Feeding purebred birds requires not only the preparation of the correct diet, but also careful selection of products. What does a domestic pigeon eat? The answer to this question is very multifaceted. Street birds can eat almost any food, while purebred birds require a special diet.
This article provides a list of products that will help you determine what to feed your pigeon at home. You will learn the basic nuances of their nutrition, as well as the peculiarities of feeding birds with various grain crops.
- Features of feeding
What to feed a pigeon at home
Saturated with vitamins, beneficial macro and microelements, a balanced menu can prolong the life of any bird. Street pigeons, due to their promiscuity caused by hunger, are able to live only 2-3 years, while their domesticated relatives, with a regulated menu, live up to 10 years.
Thanks to a proper diet, the dove develops good health and immunity. She quickly gains weight and does not suffer from diseases of the reproductive organs, which has a good effect on egg laying.
To do this, every breeder needs to know what to feed a pigeon at home and adhere to some feeding rules:
- Regardless of the type of bird, it is recommended to constantly use feed mixtures with the same ingredients.
- The daily requirement for adults is 35-40 grams of balanced food.
- Undereating or overeating should not be tolerated. Both of these spoil the health of the bird and reduce the performance of the immune system. The bird does not gain weight well or, conversely, suffers from excess weight.
- The basis of good food is cereal with the addition of vitamin and amino acid complexes.
- When choosing food products for pet birds, it is recommended to take into account the age, type of bird, and time of year.
- In summer, feeding is carried out three times a day. In winter, twice is enough.
- When breeding a large number of pets, it is better to use ready-made industrial food containing the required elements.
- All feed components must be high quality, well dried and clean.
The basis of nutrition for adult birds is made up of all kinds of grains and legumes, root vegetables, meadow grasses, nettles, spinach, mineral supplements in the form of eggshells, fine-grained sand, fish oil and much more. All this can be replaced with granulated food, which veterinarians recommend using when breeding meat breeds of pigeons.
Note. If the bird has recently been ill or is going through a period of adaptation, molting, mating, then its food must be diluted with ingredients high in fat (raw sunflower seeds, rapeseed, flax, cake, etc.).
How often to feed
Birds should be fed during daylight hours at regular intervals. The birds do not eat at night (they mostly sleep in attics and rooftops). The frequency of feeding depends on the time of year:
- In the warm season (second half of spring, summer, first half of autumn), the frequency of feeding should be 3-4 times a day. You need to feed in small portions so that each pigeon eats approximately the same amount of food. It is recommended to prepare the feed mixture in advance.
- In the winter season (second half of autumn, winter, first half of spring), pigeons need to be fed 2 times a day. The reason is that birds spend most of their time in shelters where they can keep warm. Feed should be given in large portions as feeding frequency will be reduced. The feed mixture should also be mixed in advance.
- If you haven’t fed them for a long time , and the birds look emaciated and weak, you can carry out additional emergency feeding. The menu should be standard - cereals, legumes, seeds, some greens. The calorie content of extraordinary feeding should be no more than 500 calories per individual.
Is it possible to feed pigeons with millet: the pros and cons of this type of feeding
Millet is the main component used in poultry feed. Is it possible to feed pigeons millet? Of course, this grain crop contains the amount of minerals, fats, carbohydrates, and vitamins required for the development and growth of poultry. The only caveat is that the cereal should be cooked, not raw (thoroughly washed, boiled). Millet porridge is often used to feed short-billed pigeons.
Important: Before cooking, you need to thoroughly sift the cereal to prevent the development of infectious intestinal diseases caused by parasites.
General rules
To establish trusting contact, each pigeon must be fed separately or in pairs. To do this, it is advisable to serve each pigeon family individually. This makes it easier to control the process of eating and eliminates malnutrition.
The frequency of food intake contained in the bird's enclosure is as follows:
- in summer - three times a day (at 8, 13, 19 hours);
- in autumn and winter - twice (at 9, 20 o'clock), and in the second feeding it is necessary to add vitamins and fertilizers.
Is it possible to feed pigeons bread?
Wondering what is the best way to feed pigeons on the street, peace-loving bird lovers come to the conclusion that a baked product is perfect for these purposes. But this is far from true. Fresh rolls, loaves of bread, pies, loaves and other products, the preparation of which cannot be imagined without yeast and rye starch, are simply contraindicated for birds.
As a result of eating such food, a fermentation process occurs in the bird’s stomach. Because of this, digestion worsens and food is not absorbed. Therefore, the answer to the question whether it is possible to feed pigeons with bread is a categorical no. It is better to replace only the baked treat with bread crumbs or crackers.
Feed additives
Mandatory complementary foods include fresh or dried greens. You can grow grass yourself or mow it in places that are not subject to chemical pollution, far from highways and factories.
Natural materials are used as mineral additives:
- ground shells;
- charcoal;
- brick chips;
- old lime;
- coarse river sand;
- dried egg shells.
