Pigeons taking over bird stand and garden and messing all over

Lady_K

I bought a nice bird feeding station and the smaller birds just do not get a chance because its overtaken by pigeons. There are lots of very large pigeons and the mess they create is huge and is really unsightly all over the garden and patio, shed, garden furniture and even all over my wheelie bins. I feel its a health hazzard in my own garden.

Because of this I have had to stop filling the bird station up a long time ago but the pigeons still congregate everywhere. How the heck do you get rid of them?

Orange_King

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-13976118

You could try what they did there!

Lady_K

Orange_King wrote: »

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-13976118

You could try what they did there!

If I had a spare Hawk around here I'm sure it would be ideal but unfortunately I haven't so if anyone has any other ideas for me to try with this I'd be grateful

harrys_nan

We had that problem to, haven't got rid of the pigeons or the seagulls but we brought 2 squirrel proof cages from Wilkinson's and they are helping, the small birds can feed but large ones cant so they are not coming in the so much now. I think they were £5.99 each, they also do one for peanuts

Outpost

I'm a novice at this but given that pigeons are basically just birds like any other, surely you're not going to get rid of them unless you stop feeding the birds altogether.

If there is food out pigeons are going to congregate in your garden, I very much doubt you can pick and chose which birds you want to allow into the garden and which ones you don't.

Lady_K

We have always had a few pigeons around here sitting on the roofs of houses early in the morning but thats been about it, they have never been a probem until now and I'v been here 22 years.

I stopped feeding the birds in March so there is no food out at all but they still come, the mess they make is my main concern now due to it being so unsightly and the health hazzard it causes. I never knew pigeons created so much poo it looks like someones been sick all over the garden.

I think I'm going to give the bird station and stand away but I don't want to pass the same problems on to anyone else.

I have a lot of trees in my garden so it has always attracted lots of birds, is there anything that might be attracting the pigeons now that I have removed the food?

Farway

Lady_K wrote: »

I have a lot of trees in my garden so it has always attracted lots of birds, is there anything that might be attracting the pigeons now that I have removed the food?

Water or young plants / fruit in the garden?

Farway

Lady_K wrote: »

I have a lot of trees in my garden so it has always attracted lots of birds, is there anything that might be attracting the pigeons now that I have removed the food?

Water or young plants / fruit in the garden?

But more likely just the trees, having found somewhere to perch / hide / roost it must seem like an oasis

Lady_K

There are none of those in my garden, its been made for easy maintenance so its mostly trees and grass with some mature shrubs and its surrounded in high privet hedging. Only thing that has changed since sept last year is the main big lawn has had to be killed and repeatedly killed due to ground elder so its just soil now apart from a few bits of dead grass in parts. This cannot be re-seeded until the ground elder stops shooting through and its safe to re seed again. Would they be attracted to the large area of soil?

Farway

Maybe if the large area of soil is an ideal dust bath for them

geoffky

i have nailed dowling batons onto my bird feeder and the pigeons can not get in now but they try..