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February 19, 2020
by Elizabeth
Comments Off on San Damiano’s Aviary: In the Spirit of St. Francis

San Damiano’s Aviary: In the Spirit of St. Francis

Rescued pigeons (including “dove release” survivors) now call San Damiano’s home!

This incredible life-saving aviary resulted from the learning moment of an innocent but misguided plan to include a “dove release” at San Damiano’s Blessing of the Animals Fair on October 5th, 2019. Lindsay Wildlife Experience, responding to an invitation to participate in the event, declined, writing:

“Lindsay Wildlife Experience does not attend events that include pigeon and dove releases. These releases are harmful to the doves and pigeons. I have included Elizabeth from Palomacy. She is incredibly knowledgeable about these events and can answer any questions you may have. If the dove release is canceled, Lindsay Wildlife Experience will reconsider your Lindsay in the Community request.”

And with that, the seemingly benign “dove release” was understood to be the dangerous exploitation that it really is and cancelled. Instead, Palomacy Pigeon & Dove Rescue was invited to participate. Volunteers Christiana Reed and Patti Delaney drove all the way from Sacramento to Danville, bringing rescued pigeons to receive and bestow blessings. They had a wonderful time, made many new friends for pigeons and helped to further San Damiano’s plan to create their own aviary for rescued pigeons.

Palomacy volunteers Christiana & Patti with ambassador birds Lulu & Dustin

Continue Reading →

January 9, 2020
by Elizabeth
Comments Off on Neighbors Helping Neighbors

Neighbors Helping Neighbors

Article reposted from “The Mickaboo Bird Rescue Companion”

By Shauna Hill

Mickaboo is often contacted about taking in birds whose owners are unable to care for them. A takeaway from this story would be a reminder to plan for your bird’s care in the event they outlive you, or illness prevents you from being able to care for them as you used to. That is a very important topic but that’s not the focus of this article. It’s to share how neighbors banded together to care for their neighbor’s cherished birds until the birds could be moved into Mickaboo foster homes. These neighbors are the kind of neighbors we all wish for, the kind that have your back and pitch in to go above and beyond bringing in the mail or mowing the lawn.

Mickaboo was contacted by one of the neighbors about a couple parrots he and another neighbor had been taking turns feeding and watering in the owner’s home (their neighbor). They had been doing this for months before finding out about Mickaboo. The neighbor who contacted us was concerned because the birds were

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left in the house when their owner became ill; the owner would most likely not return to the home. This was going to be a challenging situation as 1) we could not remove the birds without the owner’s permission and surrender paperwork, 2) we didn’t know if we had enough foster homes for them as our foster home capacity has been running low.

After a telephone call to the neighbor we found there were not just two amazon parrots, but also a cockatiel that had plucked a lot of its feathers and a blind dove living in an indoor walk-in aviary. Our first course of action was to see what foster homes were available. I reached out to Mickaboo’s volunteers and to our sister rescue Palomacy (https://www.pigeonrescue.org). Thankfully we found volunteers willing to foster all the birds. Step one completed!

Our next step was for the neighbor to reach out to the owner and their family and have a heartfelt discussion about the birds’ future. Not an easy topic and a hard decision to make for the owner who had these birds for 20 years or more. The owner appreciated that the birds would be cared for and formally surrendered his birds to Mickaboo. Onto the next phase.

Now that we were ready to take these birds, the last challenge was the physical transfer of the birds to their new homes. A date was set for all the volunteers and one of the neighbors to meet at the home. These birds had not had much recent interaction and were about to be removed from the only home they had known for many years. The removal was a process we had to undertake carefully, especially as these were not young birds.

The first bird to be moved was the blind dove. Palomacy volunteer and dove/pigeon whisperer Jill calmly gathered up the frightened older dove and safely loaded him/her into a carrier. Next, two members of the cockatiel team (Martha and Sheila) discussed strategy for catching the cockatiel, who had free range of the walk-in aviary. Sheila was able to catch the cockatiel quickly. Then came time for the two amazons, a bonded pair named Edgar and Bonnie. A male can be protective over its mate. Thankfully after some protest they were both loaded into their carrier. Then their cage was loaded onto Martha’s truck and the last of the birds were off to their foster home.

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Dove, cockatiel, and two amazons before going to their foster homes

These birds will need vet care and will soon be available for adoption. It was amazing how many people came together to help with this rescue. It was also amazing how these two neighbors stepped up to reach out to help their mutual neighbor in his time of need. This incident was a wonderful example of human kindness and compassion. The neighbors didn’t just care for the birds but went the extra step to find a rescue to help the birds find new homes. This gave the owner peace of mind knowing the birds were being cared for in the long term.

Updates on the birds:

Edgar and Bonnie – These two are settling nicely into their foster home and just had a visit to the avian vet. We are awaiting test results. One of the amazons has a fatty growth but otherwise both appear pretty good. They have another amazon they can chat with at the foster home along with other feathered and furry friends. They are enjoying expanding their diets with fresh vegetables and fruits. They accept food by hand from their foster family. Their foster mom says they are a pleasure to have around.

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The blind dove has been named Pris – She is doing very well for an older gal, settling in with her foster mom and slowly starting to accept loving head rubs from her. She has also had a visit from a friendly dove in the foster home. Her foster mom is taking things slowly, since Pris is older and blind. Pris is learning what companionship and a loving touch feel like.

