by johnnymarin | Apr 28, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
A Brent landlord company has been fined after failing to combat noisy pigeons nesting in one of their rental properties, following complaints that the birds were waking up the tenants.
Landlord company Adilsons Property Limited has received a sizeable fine after their tenants complained about the noisy pigeons. The couple were persistently disturbed by the birds, whose cooing awakened them each morning at 4am. The tenants were awarded £7,638 in compensation after Adilsons Property Limited refused to sort out the issue.
Brent Council investigated the property following a complaint lodged about the pigeon infested loft and also a water leak in the ceiling of the property. Adilsons Property Limited made some repairs but was ordered to pay £31,026 after failing to comply with follow-up notices related to the problems issued by Brent Council.
The trial was held at Willesden Magistrates’ Court on March 20. Adilsons Property Limited of Cricklewood Broadway, Wembley, was found guilty of failing to comply with an improvement notice related to sorting out the pigeons. The company was fined £12,200 and told to pay £5,648 in costs and was also told that they must pay a victim surcharge of £170. The property’s manager, Aamir Sultan was also fined £6,100. The two tenants were awarded £7,638 in compensation for the trouble that they had suffered at the hands of the early birds nesting in their home.
Head of Private Housing Services, Spencer Randolph, spoke out about the local council’s decision to prosecute the rogue landlord. He said: ‘Landlords are expected to maintain the properties that they rent out. Tenants in the private rented sector have a legal right to decent living conditions. We will prosecute landlords and letting agencies that fail to comply with improvement notices. This landlord had plenty of opportunities to carry out the repairs but ignored our requests.’
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 johnnymarin | Apr 27, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
Nestled in the heart of Chamarajanagardistrict, Kollegal is a small town that has, more or less, become synonymous with black magic. Such is the reputation of Kollegal that people from neighbouring states such as Kerala and Tamil Nadu seek out the Tantriks and Mantravadis in the town, to help solve a broad range of problems. However, visitors to this town are no longer queuing up just outside the doors of the Tantriks. Over the past few years, naati vydyaru (traditional healers) in Kollegal have become famous for the treatment they offer for stroke using pigeons, and what is more, they are making a handsome profit from the trade as well – charging a sum of Rs 10,000 to offer treatment.
Residents point to the ubiquity of posters around the town advertising the healers, and the recovery they can effect using the pigeons, called ‘Lakva parivala (stroke pigeon)’. Since pigeons are not protected by any wildlife protection legislation, these practitioners appear to have no problems in operating openly. Interestingly enough, in keeping with the many beliefs of the town, even these traditional healers offer their services only on some days of a week.
“There are several naati healers who offer treatment for stroke using pigeons. Patients from far-flung places come to Kollegal for treatment, and we give them medicines prepared using the blood and meat of pigeons,” said one of the healers.
Pointing out that his ancestors too were involved in the profession, the healer added, “Both my grandfather and father were well known for the treatment they offered with the pigeons. I am continuing the tradition. I am offering this as a service. I offer treatment free of cost to those who cannot afford to pay for it.”
There are other traditions that the healers abide by as well. “I offer treatment only on Tuesdays and Fridays, after offering puja to the family Goddess. It’s a family tradition,” he added.
Kollegal resident Satish Rao said that a few healers had thousands of pigeons at their disposal. “These naati healers do not belong to any particular caste or religion. The most famous healer for pigeon stroke treatment is a Muslim. They use domestic pigeons, and there is great demand for them,” said Rao.
On the other hand, Chamarajanagar district health officer Dr Prasad sought to roundly refute claims. “The treatment they offer using pigeons will have no medicinal benefits for patients,” Dr Prasad said.
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 johnnymarin | Apr 26, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
With the temperature soaring in the city, birds suffering from dehydration have increased and several of them had to be rescued, said bird rescuers in Kalyan-Dombivli.
“Ever since the temperature started rising, I have rescued 15 birds from Kalyan this month. They were dehydrated. We fed them water and food and after some days, released them,” said Mahesh Bankar, a bird rescuer from Kalyan.
