by Pigeon Patrol | Sep 4, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
PIGEONS are making life difficult for people who say the droppings they leave underneath a railway bridge are a safety risk and so dirty they make worshippers reluctant to go to a nearby mosque.
Now councillors and residents in Maindee, Newport, are calling on Network Rail to install netting to stop the birds nesting.
Many worshippers at the Shahporan Bangladeshi Jam’e Mosque just off Chepstow Road have to walk underneath the bridge to get to prayers.
In Islam, there is a requirement that people are clean before they come into the mosque or begin to pray. But some feel the dirty bridge makes this difficult, while others say the pigeon prevalence is dangerous, as people have slipped over on the droppings.
Abbas Meah, 75, who has lived in Maindee since 1962, said the pigeons were causing problems for people going to mosque.
“People must walk through pigeon mess on both sides of the bridge,” he said. “I have spoken to our local MP. If they just put a net up that would help; that’s all we’re asking for. People can’t pray like this.”
Majid Rahman, councillor for Victoria ward, said: “The walls are grubby with pigeon mess. It’s a health and safety issue. Someone badly hurt their hand as a result of droppings on a metal grate. We’re looking to have a meeting with Network Rail.”
Fellow councillor Christine Jenkins said: “They clean it but as soon as they do, the mess is there again. It’s time Network Rail took responsibility for their bridge. It’s dangerous – someone is going to slip on it.”
A Network Rail spokesperson said: “Network Rail has a responsibility to taxpayers to ensure that it spends its limited public funds wisely.“When looking at the problem and nuisance we know pigeons cause, we look at the scale of the problem and undertake a risk assessment to make an informed judgement. We cannot justify the expense of netting as we don’t believe there is a statutory nuisance.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Sep 4, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
Ed Berube sits in his motorized scooter in the middle of Kennedy Park every nice day he can. As he digs into his giant bag filled with unshelled peanuts, pigeons begin to flock around him.
Jerk Pigeon Guy
Ed Berube, who many know as “Birdman,” feeds pigeons in Kennedy Park in Lewiston on Monday afternoon
“There’s the birdman with his flock,” said a person walking past him Monday afternoon.
But it’s the human flock Berube is really trying to reach.
“I use the birds and peanuts to open the door to talk about Christ,” he said. “I was born again 28 years ago,” he said, standing straight up out of his chair.
He has chronic breathing problems, so he gets short of breath walking. When he’s not with his “girlfriend,” a 1,400cc motorcycle parked just up the street, he is motoring around town on his scooter looking for somebody with whom to share his love of Jesus.
“I was trouble as a kid. I was run out of town in Massachusetts where I grew up,” he said. “They told my mother to take me away or they would send me away.”
He and his mother moved to Richmond, and he took jobs in the woods and on farms. He eventually moved to Lewiston to work in the Libbey Mill until it closed.
“I was just going on with life, drinking, drugging and all that. On Sunday, my wife would go to church and I’d start drinking. They kept inviting me to come, and when I finally did, I warned the pastor that he didn’t know what he was dealing with,” Berube said.
“It took about 17 months, but I finally felt the spirit kicking into gear. And then, it was like a light switch just flipped on,” he said.
Berube recited Scripture, then pulled out a zippered case with books and clippings in it. He thumbed through a Bible and challenges people to read the verses and not become changed.
“I just want to kick their spirit into gear,” he said, as he reached for another handful of peanuts for the pigeons circling closer and cooing.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Sep 4, 2014 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
Reigate firefighters flew into action in the town centre to rescue a pigeon caught up in rooftop netting.
The four-man crew, led by Crew Commander Steve Arnold, closed the High Street temporarily in order to get a ladder up to the roof of Boots opticians, where the bird had got stuck in netting placed there to prevent pigeons getting into the roof spaces, last Wednesday afternoon (June 25).
The fire service was called in by the RSPCA.
A Surrey Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said: “Animal welfares is just one of the many roles that the Surrey Fire and Rescue Service responds to, though full risk assessments are made and our role is to assist and support the RSPCA in such events.”
He said: “After cordoning the area off for safety, the crew pitched a 13.5-metre ladder and after several attempts, released the pigeon successfully.”
He said along with Crew Commander Arnold, the efforts of firefighters Horsfall, Smith and Sharpe were all cheered.
“The pigeon was seen by many onlookers, who cheered in appreciation as it flew away, relatively unharmed,” he said.
The rescue was one of the last call-outs for Crew Commander Arnold, who was taking early retirement last week after a 25-year career in the fire service.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Sep 4, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
Pigeons and humans have co-existed for thousands of years. But when they become a nuisance, who is to be blamed?
Pigeons, one of the most resourceful species on the planet, are traditionally, symbols of love, peace, family and faithfulness. Their inflated throaty coos are a common sound in virtually every part of the globe with the exception of the Sahara Desert and the Polar ice caps. It is ironic that the species is currently being referred to as “the most serious bird pest associated with human habitations”.
Flock together
Pigeons have lived alongside humans and been used for food, sport and as messengers. Considered one of the most intelligent species on the planet, pigeons can perform tasks previously thought to be the sole preserve of humans and primates.
Descended from wild rock doves that thrive in a cliff environment, feral pigeons form large flocks that roost on building and ledges and under bridges. They can often be found in loft spaces and empty buildings — anywhere that offers a small amount of shelter.