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The cockatiel has been named Ruth. She is also settling in well though is skittish. She has only known life in an aviary for many years; once quarantine is over we will determine if she might enjoy life more in an aviary with other cockatiel friends, rather than with a human companion. Time will tell.

~~~

If you would like to help these birds, there are many ways. Mickaboo’s website has information on how to donate so we can continue to help birds like these. We also have information on how to foster or adopt and other ways to volunteer (transporting birds or cages, helping at our outreach events, for instance).

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January 1, 2020
by Elizabeth
Comments Off on Palomacy Leg Band Order Form

Palomacy Leg Band Order Form

PIGEONRESCUE.ORG Leg Band Order Form

Thank You for protecting your rescued bird with a leg band.

Pet pigeon in his leg band

Palomacy has created light blue split aluminum leg bands engraved with PIGEONRESCUE.ORG as an affordable way to help improve a lost pet pigeon or dove’s likelihood of being helped & getting home. If someone finds your bird, the band directs them to our Palomacy website.

The light blue aluminum shows up well on their pink legs, makes them recognizable as a pet rather than wild bird (so more apt to get help) & when found, improves their chances of getting home safely. If your Palomacy-banded bird is ever lost, notify us immediately for help & if we ever learn of a Palomacy-banded bird being found, we’ll be looking for their person.

Available in three sizes:

Small (6 mm): Ringneck doves

Medium (9 mm): Rollers, Ferals, Homers, Racers & most Kings

Large (10 mm): Extra large Kings

Leg Band Order: *

Please specify quantity of bands in each size (small, medium &/or large). Bands are $3 each.

Email *

Your Name: *

Address *

Country

City

State

Zip code

Phone *

The birds you are banding *

Please write a brief description of each bird you're banding, including the bird's name, type, color, and any special needs or characteristics. After you submit this form, we would appreciate it if you would email us a photo of each of the birds you are banding so we can add them to our records. Send your photos to Rose and include the bird’s name and your last name in the name of the photo file—for example: stormy_jones.jpg.

Your payment amount & method? *

Payment Instructions: Please pay $3 per band to cover our costs, including shipping -- and donate extra if you can to support Palomacy Pigeon & Dove Adoptions. Include "Leg Band" in your payment note. You can pay and donate online here or make out a check to “CI – Palomacy” and send it to Palomacy, P.O. Box 24585, San Francisco, CA 94124. Thank you!

Thank you for helping Palomacy help birds!

Palomacy is a donor-driven, volunteer-powered nonprofit rescue dedicated to finding non-exploitive, non-breeding forever homes for abandoned & homeless domestic (unreleasable) pigeons & doves.If you have any questions, please contact Elizabeth@pigeonrescue.org or 415 420-7204. On behalf of our ever-growing family of rescued birds, volunteers & adopters, thank you!

December 24, 2019
by Elizabeth
Comments Off on Marian’s Flock & Angel Angela

Marian’s Flock & Angel Angela

This is the INCREDIBLE new home created for Marian’s rescued pigeons

Spoiler Alert: This is an amazing, happy story of kindness and generosity. Marian has been a volunteer bird rehabber for 36 years. She has helped doves, pigeons, songbirds, corvids, waterbirds, raptors and parrots in Modesto, Sacramento, Fairfield and beyond. Marian wrote, “All too often, I heard, “They’re just songbirds.” “They’re just pigeons,” as excuses for awful care and no care. So I would take them home. It was/is so heartening to learn years ago that Palomacy had been established. I’m a Mickaboo donor too, and that’s how I found Palomacy. I can’t do the work any longer, though if I get a call about pigeons or any bird, I can’t say no to a desperate animal. Each life matters. Their lives are just as important to them as our lives are to us.”

Indeed.

For many years, Marian soft released rescued pigeons to homes that she would visit to feed and water a couple times a week. When those sites were no longer available, Marian housed the pigeons she rescued in her own backyard aviary- lugging their 50 pound bags of feed, climbing ladders to winterize the roof, providing all their care- for as many years as she was able.

On October 4th, I received an email from Marian asking for help to rehome her flock of 36 pigeons. I was hit with a flurry of emotions: Gratitude to Marian for helping thousands of birds over so many years, sadness that she could no longer care for her flock, panic about how overfull Palomacy could rise to this challenge and a flicker of hope. Marian was offering to build an aviary for her flock if an adopter could be found.

Buoyed by Marian’s game-changing offer, I wrote back, “Thank you ever so much for all you’ve been doing through the decades to help so many birds! And thank you for being a friend & supporter of Palomacy! As you know all too well, it is always challenging to find adopters for pigeons but with your incredible offer of building an aviary on your birds’ behalf, it is MUCH more doable. It will take time but we should be able to help.”

I am constantly striving to develop and inspire aviaries for rescued pigeons- small backyard aviaries, big sanctuary aviaries, life-saving partnership aviaries and so, with Marian’s offer, I reached out to five Palomacy volunteers to start the conversation about short-term support and aviary building that I expected would require months.

And then, just five days later Angela the angel and her family answered all our prayers with an offer to build an aviary for Marian’s flock at their home!

Angela volunteered to adopt Marian’s flock

Angela is an incredible lover of animals. She has rescued and adopted pigeons and doves and shares her beautiful home with ducks, chickens, dogs and two banana-loving pigs. Angela and her husband Gabriel volunteer at our outreach events and now, in one heroic leap, they have joined the ranks of our biggest adopters!

Lucky pigs!

Happy ducks!

On Monday, December 9th, I had the privilege of meeting Marian and her 36 pigeons at Angela’s house to witness their moving in to there big, custom-built, safe, beautiful new aviary home!

Marian’s 36 rescued pigeons moving to their new home

Pigeons in transition

Marian’s pigeons released in their new home

It was an incredibly happy experience. Marian writes, “Their faces went from “We’re gonna be eaten alive” to “Our lives just became fabulous.” The looks on their faces, of contentment and joy were very visible. It was a joy to see them laying on the rocks taking sun baths after their water bath. And the flock on the tree trunk equally pleased with their new home. Both populations ignored food for about an hour, so happy were they in their new home. Most of these birds were hand raised as orphans. The others consist of racers and the others injured or starving.”

Marian funded & Angela created this amazing aviary for rescued pigeons!

Happy, lucky pigeons!

Pigeon party!

Post-bath sun-bathing

Proud adopter Angela!

I am so honored to be a part of such a kind and compassionate community, our Palomacy community. Marian saved and healed each and every one of these beautiful 36 pigeons with her loving care and now, thanks to her careful financial planning, has safely landed them in their incredible new home with amazing Angela! Angela’s committed to giving these birds the best gift pigeons can ever receive- a forever home. And lifelong rescuer Marian, already a monthly donor to Palomacy, has also made a big, extra donation to Palomacy to help us keep helping. Please plan ahead for your beloved birds’ future and remember, you can name Palomacy as a beneficiary in your will, trust or estate plan on behalf of your birds’ future. (Contact Elizabeth@pigeonrescue.org for assistance.)

BONUS VIDEO:
Angela’s Pet Pigs Tara & Pua Love Banana

December 24, 2019
by Elizabeth
Comments Off on Bloom’s Story by Juniper

Bloom’s Story by Juniper

Our world is better when we are kind.

