by Ryan Ponto | Jan 24, 2017 | Animal Deterrent Products
The universal acclaim that greeted Planet Earth II shows that people still love watching nature documentaries. Optimists would see this as a sign that we still care about the environment. I am not so sure.
As a child, I watched nature documentaries to actually learn about the natural world. Now, people watch nature documentaries for their graphic violence and sexual content. Having lived in the 21st century for almost seventeen years, their minds now respond to little else.
Like everyone else, I was deeply saddened to see the end of Planet Earth II. Sex and violence abounded. I’ve never liked wasps, since one stung me on the ankle for absolutely no reason as a boy, and I like to see frogs do well, so what better way to spend a Sunday evening than watching a frog repeatedly kick a wasp in the eye? Few moments in modern British television have equalled the sight of the mighty snow leopard, wandering around the Himalayas, occasionally urinating alluringly on a rock.
The last episode of the series went into our cities. Pigeons were treated badly, being eaten by both peregrine falcons and immigrant fish. Monkeys did well; in one city in India they have convinced the locals that they are gods, and now abuse the humans’ goodwill, running around completely naked and demanding food.
The urban slant to this episode did however get me thinking about the animals that can be found in Oxford—and I’m not talking about the freshers! Most Oxford students are disgustingly self-centred, not only do they never take the time to appreciate the animal kingdom—the dissolute life they lead even has a harmful effect on animal life.
Instead of just looking at the nice river, they insist on rowing on it, killing innocent fish with every oar stroke. Instead of walking around the nice meadow, they must run around it in tight sportswear, every other step crushing a duck’s windpipe. Instead of just going to the nice nightclub and listening to the music, they insist on taking ketamine—thereby depriving horses of much-needed stress relief in the modern business environment.
In my one and a half years at Oxford, I have come to appreciate the amazing wealth and diversity of wildlife in Oxford, and I now take almost as much pleasure in looking at animals in real life, as I do from memes. Oxford’s animals have evolved over time to take advantage of the city’s scholastic environment.
In my first term at Oxford I was surprised to stumble upon a reading group for Marxist pigeons, convened in the bird pond outside my building. Magdalen College was originally set up to that local aristocratic families could provide an education for their deer herds, but after the publication of George Orwell’s Animal Farm, which warned all landowners of the dangers of talking animals, an age-old tradition was ceased.
Now the deer must make do with the occasional piece of cheap airport literature thrown into their paddock by ‘allied’ students.
I could go on enumerating the many wonders of Oxford’s animal scene: the feminist rats, the techno cattle, even the queer squirrels. I have learnt however in my time at Oxford that most students are simply not interested in the benefits that quiet contemplation of nature can bring. Nature is only of interest to them when it appears mediated by a television screen and David Attenborough’s rasping death rattle.
Compared to the glamourous lives of the animals we see in Planet Earth, it is easy to wrongly believe that Oxford’s non-human inhabitants are boring creatures. This couldn’t be further from the truth. The animals that David Attenborough presents to us are horrible show-offs, whereas the rats and pigeons of Oxford retain a modicum of traditional British reticence.
Your average black rat is perfectly capable of hunting giraffes in the desert, or of catching a fish for its wife and family in the waters of the Antarctic. It chooses not to however out of its natural modesty.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Ryan Ponto | Jan 23, 2017 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent
The annual British Homing World Show came Blackpool from the 21-22 January 2017. This year’s event marked a special occasion as it is the 40th anniversary that the Royal Pigeon Racing Association (RPRA) has held the event at the Winter Gardens, Blackpool.
Show participants bring more than 2,000 homing pigeons making it the largest event of its kind in Europe. With 200 exhibitors stands for everything pigeon, organisers anticipate around some 15,000 visitors over the course of the weekend.
The RPRA has worked continuously with VisitBlackpool over the years to bring the event to the resort and ensure the visitors have a great weekend.
To celebrate the 40th anniversary, Blackpool was decorated with welcome banners and a giant pigeon flag will fly from the flagpole at the top of Blackpool Tower.
Two giant “pigeons” in the form of Mr and Mrs Pigeon were in resort on January 21st to entertain visitors to the show.
