Injured wood pigeon

Tilly2 | 13:47 Tue 03rd Apr 2012 | Animals & Nature

34 Answers

I experienced a really upsetting incident in the garden yesterday. I noticed some feathers on the ground and behind a shrub was a very poorly looking wood pigeon. It had had one of its eyes 'pecked' out and and had several wounds on its back. It moved away from me but kept falling over onto its face. I tried to catch it (don't know what I would have done with it though, put it in a box and put it somewhere!!!)

It flew up onto next door's shed and stayed there for about twenty minutes. Then another wood pigeon came down and tried to mate with the injured one. The injured one flew back into my garden and the other bird followed it and proceded to mate it again. I ran out and shooed it away and the poor injured one was lying on the lawn tipped up onto its face. It stayed like that for another ten minutes or so. By this time it could no longer fly and as I have two dogs, I had to get it out of my garden.

I put on some gardening gloves, picked it up and dropped over the fence into next door's garden. (They don't have dogs) Now I feel really guilty and ashamed as I should have put it out of its misery but I couldn't bring myself to kill it.

What would you have done?

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boxtops

I think I'd have taken it to the vet, to have it put down humanely.

RATTER15

I would certainly of dispatched it humanely.

I would however then feed it to the dogs.

Frank97

I would have killed it quickly with my boot, sounds harsh, but I believe that is the best course of action in such cases!

EvianBaby

Pretty much what you did Tilly.

chaptazbru

Couldn't you still go and get it and take it to the vets ????

Tilly2

Question Author

I know I should have done something else. I really did not think of keeping it safe and then taking it to the vets. I was too distressed, I think. The vets would not have been open but that's no excuse!

chaptazbru

The vets will be open now, or this evening ....

Please go and rescue it !

RATTER15

Hit it on the head with a large tool or brick, more humane than the distress of being handled and having a needle stuck in it that will also cost you about £40.00.

EvianBaby

Other people obviously won't like this but I wouldn't waste my time taking a half dead pigeon to the vets. I have better things to do and so does the vet.

I think making sure it wasn't going to get mauled by dogs was enough.

chaptazbru

No it won't Ratter - vets treat wild animals for free. I know because I've taken hedgehogs and pigeons in the past and other people I know have done so too.

She's already said she can't kill it.

ladybirder

Our vet doesn't charge for helping wildlife.

chaptazbru

I have better things to do as well Evian, but thank God I'm a little more compassionate than you and a good vet would NOT mind !

Kiki-frog

Tilly, how horrible for you. To be honest, I would have tried to kill it humanely, but then I probably would have thrown up followed by bursting into tears! Realistically it won't live long in that condition, and probably wouldn't even have survived being taken to the vets.