When we help a bird who needs us, we create a meaningful ripple that reaches far beyond that single mercy. Together we are stopping suffering, righting wrongs, inspiring compassion. We are changing the world with love and leading the way with hope.

When we began 12 years ago, we were told this would be impossible, that the birds we rescue were “unadoptable,” yet together we have adopted more than 1,000 into amazing homes (yours!) and helped countless others all over the country and beyond. You are a very important member of a small and growing community working towards compassion for all.

Thank you for being part of our Palomacy family. Thank you for working to save lives and change the world.

You make a difference every day.

Bloom’s Story

by Juniper

When I finally got Bloom, she was the sweetest little bird I had ever met. She would just snuggle and snuggle for hours.

I had waited years to snuggle a pigeon.

About three years ago, I went to the summer camp at the SPCA in San Francisco. There I met a pigeon named Mettle and fell in love with her. My mom said we weren’t ready for the responsibility.

Bloom did not come without a price! To earn her, I had to be “mature.” For example, not yelling when I got mad and cleaning up messes without protesting. For two years straight, I would beg my mom to adopt Mettle and she would say, “Keep showing me how mature you are.”

Mettle was eventually adopted by someone else, but my mom finally decided I was acting mature enough and she signed us up with Palomacy as a possible foster family. The next day, Elizabeth emailed back about Bloom: a baby King pigeon someone tried to “set free” from a live poultry market in San Francisco who was rescued from the street, injured and sick.

When my dad drove me to Oakland to pick up Bloom from Rachel who was fostering her, I could not believe it was actually happening. We brought her home and I sat in my room with her, snuggled, and showed her around the house. I love Bloom. Cleaning all that poop is 100% worth it.

She was still sick so we had to give her medicine. It felt horrible having to put her through the discomfort of sticking a syringe down her throat. She seemed like she was strong and getting better, but then I noticed a yellow fungus-like thing starting to grow inside her nostril. At first, no one was worried but then it got bad. Luckily, she already had a follow-up appointment with the vet.

My mom took her to the vet and when she came back, Bloom wasn’t with her. My mom said she had to stay for a few days while they figured out what was wrong and what medicine would work on it. For some reason, I was not that worried. Something told me that she would be ok. And sure enough, after a few unhappy days, she was back!

The only problem was that my mom had to give her more medicine: twice a day she had a shot, two nasal flushes and a dropper down her throat! The first time my mom gave Bloom a shot, it bled and my mom was so upset. “Mommy, it’s ok, she’ll be fine,” I said. And she was fine.

My mom felt bad because Bloom would get scared of her when she came near. But Elizabeth from Palomacy kept telling my mom she was doing a wonderful job, keeping Bloom alive, and that Bloom would forgive her. She said Bloom’s was one of the most challenging cases ever.

My mom says, “I have no experience rescuing or fostering animals and I felt so supported by Elizabeth. She was always offering to help, stopping by to check on us, giving us pointers – but not more than we could absorb, finding rides for Bloom to and from the vet (from her huge network of pigeon caregivers), and making us feel great for helping her. Palomacy did so much to keep Bloom happy and healthy that we were inspired to give more of our own time and effort.”

Finally all the meds were done and Bloom could live a healthy life with peace and snuggles.

Now every day, I come home, get a book, get Bloom, sit on the couch and just have her on my lap while I read. This is a fantastic feeling because Bloom is the most comforting and loving pigeon ever. She has the effect of instant love. (See more of Bloom’s story here.)

Palomacy thanks you for supporting us as partners, volunteers, fosters, adopters, donors!

Together we are creating a kinder world. Your support powers the rescue missions, foster and vet care, aviary building, humane education, adoptions- everything!

Please continue helping us do the impossible. Make a donation to support Palomacy today.

Elizabeth Young, Palomacy Founder, Executive Director

November 25, 2019
by Elizabeth
Comments Off on Palomacy’s Incredibly Helpful Help Group

Palomacy’s Incredibly Helpful Help Group

Meg Germundson designed our Need Help graphic

I cannot overstate how incredibly helpful our Palomacy Help Group is! It is a huge help to me and so many others each and every day. It is where I refer everyone who wants, needs or offers help. This amazing community asks, explores and answers all the questions. People and birds find support, resources, understanding. It is a beautiful gathering place for our volunteers, fosters, adopters and supporters and I love seeing new friendships blossom. It is a go-to destination for pigeon and dove rescue matters of all sorts.

Mods Nina Bohn & Jill McMurchy meet in real life

Palomacy’s small volunteer team of help group moderators provides fast, trustworthy support, information and referrals to help birds every day 24/7/365 for people all around the world. They attend to more than 1,000 posts every month, heroically keeping up with every request for help in an active group of more than 6,400 members (and growing fast)! Our mods are busy people- juggling big workloads, pressing family responsibilities, constant local bird rescue issues and still they generously volunteer hours of their time, energy and patience to provide excellent, compassionate palomatic online customer service in support of thousands of needy birds and their humans. If we paid them by the keystroke, they’d all be millionaires. Unfortunately, we don’t have funding to pay them at all.

Palomacy, originally created to rescue, foster and adopt pigeons and doves in the San Francisco Bay Area, faced so much unmet need, we created a Palomacy Help Group on Facebook where people from all over can turn for rescue and care help. It has been incredibly effective! While there are lots of resources for people interested in breeding and using pigeons and doves for sport, business and hobbies, there are far fewer for those of us interested in rescuing and helping them compassionately. While we rescuers are greatly outnumbered, we are finding ever-growing effectiveness by coming together, sharing our skills, talents and support. Collective action is a powerful thing. It is inspiring to see our community members helping each other and it is powerful to see the casual cruelty of breeders, racers and hobbyists challenged, politely but firmly. We are working to create a more compassionate, honest world.

We rescuers definitely do advocate against racing, breeding, mailing & selling birds

In four years, our group has grown from 457 members to 6,686 today: pigeon and dove ambassadors from all over the world committed to rescuing and helping pigeons and doves! We network to help injured birds get emergency help, to find adopters, to pair adoptable birds with great homes, to share ideas, hopes, dreams, worries and ambitions. Our group members are mostly in the US but we also have many in the UK, Canada, Australia, India, Germany, South Africa, Mexico, Spain, Italy, Poland, Romania, Philippines, Norway, France, Brazil, Argentina, New Zealand, Portugal, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Ireland and beyond. One of my favorite things about our group is it is a place where both vegans and meat-eaters connect, working side by side peaceably toward common goals. I’ve been told more than a few times by our members that our group restores their faith in humanity.