Naturalist Dr. T. Murugavel says, “Feral pigeons thrive in urban areas in particular because there is usually a good food source and the absence of predators. The result is that they can become ‘pests’ in built-up areas. Unless food is strictly controlled, pigeons will rapidly breed out of control, resulting in overpopulation in areas of human habitation. Researchers have proved that pigeons do not usually like any change in their nesting area. Even a decoy or an image of a raptor when placed in the nesting or roosting area of pigeons discourages them from nesting. Whatever you do, ensure that it is humane and eco-friendly.”
Research conducted around the world to find a humane way to control, includes methods like ‘birth control’ pellets to controlling the number of eggs allowed to hatch, spikes to deter landing and thorny cacti on a sunny windowsill! But aren’t ‘pigeon problems’ really ‘people problems’? Can we coexist better with a bird that has survived in close association with man for over 10,000 years?
A recent report in The Independent spoke of how people found feeding pigeons in the Austrian city of Vienna were to be fined €36 in an attempt to keep the city clean. Pigeon experts from the animal welfare ombudsman said that it was rubbish in the city that caused problems beyond the pigeon population. Obviously, unclean neighbourhoods in any part of the world are the reason for many health and environmental issues, but looks like it is the issue that is being most conveniently pigeonholed!
Shoo!
The National Audubon Society Birds site, which gives tips on “how to shoo them away”, says that many safe and effective commercial products are also available including plastic or metal bird spikes. If pigeons are roosting on a utility wire or other area where they can’t be easily blocked, a weatherproof bird sound device that plays bird alarm or distress calls may chase them away.
Downside
Pigeon droppings are acidic and can cause damage to buildings and machinery. Nesting material, droppings and feathers can block drains and air vents. Startled flocks that take flight suddenly may cause hazards to motorists and pedestrians. While large numbers of pigeons can drive smaller birds away from feeding areas, they can also spread disease to other birds.
by Pigeon Patrol | Sep 4, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
Rufus the Hawk reports for duty weighing 625 grams.
Ten grams more and he’s too sedentary. Any lighter, and he ceases being the non-lethal deterrent Wimbledon contracts him to be and roams farther afield for mouse, snake or hare.
But if Rufus arrives at his optimum weight, he need only soar over centre court a few times to earn his hand-fed reward of raw chicken bits.
The mere sight of his one metre wingspan is enough to shoo away the pigeons that might otherwise land on the court during a critical point, deposit droppings in the Royal Box or roost in the eaves to feast on grass-seed all winter, as if the sod were a buffet table.
A 6-year-old Harris Hawk with prodigious self-esteem, Rufus is just one of several hundred actors in the meticulously choreographed dance that unfolds between dawn and 10.30am daily in London throughout the Wimbledon fortnight.
From strawberry-hullers to bomb-sniffing English Springer Spaniels, every man and beast has a task before the All England Club’s wrought-iron gates open to the tennis-mad public. And every task – whether mowing, measuring, marking, pruning, watering, soaring, sniffing, sweeping, scrubbing or polishing – has its appointed time for completion.
No detail is overlooked. Everything must be just so at the most esteemed of the four Grand Slams. A ticket to Wimbledon, after all, constitutes an invitation to a private club that opens to royals and commoners alike for two weeks each year to watch the world’s best players in the most pristine setting in sports.
“It’s all about the details,” says Lucy Tomlinson, 21, a member of Wimbledon’s daytime housekeeping staff, which from 7.30am onward restocks the loos with soap and hand towels, polishes the banisters, scrubs scuff marks from the entryways and wipes away beads of water left by the power-washing of ticket-holders’ seats.
“We make sure everything is absolute perfection!”
Neil Stubley, the head groundsman, starts his day with a 5.30am check of the forecast. Based on that, he directs his staff when to deflate the translucent covers on the 41 grass courts so they can be rolled up and stowed and the sod watered if the daily measurements of its hardness indicate there’s a need.
All of Wimbledon’s courts are oriented in a north-south direction. A specific groundskeeper is assigned to each court for the tournament’s duration. And each mows the rye grass to precisely 8 millimetres each morning, in exactly the same pattern of alternating stripes.
Every cutting is captured by the mower; even a stray snippet of grass could cause a player to slip.
“If Roger or Andy or Rafa goes out onto any of the practice courts in the morning and then comes out to any of the match courts, they should play exactly the same because we have controlled the moisture, the grass species and the cutting,” explains Stubley, who supervises a staff of 32 groundskeepers and gardeners.
Then come pairs of groundskeepers who mark the lines with titanium dioxide and set up the nets.
By that point, roughly 9am, David Spearing has started work at the golf course across Church Road that doubles as a camping ground for the thousands of fans in the queue for tickets.
Wimbledon’s honorary chief steward, Spearing has the privilege of informing the campers over a loudspeakers at 7.30am the number of tickets available for public sale that day and handing out the wristbands that guarantee entry to centre court, court 1 or the grounds in general.
It is but one of his duties. The other is sitting in the players’ guest box on centre court. Wimbledon is the lone major that seats the relatives, coaches and friends of both players in the same box. And Spearing, expert in protocol and discretion, is on hand to greet, seat, and on the rarest occasion, mediate.
“It’s basically an honour to have the job, rather than any particular ability,” says Spearing, who sits in the corner of the 39-seat box, with the top seed’s 19 guests to his right and the lower seed’s 19 guests to his left.
