by Ryan Ponto | Dec 24, 2016 | UltraSonic Bird Control
Superb Story can add the totepool Hogmaneigh Handicap Hurdle (2.50) to his big Cheltenham Festival win at Musselburgh.
Young Skelton pulled off a fine training performance to bring him back from a lengthy lay-off to prevail in the ultra competitive County Hurdle at the big meeting, but suffered the reverse side of the coin when the gelding had to be pulled up in the Galway Hurdle in the summer.
Given plenty to of time again to recover from those exertions, Superb Story is back in great heart and connections have long targeted this valuable objective. He still looks well handicapped despite a big weight and he’s the type to continue to improve in readiness for a return trip to Prestbury Park in March.
Vyta Du Roc was not beaten that far in the Hennessy on his return to fences five weeks ago and he looks to have found a good opportunity in the Watch Live Racing On BetBright.com Handicap Chase (12.50) at Cheltenham.
Henderson opted to give the Welsh National and a return bout with Hennessy hero Native River a miss with the eight-year-old in favour of this less demanding test and the move should pay dividends. A smart novice last season, he is back in A1 nick at home.
Whisper is a difficult horse to read at times, but he seems on great terms with himself at the moment and should maintain his unbeaten record this season in the BetBright Dipper Novices Chase (1.25).
Henderson has had plenty of problems with this high-class staying hurdler over the past 12 months, and he was only hopeful he might prevail on his chasing bow at Exeter on this day 12 months ago. However, Whisper never fired at all. Once again, expectations were not that high on his return here last month, but that was only down to a lack of peak fitness.
Under a fine ride from Davy Russell, he jumped nicely and overcame the pre-race fears by galloping on strongly up the hill to notch his first win over larger obstacles. He took some useful scalps along the way and the Seven Barrows shrewdies are now looking for him to step up another level, especially after an accomplished schooling session under Noel Fehily on Mandown in Upper Lambourn on Friday morning.
Stablemate O O Seven will also go well but the Nicholls-trained Clan des Obeaux should be the toughest nut to crack.
Lough Derg Leader can emulate former stablemate Singlefarmpayment and win the Betbright Casino Handicap Hurdle (2.35) for Tom Lacey.
The six-year-old has made great strides north in the ratings so far this season and should be more than able to overcome a lumpy 11lb hike in his assessment for an impressive win at Doncaster last month.
The concluding EBF Stallions & Cheltenham Pony Club NH Flat Race looks a fascinating renewal, with some of the top trainers around represented, but perhaps Newmarket mayor John Berry will be able to strike a blow with White Valiant.
The son of Youmzain overcame odds of 80/1 to win on his racecourse bow at Huntingdon, scoring in great style under Daryl Jacob.
Jacob is required to ride Daphne Du Clos for Henderson and Potensis Bloodstock on Sunday but Davy Russell is an eyecatching booking for Berry, who looks to have a very useful tool to go to war with.
The very much in-form Fehily forsakes Cheltenham for the delights of Haldon Hill and Exeter, and he should kick the afternoon off on the right note with the highly-rated and impressive bumper winner Neon Hill in the opening Passage House Inn Topsham ‘National Hunt’ Novices’ Hurdle (12.40).
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 | Dec 23, 2016 | UltraSonic Bird Control
It was one of those trees that one sees and still does not see, hiding in plain sight. I had walked near it many times and often glanced at it when scanning the landscape, but never actually looked at it. Perhaps its size was the reason. It was small for a banyan, barely two stories tall, standing behind a shack at the corner of a village crossroad near a cluster of tea shops. On one side were small patches for growing vegetables, followed by a bamboo grove. On the other side, a rapid descent into a rectangular plot where the earth had been dug out neatly. Underneath the banyan grew smaller trees, weeds and tall grass. Tucked away at a neglected corner of the road to nowhere in particular, the banyan never gave me reason for a second look.
I would have continued ignoring it were it not for a village boy. One day, when I was searching for birds in the village, he appeared at my side. “What are you doing?” he asked.
“Looking for birds,” I replied.
“Did you check out that bot tree? It gets many birds.”
“That one?” I pointed. He nodded.
I looked at the tree carefully now, top to bottom, side to side. Nothing was moving in the thick round crown of deep green.
“But it is empty,” I said.
“You just have to visit it at the right time of the day, and look carefully.”
“What is the right time then?”
“Oh, I don’t know… mornings, but afternoons also, and some days at noon…” he said unhelpfully, “but, you can see lots of pigeons in that tree – green pigeons.”
After that conversation I was more attentive to the banyan. One afternoon, I was in the neighbourhood, looking for a coucal – a dark-red bird that looks like a cross between a chicken and a crow – that had ran into a roadside bush. Unexpectedly, I heard the loud flutter of wings and looked up to see a flock of green pigeons descending on the banyan.
