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theramseyloft · 7 years

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Pigeon domestication: Feral Pigeons are not wildlife.

There were some inaccuracies in the first post on this topic, so I’m making a new one. A second edition, if you will.

One of my followers once asked me why it was that pigeons in wildlife rehab should be held when other animals should be handled as little as possible.

I misunderstood the crap out of her question! And it took three posts to realize I had!

Injured or orphaned Wildlife in a rehab center need to be handled as little as possible to avoid imprinting onto humans. They need to be able to survive on their own, and developing the habit of asking humans for hand outs will lead it to becoming malnourished at best and get it killed for being a nuisance at worst.

Mammals in particular may be killed on approach as fearless approach of humans by a wild animal is one of the warning signs that it might have rabies, which requires brain tissue to test for.

Pigeons are not wild animals. On principal, imprinting avoidance should not apply to them.

Furthermore, it causes them a lot of harm.

Pigeons are intensely social birds! Nestlings suffer from touch starvation as intensely as a human infant and can be mentally stunted or even out right stress to death from lack of interaction.

More urgently: We are simply not capable of teaching a domestic pigeon peep to survive in the wild.

Pigeons are social and observational learners, with cognition equivalent to a human 5 year old. Like human children, pigeon squeakers are TAUGHT how to be pigeons.

Their social structure is VERY human like! Their father takes them out on foraging trips (because mom either has or is getting ready to lay the next clutch) and teaches them where to find food, water, and nest materials, what to eat, where to shelter, and how to interact with other pigeons. How and when to defer to the status of older established flock mates to avoid a fight and how and when to stick up for themselves to make sure they get their fair share of resources.

Songbirds and nearly all other columbids kick their kids out as soon as they are self feeding and they either make it or they don’t. Their parents will chase them out if they come back.

Feral Pigeons only leave their families if the flock has grown too large for local resources to support.

Truthfully, orphaned feral pigeons do not belong in wildlife rehab at all. Pet shelters should be set up for them.

Feral Pigeons are not wild animals. Imprinting avoidance should not apply to them any more than it should apply to an orphaned puppy.

Feral puppies don’t get raised among fox kits or coyote or wolf pups at a wildlife rehab and sent out for release “into the wild”.

Seriously. Take a moment to consider the following scenario:

A shelter gets an orphaned or injured puppy. They bottle feed it until it can reliably feed itself, heal it’s injuries, and clean out its parasites.

And then they return that just weaned, newly healthy puppy to the alley from whence it came.

How many of you, of you actually saw this happen, or heard the plan for the puppy’s release, would not be INSTANTLY concerned for its well being?

How many of your guts just clenched at the thoughts that flooded your minds of it getting hit by a car? Going hungry enough to have to eat garbage? Getting into something poisonous or sharp? Dying because it was left alone with no shelter or resources in a hostile environment?

How many of you, upon hearing that that puppy was going back into the street, would protest that it needs a home? That it’s a pet? That it’s helpless? That it’s most likely to die if it’s released?

What would your reaction be if that rehab brushed all of those aside by pointing out that there are adult strays eating garbage and dodging cars, and they’re fine?

How many of you would get upset? How many would protest that those strays aren’t healthy? That they are skinny, full of parasites, visibly sick, and limping from old wounds?

How would you react if that rehabber looked you dead in the eye and said “Those are wolves and they should be free.”

What if, at all shelters, only purebred puppies, or puppies with obvious fancy traits were put up for open adoption, and all mutts were “released” back onto the street, with all offers to adopt them turned down because they were born outside? What if you could only request to take home a mutt puppy if it lost the use of a limb and was deemed unreleasable?

This happens to pigeons every day, and they are no less domesticated than dogs are.

Dogs have been traveling with humans since the time when there were several species of human!

But pigeons have been with us since our settlements became permanent, and that relationship is nothing to sneeze at!

Do you know why doves have the religeous significance they do?

Because of the Wild Rock Dove, which is to domestic pigeons what the wolf is to domestic dogs.

Rock Doves are cliff nesters native to Turkey, India, the northernmost coast of Africa and southern Europe, who live only in very specific locations: Seaside cliffs on the edge of deserts.

They are grain eaters that need to drink a certain amount of fresh water every day.

If you were lost in the desert, finding a Rock Dove would save your life, if you could keep it in sight.

During the day, it would lead you to water because it can’t go a day with out.

At night, it would lead you back to safe, habitable shelter. After all, if there are predators or noxious gas in abundance, the Rock Doves couldn’t live there either.

It’s true that pigeons were initially domesticated for meat, but the Rock Dove’s bond to a specific home site and the unerring navigation that returned them reliably to it every night lead them to being domesticated more like dogs than any other livestock.

Pigeon holes are really easy to make. It’s just an even opening in a mud or stone wall deep enough for a fully grown bird to be completely sheltered and wide enough for two pigeons to build their nest and raise two peeps in.

Babies could be collected from the wild at around two weeks of age, feathered enough to thermoregulate and just starting to wean from pigeon milk to seed. At this age, they could be moved into the man made pigeon holes and hand fed until they could feed themselves.

It would be three to four weeks before they began to be really capable of flight, so the man made dovecote became the Home site onto which the babies imprinted to just as much as their handler.

If the keepers were smart, they brought home a group of babies, because rock doves are social with a cooperative family structure.

If taken at the right ages, that group formed a mini flock, just big enough to watch each others backs and their surroundings on foraging trips farther and farther afield.

When pigeons take mates from another flock, the pair decides which family to join based on the security of the nest site and availability of resources, so pigeons from a man made dovecote always had the advantage of superior security. New mates came home with the tamed peeps and learned by observation that the human care takers were harmless protectors.

If the farmer was smart, they’d only harvest meat or eggs sparingly and at night so that the pigeons would not associate the human with being preyed upon.

Because pigeons could go out and forage for themselves and be trusted to return, the farmer didn’t have to feed them, and a person could not be too poor to own pigeons.

Not only were they live stock that fed themselves and brought more birds back with them, the guano of a well fed pigeon is one of the most nutritious fertilizers on earth!

If you want crops to grow in a desert landscape, moist pigeon guano worked into the ground will work wonders!

Pigeon guano eventually became so highly prized that people who could afford to hired armed guards to protect their cote!

We kinda ALWAYS knew about pigeon navigation, but the Greeks and Romans wrote a LOT about their use as messengers.

Messengers were not just any domestic pigeon! Speed and navigational accuracy were the traits their lines were selected for exclusively, so these were expensive specialty birds, especially beloved by the well-to-do and the military.

Every fort and palace had a cote for messenger pigeons so that they could recieve the most urgent of messages in situations where a human runner was just not fast enough.

Royal emissaries and platoons of soldiers out on a mission were sent with a supply of birds from that palace or fort so that if they needed to get a message out, they could send it by the fastest carrier over the straightest path.

Pigeons continued to be used in the messenger capacity until only about 50 years ago.

During this time when every one depended on them for swift communication, EVERY ONE loved and revered pigeons!

Their diversity so inspired Charles Darwin that he did a TON of his genetics research using them as models! And pigeons were so beloved by Victorian England that his editors tried to twist his arm to write a book entirely about pigeons instead of what became the Origin of Species!

When Eugenics began to fascinate the European well to do and dog shows came to be, pigeon varieties also blossomed!

There were pigeons all over the world at this point, and different regions had so many different ideas of what shape and color and pattern made a beautiful Pigeon! While some valued the appearance, others valued a unique areal performance or a more musical singing voice.

There are at least as many distinct breeds of pigeon now as there are of dog! I have heard that there are more, possibly even considerably more, but I don’t know enough about dog breed diversity to say for certain whether or not those assessments are accurate.

We have taken pigeons EVERYWHERE with us! And when we loved and took care of them, everybody benefited.

But about 50 years ago was when technology caught up with and surpassed the speed of pigeon borne messages, and pigeons were slower with more expensive upkeep.

As previously stated, the military were not the only people who loved pigeons.

But a LOT of the people who kept them after the military phased them out in the US were immigrants and people of color.

It was a status symbol not to need gardens or farms or livestock, so pigeon coops became associated largely with poor neighboorhoods and immigrants.

As pigeons fell out of favor, and more and more ferals started living on the closest thing to a comfortable environment: Buildings.

