by Pigeon Patrol | Jan 16, 2015 | Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Pigeons in the News
Thousands of pigeons have invaded a small town in Scotland – coating roofs, streets and pavements in droppings and feathers.
Frustrated residents in Alva, Clackmannanshire, have hit out at council officials for failing to take action to remove the birds after they claim they have been hit be a ‘plague of pigeons’.
It is thought the birds are looking for a place to roost after the demolition of a former pub, the Alva Glen Hotel, which had lain empty for years and where they had taken residency.
A small town in Scotland has been invaded by a swarm of pigeons, which have coated roofs and pavements with droppings and feathers
But it was recently knocked down after it was discovered that drug barons had been using it as a cannabis farm in 2009.
Residents have complained that persistent problems include pigeons taking to balconies and that roofs of buildings are being covered in feathers and droppings.
Frank Cairns, 45, a local publican who lives and works in Main Street where most of the birds have settled, said: ‘It’s an absolute nightmare. It’s like we’ve gone back to the Middle Ages with street hygiene.
‘It will harm trade, no doubt about that. It gives us a harder job to keep the place clean.’
His sister Katrina Cairns added: ‘We have had to clean the gutters three times to clean out the pigeon mess. It is all getting dragged in here.
‘School kids are walking along the street, walking it into shops, the school, their houses.
‘I know the council said they are sending a cleaner along the street, but the mess is still there. The disease it brings – they are not exactly clean animals.
It is thought the birds are trying to find somewhere to roost after their previous home – the Alva Glen Hotel – was recently demolished
The pigeons can be seen in their thousands as they sit on roofs of houses. Furious residents have complained the council has not done enough to remove the birds
‘It’s not great, you have to try to avoid it in the street.’
Graham Johnston owns a watch shop and has many of the pigeons roosting on his roof: ‘It is annoying. Someone must be feeding them or they’d be away by now.
‘There is droppings all along the pavement. It’s horrible. The mess gets brought into the shop from the pavement outside. There is nothing being done about it.’
James McDonald, 64, who lives opposite where the hotel used to be, added: ‘It’s not very nice, the mess in the street is horrible.’
George Horsburgh, former secretary of Alva Community Council, who is also part of the Alva Community Action Group, said: ‘This has infuriated many residents of Alva who are worst affected, in particular residents of the flattened dwellings in The Wynd.
‘The residents there have to put up with many of the pigeons roosting on their balconies overnight and part of the day, making them unusable to the residents, some of them have resorted to fitting strawberry netting across the front of their balconies to prevent the pigeons from gaining access.
‘One older lady constantly complains that they roost on her window ledges and wonders why no action has been taken.’
Residents have complained that persistent problems include pigeons taking to balconies and that roofs of buildings are being covered in feathers and droppings
The derelict former hotel was bought and flattened by construction firm Murdoch Smith last year after it was branded an eyesore, due to its state of disrepair and problems surrounding the maintenance of the building date as far back as 2006.
Local MP Gordon Banks agrees the pigeon issue is causing distress for many people, and believes the situation has been a long time coming.
He said: ‘There can be no doubt that there are hundreds of pigeons displaced from the old Alva Glen Hotel and such populations are an obvious result of buildings lying empty and falling into disrepair, so the problem has been a long time in the making.
‘Now that their roost has been destroyed these birds are in the open and can often be seen swarming in their hundreds in the area.
‘The council’s hope that they will naturally disperse does not seem to have much support and I hope there is some way that the council will rethink their position and investigate methods for dispersal.
‘This is a problem where buildings are allowed to fall into disrepair and impacts other areas of the county as well, so I look forward to the council being more proactive on empty buildings in the future.’
Another resident said: ‘As soon as they took the roof of the Alva Glen Hotel, the town was hit by a plague of pigeons flying around wondering where their home had gone. They had all been roosting in the attic.’
The birds had been roosting in the Alva Glen Hotel (pictured) before it was recently demolished after residents complained it was an ‘eyesore’
The small town of Alva in Clackmannanshire has been inundated with the pigeons and the local council has organised extra street cleaning
Clackmannanshire Council said it had been concerned about the potential for problems from pests from the site and, in advance of the demolition, had investigated options for culling the birds.
A spokeswoman for the council said: ‘Due to animal welfare legislation we were unable to net the buildings as it would have trapped the birds inside and due to the poor state of the building we were unable to gain access to poison the birds.
‘It was expected that the pigeon population of Alva would decrease as the air temperature dropped and the pigeons are forced to find new sheltered spots for roosting at night.
‘The persistence of birds during daytime is indicative of food being put out for the birds during the day.
‘The council has investigated a number of reports and spoken to those responsible.
