by johnnymarin | Oct 5, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
The rapidly increasing numbers of pigeons (nok pilab) has ruffled a few official feathers in Bangkok. There was bit of a flap after authorities warned that citizens caught feeding the birds would face a stiff fine, explaining the pigeons were spreading disease. These birds divide opinion, some calling them “rats with wings”, others more generously “doves without the PR”. Fond as I am of feathered friends, I must admit pigeons are not my favourite. About 10 years ago, I wrote about the problems of pigeons at our residence. It began harmlessly enough with a couple of the birds raiding the dogs’ food bowls at the back of the house. Initially it was not a major concern, but word soon spread amongst the pigeon community. They began arriving in squadrons and became a real nuisance. Getting rid of them was another matter. I quickly learned that clapping my hands and shouting “Shoo!” was only a temporary solution and also looked quite pathetic. Pigeons are smart and swiftly worked out that hand-claps are not gunshots. On occasions I felt like those people in the Hitchcock film, The Birds, although they were attacked by seagulls, a much more aggressive species than the pigeon. Please log in here to fully view this exclusive content. If you aren’t a member yet, simply sign up here. It’s totally free & takes only a minute.
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 | Oct 4, 2018 | Animal Deterrent Products
A devastated pigeon fancier has recalled watching fire engulf his pigeon shed that left around 70 birds dead.
Stephen Salmon, 59, was on the phone when his neighbour started banging on his front door in Trowbridge, Cardiff, saying his pigeon loft was on fire.
The blaze on Tuesday had spread from next door causing the 40-foot long building to catch fire.
Dad Stephen, who has raced pigeons since he was 11 years old, said: “It was absolutely devastating. I was here with my friend at about 4.30pm and he said someone had lit a fire and I should get the washing in.
“It wasn’t big then so I didn’t think anymore of it.”
But around two hours later his neighbour was banging on the door saying the pigeon loft had caught fire.
Stephen said: “I ran into the garden and into the shed to try and save my stock birds.
“But it was just too much. They had to drag me out of there – I didn’t like seeing them die like that.
“The fire brigade came but it was too late, they had all perished.”
Out of around 120 pigeons Stephen had in the shed, around 70 were killed in the fire.
South Wales Fire and Rescue Service sent two crews to the scene, and said the cause of the fire was accidental.
Stephen said: “What is most upsetting about it is my stock birds because over the last 10 years I have built it up and spent thousands, and you can’t replace that.
“My kids paid £600 for two birds for me once and they perished.”
Stephen, who is part of the Llanrumney Royal British Legion pigeon club, said the total loss amounted to around £10,000.
The pigeon loft is currently cordoned off and will be removed by the Cardiff Community housing association.
Stephen praised the quick response of the fire service and said he was “most grateful” for their help.
A fire service spokeswoman said they received reports of a fire at a property in Trowbridge at 6.28pm.
Two crews, from Roath and Cardiff Central, attended the scene.
They confirmed a pigeon loft was damaged and said the crews extinguished the fire.
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 | Oct 3, 2018 | Bird Deterrent Products
An officer responded to a 4th Avenue address where the complainant on scene was upset that the gas truck driver was waving his gas measure stick at the pigeons that he was feeding bread to in the store parking lot. The complainant said he stops here once a week and feeds the pigeons and doesn’t think it’s right for them to wave items at the pigeons and make them fly away. The officer noted, “The truck drivers were just keeping the birds from flying around while they refilled the gas pumps due to their being bread all over the parking lot.”
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 | Oct 2, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
I was at the Pek Kio hawker centre in Cambridge Road recently and, as usual, was greeted by the sight of pigeons on the floors and tables pecking away at leftover food.
This is a problem at not only this hawker centre, but also many others.
And at most of these hawker centres, these birds brazenly strut around among patrons and often fly onto tables with food even when there are people eating at the table.
Patronscannot leave their food even for a moment, to order a drink for instance, for the birds will quickly zoom in on their food.
These birds are not only a hygiene problem but are also potential disease carriers. They would be a risk in the event of another bird flu outbreak.
Bangkok recently highlighted this problem and is taking steps to eradicate pigeons.
We cannot wait till a bird-borne disease breaks out before taking action.
What are the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority or the National Environment Agency doing to ensure hygiene standards and prevent the outbreak of disease?
I am sure anyone with a scoop net would be able to capture many of the pigeons in just one morning as they do not fly away.
Perhaps the town councils can work out a scheme to give incentives for the capture of these birds.
Even if we do not capture many, hopefully, this will scare them away from people and food centres.