I was thrilled. I had been trying to photograph these yellow-footed green pigeons (horials) for a long time. Here they were, playing in the tree, swaying and jumping from branch to branch, gobbling up the banyan fruit. Their meal lasted for a few minutes and they took off, all together, in search of the next fruity tree.
Spending more time at the banyan since that day, I discovered that its fruits attract coppersmith barbets, doves, bulbuls and many other birds in addition to the horials.
One afternoon, while waiting for the horials, I saw something move in the bushes underneath the tree. It was a brown shrike, here for the winter from colder places, hunting for insects. And while I was watching it, a cuckooshrike landed on a plant right in front of me. It hopped around looking for its own insects. Then a drongo appeared – it was probably hunting in the fields – and buzzed the cuckooshrike repeatedly, trying to drive it away. But the cuckooshrike persisted, jumping from branch to leaf to grass, and kept hunting.
And so life played out its ever mysterious moves in and around the banyan. If there is a banyan near you, this winter might be a good time for a closer look.
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 | Dec 8, 2016 | UltraSonic Bird Control
Bath’s Pigeon Man has told magistrates they can send him to PRISON but it won’t stop him from feeding the birds.
Paul Charlton got his nickname thanks to his act, in which he balances pigeons on his arms, shoulders and head and giving members of the public grain to feed them in exchange for loose coins.
But the 42-year-old is fighting an attempt by Bath and North East Somerset Council to stop him performing which could see him fined up to £2,500.
Charlton appeared at Bath Magistrates’ Court on December 19 having been convicted of three charges of failing to comply with a community protection notice ordering him to stop feeding pigeons.
Dressed in a dark suit with shirt, tie and waistcoat, he told magistrates: “You can put me in prison for as long as you like but when I come out I will go back and feed the pigeons.
“I’m being treated like a criminal here and I haven’t done anything wrong.
“I have done what I have been asked to do by the Government.”
In response, lead magistrate Roger Witt said: “No, you have done something that you have been asked not to do by the local authority.”
Last year, Charlton was issued with a community protection notice by B&NES Council ordering him to stop feeding the pigeons.
But on May 9, May 10 and September 23 he was seen by council officers to be carrying on his act.
Charlton denied three counts of breaching the notice against him but was convicted in his absence on November 21.
At court for Charlton’s sentencing on December 19, a barrister acting on behalf of B&NES Council argued the defendant’s act caused “quite a lot of inconvenience” to cafés in the centre of Bath.
Carrie-Ann Evans told the court: “Essentially the notice asked him [Charlton] to stop giving grain to members of the public to feed the pigeons and stop giving grain to the birds himself.
“This is causing quite a lot of inconvenience for neighbouring cafés who have birds flying onto their stock.
“As a result quite a large amount of stock has to be thrown away.
“Mr Charlton was observed doing exactly what he was told not to do by the terms of the community protection notice.
“When spoken to by council officers he was quite clear in his admissions that he continued to feed the pigeons despite the terms of the notice against him.”
In response, Charlton claimed a “senior psychiatrist” had told him to continue feeding the birds.
Remonstrating with the clerk of the court, he told her: “I’m bored of you.”
Charlton, of no fixed abode, faces a £2,500 fine for the three offences.
B&NES Council has also asked for £450 costs.
The case was adjourned until January 23 pending the preparation of a psychiatric report.
Charlton was granted unconditional bail until then.
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 | Nov 27, 2016 | UltraSonic Bird Control
AMES, Iowa —
Boone and Ames police are investigating about 14 reports of vehicles being damaged by clay pigeons overnight Sunday.
Mathew Boley said he is still unhappy about what he woke up to Sunday morning outside his home in Ames.
“I came outside and there were clay pigeons all over the ground next to my car, a few scratches and nice circle size welts on the side of it,” Boley said.
Police said they hope the public will provide helpful information for the ongoing investigating.
“We really would ask the public to come forward if they have any information, if they saw suspicious activity near Aplin Road or Story Street sometime Saturday night,” said Commander Jason Tuttle, of the Ames Police Department.
Residents in Boone said they experienced the same type of vandalism.
“I just noticed there were these clay things all over the road and especially on vehicles all the way up to First Street here,” Boone resident Ryioko Peterson said. “It was car after car.”
John Wilson said he saw the same as he was getting into his car to attend Sunday morning church service. He said he is frustrated and cannot understand why anyone could commit what appears to be a random act.
“People gotta have better things to do than mess around, tearing up people and destroying property,” Wilson said.
Police advise residents to park their vehicle in a garage or driveway if possible to protect their cars. Otherwise, police said it is best to park under a street light.
