by Pigeon Patrol | Sep 9, 2015 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, UltraSonic Bird Control
Feathered diners at a McDonald’s restaurant in Wellington have driven a customer to lay complaints with the city council.
Wellington man Vinod Mistry is a fan of the fast-food franchise, but does not want to share his table and fries with a pigeon.
The Lambton Quay McDonald’s was a haven for hungry pigeons and the Wellington City Council needed to force the fast-food giant to keep them out of the indoor dining area, Mistry said. The birds make their way to the second floor via an internal escalator.
However, the council said it was up to the company to deal with the pigeons and it has repeatedly asked for the issue to be dealt with for six years.
McDonald’s said it was working with the council to fix the problem.
Mistry said he made two separate complaints last week about the pigeons in the restaurant.
The council appeared to swoop on a small business if there was a squeak of a mouse, rat or spider in their premises, he said.
But it appeared that, when it came to the feathered vermin, the council was turning a blind eye.
“Pigeons are just as much of a health risk as other animals. You never know when one flying around the restaurant or sitting on table could put droppings in your food.”
Council’s public health operations team leader Andrew Taylor confirmed there was a health risk, but only if diners inadvertently ate pigeon poo with their meal.
“Bird poo can contain bacteria such as salmonella, so it is not safe. But the person would have to ingest some of the bacteria through direct contamination or hand contact,” Taylor said.
The council had been trying to get McDonald’s to keep pigeons out of the premises since 2008, he said. “Every time we’ve spoken to them about the pigeon issue, we have been told by management that they will address the issue.”
The restaurant had tried different methods, such as a distress-call speaker at the entrance and lowering the entry-space height to the food premises, but none had proven to be effective, Taylor said.
Council staff would be contacting McDonald’s this week to discuss how they proposed to rectify the matter so “these ongoing complaints cease”.
McDonald’s spokesman Kim Bartlett said pigeons were a widespread issue in the Wellington CBD and the Lambton Quay McDonald’s had taken a number of measures to address the problem, including “working with an external company on effectively managing the presence of the birds”.
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 8, 2015 | Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
NOBLE SQUARE — A new survey on the future of the Polish Triangle reveals people want Nelson Algren in, the pigeons out and somewhere for people to sit down.
A grassroots coalition hoping to revitalize the Triangle put out a call for opinions with an online survey, residents weighing in on what they would like to see at the intersection of Milwaukee, Avenue and Ashland avenues.
Kapra Fleming, a member of the Polish Triangle Coalition, said the survey, which lasted for three weeks and ended on Friday, brought in 1,257 responses on how to improve the transit-friendly patch that serves as a gateway to four neighborhoods.
Remove or Keep the Nelson Algren Fountain?
Sixty-six percent of survey respondents want to keep the fountain as-is but “refresh” it, Fleming said.
Should the pigeons be relocated?
Seventy-two percent of respondents want to “relocate the pigeons,” if possible.
“Some love pigeons, but some thought this was an impossible task on the nay-sayer side,” Fleming said.
The long-discussed pigeon relocation plan, which would require financing and city permits, would involve building a structure just east of the triangle where pigeons could nest, and their eggs were replaced with fake eggs to reduce the population.
“We can’t get rid of the pigeon feeders — the people that want to feed the birds will do that. But we want to get [the birds] off the triangle and somewhere else,” said Fleming, who owns the House of Two Urns, a bed and breakfast at 1239 N. Greenview Ave., around the corner from the triangle.
Should the CTA install a traditional canopy design or a modern design above the CTA Blue Line Division “L” underground entrance?
Kapra said 69 percent of respondents preferred a traditional canopy design over a contemporary design.
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 5, 2015 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
The proliferation of rock pigeons (Columba livia) on high-rise buildings all over the world seems to coincide strangely with the disappearance of house sparrows. Both are synanthropic birds that crave to be around human dwellings, the sparrows indoors and the pigeons outdoors. But the patterns of human habitats and lifestyles seem to influence urban wildlife profoundly.
There are three types of rock pigeons: the ancestral rock pigeon in the wild, the domesticated ones, and the feral ones. They can interbreed; they are all but one species. Doves are different from pigeons. The wild rock pigeons live on rocky mountain cliffs and the seashore. They are said to have originated 5,000 to 10,000 years ago in the eastern Mediterranean region.
The Sumerians of Mesopotamia (what is southern Iraq today) seem to have started domesticating them from about 3000 B.C., breeding an amazingly wide diversity of fancy breeds. The Mughal emperors (who ruled from 1526 to 1858), particularly Akbar, fancied them. Akbar’s keepers reared for him about 20,000 pigeons. Of these, they used to carry along about 500 fantails, his favourites, on his camps.
Charles Darwin had a dovecote (pigeon house) in the garden of his country estate at Down House in Kent during 1850-1856. This was no hobby. He conducted breeding experiments to produce bewildering varieties (breeds) to study artificial selection and natural selection in survival and evolution. Some of the domesticated ones might have escaped as runaways back into the wild, as ferals in search of cliffs. But they seem to be returning to our cities, which are providing them ‘concrete cliffs’ on high-rises.
Air-conditioned apartments in these ‘cliffs’, with closed doors and windows, windows with broad ledge-like bases outside, window sills above to ward off rain and shine, provide excellent niches for these feral pigeons for courting, roosting, and even nesting and breeding. Unfortunately, changed urban architectural designs and lifestyles have deprived our conservative sparrows of their humble habitats of tiled houses, driving them away far from cities. Flocks of these feral pigeons comb every bit of grain and seed off the ground, as if in a feeding competition. They leave none for sparrows.
