What should I do with a pigeon after I catch it in my house?

There are two situations in which you catch a pigeon in your home. One, the bird has accidentally flown in through an open door or window, or two, you have pigeons living in your home and one has gotten into the main area. In the first situation, you can release the pigeon back outside and it will go on its merry way. In the second situation, however, releasing the pigeon will just see it return to the area of your home it has currently been living in. If this is the case, you can keep the pigeon captive until you install an exclusion funnel on the area of the home where it has been roosting. This will let any other pigeons inside get out, and will prevent the captive pigeon from getting back in. The holes in your home have to be repaired before you can release the bird. Your other option is to kill the pigeon, but if you're going to repair the holes in your building anyway, this is unnecessary. Do not try to relocate the pigeon; these birds have a homing ability, and will simply return, no matter how far away you take them.



Go back to the Virginia Beach Bird Control home page.