As they were fed by fewer and fewer people and had access to less and less grain, it became more common to see the white streaked splatters of the pure uric acid that pigeons excrete on an empty stomach.

Uric acid eats stone, concrete, asphalt, and especially metal.

Feral Pigeons thus became linked to property damage, and the smear campaign that coined the description “Rats with wings” ( http://www.audubon.org/news/the-origins-our-misguided-hatred-pigeons ) and linked them with filth and disease was the final blow to the public’s esteem for this animal that has been our partner and companion through THOUSANDS of years of history.

That description of pigeons was all it took to turn thousands of years of adoration and respect into knee jerk revulsion.

Add the fact that domestication favors year round reproduction, and 50 years later, the feral population of pigeons is staggering.

Millions are spent to kill them off and drive them out using everything from poison to spikes to nets, tar, traps, and fines levied on the kind souls that recognize their hunger and feed them.

The Street Pigeon Project spearheaded in Germany has found that the most effective way to decrease the feral population and minimize the damage they cause to buildings is to, get this: Take FUCKING CARE OF THEM!!!

They built a big, comfortable rooftop loft with lots of nesting spaces, provided a good mix or grain, seed, legumes, and calcuim, and swapped out the eggs with fakes.

The unrestrained, non-coerced feral pigeons spent 80% of their time in that loft, only leaving to stretch their wings.

It was more comfortable than the awnings, eves, attics, and signs that had been the best nesting grounds available, so they left!

With no need to range out to look for food, they didn’t go very far.

On full bellies, with good food, their poo wasn’t just pure uric acid anymore!

With eggs swapped out as they were found, reproduction decreased by 95%!

And the best part? It cost SO much less to house and feed the ferals than it did to try to exterminate them!

That’s not even scratching the surface of the OTHER benefits that could be extended from that project!

Pigeon eggs are edible! Even if the thought squicks out people and they can’t be regulated, animals can eat pigeon eggs too. They could be donated to wild life rehabs and animal shelters.

A street pigeon project could partner with community gardens to clean the lofts and keep the fertilizer they gather. THEY could also use the eggs to compost!

Cleaning the loft could also count as community service!

Pigeons did not invade cities. We abandoned them there, after they helped us coordinate building and connecting them.

They are, in every sense of the words, abandoned, forgotten sky puppies.

And they deserve to be treated with the same concern and compassion as every other lost pet.

Adult ferals would be more hurt than helped by capture, but they should have the option of a safe place to go to be fed and cared for, and weaned babies deserve to go to loving homes.

I know there are too many to home right now and that isn’t feasible for rehabs that get hundreds of them, but where rehoming isn’t an option, they should at LEAST be acclimated in a group with supplemental feeding until they find their way in the world.

Pigeons were made what they are by us. They were abandoned by us.

Everything we complain about regarding pigeons are traits WE intentionally bred into them! And we inexplicably treat *them* like the invaders after abandoning them the second they were no longer deemed useful.

We even forgot that the pidge we see every day on the street are domesticated birds!

They are literally stray dogs with wings!

It’s time we remember that relationship and remind other people.

And please, please… be kind to the Sky Puppies.

They deserve to be loved again.

#dove-mom cooing #feral pigeon #the history of the domestic pigeon #be good to the sky puppies

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nasirus · 6 years

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I wanted to spend less time reblogging and focus on making this Tumblr a little more personal -- so I’m going to tell the story of Tar. These photos are in order from the day I found him to roughly the day he passed away. It is my absolute dream in life to be a wildlife rehabilitator, falconer, and environmental educator. It is tough, I will admit, being twenty-seven years old and struggling to work full-time and follow my passion. I knew I wanted to be an advocate for wildlife when I met Tar. Tar was an eastern painted turtle that I discovered in the middle of the road back in 2015. He was extremely close to becoming roadkill. In fact, as I was getting out of the car to help him cross the road, a vehicle came less than a foot from actually running him over. When I picked him up, however, I quickly realized he was injured. In the first photo, you can clearly see a small dollop of blood on his nose. The CORRECT thing for me to have done was contact a wildlife rehabiitator, but I was much more naive then and thought I would take personal responsibility for him. I was also worried that, because of the state he was in, that the choice to euthanize him would have been too easy to make. Tar lost his eyes somehow. I don’t know what happened, but I assumed that he had come in contact with some natural predator and they really clawed up his face. In the second picture, you can see just how dire his situation was. He didn’t look like he could live for long, and I doubted he would. It took a lot of research because when I first found Tar, I didn’t even know what species he was. I had no idea about the natural history of painted turtles. I didn’t even know he was semi-aquatic. The first few nights he spent with me, he spent them in an aquarium lined with paper towels. Eventually I transitioned him over to a plastic bin with a heat lamp and a platform to bask. He was very stressed when I handled him, and I think that stress was doubled because he couldn’t see a thing. He peed on me a few times, which I have come to learn was a natural defense mechanism. Tar had other problems than just his nose, though. He had a respiratory issue-- he breathed very loudly, sometimes gasping. He also had minor damage to his shell. I guessed that he was fairly old, because he definitely looked to have come in contact with his fair share of scraps before. I used an anti-septic cream and a q-tip to gently clean the area around where his eyes should have been. I cleaned the tissue that remained of his eyes, too, and every few days I would press him gently between my knees and pry open his mouth to give him antibiotics. I had no idea how to even dose them at the time, so after a few days of guessing and only giving tiny increments, I learned to weigh him, cut it in half to account for the weight of his shell, and continue dosing. Tar didn’t eat for a month and a half, but his respiratory problems went away and the remaining tissue that was his eyes dried up and shriveled. I had to very carefully remove it with tweezers and a small knife. I stopped cleaning the area when skin healed over his eye sockets-- you can actually see how it scabbed over in the fourth and fifth photos. The third shows the dried remainder of his eyes. After all the struggles in terms of his injuries passed, the biggest and next hurdle to jump was figuring out how he was going to eat. I honestly thought that he would just waste away, but one day I came home to discover the large collard green leaf I had left floating in his tank had been eaten. That was the moment I was overcome with this feeling of just pure happiness-- something I do not feel often. It was then that I knew I wanted to do this for other animals one day. Food was hard for Tar to find, especially when I moved him to an even larger tank with better space and more areas for him to explore. He bumped into the edges of his enclosure a lot, but eventually learned to feel his way around. He basked just like a normal painted turtle would, legs stretched out and just taking in all the warmth. Eventually we came up with a feeding system-- I taught him that when he felt my hand around his shell, he was about to be fed. That coupled with the strong scent of river shrimp worked wonders. He would eat from tweezers while I held him still. Once he had it in his mouth, I’d let him go and he would tear it up with his foreclaws and eat.

He had come so far since I found him and I felt so proud of him for surviving and proud of myself for not giving up and actually managing to rehabilitate him with success. Of course, I took it upon myself to decide that he was never going to be released-- he just wouldn’t have made it in the wild, so I gave him a permanent home with me. Unfortunately, two years later, Tar died. I found him on the bottom of his tank one morning in March. He had a very nice burial. I thanked him for the lessons he taught me, and said goodbye to my old friend. If you find a wild animal in need of help, please contact a wildlife rehabber near you. Or make an effort to know the ones who are licensed in your state. I was blessed to have given this painted turtle, who very likely would have only survived another day or more had I not found him, two more years.

#wildlife #wildliferehabilitation #turtles #injured #rescued #animalrescue #personal

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ezatluba · 4 years

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The Suburbs Are Kicking the Animals Out. Enter the Animal Rescue Squad.

Suburban encroachment means tough times for wild critters. Here’s who helps them.

By Gray Chapman

Nov. 30, 2019

In a small suburban park on a muggy morning a few months ago, a woman in elbow-length gloves was armed with a net, a loaf of bread and a tall cardboard box, all in hopes of catching an elusive goose.

The goose, whose left leg was tightly wound in fishing line, walked with a pronounced hobble; as it swam, the leg dragged listlessly in the water. Yet in spite of its condition, animal instinct prevailed. The goose simply refused to be caught.

Cindy Rooker, the would-be captor, hoped to retrieve the recalcitrant Canada goose, tuck it into the cardboard box she had brought, and drive it to a wildlife rehabilitation center a few hours away in South Carolina, where the bird would receive medical attention.

