Pigeon Patrol

Wartime hero pigeon Paddy honoured with fly-past

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 19, 2021 | Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Predators, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons, Pigeons in the News

One of Northern Ireland’s smallest World War II heroes has been honoured.

Paddy, a messenger pigeon who served with the RAF during the Normandy operations in June 1944, was remembered in his home town of Larne on Friday.

PDSA, Britain’s biggest veterinary charity, awarded Paddy the Dickin Medal, dubbed the animals’ “Victoria Cross”, 65 years ago this month.

He received it for being the fastest pigeon to reach England with a coded message from the battle-front beaches of Normandy.

The brave bird brought back vital information about the Allies’ progress, flying 230 miles in four hours 50 minutes – the fastest time of any of the messenger pigeons involved in the mission with an average speed of 56mph.

PDSA spokesman James Puxty said: “Paddy’s contribution to the D-Day operations was a credit to the thousands of messenger pigeons donated by the racing pigeon fraternity for service during World War II.

“He was one of 32 brave, feathered heroes that received the PDSA Dickin Medal for their life-saving flights during the war, and the only recipient from Northern Ireland.”

Local hero

Paddy was born and raised in Carnlough and joined thousands of other racing birds who were trained and drafted to RAF Hurn in Hampshire for military service.

Impressing military brass with his flying in the Air-Sea rescue units he was seconded to the United States First Army for undercover missions during the Normandy Landings.

In the face of poor weather conditions and the threat of German falcons, deployed to intercept Paddy and his comrades, he delivered his message to his home loft at RAF Hurn.

After the war Paddy returned to Carnlough and lived out his days with his owner Captain Andrew Hughes, until his death in 1954.

A memorial to the winged hero was erected in Carnlough harbour.

A feathered fly-past of pigeons formed part of the Paddy Memorial Day event held at Larne Museum and Arts Centre.

Larne Borough Council and the town’s historical society were joined by guests from PDSA and the owner of Paddy’s PDSA Dickin Medal, former Irish Army officer Kevin Spring.

Younger guests were entertained by Gail Seekamp, the children’s author, who read from her book “Paddy the Pigeon”.

The Dickin Medal was introduced in 1943 by Maria Dickin, PDSA’s founder. She wanted to recognise the gallantry and devotion to duty of animals serving with the Armed Forces and Civil Defence units during WWII.

Source

Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Bird Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.

Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products ten years in a row.

Pigeon/Pigeon Patrol / Pigeons Roosting / Vancouver Pigeon Control /Bird Spikes / Bird Control / Bird Deterrent / Pigeon Deterrent? Surrey Pigeon Control / Pest /Seagull deterrent / Vancouver Pigeon Blog / Birds Inside Home / Pigeons in the cities / Ice Pigeons/ What to do about pigeons/ sparrows , Damage by Sparrows, How To Keep Raccoons Away, Why Are Raccoons Considered Pests/ De-fence / Pigeon Nesting/ Bird Droppings / Pigeon Dropping/ woodpecker control/ Professional Bird Control Company/ Keep The Birds Away/ Birds/rats/ seagull/pigeon/woodpecker/ dove/sparrow/pidgeon control/pidgeon problem/ pidgeon control/flying rats/ pigeon Problems/ bird netting/bird gel/bird spray/bird nails/ bird guard

Pigeon flies past broadband in data speed race

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 19, 2021 | Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Law, Bird Netting, Bird Spikes, Columbidae

Broadband is the most modern of communication means, while carrier pigeons date back to Roman times.

But on Thursday, a race between the two highlighted the low speeds of rural broadband in the UK; the pigeon won.

Ten USB key-laden pigeons were released from a Yorkshire farm at the same time a five-minute video upload was begun.

An hour and a quarter later, the pigeons had reached their destination in Skegness 120km away, while only 24% of a 300MB file had uploaded.

Campaigners say the stunt was being carried out to illustrate that broadband in some parts of the UK is still “not fit for purpose”.

It is not the first time that such a race has taken place. Last year a similar experiment in Durban, South Africa saw Winston the pigeon take two hours to finish a 96km journey. In the same time just 4% of a 4GB file had downloaded.

The pigeons are expected to complete a 120km journey to Skegness in around two hours, but Tref Davies, who is organising the stunt to give publicity to the campaign for better rural broadband, said the broadband connection will take significantly longer to transfer the 300MB file.

“The farm we are using has a connection of around 100 to 200 Kbps (kilobits per second),” Tref Davies, the stunt’s organiser, told BBC News on Thursday morning.

“The kids need to do school work and the farmer has to submit online forms but the connection is not fit for purpose.”

Mr Davies, who is co-founder of business ISP Timico and serves on the board of ISPA (Internet Service Providers’ Association), believes the issue is one that industry and government needs to address.

“This is the UK. It should be well-connected but around a third of homes still can’t get broadband,” he said.

However, BT disputes his figures. A spokesperson said that 99% of homes could now get broadband, leaving an estimated 160,000 lines “where excessive line length means broadband won’t work”.

