Rock Dove

So sorry to hear the bad news Tracy of having neighbours who objected to your feeding of pigeons ... I experienced something similar a few years back & had to re-arrange feeders to exclude Wood Pigeon pair that neighbours couldn't tolerate!
I only have two hanging feeders now with suet pellets & sunflower hearts & a daily horde of Sparrows, half a dozen Starlings with lots of youngsters, Blackbird pair with young & several hedge sparrows, one or two others infrequently but a lovely resident Robin!
Please do put up the feeder you are allowed as I'm sure the little visitors will bring you joy to help you get over not being able to feed pigeons! I had an ex-racing pigeon roosting on chalk cliff opposite my house for several weeks but he never came to feed in garden! Your one may well be just resting up & will return of it's own accord but may elect to live free ... plenty of natural food available for it to find! Best thing to have also is fresh water daily for all birds if you can manage to provide it!
Btw, is Hamish still around?

Thank you so much Wendy for your lovely kind words. You have warmed my heart. So lovely to hear from you and to hear of your own lovely little visitors. You asked about wee Hamish, well he spied me watching him through the glass porch the other day drinking my coffee and came running right up to the glass looking in! This is the closest he has ever been! Oh my gosh he is so stinking cute!!!!! That little face and beautiful eyes! Tiny little hands, oh my. Sadly one of my neighbours, she is mad at me feeding him too and has said I've not to feed him because he's burying peanuts in her garden. There's nothing I can do, I am heart broken. Also my neighbour opposite has been upset for ages and kept telling me that the birds no longer go to his feeder. I felt under enormous pressure and mounting guilt. He is very ill right now. I just feel its better for me and everyone else that I let it go and stop feeding anything. I have no choice but to show respect for my neighbours. I know that they are not keen on me because I am different from them. I don't think of myself as better than them. Just different. I feel awkward. They scare me a lot. But I would rather live at peace with them. It's difficult, because I am new and alone. I'm quiet and shy. I don't drink alcohol or smoke. I love music and art, animals and nature. I'm also a Christian. Yet I'm just me. I certainly don't look down on anyone. We're all different and unique and I think that is a good thing. We all have special qualities and gifts. I can't understand why people hate pigeons or the grey squirrels. They are beautiful creatures and to be admired. I particularly love pigeons. I have been reading a lot about them and I'm really fascinated by these incredible birds. I love reading your own story about your birds. I will be fine and so will they. And that poor man will have his birds back. They were flocking to my feeders because I was putting out sunflower hearts and suet same as yourself. I was attracting lots of finches, and beautiful little bright green birds, I honestly don't know what they are called. They were constantly there feeding. Perhaps you might know what type of bird they are. I think that they may be siskins. They are not easily scared like others and sat peacefully on the feeders together eating sunflower hearts. I loved the cracking noise of them eating. The pigeons always cleaned up after them. The pigeons got their food first thing on the grass. They got a cheaper general seed mix and they gobbled it up. The rest of the day they were great little cleaners! The whole garden was in harmony in terms of the birds and three squirrels. Because each had its own food and so there was no squirrels raiding feeders and every bird great and small got its share. The starlings squabble and they preferred the suet which worked out perfectly. It kept them separate from the smaller birds and prevented bullying. I had a pole feeder with 4 feeders. 2 feeder with sunflower hearts and two with suet. The seed for the pigeons or rock doves got scattered first light to make sure they ate up everything. The squirrels had their own little feeder up on the fence. So it was a hive of activity at various times of the day. Mostly first thing, lunchtime and the end of the day. I looked forward to seeing them all. I loved to sit and watch from my window and porch. It was so lovely to see and peaceful. I learned a lot. It is heart breaking but I can't continue anymore. Hamish was hanging from the roof of the porch eating all the food when I had decided to keep one feeder. And the pigeons had also figured out how to flap up and spill the seeds out of it so they could eat. I ended up with an empty feeder each day. I found it too upsetting. I couldn't bear to frighten them away, I would never do that. Though I did gently tap the glass when wee Hamish was eating from it. Poor boy. I felt awful. At least my neighbours will be happy and I need to try and get better. I'm very sick right now and barely able to get out of bed now. I'm incredibly weak and exhausted physically and mentally. I think it gave me a wee boost for a while but it can't continue. I need to just rest up in bed. Hopefully soon I will be well enough to sit up and do my art again. Thank you so much for your support Wendy, bless you and peace to you and all the community. You have been amazing!

