Guest Post by Stacie Delzingo
Reposted from Facebook, February 14, 2022
Prudence
I am passionate about my Prudence! (Prudence Penelope Delzingo is certainly a boy, but I still call her “she” because 3yrs, Old Dog New Tricks… ) Anyway, here’s a bit of my lighthearted pigeon love (& lunacy) in honor of Valentine’s Day… who knows more about love than your pigeon?!
It kills me when I see people struggling to rehome pigeons. Especially pigeons who someone has been able to put the time in to not only “tame”, but bring out the best in him to where he can be handled, adored and (like a recent post) even walk on a leash!
We “Pigeon People” know the unique joy of loving & being loved by a pigeon. It takes time and is complicated but I feel so lucky not to have missed out on this just because I had no idea. It’s the best kept secret in the world. No matter how loud we shout it from the rooftops, it falls on deaf ears, likening it to that one parakeet they owned in ’92 or their Aunt’s stressed & screeching parrot that got her evicted from her apartment that one time.
It’s Valentine’s Day, and one thing pigeons DO KNOW, is LOVE.
When I ask people to consider a pigeon, they don’t know that by doing so, I am doing THEM a favor. I am offering THEM the opportunity to share life with a partner who is an expert on love & loyalty throughout the ages, who knows the value of a truly heartfelt gift and the thought behind it, who is ALLLL ABOUT THE ROMANCE and enjoys nothing more than showering their partner with adoration, song, dance and swoony eyes (or whatever their “Love Language” may be – Prudence & I have been giving the same green & white bread ties back and forth every few days for over TWO YEARS. And not just hey, take this…every time is like a freakin proposal ). The list goes on.
I know that I have been lucky to have found & raised my accidental soul mate from such a young age, I know they’re not all cuddlebirds, but I do see that Prudence still continues to change and find new ways to be with me. Things that have been HARD NO’s (like lying her on her back to pet her tummy) suddenly changed from Maybe to “Mama Scritch Me’s”! The playful but tiring Bitey Game went from 24/7/365 wait, maybe she really just HATES me? to less & less. Run- AWAY softens to Run-TO. It’s evolving, patient people, have faith & stay with it. And sunflower hearts are your friend.
I just wish therapists & Councils On Aging had pamphlets in every office that said “Lonely? Adopt A Pigeon and You’ll Never Feel Lonely Again” with one of those gorgeous, smiling faces of the plain old, garden variety pigeons we see here on these Palomacy Help Group pages every single day.
Shout out on Valentine’s Day to all the times your pigeon/flock made you feel loved. Whether it be that first time they allowed you to pet their downy, gumball head to giving you a raggedy green bread-tie, tell me about the connection you have to your pigeon and how you enrich each other’s lives.
Stacie Delzingo of Arlington, MA is an avid horsewoman and pigeon lover. Since a recent horseback riding accident forced her to quit both riding and her job in a busy Boston-area Emergency Dept, Stacie has been helping with pigeon rescue & transport, as well as assisting other wildlife in need. Her horse Townes, Italian Greyhound Lillian and pigeon Prudence are the apples of her eye.
