Guest Post by Jazmine Hernandez

This is a story about Cosmo, he’s a king pigeon that I found near my office. I decided to go feed the pigeons by the beach during my lunch break and I was enjoying my time when I noticed a white pigeon emerge from the rocks. He seemed extremely unsure. He was dirty and frail. I knew something was off when all the pigeons took off due to being scared and he kinda just waddled away. When I got closer, it didn’t seem like he could fly so I picked him up. He was extremely scared but calmed down when I put him in the car with the heater. He was timid and seemed extremely confused. I brought him to my mom’s house because I needed to go back to work. I had an old parrot cage to park him in for a while until I finished my work. I texted my little brother (he’s 15) that there was a pigeon in his bedroom and asked if he could check on him when getting home. He happily accepted and when he came home he asked what he should do next. I told him the bird needs a bath, so he gave the bird a bath in the sink. He came out looking so clean.

My little sister (age 10) came in after a while and helped dry the bird. That’s when my brother noticed the wound where the bird’s armpit was, covered in feathers it was semi hidden but the hole was the size of a quarter.

I asked him if he could gently clean up all the seeds and gunk stuck to his open wound and to let him rest after the cleaning. I came home about two hours later to find my sister snuggled up with Cosmo in a chair.

I then took him to my house in Castro Valley and got him situated in a small bird cage. I didn’t want him moving too much so the cage was pretty small. He rested for the night and by morning I checked on him. He was relaxing and he was probably exhausted. I went to work and when I came back I washed him with dawn dish soap and really cleaned out the wound. I knew he wouldn’t last much longer because of the crop tear so I called the pigeon rescue Palomacy. I’ve known about this rescue since I was 11 and I’m now 19. I love pigeons with all my heart and I knew they would help. They explained that the crop tear was very extensive and needed surgery ASAP and they set me up with an appointment at an avian bird vet they said would be able to help him. Me and my boyfriend drove an hour and a half to Medical Center for Birds and dropped Cosmo off.

They said its a crop tear in an awkward spot but they could fix it, they also said he had an ulcer in his eye. They told me Palomacy’s Care Director Jill would be the person of contact and she’d be in touch with me. After three or four days with no info, I got a text from Jill and she said “I didn’t know Cosmo was a baby!” I won’t lie, I started tearing up learning he was ok.

Jill said she took him home. He had some pain meds and eye drops that needed to be given to him twice a day. I came to Jill’s house and she showed me what to do. Her life seemed so beautiful. I took Cosmo home and got him situated in a temporary medium size cage as his stitches needed to heal.

When he started getting his energy back you could really see the fire in him. Though he’s still nervous about people and hands, I completely understand. He freely flys around my house now and follows me and watches me cook (from a safe distance). He’s an amazing companion and his favorite place to rest is on top of the ceiling fan. (It’s never turned on dont worry). His story is definitely something amazing and I’m glad I could give this bird a good home.

Hi I’m Jazmine Hernandez. I’m 19 years old and have always been fond of birds since my childhood. I love all animals and will always do my best to save them all. Small or big they deserve a chance!