Pigeons should be fed boiled cereals or vegetables with the obligatory addition of salt. This is a necessary ingredient in a balanced diet for birds, but exceeding the norm is dangerous for their health. The salt concentration is calculated based on 10 g (1 tsp) of product per 500 ml of water. When feeding dry cereals, salt should be added to the drinking bowl regularly. Whole crystals burn the crop of birds, so they feed the food completely dissolved.
Insufficient intake of vitamins or minerals is indicated by lethargy of pigeons, loss of appetite, ruffled or dull feathers, and diarrhea. It is especially important to use supplements during breeding, feeding chicks and molting.
Is it possible to feed pigeons pearl barley?
Grain is the basis of the poultry menu. It is recommended to use millet or barley as food, because the diet of pigeons in natural conditions often consists of grain crops and plant elements (berries, grass). It is not necessary to cook pearl barley porridge; this cereal is given raw. For young animals, it is better to use boiled pearl barley.
Is it possible to feed pigeons pearl barley? Of course, the main thing is not to overdo it and not to partake in such food, which, if consumed regularly, causes blockage of the esophagus.
About
Corn
This cereal is superior to others in digestibility and energy. It contains a lot of carotenoids, carbohydrates, fats, but little amino acids, calcium, and fiber. In terms of protein content, this grain crop is superior to many others. The product is rich in iron and carotene (provitamin A). It perfectly complements grain mixtures, but is not suitable for complete nutrition.
Pigeons are fed crushed corn. You can prepare a grain mixture that saturates the body with essential substances yourself. To do this, you can mix wheat, steamed barley, and corn in equal quantities. The food can be supplemented with chopped herbs, grated vegetables (beets or zucchini) or fruits (for example, apples). Pigeons eat this delicacy with pleasure. It is especially useful in winter, as it contains many minerals and fat.
When consumed in moderation, corn causes obesity. Abuse of this cereal is especially dangerous for chicks, who may die from respiratory diseases.
What to feed pigeons outdoors in winter
During the cold season, it is difficult for wild birds to find food. The winter menu often includes rowan berries and complementary foods that people give them. In order for birds to remain healthy, their bodies must receive vital microelements and vitamins.
Power Technology
Proper winter nutrition will help birds maintain energy and warmth. Hungry pigeons often die due to exhaustion or frostbite. To avoid this, you should know what you can feed pigeons outside in winter. The following products are used as feed:
- raw pumpkin and sunflower seeds;
- pieces of frozen butter or raw lard;
- soft oat flakes;
- crumbs, crackers;
- millet, crushed corn, flaxseeds;
- boiled wheat or rice;
- young sprouts of cereals;
- chopped beans, beans, peas;
- dry greens.
But it is not advisable to give toasted seeds and dense oat flakes. A similar menu should be followed by breeders who do not know what to feed pigeons in winter at home.
Oats
This crop of the cereal family is rich in complex carbohydrates, protein, and fiber. Cereals contain many amino acids, calcium, sodium, magnesium, and potassium. But pigeons should not be given whole grains, but they eat crushed grains with pleasure. If the owner complies with feeding standards, then the bird’s body is saturated with the necessary nutrients. This product helps to quickly restore plumage after molting.
If chicks are fed crushed oats as part of grain mixtures, then they develop a strong backbone. Adults eat cereals at any time of the year. Sprouted grains compensate for the lack of all necessary substances in winter.
It is important to control the amount of oats, because if consumed in excess, the health of pigeons suffers. They gain excess weight, the functioning of the musculoskeletal system is disrupted, egg production decreases, and the risk of infections increases.
Before serving, the films from oats must be removed, as they are difficult to digest. Also, the cereal should be soaked in water or steamed for 24 hours. Oats are often mixed with other cereals, herbs, vegetables, and animal feed.
Month-old chicks are fed peeled, crushed oats. They also eat oatmeal. The amount of oats in their diet should not exceed 20%, otherwise the risk of stomach blockage increases.
Feeding pigeons during the breeding season
At this time, females and males begin to become active, lead a restless lifestyle, fly a lot, so their diet should be regular, low-fat, saturated, and rich in nutrients.
During breeding, the daily food intake increases. Depending on the breed, a dove or dove can eat 50 to 60 grams of the mixture per day. The viability of the chicks will depend on how high-quality food was used to feed the pigeons during the breeding season.
About
What do chicks eat?
As a rule, pigeons feed their chicks on their own.
During the incubation period, “milk” is formed in the crop of females and males, which serves as food for the offspring that are born. “Milk” is a mixture of curdled liquid produced in the crop and semi-digested food regurgitated from the stomach. During the first month of life, parents feed the young. Then the chicks are separated from the female. Then the worries about feeding the pigeons fall on the owner of the birds:
It is recommended to give crushed grain to young animals. As the pet grows, the size of the fractions increases. Be sure to include mineral and vitamin supplements in your diet. Feeding formulas must contain all the necessary nutrients. It is recommended to feed food rich in protein
This element helps in the formation of healthy and beautiful plumage. It is important to ensure that the chicks have clean, fresh water in their drinking bowl.
