by Pigeon Patrol | Nov 18, 2014 | Bird Netting, Pigeons in the News
Woody Allen famously dubbed them “rats with wings,” and we all more or less agree: when it comes to pigeons, everyone’s a hater. They’re filthy disease carriers! Parasites of the urban environment! Dumber than chickens!
Not so, says award-winning Toronto-based filmmaker Scott Harper, and he’s setting the record straight in his documentary The Secret Life of Pigeons, airing Thursday November 20 on CBC’s The Nature of Things.
“They can recognize an individual by their face alone,” says Harper, revealing just one of the surprising pigeon truths revealed in his film. The birds are actually highly intelligent, and can differentiate between the nice old lady bringing a bag of corn to share and the mean old witch ready to beat them off with a stick, just by examining their facial features.
Pigeons also have a very long and surprisingly amicable history with humans. Domesticated as far back as ancient Egypt, pigeons have served man as a mode of communication, a tasty snack, a form of entertainment and even as a medium for studying brain chemistry.
Carrier pigeons saved thousands of lives during WWI, and were as close to a walkie talkie as guys like Genghis Khan were going to get.
Pigeon races were once a popular pass time, and though they don’t draw a crowd like they once did, the Queen and Prince Charles continue to keep racing pigeons, and there are still races held as nearby as Bradford, Ontario.
Then there is the world of the pigeon fancier — individuals who breed pigeons for show. Yes, it’s a thing that exists, and we suggest you Google it (to see many photos of grown men — including Mike Tyson — holding their beloved pigeons).
And because pigeons form and then lose memory in a manner remarkably similar to humans, scientists use the birds in Alzheimer’s research and testing.
But perhaps the most surprising fact revealed about these ubiquitous birds is that they continue to exist at all.
“It’s amazing how these birds have survived in a place where they are really not wanted,” says Harper. The story of the urban pigeon actually turns out to be a rather heartbreaking one. Because they are domesticated animals that have found themselves homeless, they don’t feed on anything natural, and so must surviving on little more than refuse and what the odd pigeon lover leaves for them. In fact, says Harper, when someone who regularly feeds the neighbourhood pigeons stop doing so, that whole flock will likely die. “They made feeding pigeons in London’s Trafalgar Square illegal,” says Harper, “and now there are no pigeons in Trafalgar Square.”
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 | Nov 10, 2014 | Animal Deterrent Products, Pigeons in the News
Pigeons are well known for the excessive droppings they cause wherever they go. Watch how famous prankster Remi Gaillard exemplifies this fact.
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 | Nov 10, 2014 | Pigeons in the News
The pigeon is a determined creature. It will stay in an area as long as there is food, despite attempts by humans or other birds to chase it away. The pigeon sighting can encourage you to be stubborn and hang in there, regardless of what challenges are thrown in your path.
The pigeon also has strong connections to house and home. If a pigeon appears to you, take a look at your relationship with your home. What does it represent to you? What would you like it to be for you? If these things don’t match up, you know you have work to do. The pigeon is safest in a flock. Don’t discount the strength and support found in a community. Furthermore, remember the importance of communication within that community; don’t assume people know things just because you do. Make sure everyone is in the loop regarding important information.
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 | Nov 7, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Pigeons in the News
A number of panicked Russians have contacted the authorities to report concerns over the bizarre behaviour of pigeons in Moscow.
Locals have dubbed the birds “zombie pigeons” after a strange change in their behaviour swept the city – leaving the birds extremely lethargic and seemingly fearless.
Speaking to Europe Radio Liberty, a Moscow resident named Umid said: “When I walk to work I usually see pigeons running and jumping around. But recently they haven’t been reacting to anything at all”.
He added: “When a person walks past them, they used to fly away. But now they just sit there in a kind of funk and don’t even pay attention to you. They’re just not normal.”
Umid went on to say: “I’ve seen some pigeons behaving very strangely, turning around in circles”.
Officials have dubbed the birds “the pecking dead”, and say their condition is likely to be a combination of an intestinal infection that has left a large number of pigeons dead over the last few years, and various other parasite-based diseases.
