Any tips on Pigeons/their care?

[chickens4life_13]

I've been looking into purchasing pigeons. I'm mainly interested in fantails or a type of fancy pigeon however any information you can give will be helpful. I've owned chickens, ducks, and quail. Thank you

 

[cavemanrich]

Fantails are nice garden pets. You still need to take precautions with flying raptor predators.. (daytime)
Need secure housing to keep night-time predators,, mainly raccoons out. Not sure what your predators are. Some need more security measures than others.
You can feed them Alflock pellets,,, but it is better to feed them pigeon seeds. Not all feed stores carry such, but some do. Many pigeon fanciers order from online suppliers. You also need to give them certain grit, that is formulated for pigeons. Contains minerals for good health.
It would be best if you asked particular questions, that you may have. Otherwise,, I would end up writing a small book.
You may also want to include your general location in your profile. This way,, easier to provide help..... especially when climate related.
We don't need an address, just a state, city, or country. Another option,, would be weather zone. I am in zone 5.

WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and

 

[chickens4life_13]

Fantails are nice garden pets. You still need to take precautions with flying raptor predators.. (daytime)
Need secure housing to keep night-time predators,, mainly raccoons out. Not sure what your predators are. Some need more security measures than others.
You can feed them Alflock pellets,,, but it is better to feed them pigeon seeds. Not all feed stores carry such, but some do. Many pigeon fanciers order from online suppliers. You also need to give them certain grit, that is formulated for pigeons. Contains minerals for good health.
It would be best if you asked particular questions, that you may have. Otherwise,, I would end up writing a small book.
You may also want to include your general location in your profile. This way,, easier to provide help..... especially when climate related.
We don't need an address, just a state, city, or country. Another option,, would be weather zone. I am in zone 5.

WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and

Thank you! I'm in VA, Zone 7. I have an 8x8 foot rooved run/cage that I plan to turn into a nice pen for Fantails. It's very secure and I have kept Serama and Sebright chickens in it before. As for predators here, we have dogs that keep most away. Besides the occasional hawk which hasn't gotten into any of our enclosures and more so just snoops around. I'll list a few specific questions I have as well. Once again thank you!

- What type of "house" or building should I put for them? Would one large one work or should I opt for several smaller ones up higher? I'm willing to make as many as needed.

- How many pigeons should I get? I've read I should definitely have even numbers/pairs but I'm not sure on how many could comfortably fit in an 8x8 foot run.

- What should I look for when purchasing pigeons? I know some people IRL who I could purchase from or I may look into ordering online. Is there any way of being able to tell age, sex, or health of a bird prior to purchasing?

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

- What type of "house" or building should I put for them? Would one large one work or should I opt for several smaller ones up higher? I'm willing to make as many as needed.

- How many pigeons should I get? I've read I should definitely have even numbers/pairs but I'm not sure on how many could comfortably fit in an 8x8 foot run.

- What should I look for when purchasing pigeons? I know some people IRL who I could purchase from or I may look into ordering online. Is there any way of being able to tell age, sex, or health of a bird prior to purchasing?

They should probably have a larger house, since they need a covered/enclosed part of the pen to retreat to when the weather gets too cold, too hot, or too rainy.

Depends, how tall is your pen? I’m assuming by your posts that you won’t be free flying them?

Look for pigeons that are alert, aren’t fluffed up, and aren’t kept in dirty, overcrowded coops. (Pigeons who are overcrowded are often stressed and more likely to be sick.)

 

[chickens4life_13]

They should probably have a larger house, since they need a covered/enclosed part of the pen to retreat to when the weather gets too cold, too hot, or too rainy.

Depends, how tall is your pen? I’m assuming by your posts that you won’t be free flying them?

Look for pigeons that are alert, aren’t fluffed up, and aren’t kept in dirty, overcrowded coops. (Pigeons who are overcrowded are often stressed and more likely to be sick.)

Our pen is also 8 feet tall, and no I don't plan on free flying my birds. Thank you!

 

[chickens4life_13]

They should probably have a larger house, since they need a covered/enclosed part of the pen to retreat to when the weather gets too cold, too hot, or too rainy.

Currently there's a large building/house in the pen that was built for chickens. It's about a foot off of the ground and fit 20+ bantam hens. The run itself has a tarp across the top to help keep it dry and warm, the back of the pen is also covered.

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

Sounds like a great setup! I would keep around 8-10 pigeons in there.

 

[Qwerty3159]

If you want to post a pic of the current coop/house we can try to advise you on how to adapt it for pigeons!

They tend to prefer their own space and perching for day and night more so than chickens and won’t normally cuddle up in one roosting spot.

You can make square box perches, think pigeonholes, or just something as simple as pegs sticking out of the wall. As long as each pigeon has a spot to claim of its own, everything should go well.

 

[chickens4life_13]

If you want to post a pic of the current coop/house we can try to advise you on how to adapt it for pigeons!

They tend to prefer their own space and perching for day and night more so than chickens and won’t normally cuddle up in one roosting spot.

You can make square box perches, think pigeonholes, or just something as simple as pegs sticking out of the wall. As long as each pigeon has a spot to claim of its own, everything should go well.

This is our cage right now, we would clean it up before putting anything inside. I also want to go around and reinforce some wire and things. Still gotta put the new tarps on too

 

[Qwerty3159]

Nice!!! This is just an idea, remove the front wall, add a horizontal floor halfway up, and create six boxes. This would provide enough nest boxes for your theoretical 5 pairs. The coop itself is too small to really put many perches in so I think repurposing it as a nest area would be your best bet. Excuse the messy phone line work. What are the dimensions of the coop, I’m guessing it’s about 4 feet wide?

The branches in there are good perches. Pigeons also enjoy a wide flat perch that they can lay down on. This could be as simple as a a few 4-5 inch wide boards going across the width of the pen.

Also you can definitely use that feeder for pigeons but they will poop in it if there isn’t a top on it lol