Usually the number of birds rescued in a month is around two to three. “We have started keeping water in cans and bowls for birds in several parts of the city,” said Bankar.
A group 70 to 80 bird lovers representing Ecodrive – youngsters group from Kalyan-Dombivli area – have been feeding birds water for the past several years. Recently, they have put up cans filled with water across several parts of the city.
“We have covered around 20 different places in Kalyan. Cans filled with water are kept for the birds. We ask residents living in the area to ensure that the cans are filled with water all the time,” said Bankar, adding that such cans were already stationed in areas like Adharwadi, Annapurna nagar, Rambaug, Ramabai Ambedkar garden in Kalyan (West).
Another bird rescuer Suhas Pawar revealed that he has rescued around 13 birds recently and all of them were dehydrated and ill.
“Some of the birds rescued by me are kites, sparrows, pigeons , the greater coucal, spotted dove, the rose-ringed parakeet and Asian Koel,”said Pawar.
Bird lovers in the city have been appealing to residents to immediately alert them if they find a bird dehydrated.
“We have been receiving several calls from residents saying the birds are found at some spot without any movement,” said Pawar.
A group of youngsters called Swarajya Yuva Pratishthan from Kalyan have taken to social media, asking people to keep bowls full of water in their balconies, terraces, and compound walls daily for the birds.
Apart from this, these youngsters also fill water in mud pots which they claim are damaged or are stolen most of the time.
The group has been using mud pots used for final rites at the cemetery as a shelter for birds. The members of the Pratishthan have made around 500 such shelters for the birds till now.
“We decided to use the mud pots as shelters as they were get wasted after the final rituals. Mud pots are a cool shelter for birds,”said Pawar, who is the founder of the Pratishthan.
During summer, the Wildlife Welfare Association in Thane receives around four to five calls a day for birds rescue in Thane.
“We ask citizens to place water bowls and grains on their windows and balconies. This attracts birds such as sparrows, pigeons and crows. Placing big bowls on terrace and making small artificial ponds will help big birds such as kites and owls,” said Manasi Nathwani, secretary, Wildlife Welfare Association, Thane.
“Most birds die due to lack of water,” said Aditya Patil,23, Wildlife Welfare Association in Thane.
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 johnnymarin | Apr 24, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
Dozens of pigeons used that dormant time to grow their families in Paseo’s rafters. They’ve claimed the best seats behind home plate, and they’ve marked them to warn anyone who dares sit there.
“While the crews work on repairing the Paseo Stadium to make it safe, it’s the perfect opportunity to get rid of those birds,” said Jon Cramer, recreation administrator for the Department of Parks and Recreation.
He’s fielded many offers of help from people with small-caliber firearms, slingshots and even darts. He continues to decline each one.
“There will be no projectiles, no shooting, nothing like that. We will simply encourage them to move somewhere else,” said Cramer. “There’s a hollow line that runs down the length of the beam, where the pigeons roost. We’ll fill it with spikes and they won’t want to live there anymore.
“And, hopefully, these birds won’t come back.”
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 johnnymarin | Apr 23, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
National Geographic has dubbed 2018 the year of the bird.
In its March issue, it focused on such amazing mysteries as the epic journey of the bar-tailed godwit, which flies nonstop 7,150 miles from New Zealand to Alaska during its migration.
Helena writer, Jim Robbins has kept an eye to the sky for years, sharing similar fascinating feathery facts.
An international spotlight has been shining on both him and his book, “The Wonder of Birds: What They Tell Us About Ourselves, the World, and a Better Future.”
The book, published in 2017, recently won the Montana Book Award from the Montana Library Association, which will be presented in April.
This coming week Robbins gives a talk, “Celebrating a Writer’s Journey,” 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 3, at Lewis & Clark Library.
He will also present a pre-event workshop from 5 to 6 p.m. April 3 at the library, when he will discuss his writing process.
Interestingly, birds have played a role in Robbins’ life since his initial journey West after college.
While searching for a new hometown in the 1970s, Robbins and his wife found a nest of baby birds they fed with an eyedropper — that is until a fateful and fatal intervention by a cat.
