Pigeons, these flying birds have grown in number alarmingly in the past few years. You find them flocking around in your garden or sitting on your window sill cooing in their particular manner. It seems like they are everywhere and have started to feel annoying. So, what can be done to control their vast population? And how did it increase so much? Is using a pigeon birth control tactic the answer? If so, then which tactic could be the most effective in controlling their population? Read on to find your answers.
It has been estimated that the worldwide population of pigeons is 26,00,00,000. The main cause behind these big numbers is that some people feed these pigeons just because they love to. That is, they feed on humanitarian grounds since they feel that they must. They do so to ensure that pigeons don’t starve to death. At the same time, others do so because they believe that feeding birds is their moral duty.
Thus feeding birds at feeding centers and public places has become a common practice. This feeding is the main cause of the overpopulation of pigeons. Even if it gives you satisfaction, it actually ends up becoming harmful rather than benefiting you. As Dr. Naveen Panday says that alarmingly, feeding pigeons exposes us to health problems and may become a danger for society.
Health problems caused by pigeons
Pigeons secrete their droppings at odd places almost everywhere. These droppings are filled with spores. If you breathe them in, then they may cause many problems for you. The foremost of them being respiratory disorders. Moreover, the feces of pigeons is extremely acidic. If dropped on buildings, it destroys them. It also corrodes monuments.
In addition to this, female pigeons reproduce at an alarming rate; that is, they give birth to 48 squash in a year! On average, a pigeon can live up to 20 to 25 years. With such long lifespans for a bird, they don’t die off quickly. A well-fed pigeon excretes around 11.5 kilograms of hazardous droppings in just a year.
Global actions for prevention
In the year 2001, in London, a ban was imposed on the Trafalgar Square on feeding pigeons as it is extremely toxic for human health. In 2008, Venice also put restrictions on people who sell grains for feeding pigeons, applying strict penalties on them. Even Spain’s Catalan Town took a precautionary step in managing their pigeon population. They have been feeding pigeons Ovistop, a contraceptive that is composed of corn seeds. Those seeds are then covered with Nicarbazin. This helps in limiting their population.
Contraception
Talking of contraceptives, the OvoControl pigeon control program is your perfect choice for limiting their population. It has been estimated that by using the OvoControl program, pigeon growth declined rapidly with a 50% decrease per year. Furthermore, this birth control technique is humane and non-lethal. It simply disturbs the female pigeon’s ability to produce an egg. Thus fewer eggs mean fewer birds.
Diseases Caused By Pigeons
Dr. Kedar Toraskar says that for patients suffering from bronchitis, asthma or similar respiratory diseases, exposure to pigeons is harmful to their health. In fact, it may end up worsening their condition. The best preventive measure that can be taken is the complete removal of the source and maintaining cleanliness in the contaminated area. However, killing them off is not an option. Since this method does not produce immediate results; instead, their population increases rapidly. If you kill them, they would simply grow more. Thus OvoControl program is an ideal choice.
In addition to this, patients suffering from the diseases mentioned above should consult their physician at once to control their condition before it gets out of hand. Other birds like parrots, parakeets etc., can also worsen these diseases.
The biggest con of feeding sites is that a lot of these are constructed right outside marketplaces or community areas. As a result, many people are vulnerable to these problems. Doctors say that frequent feeding sites may lead to a disease known as extrinsic allergic alveolitis. In common terms, this is called pigeon breeders disease or bird fanciers disease. Persistent dry cough, fever, malaise and fatigue are the symptoms of this particular disease.
Dr. Kedar also adds that exposure to pigeons might cause progressive symptoms, including irreversible lung fibrosis and, in severe cases, death. These issues are caused by exposure to fecal matter and proteinaceous material on dried dust which finely falls off from the pigeon feathers.
Conclusion
Different governments and authorities must take quick steps to shut down the pigeon feeding stations. Hence all of these birds will move away somewhere else in the search for food. Furthermore, using anti-fertility drugs or contraceptives like OvoControl would end up controlling pigeon growth without harming them in return.
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