SIMPLE TRAPS

Occasionally I receive email from someone who has a stray pigeon they want to catch, read the band and find the owner.

Most stray birds I have seen are lost, injured or flown out racing pigeons and are accustomed to living and sleeping in a loft. A stray will look for a building to spend the night. If you have a shed or a garage and leave the door open the chances are good that the bird will enter it and can be fairly easily caught after dark. The traps shown are another way to catch the bird.

As a kid I used a simple trap made from a cardboard box, a stick and string. It’s cheap to make and effective.

For a couple of days before trying to trap the bird put a little grain where the bird can see it. After he starts to eat there the trap can be put in place. Stay close by so the bird will become accustomed to your being there while it eats.

The cardboard box is about 12" wide, 10" high and 18" long. Fasten a weight at one end. A piece of 2x3 or 2x4 works well. Then cut a access door in the top about 6” X 6” for removing the bird after caught.

With a stick about 10 to 12” long prop up the end of the box with the weight. Tie a string to the stick, put a little grain outside of the box where the bird can see it and a small pile of grain under it. Go about 20 or so feet away from the trap with the string.

With the bird under the box, the string is pulled, the stick falls away and the box falls over the bird. Reach in through the door cut in the top and retrieve the bird.

BOB TRAP

A bob trap using a wire coat hanger to make the bob is a little more work. It did do the job when I was asked by someone to catch a pair of birds nesting under the roof soffit of their home. On my way to school I would bait the trap and check it on the way home. It took a couple of days but they were caught and made I think 50 cents for doing it. 50 cents in 1948 or 49 was a ticket to a movie, popcorn and a coke so I felt well compensated for the time.

To make the bobs take a wire coat hanger, bend it and form a 1-1/2" wide X 9" long U.

Tightly wrap paper around it until you have about 1/4" thickness and tape it in place to form the guide for the bob.

Staple it to a stick about 1/4" thick and 3/4" wide. You may have to loosen the staples slightly for the bob to rotate freely in the paper guide.

Cut a hole in one end of a cardboard box 4" wide and 8" high leaving about 1/2" of the bottom of the box for the bob to hit so that it will not pass through the opening from the inside. Staple or glue the bob on the inside of the box in front of the opening being sure it will hit the 1/2" high stop. I forgot this when cutting the hole and had to tape it in place.

Cut a fairly larger opening in the top of the box for light inside. The one in this one is 3" x 12".
Place a little grain outside of the box and a small pile inside near the back. The bird will push through the bob to get to the grain. The bob will fall back in place over the entrance so the bird can not get out.

The box I used is made to store files. The only reason it was used is that it was all I had. Any cardboard box about 12" wide, 10 to 12" high and 16 to 18" long will do the job.
WARNING
If a pigeon is in the trap it is vulnerable to any cats in the neighbourhood. If the trap is not checked often you might find a dead bird and fat cat in it.

The band on the bird will read something like this. CU 2004 IND 1000. There are several national racing pigeon organizations. Following are links to the web sites of the largest.

If the initials on the band are:
"CU" contact The Canadian Racing Pigeon Union,
"IF" International Federation,
"AU"  American Racing Pigeon Union.
"FCQ-QC" Federation Colombhile du Quebec,
"NPA" National Pigeon Association.
Each organization will be happy to help you find the owner.
Another place to go is the 911 Pigeon Alert Site.
If you need to know how to care for a pigeon visit this site.