Hundreds of worried Muscovites have already taken to Twitter to share stories about the “zombie pigeons”, branding the epidemic a “bird apocalypse”.
One user reported a pigeon losing its balance and falling through an open window frame, while others described birds resting their beaks on the ground or walking round and round in circles.
Moscow’s deputy Mayor Leonid Pechatnikov moved to allay fears by declaring the pigeons’ odd behaviour harmless, adding that the intestinal disease could not be caught by humans.
This was seemingly contradicted by the Federal Veterinary and Phytosanitary Inspection Unit however, who said the birds are likely to be suffering from Newcastle disease – a highly contagious illness that can cause eye infections and flu-like symptoms in people.
Russia’s Vetinary Committee added a third theory, claiming lesions on the dead birds’ livers and intestines seem to indicate salmonella poisoning, which can, of course, also be passed to humans.
For the time being, locals are advised to stay away from any pigeon that is behaving strangely and to call the local authorities if they come across a dead bird.
Russia’s chief health inspector Gennady Onishchenko, who last month banned Ukrainian chocolate as a potential health hazard, said the country has no plans to investigate the reports however.
Mr Onishchenko went on to reveal his somewhat prejudicial views on pigeons, saying: “In the hands of Pablo Picasso a pigeon became and embodiment of peace… but in fact, in a sanitary sense, they are one of the dirtiest stupidest birds there are”.
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 | Nov 6, 2014 | Animal Deterrent Products, Pigeons in the News
Pigeon fanciers in eastern China are caging, cleaning and vaccinating tens of thousands of the birds in an attempt to contain the spread of avian flu as the death toll from the disease continues to mount.
“We’ve been cleaning a lot of cages,” said a man from the Beijing Fengtai District Carrier Pigeon Association who gave his name as Mr Wang. He added that the Beijing government had required the association to cancel upcoming long-distance races and instruct members to keep their birds caged for at least a month.
State media reported four new cases of H7N9 avian influenza on Monday, including one death. Since last month, the virus has infected 24 people and killed seven of them; cases have been reported in Shanghai and throughout three eastern provinces. The World Health Organisation said it had not yet found evidence that the virus could be transmitted from person to person.
In Shanghai, authorities ordered the slaughter of at least 100,000 chickens, ducks and geese after a national laboratory found traces of the virus in two pigeons near one of the city’s live poultry markets.
Now the country’s pigeons have become a focus for concerns over the spread of the disease. The Hangzhou Carrier Pigeon Association said it planned to suspend races and vaccinate up to 90,000 pigeons, according to state media. “Right now, pigeons in [Shanghai’s] squares and public parks have all been caged,” reported the China Sports Daily website.
Pigeon racing is a popular pastime in China dating back to the Ming Dynasty, which ended in 1644. Almost 300,000 people across the country participate in the sport.
According to the news portal Zhejiang Online, a complaints hotline in the metropolis Hangzhou received a flurry of pigeon-related calls on Sunday, when local media reported that samples of pigeon feathers found at a local market had tested positive for the virus.
Chinese researchers have identified the H7N9 virus as a “genetic mix from South Korean migratory birds and ducks from Zhejiang province”, the independent magazine Caixin reported on Tuesday.
Chinese health authorities have not detected any flu-like symptoms in 621 people who have had close contact with infected patients, the director of China’s National Health and Family Planning Commission, said Liang Wannian.
The outbreak has had an effect on China’s capital markets: shares of mainland poultry-meat producers have slumped since reports of the disease surfaced last week. Chinese airline and hotel stocks have also taken a hit, suggesting fears that the outbreak could affect the country’s tourism industry.
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 | Nov 6, 2014 | Pigeons in the News
“Look into the eyes of a chicken [or pigeon] and you will see real stupidity. It is a kind of bottomless stupidity, a fiendish stupidity. They are the most horrifying, cannibalistic and nightmarish creatures in the world.”
- Werner Herzog
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)