Creating this group has also created a super effective bootcamp-style Palomacy University. We’re too small and too stretched to have resources for the luxury of training time. Everything has to do double-duty. Our outreach volunteers are learning and building their bird knowledge and skills as they help staff our events. Our help group mods learn everything Palomacy does while they are on the job. They are faced with every kind of question, situation, emergency, opportunity and challenge that you can imagine (and many you couldn’t). We work together, pool our resources and expertise, our wisdom and our humor to figure it out. Thanks to the past four years of daily coaching, assisting, researching, learning and teaching, we now have a team of Palomacy experts helping birds and people all over the country from Seattle WA to Oceanside CA to Tulsa OK to Minneapolis MN to Monroe, NY to Blackstock Ontario and beyond.

Another huge benefit (and challenge) that I didn’t anticipate would develop is that our mods have also become rescuers for the birds in their areas. More birds are being saved. Thousands more. Sanctuaries are being created and I know of at least three rescues devoted to pigeons and doves that have been inspired by the previously invisible need that we are publicizing and the work that we are doing.

Group member Miriam Hoyt writes, “I suffer from depression but I come here to feel better. It’s wonderful to see people treat any animal well, but stories about adopting dogs, for example, are kind of expected because dogs are accepted by society as valuable. But pigeons are usually unnoticed or disliked. So seeing people go out of their way to treat them kindly makes me feel like there are truly good people out there. It also reminds me that all acts of kindness matter. Saving one bird makes a world of difference to that bird. Seeing people love these underdog animals makes me so happy.”

February 9, 2016

November 25, 2019

People find a bird in trouble, post for help and are quickly, kindly assisted. People post questions they’ve had for years about birds rescued long ago and get new insights into their old friends. People share their happy moments, their worries, their heartbreaks. Together we learn more and better ways to care for the birds we love. We coach against unsafe and exploitive practices. We expose the truth behind cruel “sports” like pigeon racing and businesses like “dove release”. Together, through our posts and sharing, we are exponentially increasing awareness and advocacy for these amazing birds who have been so egregiously exploited and neglected.

Moderator Ashley Dietrich writes, “Rescue can be mentally and physically strenuous work, and we’re dealing daily with the aftermath of human disregard for animals. As a new rehabber, I struggled (mostly alone) to find resources and accurate information, so I know how vital the help group is. Modding has shown me that there are many caring people out there who want to help birds. Whereas rescue work can be isolating, we foster a supportive community. It’s wonderful to be part of a team that empowers others to give a pigeon or dove that life-saving chance, allowing us to make an impact beyond our local areas.”

Our volunteer moderators, lovingly called our Mod Squad, spend long hours and precious energy managing the tone and accuracy of the content posted. As challenging as helping the birds is, it is only through people that we can help them so exceptional people-skills are required. Moderators have to be very empathetic and solution-oriented. Moderators have to manage their own stress and concerns to gently, constructively coach group members about unsafe situations without ruffling feathers and hurting feelings. They have to diplomatically referee differing opinions about a vast array of topics across myriad communication styles. Moderators do their best to attend to everyone’s needs and feelings but even so, sometimes drama flares and conflicts erupt. We are not the group for everyone. People can be touchy online. Members agree to our group’s rules (don’t breed, be kind, don’t be rude, safe bird practices) when they join, but even so issues arise sometimes. This member’s response to the gentle guidance against breeding was to curse us and so they were removed from the group.

The Internet can be a maddening place and our mods work hard to keep our group polite, friendly, accurate and bird-first. When selecting moderators, we choose members who are exceptionally patient, positive, solution-oriented, with a give-them-the-benefit-of-the-doubt sort of approach. This work is so hard and our mods are some of our hardest working volunteers! To me, the people & calm communication skills are what’s most important. The rest- all our principles and practices- can be learned. The only way we can help the birds is by helping the people interacting on their behalf. Meet our amazing Mod Squad here.

Group member April Salem writes, “With so many members, there is a lot of input and variety of ideas of how to rescue or care for our birds. Over the years I have come to “know” some of the pidgies that get posted. Its a very friendly group and everyone wants the best outcome. When birds are ill or too injured when rescued this is a place to vent sadness and get emotional support. The members love their pidgies and respect their “natural pidgie ways”. Here we learn “oh thats normal behavior” or ways to help both pidge and adoptive family.”

Member Bee Nellis writes, “90% of my time on Facebook goes to this group. Looking through posts. Seeing what everyone and their pigeons are up to. Getting ideas of how to make life better for the boys. This group is also a huge support system and people go above and beyond to help each other, and that is such a reaffirming thing to see. It really helps you feel like you can ease in to the life of a pigeon parent because there’s a village. It’s also uplifting to see all the volunteer events, the outreach that Palomacy is doing, etc. Just a wonderful group all around. it also gives me more of an excuse to spam people with photos of the tall bois.”

Bee Nellis & Ray

One of our newest mods, Jenna Close writes, “I often tell people that Palomacy’s Facebook group exemplifies everything good about social media. I never would have known what to do when I first found a dove and, later, two pigeons who needed help. I got helpful answers immediately, and felt so welcomed. It’s one of the only places on Facebook I want to hang out in every night. So… becoming a moderator seemed like a natural step; a way to give back to an organization that helped me, a way to learn more about these amazing birds, and a way to hang out with the coolest flock of people on the planet. I’m new to moderating (but not to the group itself) and I absolutely love it.”

Jenna Close

To all of you who are Palomacy Help Group members, thank you for sharing this wonderful, important, challenging and much needed work! And if you’re not yet, you are invited to join in with our pigeon and dove-loving Palomacy Help Group rescue community at www.Facebook.com/groups/Palomacy We’ll look forward to seeing you and your birds!

November 20, 2019
by Elizabeth
Comments Off on How We Built Our Aviary

How We Built Our Aviary

Guest Post by Heather Hohlowski

We built an aviary for pigeons!

Editor’s Note: When building an aviary for pigeons or doves, there are a few basic principles that are essential. The aviary must be built sturdy to protect against predators & rodents (no matter where you live). The entire enclosure- bottom, sides & top – must be .5″ or .25″ hardware cloth that is connected to ‘seal the envelope’ with no gaps more than .5″. Flooring, siding, roofing goes on over the mesh. Never use chicken wire as it is a death trap for the birds confined within it. Build it as big as you can. Half should be sheltered & half open for light & air. Locate it in a sunny spot (shade is easy to create) where you can see & enjoy the birds. Make sure all doors are racoon-proof. Please see How to Create an Aviary for additional information.

Building Our Aviary (Including materials, tools, costs, diagrams & a downloadable PDF)

It Helps to Have a Friend Who Can Build Stuff… When we decided to foster two pigeons, we turned to our good friend — a GPS engineer by day and an amazing woodworker by night! We explained we wanted an aviary outside, but one that would be accessible via a bedroom window on the side of our house. There was a space below the window that we thought would be ideal — a small alcove with a couple of plants.

