by johnnymarin | Nov 8, 2018 | Bird Deterrent Products
PARIS — They were messengers, spies and sentinels. They led cavalry charges, carried supplies to the front, comforted wounded soldiers and died by the millions during World War I.
Horses, mules, dogs, pigeons and even a baboon all were a vital — and for decades overlooked — part of the Allied war machine.
Researchers have been hard-pressed to find official accounts of the services rendered by animals during the Great War. But if their labors once were taken for granted, four-legged and winged warriors have been acknowledged more recently as unsung heroes.
France recently decided to recognize their wartime role. And in 2004, Britain installed a huge memorial on the edge of London’s Hyde Park to “all the animals that served, suffered and died alongside the British, Commonwealth and Allied forces in the wars and conflicts of the 20th century.”
Here’s a look at how they contributed.
___
WHAT THEY DID
An estimated 10 million horses and mules, 100,000 dogs and 200,000 pigeons were enrolled in the war effort, according to Eric Baratay, a French historian specializing in the response of animals to the chaos, fear and smells of death in the mission that man thrust upon them.
World War I marked the start of industrial warfare, with tanks, trucks, aircraft and machine guns in action. But the growing sophistication of the instruments of death couldn’t match the dog tasked with finding the wounded, the horses and mules hauling munitions and food or the pigeons serving as telecommunications operators or even eyes, carrying “pigeongrams” or tiny cameras to record German positions.
“They were quasi-combatants,” said Serge Barcellini, comptroller general of the Armed Forces and head of Le Souvenir Francais — The French Memory — in a recent speech devoted to the role played by beasts of war.
Indeed, gas masks were fitted to the muzzles of four-legged warriors braving noxious battlefield fumes.
In France, as in Britain and elsewhere, horses and mules were requisitioned.
One typical sign posted in southern Paris ordered citizens to present their steeds and mules to the Requisition Committee by Nov. 14, 1914, or risk “prosecution by the military authority.” It was becoming clear there would be no quick end to the war that ground on for four more years.
___
FEATHERED HEROES
Cher Ami, or Dear Friend, the carrier pigeon who wouldn’t quit, lived up to her name, saving the lives of 194 American troops of the “Lost Battalion” of the 77th Infantry Division, isolated behind enemy lines during the 1918 Meuse-Argonne offensive in eastern France.
About 550 men had held their ground against a far larger German force for days before coming under fire from American troops unaware the trapped soldiers weren’t the enemy.
On Oct. 4, Maj. Charles Whittlesey sent Cher Ami into the skies with a final message giving the U.S. battalion’s location, followed by a plea: “For heaven’s sake stop it.”
Cher Ami lost an eye and a leg from German gunfire, but kept flying, around 25 miles (40 kilometers) in about a half-hour, according to the United States World War One Centennial Commission. Survivors of the “Lost Battalion” returned to American lines four days later.
Another carrier pigeon named Vaillant, assigned to the French military, also performed extraordinary feats during the war.
On June 4, 1916, he was released into the sky with the desperate message, “He’s my last pigeon.”
French Commander Sylvain Eugene Raynal, encircled by Germans at the Fort de Vaux near Verdun, was counting on Vaillant to save his men.
The feisty bird flew through toxic gas and smoke, reaching the Verdun pigeon loft choked by fumes. With no help arriving despite Vaillant’s courageous effort, Raynal and his men surrendered three days later.
Both Cher Ami and Vaillant were awarded France’s Croix de Guerre, or War Cross.
___
ROUND ‘EM UP
Horses are ancient warriors, but most of those conscripted during World War I weren’t war-ready. They died by the millions, from disease, exhaustion and enemy fire, forcing the French and British armies to turn to America to renew their supply. A veritable industry developed with more than half a million horses and mules shipped by boat to Europe by fall 1917, according to the American Battle Monuments Commission.
So important was the commerce that the Santa Fe Railroad named a station Drage, after British Lt. Col. F.B. Drage, the commander of the British Remount Commission in Lathrop, Missouri, a major stockyard for the future beasts of war.
“So the war business in horses and mules is good,” read an article in the December 1915 issue of The Santa Fe Magazine, for employees of the railway system. Good for the farmer, contractor, supplier and railroads, it said, but “not good for the animals.”
___
SERVICE BY EXOTICS
Among the more exotic animals called into service was a baboon named Jackie, who served with the 1st South African Infantry Brigade in then British-occupied Egypt and later in the trenches in France and Belgium. His acute hearing and keen eyesight helped warn soldiers of enemy movement or possible attacks when he would screech and tug on their clothing.
Jackie was wounded in Flanders Fields when the South African brigade came under heavy shelling in April 1918 and his leg had to be amputated.
