A Wacky Racing Pigeon Story

A severely injured racing pigeon had the sense to call into one of our members for help, last summer. Our Pro-Member told us the following story.

Walter chooses the right place to be rescued

The racing pigeon sauntered into our garage but disturbed by my husband's movement, he flew off. This enabled us to see that he had a badly injured wing, it looked tatty and bloody. He landed on a car on the drive, which was when we noticed the rings on both legs. Assuming it was a racing pigeon we set about catching it. It took some coaxing and a swift, but gentle manoeuvre with a sheet secured the pigeon so that we could read the phone number on its ring. We live in the Cotswolds and it turned out that the pigeon, who was from the Wirral in Liverpool, had been released to race from Hereford back home.

It transpired that the pigeon had been attacked by a hawk and, struggling with its injuries, it lost its way, ending up dramatically off course and on our driveway. The pigeon owner asked us to keep the pigeon in a box for 24 hours and give him water as he would be dehydrated.

We decided that a dog cage would be a good temporary home, so that was erected outside on a table, tucked in a corner on the terrace out of the 30-degree sunshine. We covered the cage with a towel and kept the bird quiet, christening it Walter, in the meantime, after the Canadian actor Walter Pigeon.

First Aid Measures

Of course, having done the WHAg course in homeopathy – both farm and pet, we administered Aconite and Arsenicum which was already made up in a spray. The fear was that after the shock and stress of his experience, he might be dead by morning. He certainly looked very discombobulated and in need of some ‘TLC’. We spoke to a vet friend and they agreed to oversee our care of the pigeon, although, he did think it may need to be put to sleep, if it didn’t die first. To cover the need for rapid rehydration, I included China in the drinking water. In retrospect, we could have put molasses into the water also, to help with restoring energy. We settled him down in dry grass cut from the garden and added in some herbs that the wild pigeons usually like - oregano, lavender, calendula and dandelions. It turned out racing pigeons aren't that interested in herbs.

Hope shines brightly...

The pigeon owner kept in daily contact with us and when Walter appeared to survive the first 24 hours, we risked holding him over the sink and gently irrigating the wounded wing with saline solution via a large plastic hypodermic. Having flapped watery blood everywhere, the wing looked cleaner. We sprayed it with colloidal silver and gave a spray of Narayani Injury Mix over the wound and misted the bird’s seed and water also with Injury Mix.

Over the next five days, we continued giving Walter Aconite and Arsenicum plus Injury Mix which was sprayed on his seed and put into the water. By day three it had become very warm and, hoping that a bath might help with Walter’s wing, we put a clean plant pot saucer into the cage, and he did actually jump in and have a splash around. This plus our wash on day 2 helped clean up the wing.

Knowing we needed to keep the stress down, we didn’t attempt to wash the wing again and, as each day passed, you could see how bright he had become. By day 3, the outdoor temperatures plummeted to around 16-18 degrees. Poor Walter seemed cold so I popped to the pet shop to buy warm bedding. As luck would have it, the lady behind the till was a pigeon fancier herself. She recommended giving a high-calorie/fat seed, so I put the barley straw back on the shelf and took home feed rich with sunflower hearts and other high-energy seeds. We put more towels over the cage and tried to keep the draughts down.

Eventually, a pigeon carrier (not a carrier pigeon) made contact and arrangements were made for Walter to be transported in a van back to the Wirral. Towards the end of his stay, Walter became restless and frustrated; I thought he was missing his friends back home; so, in true WHAg style, I popped some Ignatia in the water too over days 4 and 5.

Walter, Day 3

On day 5, the pigeon carrier arrived. He was an experienced pigeon racer himself and, in fact, auctions pigeons. On first sight of the bird, he exclaimed how well he looked. He carefully picked him up and smiled. He felt good in his hands and he looked closely at the wings. Walter had definitely been attacked, but he was certain that the damaged feathers would drop out allowing new ones to grow back. He also told us that often pigeons attacked by hawks usually die from shock. We think that quick administration of those shock remedies made a difference.

We waved Walter off to the Wirral with a little sadness, although, sitting on the front seat of the van were three bottles of remedies for Walter’s dad to use and some for the pigeon carrier’s pigeons! We’ll stay in touch because they’d like to learn how homeopathy could help their other racing birds. Subsequent chats with Walter’s Dad showed that he already embraced the Whole Health Approach. His loft is clean and bright, and he works hard to ensure stress levels are kept to a minimum. He also sent a photograph of all the natural supplements he uses on his birds, including the fact that he gives them weekly doses of garlic and apple cider vinegar.

This story demonstrates the joy of proactive homeopathy, where conventional medicine is more about waiting and seeing. Furthermore, we have been introduced to the colourful and magical world of pigeon racing. It is a dying activity, sadly, as few young people are considering it as an interest. Perhaps if they looked at the prize money, they might be more interested. The big races can pay over £80,000 to the winner, and winning pigeons command prices over thousands of pounds. Believe it or not, a racing pigeon can sustain lengthy flights at over 70mph; they are real athletes, so the judicious use of supplements, nutrition, and homeopathy makes sense.

Here are some of our thoughts on remedies for racing pigeons:

Exhaustion after a long race: Arnica, Rhus Tox and Ruta

Dehydration after racing: China

Stress after an attack or accident: Aconite, Arnica and also Arsenicum

Very low energy and almost lifeless: Carbo veg

Leg/wing breaks: Symphytum

Infections or injuries: Narayani Infection, War and also Injury Mix

During rescue, when the pigeon is away from home for a few days: Ignatia

Racing in hot weather: Belladonna and China to help with rehydration

Growth and development support: Tissue Salts

Apparently pigeons are happy when they stand on one leg!