Picture 1- the alcove where the aviary will be

The height to the top of the window was 10 feet and the width between the fence and the alcove wall was six feet. We decided to have the aviary come out a few feet over the flower bed area and onto the driveway pavers, so the aviary depth would be six feet. The basic design would be 2-by-4 framing with a cut-out around the window and a small door on the side. The roof would slope down from the top of the window to the top of the fence line.

We removed the rocks and plants from the alcove, flattened out the dirt, then put some leftover pavers in the corners and along the back, level with the driveway pavers. The entire aviary would rest on top of that but would have it’s own base — essentially the aviary would be a self-contained unit that would occupy that space but that (in theory) could be pulled out of the nook if we ever wanted to move it to a different location in the yard.

Our friend lives 30 miles south of us. So his idea was to build the aviary in pieces, i.e., make it pre-fab, and then drive the pieces up in his truck and put together on-site. The base was created using 2-by-4 framing, with composite decking (which is waterproof) screwed into the joists. (FYI, composite decking is heavy, so the frame was built and transported without the floor boards installed, and only when it was in place were the decking planks screwed in.) Picture 2 shows how we laid all the planks in just to check size and spacing. The darker colored wood is pressure-treated.

Picture 2- the aviary base/floor

Picture 3 shows the four sides and base put together in our friend’s driveway. You can see the floor joists in the picture at right, which is what the composite decking planks were eventually screwed into. The joists, like the rest of the base frame, were pressure-treated 2-by-4s. He marked each wall with L (left), R (right), F (front), B (back) so we could easily put them in the correct spots once everything arrived at our house. He also made line markings (see Picture 4) on the base and each wall to use lining the walls up when in place.

Picture 3 shows the four sides and base put together in our friend’s driveway

Picture 4 – line markings on the base and wall line up when in place

Once all the pieces arrived, we slid the base into place in the alcove so that it rested on the driveway pavers and the spare pavers and shims we put on top of the alcove dirt.

Using the lines drawn on base and walls, we lined up back wall into place and used some spare wood to hold the back wall in place while we used a level to make sure everything was straight before screwing the back wall down onto the base. You can see in Picture 5 that the back wall includes a vertical piece of wood (about 2” by 2” x 12”) on either outside 2-by-4, which the sides can butt up against and be screwed into. (See Picture 6 with blue circles around the wood pieces.)

Picture 5 – the back wall includes a vertical piece of wood (about 2” by 2” x 12”) on either outside 2-by-4, which the sides can butt up against and be screwed into

Picture 6 – circles around the wood pieces

Once each wall was in place, it was time to put the roof on. The roof was transported in three pieces (left, middle, right). Picture 7 shows the left and right sections of the roof are shown leaning against the fence. Picture 8 shows the wavy plastic horizontal pieces which hold the corrugated roof in place.

Picture 7 – sections of the roof leaning against the fence

Picture 8 – showing the wavy plastic strips which secure the corrugated roof

The middle “dormer” section was added as a way to allow light into the bedroom window instead of having the roofing slant down all the way across. It can easily be left out to cut down on costs. (Note- the entire enclosure- everything- is lined with .5″ hardware cloth to keep rodents & predators out.)

Picture 9 shows us putting the left roof section in place. At right, the middle section is screwed into place. Making the roof entirely of corrugated roofing material is also an option and less expensive than the version shown here.

Picture 9 – putting the roof in

On the top of the dormer window, you can see fascia board, made of pine. This is a decorative touch that serves to cover the ends of the joists.

Each section of the roof was notched (see Picture 10) so that it could rest easily on the top of the front and back wall 2-by-4s. These notches are known as “bird mouths” believe it or not!

Picture 10 – roof beams notched so that it rests easily on the top of the front and back wall

Picture 11 looks up at the middle section of the “dormer” roof. As mentioned, this touch meant that the sloped roof did not completely block the view from inside the bedroom looking out. It also created a nice space for a rope perch the pigeons can hang out on! Trim was added on top of the edges of the wire mesh for a decorative touch and to avoid sharp edges that might catch a wing in flight!

Picture 11 – the middle section of the “dormer” roof

Picture 12 shows the view from inside looking out! We used two quarts of paint to paint the wood, but this isn’t a must-have. Kelly Moore in San Jose offers “sample” quarts most colors for $8.50. (We used “Pumpkin Pie”.) We special ordered “Misty Green” for the corrugated roofing (which added a week to the project), but Home Depot offers clear, white, and dark green in stock. The roofing is attached by first screwing plastic closure strips to the roof joists and then screwing the corrugated plastic onto those strips. See materials list for more info.

Picture 12 shows the birds’ eye view

Pictures 13 and 14 show a nice perch spot just above the door, although obvious care needs to be taken when opening door. You can also cut squares out of pine and screw them down onto these 2-by-4s to add extra depth to these types of perch areas.

Picture 13 frame = perch

Picture 14 – perched

We put up strips of trim to hide the edges of the wire mesh. The mesh was attached with a staple gun and staples were placed every two inches to ensure security against rodents and predators.

Picture 15 shows the back right corner showing where two sides meet. The extra horizontal 2-by-4s add strength as well as ready-made perching spots.

Picture 15 – back right corner showing where two sides meet

Photos 16 and 17 show the finished aviary!

Picture 16 – our aviary custom built to fit a window alcove

Picture 17 – ready for pigeons!

Kyla welcoming Boris, Page & Bugsy

Boris & Page explore

Kyla & Cantaloupe

Page relaxing

Cantaloupe says, Come out & visit with us!

Page & Cantaloupe in their nest

Penthouse perch

Pigeons love having a nice big mirror

Materials

WOOD
2 in. x 6 in. x 8 ft. #2 and Better Prime Douglas Fir Lumber	$3.95 ea	Framing around window in back wall. Used 2 x 6 here instead of 2 x 4 because we wanted framing around window to stick out further than the rest of back wall.
2 x 4 x 10-ft Douglas Fir Stud	$4.66 ea	Two needed for back wall.
2 x 4 x 8-ft Douglas Fir Stud	$2.38 ea	Main structures for walls and roof. Approx 16 needed.
2 in. x 2 in. x 96 in. Furring Strip Boards	$2.28 ea	Nailing/backing surface for mesh in roof sides., and some roof construction. Appox 4 needed.
1 in. x 2 in. x 8 ft. Furring Strip Board	$1.14 ea	Misc. Roof construction. Approx 3 needed.
2 in. x 3 in. x 8 ft. Select Kiln Dried Whitewood Stud	$1.98 ea	Side wall studs and cross members and door frame. Front/back were 2 x 4; sides were 2 x 3. Also upper edge of base trim. Approx 14 needed.
Pressure treated 2-in x 4-in x 10-ft	$6.98 ea	These were for “floor joists”–support for decking.
Pressure treated 2-in x 8-in x 12-ft	$18.57 ea	Main base structure. Two needed.
1 in. x 6 in. x 6 ft. Premium Kiln-Dried Square Edge Whitewood Common Board	$6.74 ea	Fascia board on roof, front of aviary.
1 in. x 4 in. x 4 ft. Common Board	$2.23 ea	Shelves and ramps.
1 in. x 4 in. x 8 ft. Common Board	$2.63 ea	1 in. x 4 in. x 8 ft. Common Board
Trex Enhance Basics 12-ft Clam Shell Grooved Composite Deck Board	$21.00 ea	Floor.
FASTENERS
#10 x 3” Stainless Steel Star Drive Flat-Head Wood Deck Screws	$18.97 ea	Floor.
2-1/2” Black All Purpose Screws	$2.97 ea	Floor.