Lt. Col. R.N. Woodsend, of Britain’s Royal Medical Corps, described that procedure: “He lapped up the chloroform as if it had been whiskey, and was well under in a remarkably short time. It was a simple matter to amputate the leg with scissors.”
___
DOGS OF WAR
Man’s best friend helped soldiers survive. Dogs served, firstly, as spotters of the wounded, learning to identify ally from enemy. They also served as sentinels, messengers, transporters and chasers of rats — the bane of the trenches along with lice and fleas. The French military created a service devoted to dogs of war in December 1915.
Less official, but crucial to soldiers’ morale, was the role of dogs and other creatures in the trenches, and as mascots. Stray dogs running from fighting were adopted as companions along with other animals, including a Royal Air Force fox mascot adopted by British pilots.
These dogs and other mascots helped soldiers “think of life … and the life they hoped to find again,” said Baratay, the French historian, in a speech last month in Paris.
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 johnnymarin | Oct 28, 2018 | Bird Deterrent Products
Representative image AHMEDABAD: A man and his son were beaten by three persons over an alleged theft of pigeons in the Madhavpura area of the city late on Monday night. The complainant, Gulzar Qureshi (51), and his son Arman (16) were sleeping at the terrace of their house in Rustam Mill’s Chawl in Madhavpura when three unknown persons rushed there and started asking why Qureshi’s son had stolen four of their pigeons. “The three persons abused and assaulted me while asking about their pigeons. On seeing me being beaten by them, my son Arman intervened but they then started beating him as well. During the fight, my son fell from the terrace and suffered a fracture in his leg,” said Qureshi. Qureshi then began shouting for help and as people from his neighbourhood gathered, the three men fled. Qureshi and his son were taken to Civil Hospital in Asarwa, where Arman was hospitalized. Madhavpura police lodged a complaint of assault, using abusive language, and abetment, against three unknown persons.
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 johnnymarin | Oct 24, 2018 | Bird Deterrent Products
Katie Hemme hasn’t hunted since she was in college, and even then, the only things she tried to shoot were raccoons or coyotes who threatened her family’s sheep farm.
The one time she actually dropped a bird was when she took aim at the pigeons in the haymow, angry after their droppings got all over the hay she was supposed to toss down for the livestock.
When a pigeon fell to the floor, Hemme said her up-close view revealed such a pretty bird, she couldn’t bring herself to shoot another one.
“I liked the idea of trying to hit one, but I didn’t want to see one dead,” she said.
Now a retired physical education teacher, Hemme is one of 11 women registered to participate in Saturday’s Women’s Mentored Hunt during the Minnesota Governor’s Pheasant Hunting Opener in Luverne. This is the second consecutive year the governor’s opener has offered a special hunt for women who are first-time or novice hunters.
While Hemme said she went pheasant hunting a couple of times, she doesn’t recall ever getting a bird.
She doesn’t care much if she gets one this Saturday, either, but the fact that the governor’s hunt is in her hometown of Luverne makes it an opportunity she just can’t pass up.
“I thought it sounded like it would be kind of fun,” said the 77-year-old Hemme. “I’m old and thought that would be a good example to see an old lady out there.”
Hemme owned guns up until she moved into town last year.
“I figured in town I wouldn’t be shooting at coyotes and racoons, and the squirrels move too fast for me,” she said with a laugh.
So, she will borrow a gun for Saturday’s hunt, and perhaps prove to everyone — including her friends — that you’re only as old as you feel.
“(My friends) all kind of looked at me … like, ‘You are nuts!'” Hemme said.
It’s not all that hard to believe, though. Hemme said she was one of the first girls in Minnesota to take a hunting safety class. In the late 1950s, the course was taught in Le Center, where she attended high school.
“There were four of us (girls) in my high school class that attended,” She said. “There was an active gun club in the community.”
Hemme doesn’t know if Saturday’s hunt will lead to more pheasant hunting experiences in the future, but she’s keeping her options open.
“Most of the people I know are quite serious hunters,” she said. “They might not want to drag an amateur along.”
Hemme said she’s grateful the women’s mentored hunt is offered in conjunction with the governor’s annual opener.
“Sometimes these things are so stereotyped,” she said. “It’s important to show that it’s OK for girls to do this — it’s not just a man’s thing. And, you don’t have to be young.”
Kristi Coughlon, an information officer with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources northwest region, is organizing the Women’s Mentored Hunt for the second consecutive year. A hunter with more than 30 years experience, she’s bringing two hunting dogs and has found five other women — and their trained dogs — to mentor the 11 women registered to hunt.
“All of the mentors, we’re there to provide this so women can explore these opportunities,” Coughlon said. “It’s a supportive environment with other women. Where else can you be part of a great celebration and learn from hunters how to hunt?”