“Being pleasant is easy.”
Based on wags, few enjoy their early morning rounds more than dogs tasked with sniffing potential explosives. A mix of spaniels and retrievers, they scamper up and down the walkways, peer under benches and poke into trash bins positively quivering with excitement over the prospect of finding something that warrants a prize. At Wimbledon, naturally, that prize is a fuzzy yellow tennis ball.
Dogs, however, are one of the few sights that unsettle Rufus. So handler Imogen Davis, whose parents and five siblings breed and train raptors for a living, does her best to steer the hawk clear of Wimbledon’s canines. It’s not always easy, given that Rufus’s vision is 10 times better than her own.
“If Rufus was at one end of a football pitch, and a newspaper was at the other end, Rufus could read the headline!” Davis says by way of illustration.
“If he could read.”
One could get the impression Rufus can indeed read from his Twitter account, @RufusTheHawk, which reveals a raptor of cracking wit and considerable ego. Among his recent tweets: “Chasing pigeons is an art form, like poetry or twerking. And I, Rufus, am an artist.”
And, “The reason Sharapova is so loud when she serves is because she wants to scare away pigeons to be more like me.”
Apart from the sight of dogs, nothing rattles Rufus. Not the sound of Wimbledon’s lawn mowers. Not the sound of leaf blowers. Not even the fire alarm that gets a full-song test each morning at 9.35am.
It’s followed at 9.45am by a call over the public-address system for all staff and contractors to remove all vehicles and carts from the grounds in preparation for the opening of the gates, 45 minutes away.
And the pace of activity picks up.
Gardeners deadhead petunias and pluck yellowed leaves from ferns and hydrangeas at Centre Court’s South Entrance, where guests of the Royal Box enter.
The 250 ball boys and girls start arriving at Gate 13. They form a single-file line and march up the steps of St. Mary’s Walk without uttering a word, the only sound the pad of 500 sneakers on the pavement.
Aged 14 to 18, the schoolchildren have trained for this duty since late January, schooled by gym teacher Sarah Goldson in how to properly roll tennis balls between points, how to raise their right hand before feeding the ball to the server and, above all, how to stay still during play.
“They can move their eyes, and they can wriggle their toes,” Goldson says.
“But that’s about it.”
They also must wear their uniform correctly. Shoelaces must be tied in double knots. Shirts must be tucked in; trousers worn at the waist, not sagging in any manner. Water bottles must be tucked on the right side of their backpacks. And for girls, long hair must be tied back.
“Make-up, chewing gum is a big no-no.” Goldson adds.
“Jewellery, definitely not!”
As the ticket holders mass at the gates, the strawberry-sorters’ hands are flying in a chilled catering room tucked behind the grounds’ largest food court. Wearing green fleeces for warmth, a staff of six sits around a table and inspects and hulls the berries. They’re picked at 5am daily at a farm an hour’s drive away and delivered to the grounds by refrigerated trucks.
No scales are needed for the portioning out; it’s 10 strawberries per little plastic bowl. And roughly 8600 bowls, or “punnets,” are consumed daily.
Outside the sun inches higher in sky. The clock shows 10.25am, the next cue for Wimbledon’s public-address announcer.
“Attention ladies and gentlemen, we will shortly be opening the gates,” he advises.
“In the interest of your own and others’ safety, please do not run.”
In five minutes’ time, everything is in its place. The dogs have exited with their minders. The ball boys and girls have assumed their posts. Two towels have been placed on each player’s chair on every court. The air smells of petunias in full bloom.
And Rufus, having secured his realm for another day, has slipped on the custom leather hood that signals naptime and a job well done to Wimbledon’s brave hawk.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Sep 4, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
A new pathogen has been discovered by scientists investigating major die-offs of pigeons native to North America, according to studies led by the University of California, Davis, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.Scientists were able to implicate this new parasite, along with the ancient parasite Trichomonas gallinae, in the recent deaths of thousands of Pacific Coast band-tailed pigeons. The die-offs occurred during multiple epidemics in California’s Central Coast and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges. Scientists named the new pathogen Trichomonas stableri.
Avian trichomonosis is an emerging and potentially fatal disease that creates severe lesions that can block the esophagus, ultimately preventing the bird from eating or drinking, or the trachea, leading to suffocation. The disease may date back to when dinosaurs roamed the earth, as lesions indicative of trichomonosis were found recently in T-Rex skeletons. The disease may also have contributed to the decline of the passenger pigeon, whose extinction occurred exactly 100 years ago.
Epidemics of the disease can result in the death of thousands of birds in a short amount of time. An outbreak in Carmel Valley killed an estimated 43,000 birds in 2007.
“The same parasite species that killed band-tailed pigeons during the outbreaks were also killing the birds when there weren’t outbreaks,” said lead author Yvette Girard, a postdoctoral scholar with the Wildlife Health Center in the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine at the time of the studies. “This indicates there may be other factors at play in the die-offs.”
“We are now investigating what triggers these die-offs, which may be caused by the congregation of infected and vulnerable birds during certain environmental conditions, or even spillover from another nearby species,” said principal investigator Christine Johnson, a professor with the UC Davis Wildlife Health Center.