Grip-Rite Primeguard Plus #9 x 3” Polymer Deck Screws (1-lb Pack)	$9.48 ea	Floor.
Everbilt #10 3” Star Flat-Head Wood Screws (1 lb.-Pack)	$7.25 ea	Multiple uses
Woodtite 1” Fasteners (50-Count)	$5.48 ea	For attaching corrugated plastic roof to wood.
FastenMaster #0 x 2-7/8” Black Ecoat Flat-Head Interior/Exterior Structural Wood Screws (50-Count)	$19.48 ea	For attaching walls to floor, walls to walls, and walls to roof.
Post Latch	$14.91 ea	Door
6” x 4.25” Black Heavy Duty Decorative Tee Hinge	$7.21 ea	Door
Gate Pull	$11.34 ea	Door
4“ Galvanized Flat Corner Brace (2-Pack) (Used four for door.)	$5.21 ea	Door
Suntuf 24 in. Horizontal Plastic Closure Strips (6-Pack)	$5.98 ea	Roof
26 in. x 6 ft. Misty Green Polycarbonate Roof Panel	$5.35 ea	Roof
18 Gauge X 1/4” Crown 3/4” Galvanized Staples 2,500 Pieces	$8.99 ea	Mesh walls
Vinyl Lattice 4’ x 8’	$30.75 ea	Decorative
19 Gauge 1/2” Hardware Cloth	$4.80/sq ft	Mesh walls
TOOLS
10” miter saw		To cut most of the main structural lumber
Jigsaw		To cut thin pieces of wood like trim, shelving, fascia board
2-in-1 Stapler/Nailer		Stapler to attach mesh to wood; nailer to attach the trim strips over the ends of wire mesh
3 Gallon 1/3 HP 100 PSI Oil-Free Pancake Air Compressor		Needed if using air stapler…you can staple by hand, but very labor intensive
Drill (corded preferable, as driving 3” screws uses a lot of power)
Wire snips		To cut the mesh
Level
Hammer
Tape measure
Extension cord

Costs

Door hardware	$30
Floor	$200
Hardware	$150
Mesh	$200
Paint	$20
Trim	$100
Wood	$250
TOTAL	$950

Jamie’s Diagrams

October 30, 2019
by Elizabeth
Comments Off on How & When to Feed a Pigeon (or Dove) Who Isn’t Eating

How & When to Feed a Pigeon (or Dove) Who Isn’t Eating

Guest Post by Ashley Dietrich

Most pigeons and doves, when rescued, are dehydrated and starved (and often injured). Many will immediately drink and eat given the opportunity. If they don’t, that is a serious signal that expert help is needed. PLEASE connect with a pigeon-friendly rehabber or rescuer to help the bird you’ve found. It can mean the difference between their life and death. It is important to note that cases of severe starvation and emaciation must be handled expertly – with rehydration being of utmost importance. Too much food too fast or the wrong food can be deadly. These cases need expert care and possibly liquid formula feeding. Please join and post to our Palomacy Help Group for 24/7 assistance. You can also find pigeon-friendly rehabbers on our rescue map, at Find a Wildlife Rehabilatator (always ask about their pigeon policy as some will only euthanize rather than help) and search for an avian vet. (Also see Palomacy’s guidelines for How to Care for a Rescued Pigeon)

Click here

It is important to know when and what NOT to feed. Birds should never be offered milk (they are not mammals), and for the most part should not have things like bread, oatmeal, and other low nutrient foods. Feeding the wrong thing can worsen a situation and even kill the animal by disturbing the digestive system – especially an animal already in distress. Never attempt to syringe feed or tube feed a bird without direct guidance from an experienced expert. Never pour liquid into the beak or force water. It is easy to aspirate a bird doing any of those things. Never feed a dehydrated or cold bird. Protocol is to first make sure they are warm, then hydrated, then address food intake. The best advice is always to get expert help, preferably someone local who can personally examine the bird and assess the situation before acting. If any pigeon (especially an adult) is not self-feeding, it is imperative to first determine the cause. A bird may refuse food for many reasons: immaturity, pain, stress, illness, disability, weakness, etc.

Supportive Care

Newly rescued pigeons or doves or our own pets sometimes need supportive care to help them through a crisis. A pigeon or dove that isn’t eating needs to be safely confined (protected from predators as well as flockmates that may bully or injure a weak bird), kept warm and quiet and encouraged or assisted to drink and eat. If you are helping a bird in this state, please engage an expert for one-on-one guidance. The following information is no replacement for expert help.

Hydration

Dehydration is extremely common in rescued birds. Some will immediately drink when water is provided. If a pigeon appears especially weak/tired, dissolve a small pinch of salt and a small pinch of sugar in the water you provide to help restore electrolytes. For an adult or juvenile pigeon who is not drinking, a safe way to encourage them is to dip the tip of their beak into a water dish and hold the water there for 20-30 seconds.

Pigeon Alfred leaning in to drink

The pigeon may immediately drink. If they do, you’ll know because they will plunge their beak forward and suck up water. Or the pigeon may not move at all or may move their head away. If they don’t drink or move their head away, try a couple of more times. Often we are able, after a couple of attempts, to encourage the bird to drink. Sometimes just the sound of running water along with the offered dish will help. (Pigeons totally understand the sound of water.) Be gentle and patient, and do not force down the head or submerge more of the beak. For juveniles learning to drink, you can first try dipping your finger in the water to encourage them to dip their own beak. It will take multiple tries for them to master the skill. If the pigeon is not drinking- neither on their own nor with your help, you may need emergency avian vet care to save the pigeon.

Myth-buster: Despite what is posted & often reposted on the web, pigeons do not need water 1″ deep to drink. They can suck up water from a nearly flat puddle if need be.

The Myth of Grit

One of the first questions people always ask when they find a bird is, What about grit? Pigeons and doves don’t actually need grit to digest their food. (That is a myth.) We actually see a lot more problems from birds overeating grit (which is salty and yummy) and becoming impacted than we ever have from a lack of grit. The only benefit of grit (or crushed oyster shells) comes in the form of minerals and calcium which birds definitely need long-term (also available through avian vitamin and mineral supplements like Nekkton’s and LeFeber’s).

Feeding

For a found pigeon or dove, offer parakeet or wild bird type food (sold in supermarkets and pet supply stores if you do not have quick access to a pigeon/dove mix, sold in feed stores rather than pet stores) in a shallow, heavy flat-bottom dish (or the next closest thing). Offer water in a straight sided and/or heavy dish – ramekins work great.

Grains that pigeons & doves eat

Pigeons and doves are granivores meaning they primarily eat grains and seeds but they can also eat chopped vegetables and fruits. If you don’t have access to bird food, you can short-term feed a rescued pigeon or dove minced carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, edamame, lima beans, bell peppers, corn, unsalted chopped nuts, uncooked popcorn kernels, unsalted sunflower seeds (shelled or not), rice, quinoa or lentils (cooked or raw).

Ringneck dove Pierre eating chopped bell peppers

If it is determined that a bird, once warm and hydrated, is unable to self-feed and needs to be hand fed, a safe way to supplement food to restart their digestive system is to gently hand-feed frozen peas (not canned) that have been thawed in warm water. (Never microwave anything you are going to give a bird as the risk of accidentally burning them is very high.) Wrap the bird in a towel, not too tight, gently open the beak, and put in a pea. They will automatically swallow it down very safely. (There is no choking hazard like there is with syringe or tube-feeding.) Start slow, with only about 5-6 peas at first. Wait an hour or so to see that they poop. If they do, it means that the food is moving through their system and it is safe to give another 5-6 peas. If they don’t, offer more water but don’t hand-feed any more. This can be stressful to the bird, and it is better to hand-feed only small amounts every few hours until, ideally, the pigeon begins self-feeding or you get them to an expert. (Learn more about long-term feeding and caring for pigeons here.)

