Pesky Pigeons Persist

If we want to attract song birds to our yard, pigeons become a real problem in this area. I think these pests got their name because their behavior is so much like that of a "pig".

When we put up a bird feeder in the yard it didn't take long before the "pig"eons discovered it and were able to empty it out in a matter of minutes. So I put a wire cage around the feeder that let the small birds get to the seeds but the pigeons couldn't hang on long enough to eat much of it.

Not a problem for these mini-pigs, however, as they just gathered around underneath, waiting for the seed the birds spilled out and gobbling it up faster than the song birds could get to it.

Since the pigeons were costing me too much to feed I decided to put a larger wire cage under the feeder. The small birds could get through, even some of the dove and quail, but the pigeons were too fat. This cut down on the feed bill considerably but the pests still hung around getting as much as they could catch and whatever bounced outside the caged area.

My concern at this point was more about the diseases they can spread in their droppings, so I decided to go online to research for solutions to this problem

Much of what I found, such as reflectors, rubber snakes, and artificial owls; my neighbors had already tried without success. I decided to go with a more "technical" scare pigeon and spent $40 for the device pictured here.

Now the theory behind this sounded great, and convincing. It is solar powered, motion activated, and the controls are variable. One for the bright, flashing, red and white LED's and the other for vaious frequencies depending on the size and "type" of pest you wanted to scare away. It is supposed to work for deer, cats and dogs, and a variety of birds (including pigeons). It even came with a chart showing the control settings for different kinds of pests. I was sold by their advertising and anxious to try it out, with Prime free shipping. All I can say, after experimenting with numerous combinations of settings, is the $40 would have been better spent for another month's supply of bird seed because the device does NOT work; as you can see in the picture below. The device at the far right of the picture, with its 35 foot range, just entertains the pigeons. At first they would jump a little when it activated, and then they would walk over and have a closer look at the device. Soon they just ignored it and went on with their business.

This device is still under warranty so I can still ship it back, at MY expense, but I think I will tear it apart instead and check its output voltages and see if I can modify it. I have had this problem long enough to know that the only thing that consistently scares these guys is either a sudden noise (hand clap) or just a sudden movement. With the right outputs from this "yard guard" thing I might come up with a real solution.

Meanwhile, a new friend is helping somewhat. I looked outside one morning and saw NO birds or pigeons feeding, which is very unusual. After taking a closer look I found just one bird sitting proudly on the rim of the bird bath. I was lucky to get a photo of it from inside the house before it took off but I did find the feathers later from the "breakfast" pigeon of this migrating hawk. A beautiful bird but it left quite a mess for me to clean up and I don't really like to see dead pigeons in the yard, so I will opt to work on my "scare pigeon" design. Who knows, I just might invent something useful from all this.

This experience is teaching me that if we are hungry enough we become persistent enough to work hard enough to have success. It doesn't have to be hunger for food in our case, at least not for now, but our WHY has to be hungry enough to stay persistent with the WA training until we reach our goals and become as the hawk in this food chain. Best of "hunting" to all of you!

Archie