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 | Oct 1, 2018 | Pigeon Patrol's Services
It was a quiet morning. I was sitting at the table, eating my mandatory bowl of gruel — I mean, my delicious, fiber-filled, multigrain, plant-protein, good-for-me bowl of cereal — when I glanced out the window and saw that a half-dozen or so pigeons had descended on the backyard to peck away at whatever morsels had fallen out of the bird feeder.
“Oh, I love pigeons more than anything in this world,” I said out of reflex, “except oatmeal.”
I allowed myself a small chuckle at pulling out a “Sesame Street” line that seemed appropriate, when my moment of Zen ended with the pouring of reality’s cold water.
“Those aren’t pigeons,” my breakfast companion said. “They’re doves.”
Tomayto, tomahto … doves are just pigeons from a gentrified neighborhood, I decided. For that matter, I wasn’t eating oatmeal, either.
By then, though, my consciousness had floated downstream and I found myself contemplating the lover of pigeons and oatmeal.
I thought about Bert.
And, consequently, of Ernie.
The BFFs have been living together for nearly 50 years now — not that there’s anything wrong with that — and lately have suffered another oh-so-2018 kerfuffle that has upset their domestic tranquility.
Yep, their sexuality is being called into question.
Again.
This time, it was a former “Sesame Street” writer … who joined the show 15 years after Bert and Ernie appeared on the scene … who admitted that whenever he wrote for the pair, he did so from the perspective of them being a gay couple.
This, of course, brought the usual denial from the folks behind “Sesame Street.” Media members chimed in on various aspects of the long-running controversy — as sincere pleas for inclusivity rang out, conservatives blasted progressives for usurping the identity of a couple of Muppets, and soapbox pronouncements abounded about why it was important for children to see a loving LGBTQ2+ couple on their TV screens.
This bonfire quickly became a conflagration (Too soon? Sorry) when Frank Oz, who created Bert, was asked about the current flare-up and said that the pair were not gay … or straight, for that matter.
“They’re not, of course. But why that question? Does it really matter?” Oz asked. “Why the need to define people as only gay? There’s much more to a human being than just straightness or gayness.”
And, because this is how the world works these days, a full-fledged Twitterstorm broke out — with some of those who found they could identify with B&E as they were discovering their own identity said sure, Oz might have created Bert, but being the creator doesn’t stop the creation from becoming whom it will be.
After all, God created Elton John.
It was back in 1976 that The Artist Formerly Known As Reggie Dwight came out, announcing in that far-from-progressive time that he was bisexual.
“Saturday Night Live,” never one to miss an opportunity for drive-by social commentary, made note of Sir Elton’s less-than-surprising declaration on Weekend Update, following up with the related story that “Speedy Alka Seltzer came out of the medicine cabinet and admitted he was bicarbonate.”
Of course, Speedy Alka Seltzer wasn’t a real person … as opposed to, say, Bert and Ernie.
Earlier this year, the Tony-winning musical “Avenue Q” — a puppet-filled show that offers a somewhat darker take on a “Sesame Street” universe — ran at the Oregon Cabaret Theatre.
Through the puppets Rod and Nicky, it offers its own take on the sexuality question of BFFs who live together forever — only with such a heavy-handed dose of what can only be called in-your-face-ism that by the time Rod announces that he’s gay, it’s not only no surprise, but on the night I attended it drew almost no reaction from the audience.
The puppeteer-actor pulling Rod’s strings, so to speak, milked the audience repeatedly until a mediocre round of applause was deemed sufficient enough to allow the show to continue.
It was an odd moment of live theater; then again “Avenue Q” is an odd show — knowing that it’s shoving homilies down the throats of the dinner theater audience, while simultaneously serving up a self-conscious heaping helping of social manipulation for us to chew on.
“Avenue Q” twisted this concept even further with a throw-away one-liner about the LGBTQ2+ production of “Oklahoma!” at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival — which took audience members further out of their comfort zone as to what they were supposed to think about the performance, and the play, they were watching.
Eating my cereal, watching the high-rent pigeons, my mind wandered without necessarily getting lost until I landed upon a question: If we go to a cultural event to be entertained, do we feel intruded upon if served a side dish of political or cultural point of view?
In a landscape where Sofia Vergara can be in love with The Artist Formerly Known As Al Bundy, Joanie can love Chachi, and a Betazoid can love a Klingon — if “Sesame Street” went counter to the original concept of Frank Oz and Jim Henson and said that — yes — Bert and Ernie are more than BFFs, would it be greeted graciously as overdue affirmation, or would it open the door to another avenue for cultural tub-thumpers intent on putting their words into our mouths?
The word from “Sesame Street” is that Bert and Ernie, officially, “remain puppets.”
As do we all.
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)