Right now, feral pigeons on apartments, heritage buildings and architectural showpieces are detested as pests or vermin. In some advanced countries they are contemptuously referred to as ‘rats with wings’. Their droppings cause defacement and stench, and many consider their constant cooing, moaning and flapping of wings a nuisance. Feeding pigeons in the open is forbidden by law in some countries.
Changes in architectural features on the exterior of high-rise buildings that often do not leave any flat ridges, and also running cables over possible perching sites keep feral pigeons away. Community dovecotes may be constructed in protected public places such as parks and playfields. Feral pigeons, unlike sparrows, are largely unaffected by pesticides, because they feed their squabs (young ones) with ‘pigeon milk’ or ‘crop milk’, not pesticide-contaminated insects as sparrows give their nestlings. Unlike long-distance homing pigeons or passenger pigeons, feral pigeons do not seem to be affected by electromagnetic radiation from cellphone towers.
Rock pigeons have incredible cognitive capacity. This, coupled with their amazing navigational skills, enable them during aerial sorties to scout for suitable cliff-like structures in cities. Pigeons can fly at speeds of 75 to 100 km an hour for distances of 800 to 1,000 km at a stretch. They are known to recognise the residents of their block by their facial features, voices and calls. They can recognise them by their photographs! That was how carrier pigeons delivered messages to soldiers on the warfront during World Wars.
If the pigeons too, like house sparrows earlier, are chased away from our habitats back into the wild, the next invaders on to our habitats in India may be the common crow or the squirrel. The choice is ours.
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, 2015 | Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes
EAST HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH)– An East Haven man says his neighbor is feeding pigeons, but it’s getting out of hand, leaving behind a gross mess. In fact, the bird food is attracting so many pigeons the health department has gotten involved.
Bill Parker says three years ago his neighbor started feeding the pigeons, but his love for birds has gotten out of control.
“Probably a half a bag of bird feed on the ground and he is actually on town property over here so it’s not even his own property,” said Bill Parker.
The birds are being fed at a tree directly next to Parker’s neighbor’s property. It’s an empty lot that is now turning into a pigeon sanctuary, leaving behind feathers, feces, and food. Parker estimates that there could be two or three hundreds birds on a given day.
“I know there is a lot of disease in the pigeon droppings and he is not really cleaning up,” said Parker. “He is just feeding them and more and more are coming.”
Parker says he has been trying to get the health department to do something to make the man stop because the bird feces, food, and feathers are disgusting.
Friday, we tried to talk to his neighbor, nobody came to the door. However, we did notice a card from the health department in the doorway. We then stopped by the health department. They told News 8 they are investigating, but that there is no law against feeding the pigeons, unless, like in this case, it’s getting out of hand.
We also brought a doughnut as bait to see if we could get the birds to come down from their perch so we could see first-hand the feeding frenzy that neighbors say happens. None of the birds took the bait. Instead, they all stay perched on the power lines above his Parker’s neighbor’s home, where they know there will always be meal waiting.
Bill Parker says he is moving.
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, 2015 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes
When pigeons rule the roost, everything beneath them will be coated with their droppings.
And when a sidewalk runs under their perch, it’s 100 per cent certain that some of the people strolling along it will be victimized by a wet and disgusting bombing.
So if it is true that to be pooped on by a bird is good luck, then fortune must be smiling on the victims who walk along the Parkside Dr. underpasses beneath The Queensway and the Gardiner Expressway.
A reader posted a complaint about it on SeeClickFix, saying pigeon droppings in the underpasses are among several things that make for an unpleasant journey.
“It’s a scary bit of roadway for pedestrians who are quite close to traffic while heading down to the (Sunnyside) pool under three overpasses,” said the reader.
“It can be very loud and big vehicles pass quickly and very close to the walkways. Hugging the walls as you walk through is not possible because of the droppings.
“I’m sure little children cry if an unknowing parent drags them through those underpasses at a bad moment.”
We went there and found that the thunder of big trucks made a booming sound that is indeed unsettling, but that’s life in the city. There’s no fix for it, other than to move to the country.
But there’s a sickening amalgam of dried leaves and bird feathers at the point where the sidewalk meets the west wall of the underpass, glued together by pigeon poop.
An attractive mural was painted along the east side of the underpass not long ago, which partly explains why the mess is limited to the west side.
Metal bird screens were installed many years ago above the sidewalks in the underpass rafters, but holes have developed along the west side, allowing pigeons to get in and do their business above the sidewalk.
STATUS: We’ve asked Rick Helary, who’s in charge or road operations in that area, if he can arrange for the sidewalk to be cleaned and the screens replaced.
What’s broken in your neighbourhood?
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, 2015 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Spikes
WENATCHEE, Wash. (AP) – A BB gun that triggered a lockdown last week at a Wenatchee medical center was meant to scare pigeons.
The Wenatchee World (http://is.gd/v20P9o ) reports that officers from local law enforcement agencies locked down the busy Confluence Health’s Wenatchee Valley Medical Center after a witness reported seeing a man with a rifle butt extending from under his coat. The incident ended after 90 minutes with no injuries or arrests.
Wenatchee Police Chief Tom Robbins says the BB gun was brought to the medical center by an employee of the facility’s maintenance department. Robbins says scaring away pigeons is not the staffer’s primary job, but pigeons had become a maintenance issue on the roof.
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)
Feathered diners at a McDonald’s restaurant in Wellington have driven a customer to lay complaints with the city council.
