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How to Clean Pigeon Poop Off a Balcony

by Pigeon Patrol | Dec 24, 2021 | Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons, Pigeons in the News, Raccoons, Sparrows

While birds might be fun to watch, the damage that they can leave on your balcony and lawn furniture isn’t. Not only is pigeon poop unsightly, but it can also be a health hazard. It’s important to make sure to clean it from your home’s outdoor areas.

Health Precautions

Bird feces carries with it hazards like slipping, but can also carry health risks as well. This is because it contains pathogens that can be harmful to humans if ingested. When you are cleaning pigeon droppings, you will want to make sure that you take the proper precautions by wearing gloves, a mask, closed-toe shoes, and long sleeve pants and top. Immune-compromised individuals shouldn’t clean up pigeon droppings.

a pigeon bird standing by guano manure

Multipurpose Method for Pigeon Poop

Whether you have a wood, cement or metal balcony, this method can help you remove stains and poop from your scenery.

Materials

Scraper (plastic)
Broom and dustpan
Dishwashing detergent like Dawn
Water
Bucket
Scrub brush
Baking soda

Instructions

For stuck-on droppings, take the scraper and remove it from the balcony. You are just trying to scrape off all the larger pieces. Be careful not to gouge wood.
Use the broom and dustpan to sweep this up and dispose of it properly.
Fill the bucket with warm water and add a tablespoon of detergent.
Use the scrub brush to remove any fecal matter. This will take a bit of elbow grease.
For stains, sprinkle the area with baking soda and allow it to sit for 30 minutes or so.
Use the scrub brush to scrub the area.
Rinse with water.
Allow to air dry.

Cleaning a Wood Balcony

Depending on your balcony, you might take a different approach with wood. This method can help remove stains and odor from wood.

Supplies

Scraper
Broom and dustpan
Club soda
Baking soda
White vinegar
Spray bottle

Method

Use the scraper to remove any dried-on poop.
Broom the area and use the dust pan to dispose of the fecal matter.
Mix vinegar and water in a 50/50 mixture in the spray bottle.
Spray the crusted areas and allow it to sit for 10-30 minutes.
Rinse with club soda.
Apply baking soda to stained areas and use the scrub brush. This will help to remove loosened up fecal matter and remove stains.
Allow the baking soda to sit for 30 minutes.
Rinse the area.
Allow to air dry.

Removing Pigeon Poop from Metal

Metal is tougher stuff, so you can add a little more power to the mix.

What You Need

Hose or power washer
Laundry detergent
Water
Scrub brush
Towel or rag
Spray bottle
Broom and dustpan
Polishing compound

How to Clean

Remove any loose poop with the broom and dustpan.
In the spray bottle, mix 1 tbsp. of laundry detergent with 2 cups of water.
Saturate the stuck on areas with the soapy water.
Allow the mixture to sit for about 10-15 minutes.
Take the rag or towel and remove the softened areas.
Get the power washer or hose and spray the areas until all the poop is removed.
Since pigeon poop is acidic, check the metal for signs of wear.
Using a rag, apply the polishing compound.

Using Commercial Cleaners

If natural cleaners like detergent and baking soda aren’t covering it, commercial cleaners are available that can be substituted. These also work great for areas that need lots of cleaning or larger areas. These include:

Getting Rid of the Smell

If you are looking to get rid of the pigeon dropping smell rather than the actual fecal matter, try vinegar and water or baking soda.

To use baking soda for odor, just sprinkle it on the area and let it sit, then hose or broom it off.
Mix 50/50 vinegar and water in a spray bottle and spray the area. Allow the vinegar to air dry to remove the smell.

All the Birds

Whether pigeons are overtaking your balcony or you just need to clean up a few random areas, several methods are available for cleaning your balcony depending on the type of material it is made out of. Thankfully, most of these methods only require items in your standard house cleaning arsenal.

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SAFETY FIRST – HOW A PIGEON’S JOURNEY HOME REVEALS MORE ABOUT THEIR FLIGHT PATTERNS

by Pigeon Patrol | Dec 16, 2021 | Bird Spike, Pigeon Predators, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons, Pigeons in the News, Raccoons

How does a lone pigeon get back home? Does it choose the fastest, the easiest or the safest route?

As flying takes a lot of energy, birds generally adapt their flight speed and trajectory to reduce how much they use.

Now researchers at Swansea University have been using high-tech tags to study homing pigeons and to discover if these crucial decisions could be linked to helping them avoid attack by predators.

