I have seen some people retro fit those furniture moving crates into serviceable lofts, either way you should be able to come up with a decent loft for a couple hundred bucks.
or visit a neighbor with grown kids and talk him out of the school bus stop at the end of his driveway.
I have seen some as well. but i have a simple one which is not good compare to anyone of you.