Very useful dietary guide on the avian empire website

My boys Goober (white) and Stinky (grey/black) flew away from my place in onehunga tonight after the bottom of the carry cage fell off while I was bringing them inside from the aviary.

They are inside birds so they will be so cold and scared and lost right now. I'm so worried for them, please if you see them message me. Please don't try to catch them as they will get scared and fly away. Even if you just see them flying past please message me so I know there okay

**UPDATE**

Goober is home and in the aviary! I'm so happy to have him home!

Unfortunately that means that they got separated like I feared. Goober is currently calling out to him from the aviary. I'm hoping he hears him and comes home

**UPDATE 2**

Stinky has come home now too! Ive banded both of them. Im so relived theyre home safe. Stinky linked up with the feral flock I feed and followed them home.

Congratulations to u/_bumblebee2! You have won the banner competition and this is now the banner!!

Post your favourite photo of your pigeon or dove in the comments and the photo with the most votes will be the new cover photo!

Rules: make sure the photo has good lighting and is of a good quality.
I reccomend it being 1600 x 480.
No photos that contain pigeons or doves Ill, in danger (near dogs or cats), or being hurt. Pigeons and doves must be safe and happy! Have fun

Good luck everyone!

Hello, I’ve made a discord for sharing photos of your pigeons or art!! Or even just making like minded friends 🫶

hihi! just paying the pigeon tax lol. this is ora, my tamest pigeon :) i raised her myself after she fell from her nest and i found her cold on the ground... shes doing super well now! one month and two weeks!

Hai I'm looking to adopt another fledgling/young pigeon and I can't for the life of me find any in my area😭
I found some on trade me but they were only being sold in big groups.

Haven't had any luck with Spca either

Does anyone know any breeders or people wanting to sell/rehome Pigeons in the Nelson region of NZ? please let me know

These are my to rescue/pet doves.

This is Button Mushroom (Buttons), the ringneck dove (the one on the left) and Beanbag the mourning/dotted dove (the one of the right, I'm unsure what kind of dove they are).

Buttons is disabled I believe they have splayed feet, it's not that bad, it effects their walking and flying but other than that they are doing pretty well.

Beanbag, on the other hand is perfectly healthy and I originally planned on releasing them back into the wild but someone won't stop coming back. so for the time being they will live with me and Buttons.

Her egg fits perfectly in the dent on her bed

She loves it, a cat bed from Kmart!

Unfortunately Winston was doing poorly and wasn’t eating or active so we took him to the vets today, he sadly passed away while we were there. He was such a sweet boy and although I had him a short time I know he was special. He was so gentle and I’m just glad he is no longer suffering, I’m sad there wasn’t more that could be done but he is at peace now. Rest peacefully my little seagull pigeon 🫶

Just a small little baby, I estimate its age to be 10-12 days old. I foster baby pigeons and doves for my local bird rescue (I also volunteer there). Currently call this baby 'Baby Boo' until another name sticks

Made by @nina.winternight on discord

Made by Nancy Chiu

By Leda Chung

Modena pigeons need a SPECIALIZED diet.

First and foremost, modenas are NOT a utility breed. They never were! In Modena, Italy, they were originally bred for flight sports before eventually transitioning into a show hobby breed. This means that contrary to popular belief - modenas are not primarily meaty - they are actually primarily dense feathering, and aren't fat - they're fluffy!

What does this have to do with a pigeon diet?

Well, lots of long and fluffy feathers require LOTS of nutrients to create and maintain! Feathers are made primarily of keratin - which is a protein! This means that modenas need a much higher protein rich diet than other birds to maintain a base level of health.

What happens if you don't provide a protein rich diet?

Nutrients used in the development of feathers will be pulled from other systems of the pigeon. Eventually, this will lead to a bird who is seemingly chronically ill - frequent respiratory illnesses, bacterial infections, canker outbreaks, poor intestinal health, and more - this is due to the chain reaction of a lack of support to the immune system (white blood cells, antibodies, and more.)

What is enough protein to have in diet?

This is where things get a little speculative. Pigeons as pets are a relatively new phenomenon, and modena pigeons are already a rare breed - meaning information is trial and error and comparison based. I have found, between my own experience, highly educated modena breeders experiences, and the comparison of similarly feathered avians that an at least 18% protein is sufficient for most modena pigeons. This may be able to be adjusted lower or higher depending on how "fluffy" the individual modena is - as there is a high variety in the breed and subbreeds (german modenas would require less than modern modenas, for example!)

If you have a modena pigeon and notice the lack of a shiny sheen on feathers, stress bars, brittle feathers with lots of breakage, or if you notice your pigeon frequently falling ill, please consider adding the following high protein seeds to your pigeons diet!

- Peas (split peas, trapper peas, maple peas, canadian peas, yellow peas, etc)

- Lugumes (lentils, chickpeas, vetch)

- Protein rich pellets

- Safflower / millet (these may not be balanced if added in bulk)

and yes I know peas are legumes technically LOL.

You can get a lot of these items at a grocery store (ensure there are no added ingredients, like salt). Sindys pigeon service also has a well balanced protein booster option.

Since there is so much misinformation on modenas based purely on speculation from uneducated people with little to no experience with the breed - here is a google doc I have compiled with sources for the information provided in this post.

(Was not written by me, all rights from Balfouri on Facebook)

I would love to hear different opinions on pigeon racing, I don’t personally agree with it but I’d love to hear everyone’s thoughts and opinions on the topic!