When the team monitored pigeons as they flew back to their loft at the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour in Germany, they observed that the birds did sometimes adopt energy-efficient flight styles such as starting their climbs ahead of hills to reduce their climb angle. But they also saw pigeons using up energy by flying at high speeds.

Baptiste Garde, of the University’s Swansea Lab for Animal Movement (SLAM) led the new research which has just been published by the journal Royal Society Open Science

He said: “This might suggest that pigeons are just trying to get home as fast a possible, but by comparing the variation in their flight speed and altitude to those of an ultralight aircraft following the same path, we found that pigeon altitude and speed was, in fact, very variable.

“Flying this way is neither efficient in terms of time nor energy, but it might have an unexpected advantage. Indeed, if we look at the trajectory of a rabbit on the run, or a snipe flying away, we can see that they make unpredictable sharp turns to confuse their predators.

“That is what we call a protean behaviour. Pigeons might be using the same strategy to increase their chances of avoiding an attack.

“Protean flight has only been described in a handful of birds up until now but we think that it might be a relatively common behaviour, with birds flying in a more unpredictable way when they fly solo.”

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Well-fed pigeons leave their mark at Lawrence and Markham

by Pigeon Patrol | Dec 7, 2021 | Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons, Pigeons in the News, Raccoons, Sparrows, UltraSonic Bird Control

One of the best places for pigeons is at Markham Rd. and Lawrence Ave., where a perpetual buffet of birdie num num is on the menu.

It is also a bad place to be a pedestrian or a TTC rider. After they dine, the birds roost on overhead utility wires to digest their meal and then deposit wet, smelly droppings on the sidewalk and people below.

We’ve had several complaints over the past few years about the hundreds of pigeons drawn to the southwest corner of the busy intersection by food scattered across a parking lot.

The bird lovers’ hearts are in the right place, but the mess created by the huge number of pigeons attracted to the food is the bane of people who catch the bus at a TTC stop on the corner.

A reader told us he’s been twice bombed on his way to the TTC stop, adding that he’s heard it’s a sign of good luck to be pooped on by a bird but doesn’t believe it.

“They sit on the wires and s– on everything below,” said the reader, who asked not to be named. “One time I could see it falling in front of me, like it was raining bird s–.”

We’ve gone there several times and seen hundreds of pigeons and a few seagulls pecking at seed in the parking lot, while others that had finished dining roosted wing-to-wing on wires on the east side of Lawrence, waiting to drop a surprise on a hapless victim.

The sidewalk below the wires had a residue of guano on it, but we thought it would have been much worse. Plentiful rainfall over the past few weeks has likely washed away some of it.

Dumped next to a concrete barrier on the north side of the parking lot was a huge pile of stale white bread cut into pieces — enough to fill a couple big garbage bags — along with several pounds of white rice.

The situation raises a couple questions, like who’s doing it and what can be done, if anything, to stop them.

STATUS: We asked the city if any rules prohibit the feeding of birds. City spokesperson Angelica Santos sent us an email that said “feeding wildlife can increase the population of wild animals in a community and cause the animal to lose its natural fear of people.” Yeah, but we’re talking about pigeons, not raccoons or bears. Santos went on to cite bylaws that say “a person feeding wildlife in a public area can be fined by the city, if the person is observed by an officer throwing waste.” In other words, unless a bylaw enforcement officer stakes out the parking lot and catches someone feeding them, there are no repercussions. We also found a page on the city’s website that says “there are no specific bylaws that restrict the feeding of wildlife outside of a city park.” Since the feeding is done in a private parking lot, it looks the feeders are home free.

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SHOULD I FEED PIGEONS?

by Pigeon Patrol | Nov 30, 2021 | Bird Spike, Pigeon Droppings, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Predators, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons, Pigeons in the News

Pigeons predominantly feed on grains and cereals, thus they can consume quickly any grainy foods lift in the open. Aside from grains and cereals, Pigeons are known to feed on small insects as well as earthworms . Pigeons can feed on small Kentucky rats , lizards and many other reptiles, they can also carry these small animals in their claws or feet through hundreds of miles during flights until they reach their destination and without losing grip of such animals.

The question of feeding pigeon or not will largely depends on whether the bird is domesticated or not. While domesticated Louisville pigeons can be fed at a restricted area of a property, free-roaming pigeons must never be fed. Domesticated pigeons must only be fed if they are very few (between 1 and 5), however, feeding domesticated Kentucky pigeons may attract the attention of other pigeons , thus the population of pigeons around your property may soar within a short period of time.