Between winter 2011 and spring 2012, there were eight mortality events—defined as more than five dead birds found in the same geographic area during the same time frame. The study said trichomonosis was confirmed in 96 percent of dead, sick or dying birds examined at seven of the mortality events. This disease was also found in:
- 36 percent of band-tailed pigeons at wildlife rehabilitation centers
- 11 percent of hunter-killed band-tailed pigeons
- 4 percent of the birds caught live and released
“What makes this disease more troublesome for band-tailed pigeons is their low reproductive rate—about one chick per year—and also that these events are occurring in the wintertime,” said co-author Krysta Rogers, an environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. “That means almost all the birds we’re losing during events are adult birds. They’re being killed before they have the ability to reproduce in the spring.”
Mortality events in band-tailed pigeons have been reported in California at least since 1945, but have increased during the last decade, with outbreaks reported in six of the last 10 years.
“Going into the study, we expected to find a single, highly virulent species of Trichomonas in birds sampled at outbreaks,” Girard said. “Having two species killing birds at these large-scale mortality events is surprising.”
Necropsies of the birds were conducted at the California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory at UC Davis and the Wildlife Investigations Laboratory at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Both studies were funded by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Sep 3, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
If you just want to shoot a few pigeons, you can do it the old way: Post shooters outside the haymow window, bang on the side of the barn, and have at it. But if you want to max out your haul, you need to get with the times. These days, realistic full-body fakes, electric spinning-wing decoys, pigeon calls, and blinds—including two-dimensional cows for hunters to hide behind—are becoming standard. Idaho resident Neal Hunt is just one hunter who takes pigeon shooting very seriously. His cutting-edge game plan routinely scores triple-digit birds.
1 | X-Games
As with waterfowl, being where the birds want to be is vital. “You can run traffic with pigeons and have some success,” Hunt says, “but being on the X makes most hunts a home run.” Scouting is the key here. Simply glass from a distance to see where the birds spend most of their time in a feed field.
2 | Basic Spread
Rock doves will work a decoy set into the wind, so place yourself upwind of it. Hunt keeps six or eight dozen full-bodies balled up tight, like feeding birds, with a hole about 15 yards in front of the blind. Decoy color variations within the spread, as well as mixing in shells and silhouettes, increase realism.
3 | Bodies in Motion
“Pigeons constantly jump and fly ahead of the flock,” says Hunt. “They’re always in motion. The males are trying to breed all year, so they’re strutting and spinning in circles.” Along with his full-bodies, Hunt uses two or three spinning-wing Mojo Pigeon decoys, each placed where he wants flocks to finish. Installing timers in them enhances the appearance of birds leapfrogging within the flock.
4 | Bring the Noise
Hunt plays preloaded pigeon sounds from Mojo’s Double Trouble E-Caller. “Pigeons on the ground are loud,” says Hunt. “We’ve used both the -E-Caller and mouth calling, and it definitely makes a difference.” If you’d rather mouth call, a deep-throated coo works best.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Sep 2, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
PESKY pigeons are creating a stink in Coulsdon town centre because they’ve managed to find a way around the bird-proof rail bridge in the town.
Residents’ associations have had complaints from people about the problem, which means the pavement in the town centre is often covered in slimy pigeon droppings.
The bridge, over Brighton Road and next to the town’s station, has been plagued by the pests nesting and perching despite having anti-bird mesh fitted.
Charlie King, chairman of East Coulsdon Residents’ Association said the street used to be steam-cleaned regularly, but that was no longer the case.
“It’s getting worse and worse. It’s a health risk, it’s dirty and filthy and not good for kids.
“The bridge needs improved pigeon proofing. They’ve got some iron mesh but the pigeons can get through.”
Peter Appleford, from Coulsdon West Residents’ Association agreed.
“They make a hell of a mess on the pavement, especially when it rains, it’s really horrible. There’s slime right all over the pavement, it’s really slippery and if anyone was to fall on that and get it in their face or in a cut it would be quite nasty.
“The council used to clean it regularly but with cost cutting, they only seem to do that when it was reported. I must say that when we do report it they clean it very well, but when they do that the pigeons seem to react and make even more of a mess than they did before.
“The only long-term solution is to make it pigeon proof again.”
Mr Appleford added he had been in contact with Network Rail, the owner of the bridge, about the issue last Monday, August 11. It said it would look into it.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 19, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
The blueberries are here! The strawberries have been great, and now the blueberries are coming into season!
But we aren’t the only ones who like blueberries. We’ve got the sparrows, robins and all different kinds of birds, so there are a couple of different things you can do to protect your blueberries so the birds don’t get the whole crop.
The first thing is if you have a small bush or just one or two bushes, it’s nice to cover them with bird netting.
Now to do this, don’t just drape the netting over the bush, because every time you pull it off you’ll be pulling off berries and leaves and damaging the bush. It’s better to put some stakes in around the bush and then put the netting over the stakes. Its much easier to get in to work around the bush.
There are also reflective devices that you can use to scare birds away. I’ve got my old Pat Metheney CD over here! But really, anything that is going to reflect light such as CDs, aluminum pie plates, and holigraphic tape can be used. I even hang this scare eye balloon, that believe it or not, looks like a hawk to many birds, so they tend to stay away.
They key with these devices, though, is to move them around so that it looks like the hawk is moving around too. The wind will really help move these reflective tapes!