But after several attempts, Ms. Rooker knew it was time to call it a day. Birds are easily stressed, and waterfowl have an inconvenient and frustrating knack for flying right into the center of a pond. Also, she didn’t bring a kayak this time.

A police officer who lives in Canton, Ga., Ms. Rooker, 56, volunteers for the Wildlife Resources and Education Network (WREN). She started working with the organization at the beginning of the summer, and has since completed about 10 transports, crisscrossing the northern half of the state with the likes of orphaned baby opossums and injured hawks in the cab of her Nissan pickup truck.

WREN connects people like Ms. Rooker — committed animal lovers in the Southeast with spare time, spare gas money and an empty back seat — with wildlife rehabbers and veterinary clinics that lack the resources to transport an animal on their own.

In other words, Ms. Rooker and her fellow transporters are Mother Nature’s unpaid Uber drivers.

Robert Jones, an animal lover whose other pursuits include military history and small-business consulting, started WREN with Liz Crandall in 2016. The two met at the Southeastern Raptor Center at Auburn University, where Ms. Crandall worked and Mr. Jones volunteered and, later, interned.

They formed WREN as a wildlife educational initiative, but with time, sharpened their focus largely on transportation after seeing the same challenge day after day: More people seemed to be stumbling upon injured wildlife every passing year, but few wanted to transport the animals to rehabbers themselves.

“It’s a really large gap,” said Mr. Jones, 34, who now lives in Jonesborough, Tenn., and is the executive director of the Tilted Tavern Animal Sanctuary. Nonprofits like the raptor center don’t always have the resources or staff to send someone out to fetch an animal, especially one that’s hours away.

That’s where WREN — and a handful of similar organizations, like the Connecticut Emergency Animal Response Service (EARS) — step in.

When I first spoke with Ms. Crandall, 46, by phone, she had just finished up “a fawn call” (which, at least in this instance, is not a pun). Ms. Crandall, who is the assistant director of the Tilted Tavern Animal Sanctuary, said that she fields roughly a dozen calls a day and manages a handful of transports each week, often across state lines.

That number is increasing each year, for reasons both dismal and hopeful: while humans are pushing into wildlife territory more and more, some of them are also becoming more aware of, and attuned to, the wildlife in their backyards.

“I think people are more conscientious,” Ms. Crandall said. “They want to help more.”

WREN uses Slack to communicate to its volunteers and manage logistics, like making sure each transporter has an appropriate container for the animal (typically a cardboard box or a lidded Rubbermaid bin with holes for oxygen).

Driving a captured animal requires total silence in the car — no phone conversations, no podcasts or music — sometimes for hours on end.

“It takes a lot for people to commit to something where they’ll get a call maybe once a month, or maybe every day,” Ms. Crandall said. Working with nature has inherent challenges and frustrations. It requires patience and flexibility, not to mention thick skin: not every case has a happy ending.

One of the organizations WREN works with is the Chattahoochee Nature Center, where Kathryn Dudeck works as wildlife director. Ms. Dudeck said that the center fields 400 to 500 phone calls a month, and takes in over 650 animals for rehab each year.

Those cases range from natural causes, like nestlings blown out of their nests in a hurricane, to injury explicitly at the hands of humans: an owl with buckshot in its wings, a red-tailed hawk hit by a car. “Needless to say, Mother Nature didn’t invent the vehicle or the gun,” Ms. Dudeck said. “So, we have a moral obligation to assist.”

David Crawford is the founder of Animal Help Now, a 911-like website and smartphone app that links people to wildlife rehabbers and transporters like WREN. App usage has increased every year since its inception in 2012, he said.

“As we expand and build new roads and build new suburbs, you have a lot more interaction with animals,” he said. Then, he added, there is climate change: more destructive hurricanes will yield more injuries and habitat destruction; prolonged droughts, raging forest fires and searing heat waves will continue to push desperate animals further into human habitats.

“People are going to be interacting with wildlife a lot more than they are right now,” said Mr. Crawford. He estimates that by the end of 2019, Animal Help Now will have been used in 40,000 wildlife emergencies across the country.

✺

A week after the first attempt, Ms. Rooker was back at Laurel Park. This time, there was a scrum of additional helpers, including Ms. Crandall, along with two kayaks. There were, however, no geese.

Just before the group split off to search nearby ponds for the flock, Darcell Patterson, a sneaker-shod woman, intercepted the volunteers. Ms. Patterson, 66, has walked around the park every day for the last four years, she said, and brings dried food pellets with her to “establish rapport” with the resident ducks and geese.

She matter-of-factly informed the group that the injured goose is named Gary, and that his leg has been wrapped in that line for a couple of years. Gary, it seems, can survive on his own, and has not yet been ostracized from his avian comrades.

Ms. Crandall decided to let Gary be for now, knowing he was under Ms. Patterson’s watchful eye. As long as the bird can still fly, walk and eat, Ms. Crandall explained, the stress of relocation isn’t justifiable yet.

“Gary’s got friends in high places,” Ms. Patterson said.

While it wasn’t the Disney-worthy victory that the volunteers may have had in mind this go-round, it was still a victory by their standards.

“Sometimes letting wild be wild is the right thing to do,” Mr. Jones said. “You teach people what situations need our intervention, and what situations don’t.”

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blschaos3000-blog · 5 years

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Its 1: 15 pm hazy

Welcome to 8 Questions with……

Meet my friend Karen,who is one of the kindest and most compassionate people left on this planet. I have known Karen for several years,she and I met after Lori passed away and she stayed with me as I was getting crushed by grief and loss. She has donated to Sockvember many times as well donating several times a year to Red Cross,you are getting the idea that Karen is a very caring and generous soul,right? Karen is also a relentless crusader for animals,all types of animals whether it be a abandoned dog,injured possums,hungry birds or a pocket cheetah like her new cat,Doogie Howser. She gets up early to feed her crew,check her TNR traps,rescues the cats and if possible helps them find a home or if they feral,she’ll get them neutered and released back in their area. Family is the most important thing to Karen and if you are a friend,you’re family. I have really enjoyed reading about Karen’s crazy adventures through the years be it a ice storm that led turned a small trip into a multi-hour ride from hell to rooting for her Braves and yes,even losing a few of her rescues and fosters. She has shown me and hundreds of other people around the country what being a caring and loving human being looks like. Simply put,we need a LOT more people like Karen in this world. I hope you enjoy reading and sharing Karen’s interview as she answers her 8 Questions

Please introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about yourself.

I am Karen Jones nee Estes originally from Charlotte, NC but I have been in the Metro Atlanta area since the day Elvis allegedly died. I am married and I have one son who is the light of my life (from my practice marriage). I worked for about 12 years in HR/payroll but in 2016 I was beyond tired of Atlanta traffic and I changed jobs to be closer to home (less miles and less money lol but also way less aggravation from traffic). I work in the preventive maintenance department for a biotechnology company in Kennesaw, GA. I love all animals but I also love bacon so whatever category that is called – that is where I am. DON’T TOUCH MY BACON! I am an overly sarcastic person so keep that in mind while reading the rest of my answers.I am a firm supporter of donating blood/platelets at The Red Cross and being an organ donor. If you have doubts about donating organs then you need to do some reading https://www.donatelife.net/

What was it like growing up in your house? Is this how you developed your love for animals?