I just happened to find your post, TRACY, while I was checking in the "About" category for forum tech info, and there you were, describing your sad predicament.

I'm very sorry that you are so unwell and hope you'll recover at least enough to do your art, which would be such a comfort to you.

We used to have bird feeders in the garden of the building my flat is in, but we got invaded by feral pigeons which congregated on the roof and on sills and pooed everywhere (as well as preventing small birds from getting at the feeders), so we had to remove the feeders altogether. I still feel terrible about it but the mess on this Victorian house was appalling.

Also, a Wood Pigeon couple used to nest in a Leylandii in a neighbour's garden* backing onto ours, but one went missing and the other has never found a new mate. I can't imagine how anyone could object to them :(

*The same neighbour planted a Eucalyptus which grew to the sky in no time. I bet it was to stop me looking down into their back garden from my high-up perch ;)

All the very best to you, Tracy :-*

Hello again Tracy, sorry to hear that you are still struggling with not being able to feed the birds and wee Hamish. As Wendy has said, could you at least put out a bird bath, that way you will still be able to watch them, as they will use it. It does not need to be anything fancy, just a container of any sort, an old shallow biscuit tin, a dish, bowl, or even a saucer that you would put under a plant pot, maybe around 12 inches.

The wee green birds you saw could well have been Siskins, we have them and they are so friendly, they will swing form the feeders, and look at you now and again, you can get quite close to them, and you can hear them going see, see, see!

You obviously have access to the Internet, maybe you could find some animal/bird YouTube clips/videos and enjoy those, not the same as seeing the birds in the feather, so to speak but I am sure you would enjoy them.

As you say it is better to get on with the neighbour's, even although it means having to give up things that you like. We can all live in harmony then.

Take care, all the best CL

Thanks so much for your reply. Such a shame about the pigeons. I didn't have any problems initially with them but my neighbours don't like them. I love the pigeons more than any of the birds, because they are so much fun, they quickly form a bond. They didn't make a mess here. Sadly they have a bad reputation. I did some online research about pigeons, and they are actually doves. They are Rock Doves. I am saddened to read the truth about why they have been hated and given such bad press. They were even used during the war to deliver messages. They have been trained to lead rescue teams by spotting someone lost at sea, they are trained to recognise the life jackets by the colour. They are highly intelligent, both Doves and crows as well as parrots are tops when it comes to intelligence. Another amazing thing about these Doves is that they can learn to recognise every letter of the alphabet. They have been awarded medals! I only read these things the other night because I wanted to know why people hate them and if there is any truth in what people say about them being dangerous and dirty and full of disease. The opposite is true. They are renowned for pooping though, its a bit unfortunate, but I urge anyone to read about these amazing birds and I intend to find out more. I see them as beautiful. I love their colours and their expressive orange eyes. They are very soft and gentle. I love the gentle cooing noise and I find it very relaxing. I couldn't sleep tonight. However I'm on the mend. Such a shame about the dove you mentioned that went missing. It is difficult to understand people. But then there are things my neighbours do that I struggle with. But I tend to think well, everybody is different, and I just chose to live peacefully. I'm just resting up most of the time. I do enjoy watching YouTube videos about animals and birds. And I have various different interests. There is a park near me that is a popular place for people to enjoy and there are lots of ducks and their young. Of course you are not allowed to feed them, but they come right up close. It's beautiful and there is lots to see. A beautiful Loch and the trees are gorgeous. I hope for some sunny weather so I can take my easel and do some painting. They have picnic tables and benches set out. It's free. And it does have a cafe. I must try and sleep now. I plan to make a large pot of chilli con carne today, the mince I purchased over the counter yesterday, I discovered that the use by date was today! So I will take it back and get it replaced. I forgot to buy bulbs of garlic anyway so it works out OK. So yes, I will look forward to that lol. Thank you for your kind words and for sharing your own thoughts and story. I love reading other people's experiences. I find it great.