Feeding of Louisville pigeons are widely discourage because of the possibility of such birds causing damages to different compartments of a property during flight. When you feed pigeons, they will end up defecating on your roof, similarly, they will end up roosting and building nests close to you property because they have a ready source of food. Feeding Kentucky pigeons around your property also means that they will eventually gain access to other places such as the patio, deck, and garage.

When you feed pigeons close to your Louisville property, they will get used to migrating there in search of food, and when you are not around, they may decide to fly through your door or window. Feeding pigeons within your Kentucky property will increase the chances of the birds gaining access to the attic or the chimney at the top , where they can easily roost and establish their nests. Even when your pigeons are domesticated, you must only feed them in their cages and not outside of their abode, this will reduce their chances of accessing your roof, since they are used to eating in their bowls or troughs , inside their cages.

Feeding Kentucky pigeons is discouraged in every way because of the enormous damages they tend to cause in and outside of properties. The birds are aggressive in nature, and their droppings can get too much to the extent of making roofs to cave in. Pigeon damages reduce the value of homes and can cause thousands of dollars in damages.

Source

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Pigeons As Pets: Outside or Indoors

by Pigeon Patrol | Nov 30, 2021 | Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons, Pigeons in the News, Raccoons, Sparrows, UltraSonic Bird Control

Pet lovers are embracing the joys of adopting dogs and cats from shelters in ever greater numbers, but few people realize how many birds there are in shelters and rescues needing to be adopted.

Pigeons Make Great Pets — And They Need Our Help

I started Palomacy (originally named MickaCoo Pigeon & Dove Rescue) in San Francisco, CA when I discovered domestic (unreleasable) pigeons were being killed in shelters for lack of homes. Pigeons such as Kings, Fantails, Tumblers and Homers are smart, beautiful and gentle birds. They’ve been selectively bred and tamed and, while they can’t survive in the wild, they thrive as pets. Many pigeons (and other birds as well) wind up in animal shelters, either surrendered or found as strays, but they need adopters to get out alive.

Pigeons make great pets both indoors as part of the family or outside in a rodent and predator-proof aviary.

Pigeons as Pets in an Outdoor Aviary

Rescued pigeons can’t be safely flown (they are easy targets for hawks and cats) and so, when outside, must be protected in an aviary. It needs to be predator-proof (sturdy and securely built all the way around including top and bottom), rodent-proof (use 16 gauge or better hardware mesh with openings half inch or smaller) and include a sheltered corner that will stay shady on the hottest days and dry during the rainiest. No one has ever wished for a smaller aviary so make it as big as possible. Minimum size for four birds would be at least 6 feet long by 4 feet deep and 6 feet high.

Pigeons excel at the leisure arts and spend their time bathing, preening, lounging in the sun, foraging for favorite seeds, watching the sky, napping, showing off and courting. Every four to five weeks, mated couples will lay a pair of eggs (which need to be replaced with fake eggs for pigeon birth control) and take turns sitting on them. Pigeons are extremely devoted to their family and mate for life. They require fresh food and water and a quick poop-scrape daily and a thorough aviary cleaning weekly. Pigeons are beautiful, peaceful and full of personality. With time and attention, most can be hand-tamed. All can be befriended. It’s easy to create a charming, attractive and safe aviary for rescued pigeons.

West of England Tumblers Beau & Cher are devoted mates

Pigeons as Indoor Pets

Pigeons can also live inside with the family. They need a big cage for their home base (a double-flight cage or an extra large dog kennel is a good size for a pair) with daily out-of-cage time to stretch their legs and wings and have some fun. They’ll walk around more than fly and will pick out some favorite spots for hanging out. Pigeons are smart, easy going birds that quickly learn household routines. They do fine in homes with other pets and can live peacefully and unafraid with dogs and cats as long as they are kept safe. Pigeons are very emotional and do need a BFF, whether another bird or a human with whom they can spend the day. (Home all alone in a cage isn’t a good life for a pigeon.)

Janelle & Beep chat up Petey & Pineapple in their double-flight cage

Using Pigeon Pants for Indoor Birds

The main inconvenience to having pigeons as indoor pets is probably their droppings. Healthy pigeon poop is odorless and not too hard to manage with hardwood or tile floors or with strategic placement of liners. Pigeons can also be potty trained or they can wear pigeon pants! Pigeon pants are adorable little harnesses with a diaper to catch droppings. The pants are easy to put on and pigeons tolerate them well. Once dressed, they can walk and fly around the house and sit on laps and shoulders poop-free. The diaper, lined with half a panty-liner, should to be changed every 3 hours.