My house was cool growing up, my parents are both insane (although I have never had them tested) and they love animals too but they also eat meat. We had rules and curfews and chores but we also had love. I would certainly say that my love for animals was developed by watching my parents. I used to make fun of them for birdwatching and bringing home leftovers to feed the possums. Now I do the same thing which makes my son cringe when we go out to eat and I ask for a to-go box so I can feed the critters. So watch out kids – you will become your parents one day! I remember my mom finding an injured owl on the road one night and she wasn’t going to leave it there to suffer so she slipped out of her slip, wrapped up the owl, put it in the car and headed home. Apparently the owl was not hurt because a few miles down the road it hopped up on the steering wheel and watched her drive home. We had plenty of dogs who were saved from the side of the road, dogs who “we are not keeping” but of course ended up staying with us. My dad came across some young flying squirrels and those were brought to our house and released in the backyard. He’d go out at night and call them and they’d come down and eat the peanut butter he set out for them. Non animal related – our house was the hang out for all the cadets in Civil Air Patrol. My parents preferred that we hang out at home with MTV (back when MTV played nothing but music videos) and eat pizza so the kitchen was always stocked. Holidays were always an “eat yourself into a coma and still have plenty to take home to eat for the next 6 months” type of event. Mama T (my mom’s mom) was one of the best cooks on the planet, she loved to cook and she loved to watch people eat what she prepared. This is why my family is incapable of preparing normal size meals lol I must mention that having “insane” parents is a lesson in itself. Both of my parents started out at the phone company as linemen, humping poles as they called it. Neither of them have a “can’t do” attitude. They have the “do what you have to do” attitude so I picked up on that a good bit. If something doesn’t work then you try something else, if that doesn’t work then try something else. We aren’t a “one and done” type of family. I think this is how I reached MacGuyver status among my friends – it is 99.9% true that when there’s a will, there’s a way. I am extremely lucky to have the parents that I have and to have picked up on 1/10 of their knowledge and attitude. I hope that my son has picked up a lot of that too. I could write a book on this subject but I’m trying to keep it short. Bottom line is that I have the best parents who have taught me a lot of life lessons and above all taught me to always help out if you’re capable of doing so. It cost you absolutely nothing to be kind.

What was your first pet and tell us about it?

The first pet that I can remember was our hamster Cinnamon. Other than watching her roll around in the plastic ball I don’t have a lot of memories. I can’t remember there being a time in my life where there wasn’t a dog or a cat or some fish. I just know life has always included a pet.

How did you meet your husband? What attracted you to him?

This is a loaded question. I met him when I worked part time at Winn Dixie where he was an assistant manager. This is a running joke because I met my first husband when we worked at Kroger together. I ask myself every day what attracted me to him! For starters – he stood out because he is bald and has beautiful blue eyes. We started dating and learned that we both love animals, The Three Stooges, prefer Miracle Whip over mayo and we both hate celery so it was obvious that we were meant to be together.

How did you get into animal rescue? Did you take any classes or workshops to get trained?

I wish I knew the answer!!!!!! I think it all happened by being in the right place at the right time? No classes or anything like that. Most of it is common sense and thinking back to what my parents did when they came across an animal in need.

What are some of the big “no-nos” in helping injured animals,especially wildlife?

Do NOT try to make the injured critter become your pet!!!!!!!!! Seek advice on how to keep it comfortable while you find a trained rehabber. Wildlife that has been injured needs to go to rehab and then released back into the wild. While you mean well in what you’re doing, you can actually be causing more harm. So keep it safe and find a rehab facility.

What have been your three best rescue stories?

Oh gosh – I don’t want to hurt any of their feelings so I will tread lightly. My current foster/rescue is Abby. She came into Getalong Dachshund Rescue: https://www.getalongdachshundrescue.org/our-dogs/ with her sister Zoey in 2017. Zoey was extremely overweight and Abby was mostly blind and deaf. Zoey went on a diet and managed to go from 22.88 pounds down to 11.5 then was adopted. Abby went totally blind and is now a forever foster with me. She and I are extremely bonded and have our own communication skills. Freida Mae who was found in a ditch in rural AL in the rain. She was not claimed at animal control and Getalong Dachshund took her in and treated her infected and swollen mouth which involved removing pretty much every tooth in her head. I left the Sunday before Thanksgiving 2018 to pick her up. My husband woke up early (which is unusual) and asked where I was going. I told him it was an emergency foster, he rolled his eyes and went back to bed. Freida Mae was sooooooo skinny and soooooooooooo cute. She won my husband’s heart when I sent him a picture of her. When I got home he came outside and said “Give her to me” and that was that. We found out a month later that she also had cancer which could not be treated. She put up a great fight though. She was eating better and gaining weight and playing and bossing the cats around. She had my husband wrapped around her paw. She could do no wrong. Sadly we had to say goodbye to her in March just four months after we said hello. I can’t leave out Titan because he was the first rescue/foster back in 2001 I believe it was. He was an owner surrender to another rescue group and we took him in. He was quickly adopted to a family in Rhode Island. After getting updates of him in his new home we also asked them to adopt us. Titan had his own beach chair for his beach trips. He went to a great family where he had many happy years. I am friends with his mom to this day. Can’t leave out Fonzie who was picked up by animal control and never claimed. The happiest dog on earth! Imagine our surprise when we found out he had a broken jaw! He never showed any sign of pain and he was eating dry food, all while constantly wagging his tail. (I know you asked for three but you’re getting four stories). Fonzie cannot hide under blankets because his wagging tail gives away his location. He was adopted 9 months later and is living the best life ever! When I took him to his new mommy he was greeted with a “Welcome Home” sign, a huge basket of toys and his new pillow and blankets.

We won’t talk about Doogie………….(“Doogie is pretty awesome!!!”-Paladin the cheetah)

How do people go from wanting to help animals into becoming the worst animal abusers when they become hoarders? Have you yourself ever worked a hoarder house?

I think for the most part they start out wanting to help and then things spiral out of control and they don’t know how to ask for help. I’ve never been directly involved in a case involving hoarding.

Share your opinion about TNR and the pros and cons of the program.

I am no expert in this field so please understand that this is only my opinion which is based on information I have read from numerous sources.Any litter bearing animal will basically self adjust (for lack of a better term) based on population. This is what is happening with coyotes in Georgia, there’s basically an open season on coyotes but the coyotes are now having larger litters and more often. So in my opinion TNR is the lesser of two evils. I was fortunate enough to find a group in my county that provides services for feral cats so I was able to get the feral family all “fixed” and vaccinated for free. So I believe in TNR vs euthanasia.

Is your husband also a animal rescuer?

He is guilty by association. He complains about my efforts but he’s still around so…………..he found a kitten in the woods a few years ago and no sign of mama after 8 hours so he brought it home. For me to bottle feed. So he is what I’d call the diet version of a rescuer. He complains about it but he is the first one to steal snuggles from the animal.

Do you think Kerri should keep one of her kittens?

Absofrickinglutely!!!!!!!!!!!!

The cheetah and I are flying over to watch your latest possum rescue but we are a day early and now you are playing tour guide,what are we doing?

Honestly there are so many things to do in and around Atlanta and I rarely do any of them! I prefer to sit on the porch and bird watch and at night watch the critters. But if I were to venture out I’d start off by taking you to breakfast at The Red Eyed Mule in Marietta for the best burger you’ll ever eat! Then perhaps we’d stroll up Kennesaw Mountain for a bit of Civil War History. From there we’d hit Art’s Bagels in Acworth for the best Bronx Bomber bagel sandwich. Squeeze in a trip up the road to Chattanooga, TN to visit Jerry at Opie Acres to learn all about possums (technically Opossum but in the south we just call them possums) https://www.facebook.com/OpossumRescueTn/. The night would for sure include a drag show put on by The Armorettes. All of their tips are donated to HIV & AIDS charities in the Atlanta area. https://www.thearmorettes.com We aren’t into too much of the tourist things here. We’ve been to the aquarium and to the new Braves stadium but with every passing day we both hate crowds more and more and going anywhere almost always involves traffic! So we either go north or stay at home!

Oh…..before I forget,if you need a doctor’s note for work or school,Dr. Doogie Howser will write one for either 5.00 or two bags of Temptation treats,your choice.

I like to thank Karen for agreeing to sit and have a chat up. I really love this lady very much and think she is quite amazing. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more pictures of Doogie as he can continues to cause a ruckus in the Jone’s home.

Karen has a InstaGram page that you can follow here.

Thank you all for your continued support and please feel free to drop a comment below.

8 Questions with……….Animal rescuer Karen Jones Its 1: 15 pm hazy Welcome to 8 Questions with...... Meet my friend Karen,who is one of the kindest and most compassionate people left on this planet.