Ashley & Wyatt demonstrate hand-feeding

Juvenile Birds

People are often suprised to learn that a pigeon they rescued is still an immature juvenile, just learning to self-feed, because they can be as big as full grown birds and look adult to an untrained eye. If the pigeon squeaks, it is for sure a juvenile. (Pigeons youngsters are called “squeakers” and stop squeaking around 6-8 weeks old.) If the pigeon has little gold threads amongst their feathers – juvenile. If they flutter their wings and thrust their beak at you or your hand- juvenile. They are used to being fed and need help to learn to self-feed. If you have rescued a nestling (not yet feathered) they will need to be fed in a way that mimics how their parents feed them. Please visit this website www.PigeonRescue.co.uk for lots of detailed, trustworthy info.

Hungry rescued King pigeon fledgling Athena begs to be fed

Learning to self-feed with a little help from a friend

For a healthy juvenile learning to self-feed, peas can be used as a supplement, as an alternative to formula (for someone with no access to an expert to tube feed). Again, each case warrants specific consideration. To encourage a youngster to eat, scatter seed on a towel, and offer a seed dish as well, tapping your finger to mimic beaking food. If possible, put the bird in view of other birds eating, so he can learn by example. (Playing the videos above for a pigeon youngster while tapping your finger in bird seed will often help them learn!) Patience is key – they need support and encouragement as they learn to self-feed. Supplemental feeding may be needed until they are able to eat enough on their own. And please, don’t keep and raise up a feral (wild) pigeon youngster in your home. Get them to a pigeon-friendly wildlife rehabber so they can grow up to live wild and free. (The pigeon youngsters shown in these videos are unreleasable.) If you raise a feral pigeon youngster in your home, they will become imprinted on humans, they will be unreleaseable and they will need YOU to provide a wonderful home for 10+ years.

Please join and post to our Palomacy Help Group for 24/7 assistance. You can also find pigeon-friendly rehabbers on our rescue map, at Find a Wildlife Rehabilatator (always ask about their pigeon policy as some will only euthanize rather than help) and search for an avian vet.

October 23, 2019
by Elizabeth
Comments Off on Mascoorade! Celebrating 12 Years of Palomacy

Mascoorade! Celebrating 12 Years of Palomacy

Very enthusiastic child holding I ❤️ Pigeons sign in one hand & a rescued pigeon in the other.

Riley & Amaya said it best! (Photo courtesy of Saska Kanavle)

Wow! What an incredible Mascoorade Party! We had such a wonderful time flocking with so many amazing people- human and avian! We reunited with friends from the past, we met our social media friends IRL, we snorgled and loved and appreciated each other and it was really awesome to spend a few rare, precious hours with so many Palomacitas all in the same room! Without a sanctuary or facility, and rescuing across not just all of Northern CA but virtually nationwide, our work is mostly done apart. We communicate constantly and local volunteers get to connect at outreach and adoption events in the SF Bay Area but for the most part, we don’t get the luxury of time spent together. It was a joy to be surrounded by so many compassionate, dedicated, birdy people! And to our many friends, both near and far, that weren’t able to attend, you were with us in our hearts. We had a wonderful party and raised $4,233 to help birds. We’re already thinking about next year’s party- on 10/17/20 – and we would love your help! Email Elizabeth@PigeonRescue.org to join our party crew!

Jenny & Jewel by Ash

Nath with Beauty, Darren & Sang with Cookie

Huge grateful thanks to The Oakland Zoo for so generously supporting our party and donating their big, beautiful perfect Zimmer Auditorium for our amazing venue! Everybody raved about it! What a wonderful setting for our Mascoorade! Extra special thanks to Conservation Specialist Adrienne Mrsny and Director Amy Gotliffe for their patient help all the way through months of planning and till the last box was packed out (& found).

Amy Gotliffe & Christiana Reed at our August venue meeting

Adrienne Mrsny welcoming Palomacy & newly rescued pigeon Doc at Mascoorade!

Palomacy is a small team with a huge job- rescuing & rehoming pigeons & doves- depending on one paid staff person (me) and about 100 volunteers who help out in all the ways they can. And rescue never stops. There’s no break in the work to party plan. We don’t have a fund development department, an event coordinator, or any budget to host an annual celebration. It is all done through volunteers & donations. It is a big labor of love! (Someday we’ll have a party honoring our volunteers rather than working them silly!)

Sending love and get well wishes to our much missed photographer volunteer Ryan Reed (so please forgive our non-pro photos) and to our beloved celebrity and guest presenter Cynthia Zhou (of Miu fame), who were not well enough to join us.

Photographer Ryan Reed photo from Flocktoberfest

Click the photo to see our beloved Cynthia & Miu

Everybirdy that came (and many who didn’t) contributed in some way (thank you!) including several super above and beyond volunteers upon whom the whole effort depended! Our incredibly delicious and plentiful plant-based feast was mostly home cooked and all donated with many to thank including Ranjini Subramaniam, Jill McMurchy, Cheryl Dickinson, Chris Okon, Margie Gear, Ashley and Jenny VanNess, Trina Takahashi, Dyan Collins, Sabina Schechter, Clare Malone Prichard, Cinnaholic plus the extra special contributions from Josette & Luis Maury who donated and served all the beverages throughout plus six cases of delicious Pale Ale emergency donated by Drake’s Brewing Company’s (watch for their special brew War Pigeon!), Chava and Zach Sonnier who fed us all with their delicious homemade, family-secret-recipe jambalaya and bean salad, and Aileen Paterson who heroically stepped, again, into the cornerstone role of food coordinator (for the third year in a row, despite vowing never again, twice now, I think) and also cooked up incredible dishes of ratatouilles and pesto pasta that we are still talking about three days later!

Palomacy super volunteer Aileen did so much for our Mascoorade!

Janice & Rich gave food & beer 2 thumbs up!

The food, including Christiana’s (secret but accidentally put out) birthday cake #1, was spectacular!

Big, giant special thanks also to our incredibly generous party sponsors Ash O’Connor of FleaCircusDesigns.com who flew all the way in from Massachusetts bringing lots of money and plushies and pins for Palomacy and to artist, cosplayer and game-streamer pigeon evangelist Commander Holly and First Officer Feathers who flew in from Washington special for Palomacy!

Rachel, Ash with Dearheart & Rae with Poe!

Ash, creator of FleaCircusDesigns, with Dearheart

Commander Holly & First Officer Feathers

Our hard-working Welcome Team was super friendly, organized and, well, welcoming! Special thanks to Nathan Buchar and his Sophia for anchoring the team. (How many representations of Sophia’s perfect little feeties did you spot throughout the party?)

Emma & Ringneck dove Shiloh welcome you to Mascoorade!

Sophia & her famous feeties welcome you!

Chava welcomes you to Mascoorade!

We had so many amazing treasures donated! And we had amazing help setting everything up and helping everybody to buy and win their hearts’ desires, thanks to Shae Irving’s coordination and Kendall and Ian and Emma’s generous support!

Thank You Super Shae!

Getting ready!

Heartfelt gratitude to all who donated treasures to make our Mascoorade so exciting!

A Fulmer Artistry.com by Stassia
Aria Jalali & Julie Ngo PigeonStroller.com
Ash O’Connor FleaCircusDesigns
Ashley Dietrich Olive’s Place
Barna Mink GalambaTech.com
Bev’s Bird Boutique Flypers
BirdDiaper.com
Chava Sonnier
Christiana Reed
Evie’s Crystal Masks
Faeries & Fiends
Heather Hohlowski
Janice Lipsky’s Woot!
Josette Maury
Mayla Collins
Medical Center for Birds
Meg Germundson Puffology
