Pigeon keeping

In that time, humans have substantially altered the morphology and the behaviour of the domesticated descendants of the rock dove to suit their needs for food, aesthetic satisfaction and entertainment.

[8] Other flying/sporting pigeons are bred for unique flying characteristics other than homing, such as rolling, high-flying, and diving.

Their owners compete them against each other at exhibitions or pigeon shows and judges decide who has the best by comparing them to each other and their respective breed standard.

The meat of pigeons is customarily referred to as squab and is considered a delicacy in many parts of the world.

There are no real constraints on the design of housing for pigeons but there are some things that most fanciers find desirable.

At the same time these houses are constructed to keep the pigeons safe from predators and inclement weather and give them nesting places in which to raise their squabs.

Extra pens allow for the keeping of spare, unmated females and males which can be useful to replace existing pigeons which might perish from disease or predation.

A trap or at least bobs and landing board allows the pigeon to get back into their home when they are ready to do so.

Sometimes pigeon fanciers cannot allow their birds complete liberty due to complaints of neighbors.

One of the more famous portrayals of this hobby was in the film On The Waterfront where the main character, Terry Malloy, is a pigeon keeper.

[17] In the film Ghost Dog, the title character is a hitman who communicates only using homing pigeons.

[18] Photographer Zak Waters shot a black and white project documenting the lives of pigeon fanciers in the UK called Birdmen.

In the musical The Producers, the deranged ex-Nazi named Franz Liebkind, who writes the fictitious play Springtime for Hitler, is a pigeon fancier.

The projects were the result of months spent living with British pigeon fanciers during the racing season.

[19] On the U.S. television show NYPD Blue, Detective Bobby Simone raised pigeons.

The novel Young Mungo's character James is a Catholic Glaswegian boy who has built a dovecote behind his flat.

[20] Pigeons were especially prized because they would produce fresh meat during the winter months when larger animals were unavailable as a food source.