#8 Questions With #animal rescue #Animals #Atlanta #cats #dogs #Doogie Howser #family #husband #interview #Karen Jones #TNR #wildlife rescue

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perfectpossumprincess · 7 years

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Here's my opinion on the exotic and wild animals as pets debate. Unless you specialize in caring for these animals... Don't seek it out. I see so many people be like 'oh I want a fox they're so cute!!' in response to the videos of people caring for them. When I see these videos I enjoy them and try not to judge the caretaker because I don't know their story. There are plenty of wild and exotic animals that cannot be released and need people to care for them. They are not pets. In almost all cases they should be rescue animals who have no other choice but to be in captivity. It could be a wildlife rescue that is unable to be released for some reason, or an exotic rescued from the pet, fur, or food trade. I adore opossums with all my heart! I would love to have one, but I love them enough to care for their well being. I will never ever seek out owning an opossum. I on my way to becoming a certified wildlife rehabber, and I would love to specialize in opossums. If somehow I end up with an animal who cannot be released, so be it. I will specialize in caring for these animals and I would be willing and able to care for one. All I can do is preach that out and educate anyone who will listen. (There's so much that could be said about exotics passed off as domestic like sugar gliders and parrots, especially parrots, but that's an entire different story. You could easily write a book on that.)

#foxcatyslife

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drferox · 7 years

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20 questions with Dr Ferox #1

Greeting Vetlings. This post is an attempt to chew through some of the many, many questions I have received over the last 2 months without spamming you with two dozen mini post. These questions are in no particular order, and I’ve tagged the asker if I know who it is. If you’re waiting for a question to be answered, it might be below.

@surskitty asked: What are your favorite marsupials?

Well, I certainly have lots to chose from, but I’m particularly fond of the carnivorous ones. Numbats, Quolls and Tassie Devils will always be special to me, but I really like the extinct Thylacine and Thylacaleo too.

Anonymous asked: Hey so theres this theory that giving extremely dark chocolate in small amounts to a rat is helpful with the chronic respiratory issues endemic to rats bc of mycoplasma. What do you think about the accuracy of that scientifically? I came for the vet cases/ funny stories, stayed for both!

I can’t say I’ve used it, but it’s not a standard recommendation. Rats being generalists may be able to handle the theobromine in chocolate better than small carnivores but I can’t find any solid data on it. Small amounts in moderation are probably ok.

Another Anonymous asked: Hi dr. Ferox, I'm planning on getting a gecko this July so that I have plenty of time to get set up and do even more research on them. One of the things that I'm curious about is if you would consider it a good idea to call around and ask some of the vets that I'm considering taking my gecko to see their level of familiarity and comfort with treating reptiles like geckos? If so then what are some other things that I should ask them about? Thanks in advance!

It’s definitely a good idea to call around and ask who is comfortable treating geckos, or any exotic pet. Most clinics will know who the local exotics vets are and are happy to refer such patients on. It would also be a good idea to ask which emergency clinics are set up for reptile patients, as some will have better setups than others. You should also ask how much you should budget for routine care and how often they recommend that species comes in for a checkup.

@zaryaisbae asked: I have an old Russian Blue (around 13ish, he's 100% indoors and declawed (adopted him that way) and probably a little overweight. He still seems to get around really well, and occasionally plays with the younger kitten we have. Given adequate care and accommodation, how many years would an average case like him have left? (Came for the rant on time sensitive questions, stayed for the excellent veterinary information)

Russian Blue cats can do old age quite well, for a relatively uncommon cat I’ve seen a few reach 18 years of age. I would recommend regular blood or urine tests for my patients of this age as early detected of kidney disease and hyperthyroidism can help them live longer.

Anonymous asked: I might be adopting a little doggy soon!!! She's a sweet australian shepherd/ spaniel cross and I love her. She'll likely become my service dog, but she's currently being treated for heartworm. Are there any long lasting effects of heartworms? Could it be recurring?

Dogs can certainly be re-infected with heartworm even after they’ve been treated for an infection. It’s important that dogs stay on preventatives as recommended by your local vet, they’re most likely to know what’s working well in your area. Heartworm is spread by mosquitoes so your dog doesn’t even need to come into contact with other dogs to get them. It is possible for heartworm infection to cause permanent damage to the heart or blood vessels, but this will likely depend on how severe the infection is. Once a dog is treated they may show no ill effects from the previous infection.

@petitevetoespagnole asked: Recently I realize that the idea of what a cat has to eat change a lot between countries. I know mostly it's because I work in a rural environment and I'm good as long as my French cats have cat food (and I'm happy if it's actually the type of cat food they need) but I thought it could be interesting to know what's your experience on this.

Emotion is a significant factor in what and how people feed their pets. Cats are more or less the same everywhere but how they are valued and perceived by society will differ. For some a cat will be their furbaby. For others a cat is ‘just a cat’.

@doctorrichardstrand asked: question tax: came for the breed analyses, stayed for the mythical creature analyses. we recently found out my miniature schnauzer has an abdominal tumor. we're not sure yet if it's benign or cancerous, nor where it is actually coming from. i was wondering what the rate of cancer is in miniature schnauzers? i had thought it was fairly low.

Well, just because a breed doesn’t have a reputation for cancers doesn’t mean they can’t get them. They don’s seem to commonly get them, but it’s still possible. Overall the rate of cancer in dogs (not including benign lumps like lipomas) seems to be approximately 30%.

Yet another Anomymous asked: Do you see many Manchester terriers in Australia? What do you think of them if you've worked with them before

Not enough to write anything meaningful about them, I’m afraid.

A presumably different Anonymous asked: I've heard mixed things from vets about mixing Baytril with baby food etc so my rats are more willing to take it. Some vets have recommended it but other vets have said it's unwise. (I've avoided mixing it just to be safe.) Is this a controversial thing in the vet community and why is it advised you don't mix it?

I think it’s more a matter of being confident the rat has eaten the entire dose. The local exotics vets often use a particular brand of sweetened syrup to mix with baytril for rats and parrots. I don’t think it’s a controversial thing, so long as you can be confident the rat is getting the dose.

@its-animalcrazy-love asked: Hello! Do you now where I can learn to read a blood sample and other kind of lab tests?

Well the vet course in the obvious answer. Certain text books about clinical pathology will have quick summaries. Certain medicine text books (Ettinger?) had charts on the inside covers for quick reference and the 5 Minute Veterinary Guide has reference ranges for just about everything in an appendix at the back. However knowing the reference ranges wont help you if you don’t understand why something is abnormal and what it means for the patient.

Anonymous asked: So noses don't tell anything but what about how soft the fur is? I've always heard that for cats, if their hair is soft and smooth, they're pretty healthy. Is there anything to that?

Not really. If the fur is soft and smooth it tells you that the fur is soft and smooth. Certain disease processes will cause changes to the coat and skin, but these typically take weeks or months to manifest and are not helpful for determining whether a pet is sick today.

@mackthebulldog said: The obsessive foot licking My dog does like crazy. I bring it up almost ever time I'm at the vet(I've seen 3 for it). It's so bad his paws will get like hairy almost because he's breaking down the paw. One vet put him on this medicine to try to help thinking he was licking because it was a bit inflamed and red. When it went away he still did. It's so frustrating. When he comes in I wipe his paws and put socks on when he licks too much. They think he's OCD, any advice on how to curb this behavior

Generally pets are licking due to itch, pain or psychological reasons like stress. Obsessive compulsive behavior is rare but does occur. We can’t ask a dog how it’s feeling, so typically need to treat any possible skin pathology, allergy or nail bed infection (yeast being very common) before we commit to a trial of behavior modifying mediation (like anti-depressants or anxiolytics). Covering up or blocking the dog from licking doesn’t necessarily help because it doesn’t address the reason for the behavior, and if you block an obsessive dog from performing its behavior it will often become distressed. Distraction toys or puzzle feeders can help, but most of these dogs need medical intervention of some sort.

An additional Anonymous asked: Do you do much work with wildlife? In the US, it seems like most people who work with wildlife are wildlife rehabilitators (who might be vets but usually aren't--it's a separate licensing process) or zoo vets, not general practice vets. (Although wildlife rehabbers usually have a vet that they work with, for medication and injuries and such--in my state, it's required that you have a vet who will work with you/see your animals--the majority of rehabilitation does not happen with the vet.)