The final thing you can do is spray your berries with a sugar solution. Take 4 packets of Grape Kool-Aid, and a couple of quarts of water and then spray that solution on the plants. You can use regular sugar, too. The sugary solution has a flavor that the birds don’t like.
So all of this will hopefully make you have a beautiful berry crop that you can have all for yourself!
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 19, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
It is currently legal to use live pigeons in what are known as “pigeon shoots” during target practice and shooting competitions in the state of Pennsylvania. Across the state pigeons are forced into spring-loaded boxes and launched into the air to be shot. And the barbaric practice is completely unnecessary. Participants can easily spare the suffering of these innocent creatures by using clay discs as a humane alternative.
Pennsylvania legislators have proposed a bill that would institute a statewide ban on live pigeon shoots. In addition the bill would outlaw the slaughter or sale of cats and dogs for human consumption. Officials with the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals state that while this is a relatively rare occurrence, shockingly it remains legal in the state of Pennsylvania.
Companion animals belong in loving homes, not forced into the heartless meat trade to spend their short lives full of fear and cruelly confined until their brutal slaughter. Urge government officials to show compassion to pigeons and companion animals alike and vote in favor of this humane legislation.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Representative Smith,
As an animal welfare advocate I find it shocking that two horrific practices of animal abuse are currently legal in the state of Pennsylvania: live pigeon shoots and the slaughter and sale of cats and dogs for human consumption.
Thankfully legislators have proposed House Bill 1750 (H.B. 1750), which would ban both of these cruel practices in your state. Pigeons are fully capable of feeling distress, fear and pain and do not deserve the cruel fate of being used in live pigeon shoots. These barbaric events involve forcing pigeons into spring-loaded boxes and launching them into the air only to be shot down moments later. Live pigeon shoots are disturbingly a part of everyday target practice and shooting competitions throughout your state, despite readily available and humane alternatives such as clay discs.
While slaughtering and selling dogs and cats for human consumption is far less common, surprisingly, it is legal in Pennsylvania. These animals have been our companions for hundreds of years and rely on humans to protect them from unimaginable cruelty like this.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 8, 2014 | Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
The moment Satyavathi walked out of her house to pluck flowers, the duo entered the unlocked house and stole 60,000 cash and jewellery worth 19 lakhTwo teenagers, who were trying to earn a few rupees by catching a wild pigeon to sell, stumbled on much bigger game. It was easy pickings, and for about five days the youths, both SSLC dropouts, had a good time spending their ill-gotten wealth. Then the law caught up with them and they are now cooling their heels in Parappana Agrahara Central Prison.
Gowtham (19) and M Diwakar (Deepak) (18) are close friends. After they failed their SSLC exams, they took running petty errands to earn a little money. The duo, both residents of HAL II Stage, soon realised that catching and selling pigeons was an interesting money-making enterprise.
On the morning of June 6, the duo spotted a few birds on the terrace of a residential building and decided to go after them. As they were climbing up, they spied an old lady counting money in a room in a house in the building. Satyavathi Krishnappa, 70, the elderly lady, was securing her life’s savings. On seeing the money, the youths changed their mind about catching the pigeons and decided to rob the elderly lady instead.
The duo waited and watched and realised the old woman was alone. The moment Satyavathi walked out of her house to pluck flowers, the duo quickly entered the unlocked house. They cleaned up the cash amounting to Rs 60,000 and, to their surprise, also found jewellery in the same cupboard. They did not know the value of the jewellery, but stole it anyway. Their crime was complete in five minutes flat.
Over the next few days, the duo spent almost the entire cash they had stolen. They purchased a second-hand bike for Rs 35,000 and the rest of the money was spent on booze and food. Their party, however, lasted only five days.
Satyavathi realised the theft only on June 10 and filed a complaint with the Indiranagar police. What caught the police’s attention was that the duo had also stolen a mobile phone from the elderly lady. They focused their investigation on finding the phone.
Though Deepak and Gowtham had changed the SIM card of the phone, they did not realise that the police could still track them through the phone’s IMEI number. The phone’s activity was concentrated around Jeevanbheema Nagar and HAL so the police decided to bait the duo. One of the investigating officers called the number, posing as their long-lost friend. The duo fell for the trap easily and ended up disclosing their location to the police. On interrogation the duo spilled the beans. Police say the jewellery was worth more than Rs 19 lakh.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 7, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
BATHURST Regional Council has not ruled out resorting to using birds of prey in an effort to control the pigeon problem in the central business district.
Council has had discussions with Dubbo City Council regarding its success in using falcons to encourage pest species to leave the main shopping precinct.
A report to tomorrow night’s ordinary monthly meeting updates council on how Bathurst’s pest bird management strategy has fared since it was adopted in 2012.
One of the recommendations of the plan was to introduce a co-ordinated pigeon control program involving council facilities and businesses in the CBD.
Council conducted a successful program during 2012-2013, when 1089 pigeons were removed from council and private properties.
According to the report, council’s environmental staff have discussed with staff from Dubbo City Council that city’s recent trial using native birds of prey.
“Dubbo has a problem with starlings nesting in trees in the main street, causing $12,000 of annual clean-up costs,” the report states.
“They engaged a falconry company to conduct a trial using four different predator bird species that would fly in the area with the intention of moving the starlings on.
The program was moderately successful for two of the birds used though more trials are needed to determine if the program would work on an ongoing basis.