Speed test

Even among those who can get broadband, rural areas are fighting to get reasonable speeds.

Research commissioned by the BBC last year found that around three million homes in the UK had internet connections of below 2Mbps (megabits per second).

The government has committed to delivering a minimum of 2Mbps to every home by 2015.

However, a recent report by communications watchdog Ofcom found that while these “headline speeds” were on the rise, they are not the relevant measure for broadband customers.

According to the report, “although headline speeds increased by nearly 50% between April 2009 and May 2010, actual speeds delivered increased by just 27%, and averaged just 46% of headline speeds”.

Lloyd Felton, founder of the Rural Broadband Partnership, said the effort to draw attention to rural broadband deprivation and low speeds was laudable.

“It’s true that there are particular areas of the country that suffer much more than others,” Mr Felton told BBC News.

“You’ve got massive deprivation – this long-quoted ‘digital divide’. As we all get more dependent on the internet, that divide gets wider.

“In the end it’s who takes ownership and responsibility for co-ordinating how a parish is going to handle it – what we say is that ‘communities need to help themselves to broadband’.”

Source

Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products ten years in a row.

Where do pigeons go to die? All you need to know

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 12, 2021 | Pigeon Predators, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons, Pigeons in the News, Raccoons, Sparrows

All animals go through the circle of life, they are born (or hatched in the case of pigeons) live and die. But where do pigeons go to die? This article goes into it.

Pigeons look for dark secluded spaces to die. This includes holes, crevices, ventilation shafts and various building openings to spend their last moments. They do this to have peace away from predators in their last moments and they do this to not become a hindrance to the flock. They then die in peace in these spaces

At some point, everything comes to an end. It’s an inescapable fact of life. As humans, we have our final resting places, but what about birds? Considering how many pigeons are in existence one would assume that we would see more dead pigeons lying around, but we don’t. So, where do pigeons go to die?

Pigeons are one of the oldest domesticated and versatile birds of all times. They have been kept as pets, used as food, guides and otherwise. They are intelligent, they can recognize colours, measurements and have homing capabilities.

These animals are loyal, reliable and travel really fast, no wonder they’ve been messenger birds and travel guides. These birds are herbivores eating grains, vegetables, and fruits. They exist all around the world in large numbers and yet not many people have ever seen a dead pigeon.

Where do pigeons go to die?

These animals have a relatively short life span. They are also a tasty meal for any cats in the neighbourhood as well as predatory hawks. With so many pigeons dying often, how is that we never see dead pigeons everywhere? Do their feathered friends bury them or do they have someplace that they go before they reach bird haven?

Feral pigeons that live in cities look for dark covered spaces when they feel ill or are wounded. They’ve been this way for 1000s of years. They do this as a last-ditch attempt to recover in a safe space away from predators and not wanting to endanger the flock.

Pigeons will look for holes, crevices, ventilation shafts and various building openings to spend their last moments. Their small bodies decay very quickly after death. This explains why we don’t often see them dead and lying all over the place

Another reason why dead pigeon seems to disappear is to keep their dead bodies away from predators. These predators include cats, hawks, foxes, raccoons, and other opportunistic predators that will prey on weak and or dead and dying creatures. These predators are quick to attack so chances are before the sick pigeon can hit the ground they’ve been swooped up and snatched off as a meal.

How long do pigeons live?

How long pigeons live for is dependent on a couple of factors. While it is very unlikely for them to survive until old age in the wild, they may not do much better in captivity either. A pigeon in the wild can live up to 10 years.

The average number of years pigeons in cities live up to is 3 to 6 years. This is because they are easy prey, they get hit by passing cars, or fly into windows and mesh nettings around buildings which can be fatal for them.

Pet pigeons, on the other hand, can live between 9 to 15 years. This is if the pigeon is not being raised for food, they live this long if they are treated extremely well. Treating a pigeon well can be a job on its own, they need space, lots of open-air for flight, variety in their diet and can become sick if isolated from a flock.

What causes pigeons to die suddenly

Pigeons are susceptible to a wide range of diseases. Pigeons are zoonotic creatures, they can act as disease carriers. Often pigeons die because of these diseases. As pigeon age, their immune strength, agility, sensory and digestive systems decline, this causes them to die suddenly.

How do you know if pigeons are dying?

Sick or dying pigeons often isolate themselves, they remove themselves from the pack and go to dark shaded spaces. Their activity levels drop, and you hear them cooing less and less. In addition, their eating habits change for the worst and they don’t interact with the flock. Remember to be careful around these birds as they can carry and transmit a variety of diseases.

Do birds bury their dead

No, birds do not mourn or bury their dead flock members. You may have noticed birds “mourning” a dead member of their flock. The sounds that a dove or pigeon make can sound like mourning over their friend as they gather around it but this does not mean they are in mourning. Rather it means that they are trying to get some sort of response from the fallen bird to find out what happened and where the death-causing threat came from.

What if a pigeon dies in your house?