Affiliated with the DNR’s “Becoming an Outdoors Woman” program for several years, Coughlon said she’s coordinating the women’s mentored hunt as a way to pay it forward.
“I had an opportunity to be taught by other folks to hunt elk, pheasant, turkeys,” she said. “I want to be able to expose other women to it — to talk to them about barriers or thoughts they have about why they think they can’t do it.”
The female mentors are coming to Luverne from across the state — Coughlon from Bemidji, another from Roosevelt and one from Two Harbors, in addition to others in southwest Minnesota. The hunters include a handful from Luverne and the immediate area, as well as Detroit Lakes, International Falls, Grand Rapids, Sauk Rapids and Bloomington.
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 johnnymarin | Oct 20, 2018 | Bird Deterrent Products
Poisoning pigeons as a way to control their population is cruel and sickening, and should be stopped at once.
Usually, pest controllers feed the birds bread laced with poison. A short while later, these birds will be found writhing on the ground in agony. While struggling and still alive, they are picked up and thrown into garbage bags to be disposed off.
However, a few days ago, I realised that a new type of poison is being used.
This white powdery substance is left near rubbish chutes or on pavements where the birds can be found. The birds ingest this powder and die a slow and painful death.
I have seen three dead pigeons, as well as a cockerel.
Town councils should not be given the right to poison at will. Neither should the word “cull” be used to make it sound acceptable, because it is not.
Similar cases have been reported in Paya Lebar and Ang Mo Kio.
Just how many birds are poisoned each year?
As overpopulation is due to human feeding or the improper clearance of food, the best way to tackle this in the long run is through education, though it may take longer to see results.
Children should be taught from a young age not to feed wild birds and animals.
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 johnnymarin | Oct 3, 2018 | Bird Deterrent Products
An officer responded to a 4th Avenue address where the complainant on scene was upset that the gas truck driver was waving his gas measure stick at the pigeons that he was feeding bread to in the store parking lot. The complainant said he stops here once a week and feeds the pigeons and doesn’t think it’s right for them to wave items at the pigeons and make them fly away. The officer noted, “The truck drivers were just keeping the birds from flying around while they refilled the gas pumps due to their being bread all over the parking lot.”
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 johnnymarin | Sep 18, 2018 | Bird Deterrent Products
Herds of rustled cattle, millions of stolen bees and a flock of pinched pigeons are only a handful of farm crimes that film producer Geoff Morrison displays in his new documentary series.
The series, titled Farm Crime, tells the stories of farmers across the country who have been victims of crime. The documentary sets a serious tone, underscoring how crime negatively affects a farmer’s well-being and their livelihood.
“I think when I started reading up on these stories, the first thing that surprised me was that there is a large market value for these products,” said Morrison of Big Cedar Films.
“When I think of that one theft involving maple syrup in Quebec, it was enormous in scale, something like $18 million. People were laughing at it, but it was actually serious. It’s incredible someone could pull that off.”
Morrison partnered with CBC to air the series online, releasing a set of six 15-minute episodes each week. They include cases of stolen cattle, blueberries, bees, pigeons and oysters. As well, he profiles a farm that saw a thief butcher stolen animals on site.
Like the maple syrup theft, he said these cases were hardly taken seriously. Mainstream news organizations weren’t reporting on them and, if they did, they were treated like a joke.
“It was clear to me that coverage from big or national publications was light,” he said. “It was somehow hilarious that all these bees were stolen. The local papers did take it a lot more seriously.”
When selecting farmers to profile, he said he wanted people who were comfortable sharing their stories. As well, out of the six provinces he visited, he profiled one farmer per province to showcase agriculture’s diversity.
“At the end of the day, they are good human stories of people willing to share what they’ve gone through,” he said.
The case involving oyster thefts in Prince Edward Island sticks with him the most. Morrison said the oysterman was robbed while tending to his sick wife in hospital. With the help of others, they managed to catch the thief, who was later prosecuted.
“That’s a standout case,” he said. “They handled it well, even with the terrible circumstances they were facing.”
For many of the farmers he profiled, he said crime has had long-lasting effects on them. Some change the way they do business and they feel less secure.
In the case involving stolen pigeons, Morrison said the farmer has lost his sense of security and isn’t entirely comfortable with people on his property.
“That moment of having his pigeons stolen still comes back to him,” he said. “It’s not unique for any victim of crime to feel that way.”
Morrison said he hopes the series makes people, especially those living in cities, more aware of farming and how crime can severely affect farmers.
“I hope they get a greater appreciation for the hard work that goes into growing food and agriculture products,” he said. “These crimes need to be taken seriously and we need to respect those victims, like any victim of crime.”
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)