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 | Nov 14, 2016 | Pigeon Spikes, UltraSonic Bird Control
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — If any further proof were needed that geopolitical intrigue can stalk the humblest of Pakistan’s inhabitants, consider the recent cases of two Pakistani birds.
The first is a pigeon, a species that people all over the country raise on their rooftops as a simple, inexpensive pleasure and a brief escape from their daily struggles with poverty, corruption and clogged streets below.
Some weeks ago, tensions were running especially high between Pakistan and its perennial next-door rival India. The source was Kashmir, the disputed border region where Muslim protesters had been blinded with pellet guns and Indian soldiers had been burned to death in a late-night attack by insurgents.
Into the fog of belligerent rhetoric between the two nuclear powers wandered a white pigeon, which was caught and caged by Indian security forces in a border district adjoining Kashmir.
I realize I am sticking my neck out but would the Indian authorities please set the poor captive pigeon free?
According to Indian news agencies, the bird was suspected of having “Pakistani links” and was carrying a warning message for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The arresting officer posed with his feathered prisoner, and the image soon circulated on social media.
Around the same time, Indian authorities in Kashmir said that they had also discovered 150 dehydrated pigeons stuffed into a car and that they suspected the birds had been smuggled for purposes of espionage. An official was quoted as saying the pigeons had suspicious multicoloured rings attached to their feet. All were turned over to an animal welfare agency while police investigated the case.
Irfan Husain, a columnist for Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper, suggested that the avian seizures were a sign that India remains “a deeply insecure country” despite its large size, rapidly growing economy and military might. “I realize I am sticking my neck out,” he wrote, “but would the Indian authorities please set the poor captive pigeon free?”
No such outcry has yet been raised about the potential plight of another Pakistani bird, the houbara bustard, a grey-speckled, pheasantlike creature mostly found in North Africa. In Pakistan, this rare variety of bustard is considered an endangered species, and hunting it is banned in some regions.
KARIM SAHIB/AFP/Getty ImagesA falcon, right, tries to catch a houbara bustard during a falconry competition in Hameem in 2014.
This past week, the bustard too ran afoul of international politics, this time at the hands of Pakistan’s friends. Parties of Middle Eastern royals often bring trained falcons to hunt smaller birds in Pakistan’s northern mountains and southern deserts. For years, among their favourite targets have been bustards.
Last year, wildlife groups petitioned Pakistani courts to ban bustard-hunting, and the Supreme Court granted their request. But the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif appealed, arguing it had “adversely affected the country’s diplomatic ties with the Middle Eastern countries” and noting that hunts by “foreign dignitaries also bring in considerable funds.”
One of the Sharif government’s closest allies is Qatar, and last month, a Qatari prince came to the prime minister’s rescue in a corruption case before the Supreme Court, where political opponents have accused him of hiding assets abroad, including a group of luxury apartments in London.
Sharif, who has vowed to resign if found guilty, said he had broken no laws but was struggling to explain how his family had acquired the apartments without a money trail or tax bill. Suddenly, the Qatari prince provided a letter stating that his family had given them to the Sharifs as part of an old business settlement.
This week, a Qatari prince from the same family was issued a special permit to hunt 100 bustards in northwestern Khyber-Paktunkhwa province. According to Dawn, the province’s wildlife conservator objected, saying it was a protected species. The matter has not been resolved, but the paper reported that another Qatari royal had recently “faced some resistance” while attempting to hunt bustards in Balochistan province.
“He immediately called the prime minister on the phone,” Dawn reported Sunday, “and things were sorted out.”
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 | Nov 5, 2016 | Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
In my apartment, there is a picture window that looks out on the Glennland Building, a half-block to the east.
There, in late spring, two pigeons built a nest in one of the air-conditioning vents. It has been a pleasure to look out at their progress in this and, finally, at their expeditions to find food for their babies.
Meanwhile, the president, commenting recently on police killings, mentioned the anxiety and tension caused by the 24-hour news cycle.
In fact, some of the reporters claim their work is now reaching the immediacy of real time.
But truly this is not so. All of these machines, starting with the book, give only abstraction and an aid to memory. For me, at least, the “real time” very quietly is watching the pigeons down the block. In that quiet you can then look up, see the sky, find the ground beneath your feet and so have the confidence to act if action is required.
Now the book-internet development offers a kind of very important liberty. It may be a harbinger of the united world as a fulfillment of that liberty. But you must be weaned of it to use it or it might swallow you alive.
So I say real time is not in these fascinating marks on paper or in sounds from cellphones, but in quietly looking out the window and enjoying the pigeons.
They tell me this is true, and asked me to tell you as well.
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)