“This may or may not work in the Bathurst context in relation to pigeons as they are impacting across a broader area and moving the birds from one place to another may not reduce the issue.
“Council staff will continue to receive updates regarding the Dubbo trial to determine if a similar program could be conducted locally.”
The report also notes that pigeon control efforts have also continued in 2013-14 with a targeted trapping program in Machattie Park.
However, this was largely unsuccessful as pigeons are attracted to the high volumes of artificial food supply at the duck ponds and therefore could not be enticed to the trapping area.
“Since then, council has recently commenced a trapping program at the Post Office building, the TAFE complex and at one private building in the CBD,” the report states. “These three sites have the highest populations and therefore have been targeted first before the program moves onto activities at other CBD properties.”
In other pest bird initiatives, council hosted a community Indian Myna workshop, attended by local and regional residents as well as staff from Bathurst and Orange councils.
Presentations were given by the Clarence Valley Indian Myna group and the Pest Cooperative Research Centre’s Mynascan project coordinator.
Thirty Indian myna traps were distributed on the day (for a small cost) so that interested community members could remove these pest birds from their area.
Council staff will continue to implement the Pest Bird Management Plan as required and as funding and resources permit.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 7, 2014 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Bird Deterrent Products, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
US – University of California Davis researchers have identified the cause of death in wild band-tailed pigeons connected to newly discovered parasite.
Researchers at UC Davis and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife have identified trichomonosis as a key factor in winter die-offs and population decline of bandtailed pidgeons, a native migratory game bird. (Dianne Ricky/courtesy photo)
A new pathogen has been discovered by scientists investigating major die-offs of pigeons native to North America, according to studies led by the University of California, Davis, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Scientists were able to implicate this new parasite, along with the ancient parasite, Trichomonas gallinae, in the recent deaths of thousands of Pacific Coast band-tailed pigeons. The die-offs occurred during multiple epidemics in California’s Central Coast and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges. Scientists named the new pathogen, Trichomonas stableri.
Avian trichomonosis is an emerging and potentially fatal disease that creates severe lesions that can block the esophagus, ultimately preventing the bird from eating or drinking, or the trachea, leading to suffocation. The disease may date back to when dinosaurs roamed the earth, as lesions indicative of trichomonosis were found recently in T-Rex skeletons. The disease may also have contributed to the decline of the passenger pigeon, whose extinction occurred exactly 100 years ago.
Epidemics of the disease can result in the death of thousands of birds in a short amount of time. An outbreak in Carmel Valley killed an estimated 43,000 birds in 2007.
“The same parasite species that killed band-tailed pigeons during the outbreaks were also killing the birds when there weren’t outbreaks,” said lead author Yvette Girard, a postdoctoral scholar with the Wildlife Health Center in the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine at the time of the studies. “This indicates there may be other factors at play in the die-offs.”
“We are now investigating what triggers these die-offs, which may be caused by the congregation of infected and vulnerable birds during certain environmental conditions, or even spill-over from another nearby species,” said principal investigator Christine Johnson, a professor with the UC Davis Wildlife Health Center.
Between winter 2011 and spring 2012, there were eight mortality events – defined as more than five dead birds found in the same geographic area during the same time frame. The study said trichomonosis was confirmed in 96 per cent of dead, sick or dying birds examined at seven of the mortality events. This disease was also found in 36 per cent of band-tailed pigeons at wildlife rehabilitation centres, 11 per cent of hunter-killed band-tailed pigeons and four per cent of the birds caught live and released.
“What makes this disease more troublesome for band-tailed pigeons is their low reproductive rate – about one chick per year – and also that these events are occurring in the wintertime,” said co-author Krysta Rogers, an environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. “That means almost all the birds we’re losing during events are adult birds. They’re being killed before they have the ability to reproduce in the spring.”
Mortality events in band-tailed pigeons have been reported in California at least since 1945 but have increased during the last decade, with outbreaks reported in six of the last 10 years.
“Going into the study, we expected to find a single, highly virulent species of Trichomonas in birds sampled at outbreaks,” Girard said. “Having two species killing birds at these large-scale mortality events is surprising.”
Necropsies of the birds were conducted at the California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory at UC Davis and the Wildlife Investigations Laboratory at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Both studies were funded by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 7, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
Members of the public are being urged to tidy away loose netting after a charity warned it poses a danger to wildlife.
The RSPCA says discarded fishing nets, unkempt bird-deterrent nets and goal nets could injure birds and other wildlife during the summer months.
RSPCA wildlife scientific officer Llewelyn Lowen said: “Netting that is not maintained, repaired and tended to regularly enough poses a serious threat to wildlife.
“The same also stands for sports nets that are not tidied away when they are not in use. Netting is of a nature that when it is blown away it can quickly entangle animals, particularly wildlife, causing them distress and injury.”
The RSPCA receives around 2,000 reports of birds and other wildlife being trapped by netting each year.
Llewelyn said: “Netting such as goal nets pose a real hazard to our wildlife and sadly we get too many calls to injured wild animals that are trapped in them.
“There is a really simple way to prevent this from happening and that is for nets to be removed after use and safely stored away.
“We would ask people who use deterrent netting on buildings to ensure that it is maintained and that netting in goals or elsewhere is rolled away properly when not in use.
“Members of the public can also help by safely disposing of litter such as netting that they find littering both rural and urban areas.
