Caring for Old Pigeons

I have a female pigeon that is about 6 years old right now. We found
her on the road, with a broken wing. She healed up great and can
still fly, and has been a great pet. She appears to be getting old.
She has problems with lose stools periodically. The vet can;t really
tell why. She doesn;t appear to have any parasites. Recenlty, she
started seeming very sleepy and sluggish and will not eat much. The
vet said that aside from the 100 gram loss in wheight, she seems fine.
He is running blood tests right now to check on liver & kidney
function. He seems to think that it could just be old age.

Another thing I wonder about is her laying eggs. FOr about 5 years
now, she has been laying a pair of eggs every month or 2. Since she
has no real mate, I wonder if this might be taking a tole on her.
What do you think?

What I'm wondering is how do pigeons handle old age? Do these
symptoms seem normal? What is the best way to care for an aging
pigeon? Is there an special diet that we should give her?

thanks

jjb

On 16 Feb 2004 15:23:53 -0800, jburton DeleteThis @hewittenergygroup.com (Jeremiah
J. Burton) wrote:

>I have a female pigeon that is about 6 years old right now. We found
>her on the road, with a broken wing. She healed up great and can
>still fly, and has been a great pet. She appears to be getting old.
Hello jjb. Six years old isn't that old in pigeon speak. I have birds
that are still laying and doing well at 10-12 yrs. If your vet says
that your birds problem is old age.....RUN! Find a Avian Vet.
If she was laying every ten or twelve days then you have a problem.
If the bird is listless and sleepy acting it could be several things.
none of which is old age. It could be Paratyphoid, Coccidiosis
or any number of illnesses. If you can't find a avian vet got to the
local pet shop and look for bird medicines that contain tetracycline.
cover about 3/4's of the birds cage and put a red light bulb at the
covered end. This will help the bird maintain it's body heat. Follow
the directions on the label of the medication that you use. Remember
find a real bird (avian) vet. Otherwise try the above.
>She has problems with lose stools periodically. The vet can;t really
>tell why. She doesn;t appear to have any parasites. Recenlty, she
>started seeming very sleepy and sluggish and will not eat much. The
>vet said that aside from the 100 gram loss in wheight, she seems fine.
> He is running blood tests right now to check on liver & kidney
>function. He seems to think that it could just be old age.
>
>Another thing I wonder about is her laying eggs. FOr about 5 years
>now, she has been laying a pair of eggs every month or 2. Since she
>has no real mate, I wonder if this might be taking a tole on her.
>What do you think?
As long as that is as often as she lays she is alright.
It is not uncommon for a pigeon to mated to it's owner.
The egg laying isn't the problem. Also make sure to
give good bird grit. There are some others here who
might have a better answer. Anybody?



>What I'm wondering is how do pigeons handle old age? Do these
>symptoms seem normal? What is the best way to care for an aging
>pigeon? Is there an special diet that we should give her?
Feed the bird the same as always. Don't change a thing that you have
been doing the previous five years sans the problem you have now.
If the bird has the opportunity to pick up grain that has become
soiled, either by her or other birds, she could have either of the
two diseases I mentioned above. Make sure that when you feed her
that she cleans up every morsel of food you are giving her.
>thanks
>
>jjb
regards,
tonyf