Ian Evans, RPRA General Manager is delighted the 40th year in Blackpool will be his first year in charge. He said “This is a massive event in our calendar and it always proves to be hugely popular. Not only have you got the attraction of so many pigeons and fanciers in one place but it also gives our members the opportunity to enjoy a weekend away”.
The British Homing World Show of the Year takes place over two days at Blackpool Winter Gardens with the iconic Empress Ballroom hosting the main event.
Council Gillian Campbell, Deputy Leader of Blackpool Council said: “We are delighted to welcome the RPRA back to Blackpool. The show provides a great boost to the local economy; January is usually a quiet month for most seaside resorts but events like this proves that Blackpool is open for business all year round.
“In particular, I am thrilled to congratulate them on the 40th anniversary show here in Blackpool, this is truly a fantastic achievement and we hope to see them return for many years to come”.
Every year visitors to the show have helped to raise money for various charities, with nearly £3 million raised so far.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Ryan Ponto | Jan 22, 2017 | Bird Netting
MUMBAI – Indian media, which leaves no stone unturned to defame Pakistan, believes that Pakistan’s secret agency, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), is planning to carry out terrorist attacks in Mumbai through pets.
Producing empty rhetoric, Zee News claimed that Pakistan’s intelligence agency can send dogs strapped with explosives to hit the markets and other packed areas of Mumbai and Maharashtra.
According to the news channel, the Mumbai police and Maharashtra anti-terrorist squad have issued alerts to warn the people to inform the police if they find any dog or other pet wearing anything suspicious.
It has also warned that the agency would try to hit the areas through dogs where most destruction could be spread by killing most people. The police have kept a vigilant eye on people roam in the city with animals, the channel said.
Targeting Pakistani film stars and the Prime Minister, the channel concluded,“Raeeson aur shareefon ki bheer ma kbi b koi terrorist ghus sakta hai”.
Earlier, the Indian police had claimed to arrest “spy pigeon” after crossing border from Pakistan carrying a threatening note for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Ryan Ponto | Jan 21, 2017 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent
For most birds, wings are for flying. For penguins, they’re for swimming. But for Rock Pigeons, they’re also for clapping. Startle a flock of Rock Pigeons, and you’ll hear something like this: Rock Pigeon wing claps.
When Rock Pigeons erupt into flight, some of them may slap their wings together above their bodies. It’s called a “wing clap.”
A male Rock Pigeon will do this when courting. He’ll posture and coo alongside a female …
… then fly sharply upward in an aerial display. The brisk series of claps is a shout-out of his courtship plans to the female watching from the rooftop.
Short-eared Owls have evolved wing-clapping, too. These medium-sized owls fly by day on long wings, rounded at the tip. And mostly they fly slowly, gracefully, like enormous moths. But when a male displays to a female or attempts to warn off an intruder, he snaps his wings together below his body in a burst of two to six claps per second, producing a sound that sounds remarkably like…applause.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Ryan Ponto | Jan 20, 2017 | Pigeon Spikes
Around 1,700 pigeons fluffed their feathers and strutted their stuff at the UK’s premier showcase at Blackpool’s Winter Gardens over the weekend. The birds were judged for their good looks and general composure with a winner and a supreme champion chosen from the flock.
It was the 45th annual British Homing World Show and the 40th to be held at Blackpool, drawing pigeon fanciers from across Europe.
Visitors had the chance to peruse around 200 stalls promoting specially designed pigeon lofts and veterinary services during the two-day event.
Organiser Ian Evans of the Cheltenham-based Royal Pigeon Racing Association said: “It was very successful, we’ve probably had about 15,000 people visiting so it’s been very very busy so it will have had a good impact on the local economy here.“
Also we have the UK’s 10 best-performing racing pigeons here which will be going to Brussels next week to compete in the Pigeon Olympiad.”
Pigeon racing became a sport of the masses in the early 1900s, and pigeons were used extensively as message carriers by armies on both sides during the two World Wars.
In the UK the sport probably reached its height of popularity after World War Two.
Each year the BHW Show collects money to give to charity and the £55,000 raised last year was presented to a variety of different charitable causes.
Over its last 40 years the show has raised £3m for charity.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