Robbins, a science and environmental writer who has written for the New York Times and authored or co-authored five other books, just returned from a trip to Australia earlier this month. He was a featured writer at the Adelaide Writers Festival.
He was also featured in a Planet Talks interview as part of the global festival WOMAD, World of Music and Dance.
And he appeared on several radio shows and twice at the Wheeler Centre in Melbourne, which hosts author and artist discussions before large audiences.
During one of these, “Feather Permitting: Jim Robbins on Birds,” interviewer Sean Dooley hailed Robbins’ book as a “wondrous read,” adding that perhaps it could be the spark to help awaken public interest in saving birds and the planet.
To get a sense of the magic and wonder birds bring to our world, one need look no further than Robbins’ account of the humble pigeon.
While some see only the nuisance of pigeon droppings, Robbins sees pigeons “at the heart of what animal geography is all about.” He calls them “the closest soul mate” from the the bird world that humans have.
Their companionship with humans stretches back as far as 10,000 years.
He writes: “There’s an important story behind this tough little streetwalker scrambling for crumbs in the gutter. …These birds learn much the way children do, and their vision and perception are uncanny.
“They can tell the difference in painting style between Monet and Picasso.” They’ve aided the Coast Guard as sentinels to find shipwreck survivors, served as couriers for centuries, and worked for the military carrying messages. One even earned the Croix de Guerre military honor in World War I for saving 194 soldiers.
Perhaps this feathery, rugged urban dweller could awaken in human minds and hearts a personal relationship with nature.
“The love for the urban pigeon…may play a key role in stanching the disappearance of global biodiversity.”
Human lives intertwine with that of birds in strange and wondrous ways.
They alert backyard birders and scientists to the health of the planet.
They have played a powerful role in helping some people heal and transform their lives, such as tough urban youths who discover the wonders of falconry.
And they are offering startling insights into bird consciousness or “megamind,” which could be what brings thousands of birds together in flocks and then take flight to migrate.
“I’m a little uncomfortable being in the spotlight,” admitted Robbins over coffee during an IR interview last week.
But he’s looking forward to his upcoming talk about birds and also his workshop on the writing process.
“Longevity is a key to being successful,” he said of his career, “and pushing through the obstacles. That’s where you learn. I’ve had lots of failures.”
He welcomes the attention his books and writing bring to the mysteries and miracles of the natural world.
Prestigious researchers and publications are praising Robbins’ book.
“A must-read, conveying much necessary information in easily accessible form and awakening one’s consciousness to what might otherwise be taken for granted . . . ‘The Wonder of Birds’ reads like the story of a kid let loose in a candy store and given free rein to sample. That is one of its strengths: the convert’s view gives wide appeal to those who might never have known birds well.” So wrote Bernd Heinrich in The Wall Street Journal.
“Engaging, thoughtful . . . This work is worthy of a place alongside David Attenborough’s documentary ‘The Life of Birds’ or Graeme Gibson’s ‘The Bedside Book of Birds.’ . . . Of wide-ranging significance, this offering will appeal to naturalists, anthropologists, linguists, and even philosophers as well as to lay readers,” wrote the Library Journal.
In an IR interview last year, Robbins said “There’s a lot of undiscovered aspects of birds. The theme of this book is how little we know about all this. There’s so much in the natural world that’s unrecognized…it’s remarkable how little we know about the world.”
He said this theme has actually run throughout all his books.
And it is once again the focus of his new book project that is in the works — but can’t be revealed at this time.
“Every time I write a book, my life is changed somehow,” he said. “One of the things that propels me to write books is that good writing can change people’s perceptions of the world. That’s what I’m trying to do.
“I’ve had people tell me that ‘this book changed my life.’”
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 johnnymarin | Apr 21, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
Vast sums have been spent on state-of-the-art infrastructure sparking widespread fears that the host nation will milk the competition for propaganda purposes.
Calls for a boycott and the creation of an alternative event grow in volume.
You could be forgiven for thinking this is a reference to Vladimir Putin’s Russia hosting the World Cup this summer but it was also the situation that prevailed more than 80 years ago in the run-up to the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin – only on that occasion one country had the moral courage to boycott Adolf Hitler’s showcase for fascism and set up its own alternative.