General practices in Australia will typically triage wildlife, and some will treat them further. Wildlife carers often have preferred vets they will go to for anything other than first aid because those vets are more experienced or have better equipment for those species (or give good discounts). You’re not actually allowed to house a wild animal unless you are a licensed career or the animal is receiving direct veterinary treatment, and most vets are not also licensed carers. In my current jobs I will do some work with wildlife, including euthanizing those that are too mangled or sick, and sending the rest to a better facility. In my previous jobs I have done a lot more, particularly as one vet at my first job had a reputation for being the ‘raptor vet’ so we got to see a fair birds of prey. This is why I know they’re easier to handle with a sock over their head.

@gram-stained-paws said: Rookie vet asking a silly question: how much water should a dog and a cat drink per day and at what point should it be considered polydipsia? What guideline do you follow when you establish it? I've read so many different answers to this question and I would like to know your opinion.

There is possibly only one thing that counts as a silly question, and this was not it. Opinions will vary, and the answer will vary depending on the animal’s diet and how much water it’s ‘eating’. As a ballpark I call it polydipsia if a dog is drinking more than 100ml/kg/day or a cat drinking more than 50ml/kg/day, although if they’re getting close to this number I’m a bit suspicious and will recommend further testing. And unexpected increase in water intake may also count as polydipsia.

The eighth Anonymous (but certainly not the last) asked: As a vet, or as an animal person, or as someone who just seems really into weird and cool and strange biology (and dinosaurs) do you have any thoughts on Jack Horner and his chickenosaurus?

I think the chickenosaurus project is fascinating, but I’m not sure how far it will get off the ground. I doubt they’ll be able to completely reverse engineer a dinosaur-like animal out of a chicken embryo because some genetic information has likely been lost, but they will probably be able to get some dinosaur like traits. I’m waiting to see how long it will take before those chickens reach the pet market.

@what-will-they-do-next asked: Hi! I know the pyometra is a serious, life threatening condition for intact female dogs, and is caused by the infection of the uterus which causes it to fill up with pus and rupture causing septic shock. But what I don't really know is what usually causes the initial infection of the uterus in the first place. Could you explain that? Question Tax: came for the vet science, stayed for the personal stories of real life events.

Infection can enter the uterus and cause a pyometra in one of two ways. It can either reach the uterus via the blood stream (eg septicemia, bacteraemia secondary to rotten teeth) or from bacteria entering via the vagina. The second way is probably more common, increasingly so with the age of the dog, because a dog spends most of its time with its anus directly above its vulva when standing so gravity helps bring fecal contamination in where it shouldn’t be.

Anonymous asked: Do you have any experience with allerpet products? I'm curious to know if they actually work and wether or not they're actually healthy to use on a pet. Particularly a cat.

They talk a good talk, and probably don’t do any harm, but aren’t proven to be any more helpful than a regular pet shampoo. I do note they also recommend that after the allerpet product is applied, the cat should be dried and they suggest a hairdryer. You are welcome to tell me how washing the cat and drying it with a hair dryer works out.

@missnoodliness asked: Saw you treated pocket pets (rabbits and the like). 1st year vet student here wondering if you had any good texts you'd recommend, anatomical or otherwise.

I printed all my uni notes and had them bound. I also reference the BSAVA Manual of Rabbit Medicine and Surgery, and Ferret Husbandry, Medicine and Surgery by Lewington, 2nd edition. Keep in mind there are not nearly as many ‘exotic’ animals kept in Australia as there are in the USA. We don’t even have hamsters.

Definitely not the last Anonymous asked: Why do octopus' have ink sacs?

Because they do. Evolution doesn’t have a plan, it just runs with what works. A little bit of ink goes a long way in obscuring vision in the water so an octopus can escape or hide.

And the last Anonymous of the day asked: Hi Dr! What's your favourite animal? Mine are bears 😊

I have lots of favorite animals. I even have favorite parasites (demodex). I really can’t choose just one for you, but some of my favorites include fossa, whale shark, kookaburras, tawny frogmouths, foxes, ducks and just about every domestic species.

#drferox #dr ferox #blog asks #blog housekeeping #veterinarian #vetblr #long post

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danithebookaholic-blog · 6 years

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SPOTLIGHT!

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Death by the River

By Alexandrea Weis & Lucas Astor

Published by: Vesuvian Books Publication date: October 2nd 2018 Genres: Horror, Young Adult

Synopsis:

A high school “American Psycho.”

SOME TRUTHS ARE BETTER KEPT SECRET.

SOME SECRETS ARE BETTER OFF DEAD.

Along the banks of the Bogue Falaya River, sits the abandoned St. Francis Seminary. Beneath a canopy of oaks, blocked from prying eyes, the teens of St. Benedict High gather here on Fridays. The rest of the week belongs to school and family—but weekends belong to the river.

And the river belongs to Beau Devereaux.

The only child of a powerful family, Beau can do no wrong. Handsome. Charming. Intelligent. The star quarterback of the football team. The “prince” of St. Benedict is the ultimate catch.

He is also a psychopath.

A dirty family secret buried for years, Beau’s evil grows unchecked. In the shadows of the ruined St. Francis Abbey, he commits unspeakable acts on his victims and ensures their silence with threats and intimidation. Senior year, Beau sets his sights on his girlfriend’s headstrong twin sister, Leslie, who hates him. Everything he wants but cannot have, she will be his ultimate prize.

As the victim toll mounts, it becomes crystal clear that someone has to stop Beau Devereaux.

And that someone will pay with their life.

Goodreads

Excerpt:

Leslie clung to him, wishing they were outside. “What is this place?”

“The cells.” Derek kept his voice low.

She squeezed his bicep. “I’ve never been inside The Abbey.” Leslie peered into the dim, cavernous corridor ahead, with only patches of light coming through the thick stone walls. “I wish we hadn’t come.”

“It will be fine, I promise.” He patted her hand. “Nothing will hurt you. I won’t let it.”

They crept along, their feet hitting sticks and fallen pieces of plaster from the crumbling walls around them. Puddles of water dotted the uneven stone floor and dampened Leslie’s tennis shoes. Mounds of dead leaves lay swept to the side. The low ceiling had roots coming through it, and the walls were cold and slimy to the touch. Derek shined his flashlight into the first room on the left. It was a depressingly small space composed of four walls and no windows.

It reminded Leslie of a jail cell rather than a place where a person would choose to live.

Scraps of paper littered the ground of the next cell they came across; another had a rusty metal frame of a bed. Several of the rooms had cracks in their plaster ceilings along with patches of mold. When they stumbled on a few rat skeletons, Leslie turned her head into Derek’s shoulder.

At the end of the passageway, sunlight snuck through a break in the wall. The intrusion of light was a welcome sight and Leslie’s fear abated. The jagged opening allowed green leaves from the plants outside to reach in, and a few creeping vines jutted up toward the ceiling. Along the floor, a thick pile of dead leaves hid the lower part of the opening.

“There was a cave-in along the wall here.” Derek brushed the leaves aside, revealing a fairly large breach able to accommodate one person at a time. “The other cells past this point are too dangerous to explore. We can get out here and avoid going back through The Abbey.”

Derek turned off his flashlight and handed it to her. He pushed the leaves back, pulled the vines down, and kicked the debris at the bottom away, trying to clear the opening.

While he worked, a glimmering light from inside one of the cells farther down the corridor distracted her. She flipped on the flashlight and angled it into the tight quarters beyond the cave-in.

The walls in this portion of the cells had deeper cracks than the rest of the structure. The fissures ran along the entire ceiling and down to the floors. Patches of black mold were everywhere. What struck her as odd was the lack of debris. It appeared as if it had been freshly swept without any leaves or rat skeletons littering the ground.

Derek came up behind her. “What are you doing?”

Leslie headed toward the room where she’d spotted the strange light. “I saw something.”

The smell of rot and mold filled her nose. Her skin brushed against the slimy walls, and she cringed. But something compelled her to keep going into the section Derek had deemed too dangerous to explore.

“Leslie, stop.”

Naturally, she ignored him and pressed on, testing the floor with the toe of her shoe as she carefully progressed. Her heartbeat kicked up a notch, but this time a tingling sensation of excitement went with it. She felt like Indiana Jones exploring a lost tomb and waiting for a booby trap to jump out at her.

Her beam of light filtered into the room, and her heart crept higher in her throat. She rounded the edge of the wall and halted.

