by Pigeon Patrol | Aug 6, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeons in the News
A pigeon keeper whose birds were killed and lofts destroyed by a fire on Newcastle Quayside has spoken of his pain.
Shaun Dixon, 43, had only been keeping his beloved pigeons 18 months before he lost all 56 in the blaze, while one and a half of his two lofts were burnt to cinders.
Five lofts were destroyed altogether, while locks were also broken off many, with tools and other items missing from inside.
“I’m devastated,” said Shaun. “We get attached to our pigeons and they’re something we can never replace. This fire was definitely malicious, I’m going to have to start building all over again now.”
In total more than 400 pigeons were killed, worth tens of thousands of pounds to their owners.
This is believed to be the most recent in a string of arson attacks on pigeon crees in the North East.
Allotments were burnt in Benwell in May, while the Quayside site has suffered numerous previous incidents.
One pigeon keeper, who wished not to be named, said: “The people who did this weren’t kids, they must have been pretty strong to break the locks off the doors. They got in, took what they wanted and then set fire to the middle loft.
“Most of the guys here have been doing this since 1974. It’s a crying shame.”
Firefighters arrived at the scene where the huge blaze had taken hold on Skinnerburn Road near the Metro Radio Arena at around 9pm on Thursday.
The flames and smoke could be seen from the city centre and beyond.
The blaze happened while firefighters were on a 24-hour strike. Emergency crews put in place to provide cover during the walk-outs were dealing with the incident.
A spokeswoman for Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service said: “The cause of the fire is now under investigation.”
Witness Andy Milne, 27, said: “I live on the other side of the river, when it first started I just saw smoke and it got bigger and bigger.
“It was a few minutes later the fire engines started coming down and it just got bigger and bigger from that. Some of the trees round there caught fire.
“It looked like a building on fire. It is quite a sight, especially from this side of the river. It was a bit worrying considering the fire brigade were on strike.”
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 Pigeon Patrol | Aug 6, 2014 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeons in the News
Alderman Bill Wilson said he had received complaints from people concerned about the pigeons congregating in food areas and on tables.
The main problem spots were in the mall, Stewart St and southern Rooke Street, he said.
Alderman Wilson will table a notice of motion at Monday night’s council meeting calling for a report in relation to the health concerns related to pigeons in the CBD and whether measures are needed to eradicate them.
Alderman Wilson said that after seagulls became an issue at the MCG, artificial hawks on grandstands were used to deter the avian invaders from the ground.
“There are various methods to look at to deter pigeons if they are a problem in the city,” Alderman Wilson said.
“You can also put spikes around a building or have sloped surfaces so it doesn’t give the birds a place to sit.”
Burnie Chamber of Commerce and Industry vice-president Philip McCulloch confirmed yesterday that some BCCI members had raised feral pigeons as a problem at various times.
Mr McCulloch said the matter was then passed on to the Burnie City Council.
Last year Fosters Music Centre in Burnie addressed a problem with pigeons by installing metal spikes on the roof of the Cattley Street business to stop the birds from damaging newly painted signage.
Neighbouring legal firm McLean, McKenzie and Topfer had written to the Burnie City Council expressing its concern about large numbers of pigeons living in the CBD.
Burnie City Council general manager Andrew Wardlaw said at the time that the council would be responsible for cleaning up areas where pigeons were roosting if on council property or areas that the public utilised such as paths.
According to a fact sheet from South Australia Health, feral pigeons can become public health pests and tend to accumulate wherever there is food and shelter.
The potential health risks included transmission of diseases such as histoplasmosis, cryptococcosis, and psittacosis (ornithosis), and attraction of ticks, mites, cockroaches and rats.
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 Pigeon Patrol | Aug 6, 2014 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeons in the News
Sometimes the tiniest things bring happiness.
This week my little pearls of happiness were a few blueberries from our garden. Seemingly trivial over which to get excited, several years without a single berry made this morning’s handful of plump blueberries a trophy to tout.
It started five years ago with 10 select bushes of 3-year-old organic plants. Location selected, prepared, and soil amendments properly incorporated, all directions were carefully followed for transplant. The first year the flowers are plucked, allowing the plant to develop a strong root system, so no berries.
Year 2, spring came and the worms from nearby infested tress decimated the leaves yet some berries did appear. However, they fell off before coming ripe due to weather conditions. So I focused on growth of the plants, again.