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When Pigeons Flock, Who’s in Command?

by Pigeon Patrol | Nov 23, 2021 | Bird Spike, Pigeon Predators, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons, Pigeons in the News

That flock of pigeons flying overhead may look like a chaotic cloud of birds, but it’s more like an airborne hierarchy. By strapping tiny global positioning system (GPS) backpacks onto the birds, researchers have found that a flock follows several leaders at any given time in flight. But the flock’s leadership can change so that even low-ranking birds sometimes get a chance to command. The findings could shed light on how other groups of animals behave en masse, such as herds of wildebeest, schools of fish, and even crowds of humans.

Flocks of birds are one of the most common sights in everyday life, but many aspects of the animals’ behavior remain poorly understood. Why, for example, do flocks suddenly change directions and then change directions again within a few seconds? Why do birds in flight suddenly stop to rest on a certain stretch of telephone wire? And lacking any threat or sudden disturbance, why do flocks on the ground spontaneously take to the air?

To find some of the answers, researchers exploited a bit of 21st century technology. A team lead by statistical physicist Tamás Vicsek of Eötvös University in Hungary outfitted a trained flock of 13 homing pigeons with tiny GPS receivers that could determine each individual bird’s position every 0.2 seconds. Then they sent as many as 10 members of the flock out on 15 test flights. The journeys included four flights of about 15 kilometers back to the birds’ roost and 11 flights roaming freely around their home base outside Budapest. The researchers tracked each bird’s directional changes and how often those changes either followed or were copied by its flockmates.

In today’s issue of Nature, the team reports that the flight patterns showed a definite hierarchy, with most or all of the birds consistently copying changes in direction by the flock’s leaders, which almost always flew in front. If, for example, a leading bird suddenly swerved to the right, its followers copied its move within about 0.4 seconds—an amount of time considered too long to be reflexive.

However, the data also revealed that the leaders weren’t always the same, even within a single flight. And sometimes, even the birds at the bottom of the pecking order would lead the flock for brief periods. The arrangement made each flight more egalitarian, but the researchers think the reason might be more evolutionarily than politically driven. It’s possible that this type of group decision-making is more accurate or beneficial than others, says zoologist and co-author Dora Biro of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Perhaps the individuals in the flocks stand a better chance of survival if they sometimes participate in guiding the group rather than constantly submitting to a single leader, she says.

Another curiosity was that the lower-ranking birds most often flew behind and to the right of the leaders. The researchers think this relates to the structure of the birds’ brains, in which the left side handles spatial tasks and the right side governs social recognition. Therefore, anything the birds see with their left eye (which is processed by the right side of the brain) tends to yield a quicker social response.

“The degree of coordination that flocks achieve is really impressive,” Biro says. “We identified a clear hierarchical structure within the decision-making process.” She says the team next plans to study flock members in greater depth, including their genders, ages, navigational experiences, to determine “what airborne leaders are made of.”

The findings could help explain group behavior of other animals, such as schooling fish, says evolutionary biologist Iain Couzin of Princeton University. There’s a “fascinating balance” between democratic and hierarchical control in the pigeon flocks, he says. And this sophisticated study reveals the link between the birds’ brain hemispheres and how they gather information during their flights. It achieves “a deeper understanding of coordinated control in animal groups,” he says.

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Next Entries »

How to Clean Pigeon Poop Off a Balcony

Health Precautions

Multipurpose Method for Pigeon Poop

Materials

Instructions

Cleaning a Wood Balcony

Supplies

Method

Removing Pigeon Poop from Metal

What You Need

How to Clean

Using Commercial Cleaners

Getting Rid of the Smell

All the Birds

SAFETY FIRST – HOW A PIGEON’S JOURNEY HOME REVEALS MORE ABOUT THEIR FLIGHT PATTERNS

Well-fed pigeons leave their mark at Lawrence and Markham

SHOULD I FEED PIGEONS?

Pigeons As Pets: Outside or Indoors

Pigeons Make Great Pets — And They Need Our Help

Pigeons as Pets in an Outdoor Aviary

Pigeons as Indoor Pets

Using Pigeon Pants for Indoor Birds

When Pigeons Flock, Who’s in Command?

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