The cell was small without any windows, but this room appeared lived in. Along the far wall, below a pair of rusted pipes where a sink had once been, a green cot—army issue—had a pillow and green blanket neatly stacked on top. At the foot of the cot was a blue ice chest; on top of it, an assortment of red and white candles.

Leslie went up to the cot and caressed the blanket and pillows. Her foot tapped something beneath. She bent down and discovered an old CD player.

What’s this?

Footfalls came from behind her. She swerved the flashlight around to Derek, fuming.

“Did you do this?”

“Do what?” He shielded his eyes from the light and stepped inside.

She wanted to believe he had no idea any of this was here, but her suspicions couldn’t be silenced. The whole scenario seemed so well-planned.

“What the hell?” Derek came up to the cot and lifted the pillow.

She stood back, studying his reaction as he browsed the contents of the room. “I thought you said this portion was dangerous.”

“It is.”

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Purchase:

Amazon / B&N / iBooks / Kobo

Author Bio:

Lucas Astor is from New York, has resided in Central America and the Middle East, and traveled through Europe. He lives a very private, virtually reclusive lifestyle, preferring to spend time with a close-knit group of friends than be in the spotlight. He is an author and poet with a penchant for telling stories that delve into the dark side of the human psyche. He likes to explore the evil that exists, not just in the world, but right next door behind a smiling face. Photography, making wine, and helping endangered species are just some of his interests. Lucas is an expert archer and enjoys jazz, blues, and classical music. One of his favorite quotes is: “It’s better to be silent than be a fool.” ~Harper Lee (To Kill a Mockingbird)

Alexandrea Weis is an advanced practice registered nurse who was born and raised in New Orleans. Having been brought up in the motion picture industry, she learned to tell stories from a different perspective and began writing at the age of eight. Infusing the rich tapestry of her hometown into her award-winning novels, she believes that creating vivid characters makes a story memorable. A permitted/certified wildlife rehabber with the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries, Weis rescues orphaned and injured wildlife. She lives with her husband and pets in New Orleans.

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From one bookaholic to another, I hope I’ve helped you find your next fix. —Dani

Have a book you’d like to suggest or one you’d like me to review? Please feel free to leave your comments down below.

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theramseyloft · 7 years

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The domestication, rise, and fall of pigeons.