‘To reduce the impact off the pigeon droppings on the pavements of Alva, the council has organised extra street cleansing and also arranged for high powered jet washing of the worst affected areas.
‘Council officers will continue to monitor the situation, and consider further action should the issue persist.’
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 | Jan 16, 2015 | Animal Deterrent Products, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeons in the News
As per reports, the birds have been seen dropping dead from trees along the roads shedding saliva from their mouths.
Plenty of carcasses were seen in Brahmagiri market, Brahmagiri-Kusubenti and Delang-Brahmagiri roads. While the cause of death of pigeons have not been ascertained, possible spread of avian influenza has worried the locals.
Meanwhile, two persons have been admitted to Capital Hospital in Odisha capital for avian flu infection.
In the second week of December last year, a bird flu alert was sounded by the local administration in Chilika lake after hundreds of migratory birds were found dead in the area.
The local administration had put up posters around Chilika urging people not to catch, prey or eat bird meat or step over their excreta. The posters had also advised the locals not to let their domestic animals go anywhere near the dead birds or touch it themselves warning them that they could risk getting infected if they did so.
It may be noted that, many migratory bird had died in 2012 in similar fashion. H5N1 avian influenza was detected after swabs and blood sample collected from dead birds from seven different areas of Nalabana were studied by experts from Institute of Natural Historical Science, Mumbai and Bird Research Centre in Bhopal.
As Brahmagiri is not far from Chilika, the largest brackish water lake in India, the people in the region have reasons to worry about.
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 | Dec 16, 2014 | Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Pigeon Patrol's Services
Affectionately known by most people as rats with wings, sky rats, gutter birds and flying ashtrays, pigeons must be one of the most unloved birds around.
The hatred can be extreme, with extreme pigeon fearing labelled as peristerophobia, but it is so widely shared several clothing manufacturers produce “I hate pigeons” T-shirts.
The mayor of New York’s latest operation in the Pigeon War, he is defending his ban on feeding in court. He opened hostilities several years ago, throwing money and some interesting tactics at the problem – a pair of Harris hawks being just one.
Pigeons are seen as the disease-ridden source of myriad droppings.
We will poop on everything you love
But when it comes to hating pigeons, the focus of most people’s dislike is the feral pigeon. It is a domesticated rock dove that has returned to wild or semi-wild conditions. It is usually grey and can be seen in most villages, towns and cities across the UK – and Europe.
They are known to be susceptible to some diseases like tuberculosis, although no more so than any other bird species or wild animals. But the fact there are so many of them means people have good reason to raise the point, argue critics. There are millions.
We share the UK with an estimated 18 million feral pigeons and they can breed up to up to six times a year. They are one of the few birds recognised by the government as a nuisance pest and can be controlled using humane methods and with a licence.
The sheer scale of numbers has resulted in two other commonly cited criticisms – they damage property and drive out other bird species.
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 | Animal Deterrent Products
Who wants to clean pigeon poop for fun? Certainly no-one in the right mind. However, with those pesty birds ever-breeding and roosting on your roof, there comes a time when it must be done. Here’s how to safely get rid of those pigeon marks.
Materials:
– protective clothing or disposable overalls
– nitrile rubber gloves
– paper face mask
– eye goggles
– 3/4th cup chlorine bleach
– 1 gallon warm water
– 1 tablespoon laundry detergent
– spray bottle or power washer
– sponge or rag
– garbage bag
Ideal pigeon cleaning suit.
Directions:
1. Put on your protective clothing to ensure full coverage.
2. Mix the solutions.
3. Wet the droppings with the solution in a spray bottle or power washer. Make sure you let the solution sit for a few minutes for it to thoroughly disinfect the droppings.
4. Use a sponge or rag if further scrubbing is necessary
5. Push all the removed bird guano into a garbage bag
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, Bird Deterrent Products
Pigeons breed all year round and according to the extent of food available to them. If food is readily available, and assuming that good roosting and breeding opportunities exist, the feral pigeon will breed between 4 and 8 times a year, bringing two young into the world each time. A juvenile pigeon can breed in its first year of life. Simple maths confirms that unless available food is strictly controlled, pigeons will rapidly breed out of control, resulting in overpopulation in areas of human habitation. To add to this, scientific research and research carried out by PiCAS International has proved that when pigeons from a feeding flock are killed as a method of control, flock size will increase by between 12% and 30% within a matter of months, further entrenching the problem.
Pigeon feeding is a people problem which largely encourages pigeon population growth.
So what is the answer? It must therefore be concluded that ‘pigeon problems’ are, in reality, ‘people problems’ and must be dealt with as such.
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)
Thousands of pigeons have invaded a small town in Scotland – coating roofs, streets and pavements in droppings and feathers.