It was a noble endeavour but one that was destined to fail in the most dramatic fashion.
By 1936 the Führer had been in power for three years. Anti-Semitic policies had been introduced that banned Jews from marrying non-Jews and nor were they permitted to be employed as civil servants, practise law or occupy public positions.
They released 25,000 pigeons. They circled overhead and then they shot a cannon and they scared the poop out of the pigeons
An “Aryans-only” policy was instituted at all athletic organisations and only one token Jewish competitor was allowed to join the German Olympic team.
Meanwhile, no expense was spared when it came to preparing for the Games.
Hitler commissioned a new 100,000-seater stadium, six gymnasiums and many smaller arenas and gave his favourite film-maker Leni Riefenstahl what was then a massive budget of £5million to record the event for posterity.
Once it became clear that Berlin would be a propaganda pageant, campaigns to boycott the Games surfaced in the US, Great Britain, France, Sweden, Czechoslovakia and the Netherlands.
But once the Amateur Athletic Union of the United States narrowly voted to participate in December 1935, almost all the other countries fell into line.
Only Spain, which voted in a Left-leaning Popular Front government in February 1936, and the Soviet Union, which refused to participate in the Olympics on ideological grounds until 1952, ended up boycotting Berlin.
Not content with simply withdrawing their athletes from Hitler’s Games, the Spanish decided to attempt to steal the Nazis’ thunder by organising a competition of their own.
Called the Olympiada Popular, or People’s Olympiad, it advertised its liberal credentials via a poster featuring images of three athletes: one white, one black and one mixed race.
The Catalan capital of Barcelona was the ideal city to host the competition as it had already built all of the facilities required for the 1929 International Exposition seven years earlier, including a 56,000-seater stadium.
Spain scheduled its Olympiad for July 22-26, which meant it would end six days before the Nazis’ spectacle got under way.
Given the political character of the Popular Front many of the athletes were sent by trade unions, workers’ clubs and associations, socialist and communist parties and Left-wing groups, rather than by state-sponsored committees.
A UK team was organised by the British Workers’ Sports Association.
In a press release sent out a month before the event, it said: “Arrangements for the British team to compete in the Barcelona Peoples’ Olympiad are fastly [sic] gathering pace; at least 30 participants will travel. Athletes, boxers, cyclists and swimmers are expected to go over, and rowers may possibly be included, along with table-tennis players.”
In the end, a total of 6,000 athletes from 22 nations registered for Barcelona, which brought the start date forward by three days to the 19th to accommodate the surprisingly large turnout.
The largest contingents came from the US, UK, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Norway and Czechoslovakia. There were also some political exiles from Germany and Italy. Even the Soviet Union sent a team.
One of the most high-profile athletes to commit herself to the cause was Canadian high jumper Eva Dawes.
She had won bronze in the Los Angeles Olympics of 1932 and silver at the British Empire Games two years later but refused to go to Berlin.
Dawes, who later married an Englishman and died in St Helens in 2009 at the age of 96, travelled to Europe on the SS Alaunia but never got further than Toulouse in south-west France.
She was about to board a train for Barcelona when the British consul informed her that the Spanish Civil War had broken out.
On the very day the Olympiad was set to begin, the army began its rebellion against the government, athletes woke to the sound of gunfire and the Games were over before they had begun.
An article from the time laments: “It is impossible for us to calculate our sports prowess before the world because the javelin has had to be exchanged for a rifle, the discus for a hand grenade, hurdles for parapets and trenches, foot races for military marches; likewise, our joy has slipped towards suffering, and outside attraction was derailed by horror, tourism by invasion, and light, love and life by gloom, hatred and death.”
However, not everything went smoothly for Hitler’s jamboree either.
One of the more extravagant elements of the opening ceremony involved a massive flock of birds.
US distance runner Louis Zamperini takes up the story: “They released 25,000 pigeons. They circled overhead and then they shot a cannon and they scared the poop out of the pigeons. We had flat straw hats and you could hear the pitter-patter on them. But we felt sorry for the women – they got it in their hair. There was a mass of droppings – it was so funny.”
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)