A few corrections have been made, some things have been streamlined, and a bit on the process of genuine domestication has been added. One of my followers on Tumblr once asked me why it was that pigeons in wildlife rehab should be held when other animals should be handled as little as possible. I misunderstood the crap out of her question! And it took three posts to realize I had! Injured or orphaned Wildlife in a rehab center need to be handled as little as possible to avoid imprinting onto humans. They need to be able to survive on their own, and developing the habit of asking humans for hand outs will lead it to becoming malnourished at best and get it killed for being a nuisance at worst. Mammals in particular may be killed on approach as fearless approach of humans by a wild animal is one of the warning signs that it might have rabies, which requires brain tissue to test for. Pigeons are not wild animals. On principal, imprinting avoidance should not apply to them. It actually causes them a lot of harm. Pigeons are intensely social birds! Nestlings suffer from touch starvation as intensely as a human infant and can be mentally stunted or even out right stress to death from lack of interaction. More urgently: We are simply not capable of teaching a domestic pigeon peep to survive in the wild. Pigeons are social and observational learners, with cognition equivalent to a human 5 year old. Like human children, pigeon squeakers are TAUGHT how to be pigeons. Their social structure is VERY human like! Their father takes them out on foraging trips (because mom either has or is getting ready to lay the next clutch) and teaches them where to find food, water, and nest materials. What to eat, where to shelter, and how to interact with other pigeons. How and when to defer to the status of older established flock mates to avoid a fight and how and when to stick up for themselves to make sure they get their fair share of resources. Songbirds and nearly all other columbids (Including domestic Ringneck Doves) kick their kids out as soon as they are self feeding and they either make it or they don’t. Their parents will chase them out if they come back. Feral Pigeons only leave their families if the flock has grown too large for local resources to support. Truthfully, orphaned feral pigeons do not belong in wildlife rehab at all. Pet shelters should be set up for them. A Feral Pigeon is no more wild than a stray puppy. Feral puppies don’t get raised among wolf pups at a wildlife rehab and sent out for release “into the wild”. Seriously. Take a moment to consider the following scenario: A wildlife rehab gets an orphaned or injured puppy. They bottle feed it until it can reliably feed itself, heal it’s injuries, and clean out its parasites... And then they return that just weaned, newly healthy puppy to the alley from whence it came. How many of you wondered what in the hell a *puppy*, a clearly domesticated animal, was doing at a *wild life* rehab? How many of you, upon hearing the plan for the puppy’s release, would not be INSTANTLY concerned for its well being? How many of your guts just clenched at the thoughts that flooded your minds of it getting hit by a car? Going hungry enough to have to eat garbage? Getting into something poisonous or sharp? Being attacked by another animal or dying of disease because it was left alone with no food, water, shelter, or resources in a hostile environment where medical care was not available to it? What would you say to the rehabber planning to put that weaned puppy or healed stray dog back in the street? What would your reaction be if that rehabber brushed all of those aside by pointing out that there are adult strays eating garbage and dodging cars, and they’re fine? How many of you would get upset? How many would protest that those strays aren’t healthy? That they are skinny, full of parasites, visibly sick, and limping from old wounds? Then how would you react if that rehabber looked you dead in the eye and said “Those are wolves and they should NOT be caged.” What if puppies went to wildlife rehab instead of pet shelters, because there *were* no shelters set up for dogs? What if only purebred puppies, or puppies with obvious fancy traits were put up for adoption, and all mutts were “released” back onto the street, with all offers to adopt them turned down because they were born outside? What if you could only request to take home a "special needs" mutt puppy: one that had to be bottle fed, got handled too much, or lost the use of a limb and was deemed unreleasable? This happens to pigeons every day, and they are no less domesticated than dogs are. Dogs have been traveling with humans since the time when there were several species of homanin. But pigeons have been with us since our settlements became permanent, and that relationship is nothing to sneeze at! Do you know why doves have the religious significance they do? Because of the Wild Rock Dove, which is to domestic pigeons what the wolf is to domestic dogs. Rock Doves are cliff and cave nesters native to Turkey, India, Afghanistan, Iraq, the northernmost coast of Africa and southern Europe, who live only in very specific locations: Seaside cliffs on the edge of deserts. They are grain eaters that need to drink a certain amount of fresh water every day. If you were lost in the desert, finding a Rock Dove would save your life, if you could keep it in sight. During the day, it would lead you to water because it can’t go a day with out. At night, it would lead you back to safe, habitable shelter. After all, not all caves are habitable, and if there are predators or noxious gas in abundance, the Rock Doves couldn’t live there either. They thus became known as messengers of God. Pigeons as we know them today are not Rock Doves any more. Genuine Domestication is a process of altering the genetic make up of a species through selective breeding to encourage physical changes in the brain and physiology of that species. It is more than cosmetic changes to the color or even shape of the animal. Selection favoring Neotany (preservation of infant features into adult hood) is the first step in the process of domestication, and those aren't just facial features. They are mostly brain development! The first thing a species loses as it is domesticated is the instinctual fear of humans. Baby animals are curious and adventurous, but as their brain develops, they become more cautious and wary. So we selectively breed individuals who are slow to develop that wariness until they lose it all together, and remain openly curious, fearless, and friendly into adulthood. If you scan the brains of a wolf and a dog, they are physically different, beyond just needing to fit into a different skull shape. The other thing that all domesticated animals eventually lose is reliance on and genetic ties to a breeding season. Wolves, wildcats, Wild Cotton tail rabbits, Jungle Fowl, Rock Doves, and African Collared Doves all have specific breeding seasons that they physically cannot reproduce outside of. But domestic Dogs, cats, rabbits, chickens, pigeons, and ringneck doves can bear young regardless of the time of year. Physical dependence on a breeding season keeps those wild animals from carrying, bearing, and having to feed young during a time of year when food is scarce. A wild mutant that *can* bear young outside of season is likely to die of malnutrition or lose her young to it. Domestic animals have year round access to food and shelter, so there is no environmental pressure that makes bearing and raising young out of season dangerous or detrimental. Mammalian litters get bigger, and heat cycles grow more frequent as less time is needed to recover inbetween than their wild counterparts. For example, wolves whelp an average of three to five pups. Wild rabbits, rats and mice tend to max out around five kits per litter, with three litters a year on average in the case of the wild cotton tail. Domestic dogs and rabbits of average size whelp/kindle 5-8 puppies/kits on average, with litters over ten commonly recorded! I used to breed show rats and my biggest litter by a single doe was 22!!! 18 was my biggest single mouse litter! Litters of 8-10 were average with the wild max of 5 being unusually small. Galliformes (chickens) who naturally lay big clutches laid bigger and bigger clutches, and the columbidae, who can only make two eggs at a time, lay more frequently with less recovery time in between. Domestic animals are physically NOT their wild ancestors any more. We have directly, physiologically changed them, and it cannot be undone with out breeding wild stock back into them. No matter how big a population mixed with how many breeds, NO pack of stray dogs will EVER whelp a wolf puppy, unless wolves are introduced to that dog pack. Like wise, no flock of feral pigeons will ever produce a rock dove. There are NO rock dove populations in North America, South America, Australia, Greenland, or Iceland, so in those parts of the world, it is impossible for any Pigeons to have any hint of wild blood in them. It’s true that pigeons were initially domesticated for meat, but the Rock Dove’s bond to a specific home site and the unerring navigation that returned them reliably to it every night lead them to being domesticated more like dogs than any other livestock. Pigeon holes are really easy to make. It’s just an even opening in a mud or stone wall deep enough for a fully grown bird to be completely sheltered and wide enough for two pigeons to build their nest and raise two peeps in. Babies could be collected from the wild at around two weeks of age, feathered enough to thermoregulate and just starting to wean from pigeon milk to seed. At this age, they could be moved into the man made pigeon holes and hand fed until they could feed themselves. It would be three to four weeks before they began to be really capable of flight, so the man made dovecote became the Home site onto which the babies imprinted to just as much as they did with their handler. If the keepers were smart, they brought home a group of babies, because rock doves are social with a cooperative family structure. If taken at the right ages, that group formed a mini flock, just big enough to watch each others backs and their surroundings on foraging trips farther and farther afield. When pigeons take mates from another flock, the pair decides which family to join based on the security of the nest site and availability of resources, so pigeons from a man made dovecote always had the advantage of superior security. New mates came home with the tamed peeps and learned by observation that the human care takers were harmless protectors. If the farmer was smart, they’d only harvest meat or eggs sparingly and at night so that the pigeons would not associate the human with being preyed upon. Because early pigeons could go out and forage for themselves and be trusted to return, the farmer didn’t have spend or trade to feed them, and a person could not be too poor to own pigeons. Not only were they live stock that fed themselves and brought more birds back with them, the guano of a well fed pigeon is one of the most nutritious fertilizers on earth! If you want crops to grow in a desert landscape, moist pigeon guano worked into the ground will work wonders! Pigeon guano eventually became so highly prized that people who could afford to hired armed guards to protect their cote! We kinda ALWAYS knew about pigeon navigation, but the Greeks and Romans wrote a LOT about their use as messengers. Messengers were not just any domestic pigeon! Speed and navigational accuracy were the traits their lines were selected for exclusively, so these were expensive specialty birds, especially beloved by the well-to-do and the military. Every fort and palace had a cote for messenger pigeons so that they could receive the most urgent of messages in situations where a human runner was just not fast enough. Royal emissaries and platoons of soldiers out on a mission were sent with a supply of birds from that palace or fort so that if they needed to get a message out, they could send it by the fastest carrier over the straightest path. Pigeons continued to be used in the messenger capacity until only about 50 years ago. During this time when every one depended on them for swift communication, EVERY ONE loved and revered pigeons! Their diversity so inspired Charles Darwin that he did a TON of his genetics research using them as models! And pigeons were so beloved by Victorian England that his editors tried to twist his arm to write a book entirely about pigeons instead of what became the Origin of Species! When Eugenics began to fascinate the European well to do and conformation dog shows came to be, pigeon varieties also blossomed! There were pigeons all over the world at this point, and different regions had so many different ideas of what shape and color and pattern made a beautiful Pigeon! While some valued the appearance, others valued a unique areal performance, fancy feather embellishments, or a more musical singing voice. There are at least as many distinct breeds of pigeon now as there are of dog! I have heard that there are more, possibly even considerably more, but I don’t know enough about dog breed diversity to say for certain whether or not those assessments are accurate. We have taken pigeons EVERYWHERE with us! And when we loved and took care of them, everybody benefited. But about 50 years ago was when technology caught up with and surpassed the speed of pigeon borne messages, and pigeons were slower with more expensive upkeep. As previously stated, the military were not the only people who loved pigeons. But a LOT of the people who kept them after the military phased them out in the US were immigrants and people of color. It was a status symbol not to need gardens or farms or livestock, so pigeon coops became associated largely with poor neighborhoods and immigrants. As pigeons fell out of favor, more and more of the growing population of ferals started living on the closest thing to a comfortable environment: Buildings. As they were fed by fewer and fewer people and had access to less and less grain, it became more common to see the white streaked splatters of the pure uric acid that pigeons excrete on an empty stomach. Uric acid eats stone, concrete, asphalt, and especially metal. Feral Pigeons thus became linked to property damage, and the smear campaign that coined the description “Rats with wings” ( http://www.audubon.org/news/the-origins-our-misguided-hatred-pigeons ) and linked them with filth and disease was the final blow to the public’s esteem for this animal that has been our partner and companion through THOUSANDS of years of history. That description of pigeons was all it took to turn thousands of years of adoration and respect into knee jerk revulsion. Add the fact that domestication favors and in fact forces year round reproduction, and 50 years later, the feral population of pigeons is staggering. Millions are spent to kill them off and drive them out using everything from poison to spikes to nets, tar, traps, and fines levied on the kind souls that recognize their hunger and feed them. The Street Pigeon Project spearheaded in Germany has found that the most effective way to decrease the feral population and minimize the damage they cause to buildings is to, get this: TAKE CARE OF THEM!!! They built a big, comfortable rooftop loft with lots of nesting spaces, provided a good mix or grain, seed, legumes, and calcium, and swapped out the eggs with fakes. It was more comfortable than the awnings, eves, attics, bridges, and signs that had been the best nesting grounds available, so they left all the places they were not wanted in! With no need to range out to look for food, they didn’t go very far. The unrestrained, non-coerced feral pigeons spent 80% of their time in that loft, only leaving to stretch their wings. On full bellies, with good food, their poo wasn’t just pure uric acid anymore! With eggs swapped out as they were found, reproduction decreased by 95%! And the best part? It cost SO much less to house and feed the ferals than it did to try to exterminate them! That’s not even scratching the surface of the OTHER benefits that could be extended from that project! Pigeon eggs are edible! Even if the thought squicks out people and they can’t be regulated, animals can eat pigeon eggs too. They could be donated to wild life rehabs and animal shelters. A street pigeon project could partner with community gardens to clean the lofts and keep the fertilizer they gather. THEY could also use the eggs to compost! Cleaning the loft could also count as community service! Adult ferals would be more hurt than helped by capture, but they should have the option of a safe place to go to be fed and cared for, and weaned babies deserve to go to loving homes. I know there are too many to home right now and that isn’t feasible for rehabs that get hundreds of them, but where rehoming isn’t an option, they should at LEAST be acclimated in a group with supplemental feeding until they find their way in the world. We need to take a page from society's stray dog booklet and make pet shelters specific to domestic pigeons. Imagine how much more actual *wildlife* rehabbers could help with the funds and space currently being tied up by the hoards of domesticated strays that should not be there! Pigeons were made what they are by us. Everything we complain about regarding pigeons are traits WE intentionally bred into them! Pigeons did not invade cities. We abandoned them there, after they helped us coordinate building and connecting them. And we inexplicably treat *them* like the invaders after abandoning them the second they were no longer deemed useful. We even forgot that the pidge we see every day on the street are domesticated birds! They are, in every sense of the words, literally stray dogs with wings! And they deserve to be treated with the same concern and compassion as every other lost pet.

#pigeon history #pigeon domestication #physical changes of the domestication process #feral pigeon

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