If a pet pigeon dies in your house, especially from old age or from an unknown cause, its best to hire professionals to get rid of the bird. If you decide to bury the bird make sure that you use disposable gloves for handling and seal bags for the disposing also burry the bird very deep in the ground.

Conclusion

Pigeons naturally look for dark crevices when they are sick and dying, this is so that they are out of sight when they die. These animals have a low life expectancy rates both in the wild and in cites if they aren’t taken care of. If a pigeon dies on your property it would be best to contact pest controls services to remove them

If you’re interested in pigeons you may also be interested in these articles: What do pigeons eat in the wild? When do pigeons leave the nest? What do pigeons like to eat? Where do pigeons go in the winter? Click the links to read more

Source

Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products ten years in a row.

How long do city pigeons live?

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 12, 2021 | Bird Spike, history of pigeons, MBCA, pet bird, Pigeons, Pigeons in the News

Keeping this in view, how do pigeons survive in the city?

Pigeons (Rock Doves) adapt well to cities because they find there habitat similar to the cliffs where they live in the wild. If we were prepared to capture and eat them (not recommended today for health reasons) their populations would be much smaller of course.

Subsequently, question is, where do pigeons die? This background means that, when sick or injured, pigeons instinctively retreat to dark, remote places – ventilation systems, attics, building ledges – hoping to remain out of reach and unnoticed by predators. The predators don’t see them, but neither do we: often when pigeons expire, they are in hiding.

Keeping this in consideration, how long can a pigeon live?

Life Expectancy: Varies greatly from 3-5 years through to 15 years dependent on many factors, including natural predation and human interference. Predation: The wild pigeon is predated upon, almost exclusively, by the peregrine falcon, a bird that is also found living and breeding in coastal regions.

Do pigeons fight to the death?

As The Tom says, pigeons will defend their nest to the death under these circumstances. In a confined space this can quickly lead to the eggs becoming broken, or even the squabs being trampled to death in the ensuing skirmish.

Source

Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products ten years in a row.

Lost pigeon going back to its owner

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 12, 2021 | Doves, history of pigeons, MBCA, pet bird, Pigeon Control, Pigeon Predators

PLEASANTON — It turns out Homer’s odyssey ends in … Hayward.

The homing pigeon that walked into a Pleasanton bar on Memorial Day almost made it home from a race in Nevada — but didn’t quite get there. An injury or exhaustion landed the bird at the Y’all Come Back Saloon, where he surprised patrons with his brazen entrance into the neighborhood bar.

After an unsuccessful attempt to release the pigeon — he fluttered to the ground and didn’t go anywhere — Castro Valley resident Carol Batten tracked down a Medford, Ore., man whom she thought was the pigeon’s owner. And since Homer wasn’t going anywhere on his own, bar owner Maureen “Puff” Carpenson had lined up a ride to Oregon for the wayward pigeon.

But the day before the bird, christened Homer, was to leave for Oregon in an air-conditioned automobile, Batten and Carpenson learned the bird actually had been shipped to a new owner — a Hayward resident — last year.

Reese Bishop said he was surprised to hear from his friend, a pigeon breeder in Oregon, on Thursday night, asking if he had lost one of his birds. In fact, one of his pigeons did not make it back from the Lovelock, Nev., race over Memorial weekend.

He was even more surprised to learn that his pigeon was now famous as the bird who walked into a bar.

Bishop was expected to reunite with his bird late Friday. He laughed when he heard it had been dubbed Homer; since he owns 200 pigeons, it is impossible to name them all, he said.

Bishop has been racing pigeons for five years, and he says he has lost birds in the past.

“It happens,” he said. “Two years ago, I had a bird who was found in Los Angeles. He was supposed to be heading to my house from Nevada.”

After the first story appeared in MediaNews newspapers on Thursday, Carpenson said she received several phone calls from individuals warning her not to return the bird because it is considered useless to the owner.

“That is not true,” Bishop said. “We care about our birds. We put a lot of time and effort into them. There are a lot of feelings toward them.”

Larry Cook of the California State Racing Pigeon Organization noted that racing pigeons, depending on their breeding, can be worth anywhere from $500 to $1,000.

Cook, who has been racing pigeons for 29 years, said he has had pigeons get lost, then found and subsequently shipped back to his Exeter home.

For now, Homer the pigeon will be “put out to pasture” so he can recover, Bishop said.

After that, Bishop will decide whether to breed him or hand him over to a racer just starting out in the hobby.

As for that pigeon who turned up in Los Angeles a few years ago? He’s racing again.

Source

Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products ten years in a row.

« Older Entries

Next Entries »

Wartime hero pigeon Paddy honoured with fly-past

Local hero

Pigeon flies past broadband in data speed race

Where do pigeons go to die? All you need to know

Where do pigeons go to die?

How long do pigeons live?

What causes pigeons to die suddenly

How do you know if pigeons are dying?

Do birds bury their dead

What if a pigeon dies in your house?

Conclusion

How long do city pigeons live?

Lost pigeon going back to its owner

Recent Articles

Policies

Pigeon Patrol Products