Unfortunately, the hired help for fall cleanup decided the bushes looked like weeds and pulled each one out with much tugging. Devastated, I rapidly replanted back in the same holes somehow hoping that would magically assist in recovery of what had been, just minutes earlier, strong and vigorous plants. Then a friend moved, she dug up her blueberries and gave them to me. Surely, I thought, with three times as many bushes, we have much better chances to yield a great bounty despite the replanting! Next spring there were hoards of green berries, and bird netting went onto the bushes just as I had seen done by my neighbors, but the birds simply went under it for the feast, not one berry was had by a human.
The next year’s attempt included a wood-frame cage with bird netting tied to the fencing and posts, the bottom draped to the ground with extra to spare. Those pesky devils found their way through the three-quarter-inch netting leaving only when lifting the net to free them. Persistent, I nearly declared war on the birds I adore and feed round, but I wanted a ripe blueberry!
Instead I got really serious with the netting. A heavy gauge half-inch netting that I tediously hand sewed together and meticulously formed over a strong metal framework tall enough to walk inside with a bottom held down by 4-by-4s there’s not a gap anywhere. It is a fortress with a plastic owl sentry warning birds of my intended wrath.
Finally, this morning’s yogurt was adorned with a handful of nickel-sized, deep blue, sweet blueberries, absolutely delightful. Those blue pearls have made my summer wonderful!
Blueberries, anti-oxidant rich pearls great for snacking, salads, desserts and breakfast, are now in season. You can get plenty without fighting the birds, netting, or Mother Nature as locally grown blueberries are at the farmers market for the next 5 to 6 weeks perfectly ripe and ready to eat.
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 Pigeon Patrol | Aug 6, 2014 | Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
METRO VANCOUVER — A night of drinking and shooting pigeons with a pellet gun turned violent in Langley and ended with a man in police custody.
Langley RCMP arrested a man at a rural Langley property in the 21900-block of 64th Avenue Tuesday night for assaulting a woman.
The incident happened after the suspect and his 12-year-old son had been shooting birds together.
The boy was shot in the hip, upsetting his mother. When she confronted the boy’s father about the injury, he assaulted her. The adults had been drinking.
The woman and her son left the property to contact police and the man stayed inside the residence.
Police attended and at about 8 p.m. and ERT teams negotiated with the 40-year-old man (top left) until he came outside.
He was arrested without incident and taken into custody.
File Photo
The Langley Detachment Investigational Support Team is pursuing the case and charges are pending.
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 Pigeon Patrol | Jul 9, 2014 | Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News, UltraSonic Bird Control
Mike Tyson may have found peace in the company of pigeons but in Howrah, a dispute over possession of a bird spurred a 48-year-old man to punch his best friend to death on Sunday evening.
Nageswar Rai kept punching his long-time friend and neighbour Navraj Singh, 50, in the face and body till he collapsed on the pavement in Round Tank Lane, say police.
Singh was taken to hospital where he died early on Monday. Doctors suspect the barrage of punches damaged his vital organs. Rai is absconding.
Singh was an employee in the conservancy department of Howrah Municipal Corporation. On Sunday evening, he returned to home clutching a ‘lotan’ pigeon (known in Bengali as ‘noton payra’). Everyone knew that Singh has a soft corner for animals and birds.
The first thing he did was to call out to his old buddy Rai. The two began to admire the bird’s qualities. After a while, Rai asked Singh to give the pigeon to him, saying it would be better off in his care.
Rai also warned Singh that stray cats may get to the bird if he insisted on keeping it. An argument ensued after which Rai allegedly attempted to snatch the bird from Singh’s hands.
In the scuffle that followed, the pigeon flew off. An enraged Singh turned on Rai, accusing him for the loss.
Within minutes, the two men were at each other’s throats, say police. Rai, a hawker, threw a flurry of punches and fled as Singh slumped to the ground. Singh’s family members helped him inside the house.
Later in the evening, he started complaining of discomfort and was moved to Howrah district hospital where he died early in the morning. The body has been sent for autopsy.
But what was so unique about this pigeon?
“The uniqueness of this bird is that if shaken slightly and kept on the ground, it starts doing rolls. The only way to stop the rolling is to pick up the bird and blow into its mouth. These birds cost Rs 2,000-2,500 each,” said Joydip Chatterjee of Chatterjee Pet House in Ashoknagar.
The neighbourhood is shocked by Singh’s death. His wife Saro Devi lodged a complaint with police, accusing Rai, following which he was charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder, said Howrah OC Tathagata Pande.
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)
In total more than 400 pigeons were killed, worth tens of thousands of pounds to their owners.
