Elmo and Georgie wish you

a very Merry Christmas

and a great 2015!!

Elmo and Georgie,

as well as Richard and I,

wish you all a very Merry Christmas!!

Elmo and Georgie amongst the presents:

Georgie under the tree

Elmo checks out the presents

Elmo amongst the presents

This blog is mainly about the adventures of our two pigeons, Elmo and Georgie, however we also like to spread the word about other pigeon people, especially charities and organisations that help pigeons around the world.

So, if you are able to be a bit generous this Christmas, why not help out a pigeon-friendly rescue centre/sanctuary or organisation such as the following:

• Folly Wildlife Rescue in Kent, UK: http://www.follywildliferescue.org.uk/

(Where our Dora pigeon lives.)

• Wing and a Prayer Bird Haven in Norfolk, UK: http://www.wingandaprayerhaven.org.uk/

(We visited them last year: Trip to Norfolk with pigeons)

• MickaCoo Pigeon & Dove Rescue in the San Francisco Bay Area, USA: http://www.pigeonrescue.org/

• Wild Bird Fund in New York, USA: http://wildbirdfund.com/

• Iron Wolf Farm Sanctuary (private sanctuary) in USA: http://ironwolffarmsanctuary.com/

You can also find the above organisations on Facebook.

I received an early Christmas present from a dear friend that I’d like to share with you:

I’ve taken it to work so that everyone can enjoy seeing such beautiful birds.

Some might say that now is the time to be saving up your pennies and thinking about that very special occasion that is creeping up.

Here are some pigeon presents I found on Etsy you may want to buy a pigeon-loving family member or friend, or ask someone to get for you for, say, Christmas:

Artwork:

The Rain Dancer – Fine art print by VyalaArts

I love New York Pigeon fine art print by DarlingRomea

“If the Facts don’t fit…” pigeon print by mightypigeon

Crown Victoria pigeon photograph by jessicaelysephotos

Jewellery:

Hand drawn Pendant illustration of pigeons by mightypigeon

Pigeon Art Pendant by backbonestudio2

Dove Locket Necklace by saylorrose

Clothing:

Keep Calm and Pigeon On T-Shirt by keepcalmstore

Pigeon T-Shirt with Dots by smallgunns

Pigeon hat inspired by Mo Willems best selling children’s books by georgiabeckman

Other:

Pigeon Beads by TheCraftyBead

Pigeon cushion cover by Mirthquake

Four years ago today my husband and I adopted a very special little pigeon. Little did we realise the impact this pigeon would have on our lives. We had no idea and no warning, so when the little pigeon showed us how special he was, we weren’t prepared for how swiftly he’d become an integral part of our family. … I am, of course, talking about our darling Elmo. He came to us desperately needing a new home – a home living with people, not in an aviary with pigeons. Elmo has special requirements due to his less than pigeon-like upbringing. He requires a person to bond with, to love.

Four years ago Elmo was 8 years old, which obviously means that this year Elmo is 12!!! We have made today, the date we adopted him, his hatchday. So please, everyone who knows and loves Elmo, please wish him a very happy hatchday!

Happy Hatchday, darling Elmo!!!! xxxx

For those of you who have pigeons who are in their 20′s I know 12 years of age is still considered young. Sometimes Elmo looks like an old man to me, other times he looks like a baby. I cannot imagine all the things he’s seen in his 12 years. With us, Elmo has a sheltered life and is loved and is free to give his love without any restrictions. And boy, does he give his love!

Every day we are reminded of the love a pigeon is capable of. People may scoff at the idea of a pigeon in love, but when you observe them you can clearly see how deeply pigeons can feel. I don’t subscribe to the thought that animals only act out of instinct. I dare you to watch our videos of Elmo (and Georgie) and not be amazed: Pigeons as Pets YouTube channel

But I digress – today is about celebrating Elmo!

Thinking of what would be the best way to spoil Elmo today, I bought him his favourite treats: pine nuts and sunflower hearts. The only other present I know Elmo would love is lots of attention and love, which he gets every day anyway, so we’ll have to try harder today to give him extra!

Hatchday celebrations with little glasses filled with seed. The rest are in a jar for Elmo to raid when he wants:

Elmo doesn’t look impressed with his party hat:

Georgie definitely doesn’t appreciate her clown hat:

Our darling pigeon-pie is FIVE years old!!!

HAPPY HATCHDAY, GEORGIE!!!!

I cannot believe another year has gone by. I feel very lucky to have such a gorgeous, loving pigeon in my home. Every day with Georgie brings little joys and surprises.