“Garden netting or chicken wire should never be used as building deterrent netting and owners could consider enclosures using weld-mesh around pens and enclosures as this is harder for foxes to get into and is less likely to entangle them or other wild animals such as hedgehogs.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 6, 2014 | Animal Deterrent Products, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
A CAT has been decapitated and pigeons shot in a series of animal cruelty incidents across Sussex this week.
A domestic cat found with no head in a Peacehaven garden has been reported to Sussex Police by a horrified vet.
A force spokeswoman said police had no idea how the cat – which also had a missing leg and tail – had been injured.
The RSCPA is separately investigating violent thugs shooting pigeons in Hove.
A spokeswoman for Sussex Police said: “A decapitated cat was found in the back garden of a house in Capel Avenue, Peacehaven, by the home owner on Monday at 8.20am.
“The cat was also missing its front leg and its tail. It is not known who the cat belonged to and it was not microchipped.
“The incident was reported to the police wildlife officer for the area.”
Three shot birds were found in Sackville Road near the railway bridge on Tuesday. It follows an incident a few weeks ago in which three other birds were found dead.
Two pigeons were found in the alleyway behind a back garden, already dead, and a third injured bird was found inside the garden. They were taken to the vet who found a bullet in the body of the injured bird, which had to be put down.
RSPCA inspector Tony Pritchard said: “There are too many coincidences here for this to have been a one off occurrence or an accident – we are seriously concerned someone is intentionally shooting birds and may continue to do so unless they are stopped.
“It is likely that all the birds were left to suffer a long lingering death – as would have happened to the injured bird had these kind people not called us.
“We would like to remind people it is an offence to intentionally injure wild animals in this way and urge anyone who knows anything about the shootings to let us know.”
Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, killing or injuring a bird can result in a six-month prison sentence or a £5,000 fine.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 6, 2014 | Animal Deterrent Products, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
In the dinosaur kingdom, the raptor reigns as a pop-culture bogeyman. While not as big as the T. Rex, the feathered creature had a mean set of teeth and claws. But there was at least one refuge from its tyranny: the air.
Now, however, scientists have discovered a new fossil that lays waste to that pleasant fiction. This new raptorial dinosaur named Changyuraptor yangi not only flew — it had four wings. And those wings were studded with the longest feathers any dinosaur has ever worn, said lead researcher Luis Chiappe of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” he told The Washington Post. “It is a stunning specimen and it was stunning to see the size of the feathers. This is the dinosaur with the longest known feathers — by far. There is nothing like this by a very good distance. The feathers were one-fourth the size of the animal.” Chiappe paused for a moment. “It’s just wonderful,” he said.
In the pantheon of hulking dinos, this one wasn’t on the larger side. Published in the scientific journal Nature Communications on Tuesday, the article by Chiappe and colleagues reported it was only about four feet long and weighed about nine pounds — approximately three times the weight of your everyday seagull. But what it lacked in size, it made up for in importance, researchers said.
Classed as a “microraptorine,” its fossils “are essential for testing hypotheses explaining the origin and early evolution of avian flight,” the paper stated. “The lengthy feathered tail of the new fossil provides insight into the flight performance of microraptorines and how they may have maintained aerial competency at larger body sizes.”
Be nice if the WaPo would’ve told us this is from the Early Cretaceous (100-146M years ago). But anyway, that’s cool.
ntodd
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 6, 2014 | Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
DALLAS (AP) — United Airlines is defending the poisoning of birds at Houston’s biggest airport, saying it was done for health and safety reasons. But the airline said Wednesday that it didn’t tell its contractor how to control the airport’s bird population, and will ask the firm to consider other methods the next time.
The contractor laid out corn kernels laced with a bird-killing nerve agent at Bush Intercontinental Airport. People who work around the airport reported seeing grackles and pigeons fall to the ground and spin around as they died.
The bait manufacturer, Avitrol Corp., says a lethal dosage causes birds to show distress — including alarm cries and trembling — that frightens away other birds. It usually causes death within an hour, the company says.
Airports commonly take steps to shoo away birds, which can be sucked into jet engines and cause a loss of power. In 2009, US Airways pilot Chesley Sullenberger safely ditched his Airbus A320 into the Hudson River after hitting a flock of Canada geese during the climb from New York’s LaGuardia Airport.
United spokeswoman Mary Clark said in a statement that the airline works with the airport on abatement programs “to reduce the health and safety risks posed by birds on airport property” and to “provide a clean and safe environment for our customers and employees.”
Clark said United hired a contractor, Texas Bird Services, which is experienced at removing birds from airports. She said the company complied with all regulations while laying bait at terminals and a maintenance hangar at Bush airport.
United will work with the contractor to consider alternate methods, Clark said. Texas Bird Services, which lists American Airlines and Delta Air Lines as references on its website, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Bush airport spokeswoman Katena Carvajales said the company’s work was reviewed Tuesday by officials from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and found to be within guidelines. She said controlling wildlife is important for safety and sanitation.
John Hadidian, a senior scientist at the Humane Society of the United States, said it would have been better for the airport to use netting, take away food sources, or use loud noises to deter the birds.
The biggest threat to aircraft is often larger birds such as geese. A group of U.S. agencies including the Federal Aviation Administration recommends steps such as limiting bird-friendly features like ponds and the use of technology to harass birds. The FAA is evaluating portable radar systems for tracking birds.