Nancy Chiu
Nathan Buchar
Purgrain Pigeon & Dove Food
Zoe Martell

Chava helped with the big donation of Bev’s Bird Boutique Flypers!

King Ollie by Ashley Dietrich

Savannah Sparrow by Heather Hohlowski

Fig loves Barna’s special feeder that Cheryl won for him!

Artist Mayla customizing Saska’s soft sculpture pigeon to match Amaya

SO MUCH SUPPORT!

Super Cheryl staffed, for the third year in a row, our full service Bird Care Station, patiently answering questions, weighing, worming, spraying, nail-trimming, egg-advising, pants-sizing and snorgling people and birds alike.

The Pigeon Whisperer is in!

Saska and her daughter Riley, sister Sonya, mother Raven and rescued pigeon Amaya came down from Washington to create a magical Mask Making activity for our guests.

Sonya, Saska withh Amaya, Raven & Riley

Mask-makers Truman & Erin

Sonya & Amaya holding down the Mask Making

And lots of people brought their own masks!

Of course, no event would be Palomacy without lots of amazing birds and their adopters and fosters and rescuers!

Bhaskar & Ranjini brought their Jose & Rose

Newlywed foster pigeons Page & Cantaloupe attended

Foster volunteer Erin brought her family & 4 King pigeon kids rescued last week

Adoptable Ringneck doves Cool Whip, Shhiloh & Hone

Linnaea & Tommy transported 2 rescued pigeons, Doc & Dearheart, from Napa to become Palomacy fosters

Zach brought his special friend Pip

Kyla loving on Sizzle

New fosters-to-be falling in love with a pigeon named Courage

Jill loving on happy, finally-married old man Miles!

Guests rescued this sweet, starving Silkie rooster on a hike before the party

Mayla & her Sushi

Jiuno & Pidge

Diamond dove Peepers, brought as a stray to Peninsula Humane, joined Palomacy

Famous Rango & adoring fans

Julia & Mariela of Peninsula Humane loving on Jewel

Some of our bird guests lounging in their strollers with slideshow behind

And of course, the whole event was made magic, special and soul-feeding by our amazing, incredible Christiana! Christiana brings all the sparkle to our parties (with eco-friendly cellulose glitter, no less) and gives her limitless joy, creativity and passion to us with unparalleled generosity! Christiana sources and creates all of the beautiful wall coverings, table toppers, wall decor, signs (indoors and outside too)! She created 52 amazing paper flowers for us and brought nearly as many masks, large and small. Signs, saris, special touches too many to list! Christiana- we can never thank you enough for all the joy you bring to Palomacy!

Christiana- Palomacy’s Party Powerhouse!

Making the magic happen

Zach decorating the entrance

Jazelle & Christiana with just one of the works of mask art

Getting sparkly!

Magic courtesy of Christiana

Christiana makes magic for all of us!

And thanks to Nath & cake #2, we made some magic for Christiana’s birthday (10/18)

Rock Dove Melne created our Mascoorade soundtrack on Spotify, I posted a live video from the party to Facebook that you’re invited to watch (it’s a little funky, signal strength ebbed and waned) and you can also see an album of lots of fun party photos here.

And of course, don’t forget our clean up crew! No matter how many hours spent, how tired, how many miles the drive home is, they got it done!

Thank you Aileen!

Jill helping

Packing out

Goodnight!

PHOTOS by Kathryn Carlson (@cowbellthepij)

Kathryn & Nancy

Pidge & Cowbell meeting

Star Peck!

Murr!

Rescued rooster Black Phillip

Kathryn & Sizzle

Nancy, Jiuno, Pidge, Kathryn, Cowbell & Graham

EXTRA BONUS PHOTOS for those who got all this way!

Jewel watches a video of himself as an oops baby with his foster dad Santino

Mascoorade Lily

Dearheart, an adoptable unreleasable feral

Party pigeon Amaya

Ta da!

Our Palomacy Party Pigeon, courtesy of FleaCircusDesigns

Please support the life-saving, culture-changing work Palomacy is doing for pigeons and doves and the people who love them. Please, if you haven’t already, become a monthly donor, in any amount, and take a stand for these amazing birds.

Thank You!

Elizabeth Young, founder & director

P.S. Save the date 10/17/20!

October 4, 2019
by Elizabeth
Comments Off on Bloom Wants You to Know…

Bloom Wants You to Know…

Bloom wants you to know how grateful she is that you saved her!

Foster volunteer lovingly holds young pigeon

Foster volunteer Rachel & pigeon child Bloom

Today pigeon child Bloom is two months old, safe, sassy, happy and loved in a wonderful foster home. She is healing and growing and looking forward to a wonderful long life as a cherished companion. The pink dye she was marked with is starting to fade and her blinded-by-dye eye isn’t so painful. She is a death-defying miracle bird. Thanks to you. Your support of Palomacy enabled us to rescue her when nobody else would.

Bloom is a King pigeon who was bred for meat (squab) and “harvested” from her family’s nest at 28 days old. Unlike most who are routed straight to the processing plant to be butchered, shrink-wrapped and shipped to fancy restaurants, she was one of the birds trucked to a poultry market in San Francisco where, after being splashed with pink dye for batching (which blinded her right eye), she was sold live, to be home butchered.

Luck was somehow with this frail pigeon child again though because instead of being bought for dinner, she was bought for “release”, a well-intended but misguided gesture that left her stranded on the edge of a park at 20th & Vermont in the Potrero Hill district of San Francisco. King pigeons are domestic and have no survival skills at any age but to be all alone and helpless is especially terrifying and dangerous for an immature, frail four week old domestic pigeon.

Amazingly, little Bloom defied death again when, before being killed by a predator (hawks, gulls, ravens, cats, raccoons, rats, etc.) somebody recognized her plight and brought her to the San Francisco Animal Care shelter where she was surrendered on Thursday, September 4th.

Weak, sick, injured pigeon juvenile held in the hand of shelter staff

Bloom arrived at the shelter sick, injured, emaciated & weak.

Bloom was very lucky to be rescued alive

Shelter staff contacted Palomacy the next morning asking if we would rescue the thin, weak, injured little bird. She was in bad shape, 911. We are always full up, always stretched to the max with 150 adoptable birds in 30 different foster homes and aviaries and a waiting list, but even so, we always try and thanks to two very special volunteers, Jerri and Rachel going above and beyond, and with our donors’ generous support, Bloom once again defied death. We saved Bloom!

Volunteer hero Jerri fell in love with brave Bloom

Jerri, one of our volunteer transport angels, dropped everything to make the 140 mile traffic-choked roundtrip to go pick Bloom up and rush her out to Medical Center for Birds in Oakley where they very kindly managed to fit her in to their already booked solid schedule. With supportive care, pain meds and antibiotics, she quickly began feeling better, started eating and was feeling feisty by Tuesday when she was discharged and Jerri once again made a long trip to pick her up and deliver her to foster volunteer Rachel who, despite all she’s juggling, agreed to take little Bloom into her foster care.

Dr. Baden & Medical Center for Birds fit Bloom in right away

Pigeon youngster looking stronger after care at the vet

Bloom improving with vet treatment & supportive care

Bloom has come so far and despite her blind right eye and a lingering sinus infection she is still be treated for, she is strong and looking forward to a happy future! She’ll soon be meeting a pigeon-loving family that is interested in fostering to adopt and chances are they, like everyone else who has met her, will fall hopelessly in love with her exuberant spirit.

Click to hear & see healing Bloom playing with her foster mom

Bloom wants you to know that she is glad to be safe, to be protected and loved. To be alive!

Thank you for helping us to rescue Bloom and all the others. We can’t do this without you.

Foster volunteer with pigeon on her shoulder

Your support- as volunteers, fosters & donors- saves lives

Apply to foster or adopt

Donate to support Palomacy

Apply to volunteer