For Georgie girl’s special day we bought her a big jar of linseeds – a seed that she LOVES!

Georgie's Hatchday party

Elmo dressed for the occasion with a smart bowtie (which he hated so I had to take it off):

Elmo looking smart

And the birthday girl wore a pretty little heart necklace:

Georgie looking pretty, albeit scruffy from her moult

When Elmo saw Georgie tucking into her present he became jealous and jumped over to have his share!

I was very conscious of the fact that Elmo could peck Georgie so had to keep them seperate as best as I could with one hand. After a while Georgie realised that Elmo was stealing her present and she attempted to slap him:

Georgie tries to slap Elmo

Georgie gave us a Valentine’s present: an egg!

We knew one was imminent from her behaviour (nesting and mating displays), dropping consistency (very loose) and body posture (arched lower body and tail feathers), however, her decision on where she wanted to lay the egg took us by surprise.

At around 8pm Georgie raced across the sofa from her end, climbed over Richard, and jumped onto Elmo’s nest with him still in it!! We quickly removed her before Elmo attacked her and placed her in her nest, however, she had made up her mind and wasn’t going to change it! Georgie raced across again to Elmo’s nest, so this time Richard covered Elmo so he couldn’t see her, and Georgie settled down next to Elmo and laid her egg.

Georgie (right) with Elmo (left) in his nest.

Georgie lays her egg! Elmo has a look to see what's happening.

After Georgie had laid her egg (which is infertile, by the way) we placed her and her egg in her nest but unfortunately Georgie doesn’t recognise it as her own and is trying to get back to Elmo’s nest. Oh dear. Elmo is keeping her at bay with threatening pecks but I think I will have to take the egg away to stop Georgie from being too broody and to stop her harassing Elmo.

We caught the egg laying on video. The egg appears towards the end (2:27).

We hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas this year. We certainly did. Elmo and Georgie helped decorate the tree by flying up to the top to place the baubles and the star. … Just kidding. Our two pigeons cannot fly that well.

We placed Elmo and Georgie’s presents under the tree and they were certainly intrigued by the shiny packages.

Georgie and Elmo's Christmas presents

Georgie taking a closer look!

Elmo is curious too!

Here’s the boy opening his present:

We thought it was the perfect gift for Elmo because it moves about and is soft so he can preen it (or peck it if he so pleases!). Elmo sure had fun with the yappy puppy!

Georgie received a soft cuddly hedgehog to have in her cage so she can preen it (since she loves to preen fluffy things). Sadly, Georgie doesn’t like the camera so she rarely lets me take any video of her.

After we had all opened our presents and there were boxes, wrapping paper and bubblewrap everywhere, Georgie decided to have another look in case we’d missed anything. She loved the bubblewrap!

We wish everyone a Happy New Year!

Richard received a surprising gift from his Secret Santa at work, and he couldn’t wait to show them to Elmo when he got home. Meet Fergie and Scarlet, the newest members of our pigeon family:

We think they’re awesome – a lovely Christmas present! – however, Elmo wasn’t impressed at all:

Georgie didn’t like the sound they made so she ran away whenever she heard them near her.

Georgie pigeon meets Fergie

We tried again to introduce Scarlet and Fergie to Elmo without him pecking them.

Elmo pecking the toy pigeons

Richard calmed Elmo down and then placed the toys near him in his nest, and Elmo tolerated them while he cooed and twitched to Richard:

We’ve already learnt that Elmo does not like any other pigeons in the home (our attempts with Dora, Minnie, and Button have all been a failure), so we really should stop collecting other pigeons (even inanimate, or in this case, animate ones). But I cannot help myself. Pigeons are simply too adorable.

Today our darling Elmo boy is 11 years old. Can you believe it?!

“Happy Hatchday, Elmo!!”

We’ve had Elmo for 3 years now, however, it feels like we’ve known and lived with him for longer. He’s such an integral part of our family that it’s hard to imagine what our life was like before him.

We woke up to a very happy pigeon on the bedside table, cooing and wing twitching with joy as he saw that we were awake and available to give him his morning hug. Then it was time for his presents: A knitted pigeon and a jar of pine nuts!

Elmo's hatchday presents

Elmo received a card from his original mum, as well as a card from us. I knitted the pigeon for Elmo (the pigeon is Cooey pigeon from Stitch London) and I think Elmo enjoyed playing with him (*ahem* pecking him *ahem*) very much, as you can see from the video:

We’ll be showering Elmo with even more love and affection today, and I’m sure he’ll be sick of all the cuddles and treats he receives by the end of the day.

Elmo tucking into the pine nut jar