An FAA database lists more than 80 cases of planes colliding with wildlife — from sparrows and pigeons to cattle egrets — at Bush airport last year. Two planes were damaged — a United Boeing 737 was left with minor damage and a private business jet suffered substantial damage.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 6, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
By now, we know that all of the 298 passengers and crew members traveling on the Malaysia Airlines flight that was shot down over Ukraine on Thursday were killed. Those 298 people included 192 Dutch citizens, 44 Malaysians, 27 Australians, 12 Indonesians, 10 Britons, four Germans, four Belgians, three Filipinos, a Canadian and a New Zealander. One of the Dutch citizens held dual Dutch-U.S. citizenship.
A cargo manifest that has been posted online shows that besides the luggage of those on board, MH17 was carrying hundreds of pounds of live birds, including pigeons; two dogs; and fresh-cut flowers. Here is a sample of what was loaded on to the plane at the Amsterdam airport:
12 shipments of fresh-cut flowers weighing about 474 pounds
2 shipments of live dogs weighing about 110 pounds
5 shipments of live birds weighing 154 pounds
4 shipments of live pigeons weighing 181 pounds
You can see the full list of materials in the cargo compartment of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in the manifest below:
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 6, 2014 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Bird Deterrent Products, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
LAKE ALFRED, Fla. (AP) — Every evening they come.
After a day of circling the skies, scanning the ground for the dead and dying, they make their way back home — an inhospitable home, to be sure, but home.
During the past couple years, it has been turned into a fake bird cemetery; it has reverberated with loud, scary noises; it has sent electric jolts through their bodies; and most recently, it has flashed blinding light into their eyes.
But still, black vultures settle down each evening on the Lake Alfred water tower.
“We are kind of in the final attempts (to get rid of the vultures),” City Manager Ryan Leavengood told the City Commission last Monday. “You wouldn’t think these things are as resilient as they are, but I’ll give them credit where credit is due.”
Leavengood’s comment sparked laughter from the commissioners and audience, but the city has had about $24,000 worth of work done to try to persuade the vultures to settle somewhere else.
The city has tried using a buzzer to frighten them — which worked until they got used to the noise. Fake dead vultures didn’t work, either. Those attempted solutions cost about $2,000.
Commissioners accepted a $20,332 bid in November for Terminix to install bird spikes and low-voltage electric tracks on the tower. The tracks were supposed to give the birds an uncomfortable, but harmless, shock. The spikes were supposed to make the surface uncomfortable to perch on.
Public Works Director John Deaton said the electric track works but doesn’t cover the whole tower, leaving plenty of space to sit comfortably. The spikes don’t seem to do anything, he said.
Leavengood said Monday the city will pay only part of that cost because it failed to deter the birds.
“Ultimately, we paid for a solution, and we didn’t get a solution,” he said.
In an attempt to hold on to hope, the city bought two Eagle Eyes for about $1,600 in May.
Eagle Eyes are bird deterrents that reflect sunlight or artificial light, limiting birds’ vision and causing them to steer away and find somewhere else to land.
It doesn’t seem to work for vultures, though.
“It looks pretty flashing around out there,” said Public Works Director John Deaton. “But the vultures are not annoyed by it at all.”
Leavengood said the city has another last-ditch effort idea: putting up cables and wires to impede their ability to land.
“That’s about the last thing we can think of,” he said. “We were hesitant because we didn’t want them to get caught up” in the wires.
City staff members have said they want the scavengers to find a new place to perch because they are worried about damage to the tower. Vultures’ urine and regurgitated fluids are highly corrosive.
So far, the only damage has been to the paint. The vultures have no access to the water, so the water quality isn’t in danger.
But cleaning and painting the tower is costly. Staff and residents don’t find the sight of the birds particularly appealing, either.
Vultures are a protected species, and the city cannot do anything to remove the birds that would harm them.
“You know what it is?” Deaton said, with a laugh. “Lake Alfred is a great place to live, and the birds have figured it out, and they don’t want to move.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 6, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
Neighbors of a woman from Hull have won a four-year battle to get her to stop feeding birds.
The town took Gail Kansky to court because of the swarms of sparrows, pigeons, and other birds that surround her bird feeder and her home. It claimed the flocks of birds were causing a health hazard.
“There are people complaining of illness, complaining of odor. There’s quite a bit of noise,” said Hull Town Manager Phil Lemnios.
After repeated demands and a restraining order, the case ended up in court.
“The birds are on my back deck. They’re on my front porch. They’re on my roof,” said John McKinnon. “They leave bird feces on virtually everything we own.”
Kansky says she’s the victim of neighborhood bullies.
“The town is doing it because of the next door neighbors. They’re really their attorneys. They’re not doing it for the town. They know there’s no health hazard,” she said.
Now a housing court judge has ruled Kansky’s habit of feeding the birds creates a public health hazard, and has been ordered to stop. Kansky can still appeal the decision.
What should the town do to enforce the court’s order? Does Kansky have the right to keep feeding the birds despite the court order? Share your comments below, and watch for them on WBZ News in the Morning from 4:30 to 7:00 a.m.
About Pigeon Patrol:
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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
PIGEONS are making life difficult for people who say the droppings they leave underneath a railway bridge are a safety risk and so dirty they make worshippers reluctant to go to a nearby mosque.
