02/02/2024
Portrayal in the arts
There have been several portrayals of pigeon keeping and pigeon fanciers in the arts. 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.
There have been portrayals of pigeon keeping in other art forms as well. The artist Zina Saunders has painted portraits of New York pigeon keepers as part of her Overlooked New York project.[18] Photographer Zak Waters shot a black and white project documenting the lives of pigeon fanciers in the UK called Birdmen. Sydney-based photographer Ho Hai Tran recently debuted his work On Pigeons which chronicled more than a year spent with the Pigeon Fanciers Society of New South Wales in Australia. The work was also exhibited in early 2013 in a show entitled Fancy which showcased portraits of some of the most notable fancy breeds including the Pouter, Jacobin, King and Dragoon. In the musical The Producers, the deranged ex-Nazi named Franz Liebkind, who writes the fictitious play Springtime for Hi**er, is a pigeon fancier.
The British visual and performance artist, Victoria Melody, investigated pigeon fanciers to create a 2009 exhibition, Demographics of a Pigeon Fancier, and a 2012 theatre show, Northern Soul. 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. Several episodes featured Simone tending to his pigeons on the roof of his home.
Origins of commercial pigeon keeping
Since their initial domestication by people, pigeons have been seen as a cheap source of good meat. The Romans certainly kept pigeons for food as evidenced by the fact that they were familiar with the practice of force-feeding squabs in order to fatten the young pigeons faster.[20] Pigeons were especially prized because they would produce fresh meat during the winter months when larger animals were unavailable as a food source. In the past wealthy landowners often had pigeon houses and kept pigeons. Strict laws were enacted to protect the inhabitants of these structures.[21]
Improving yield
Ten pairs of pigeons can produce eight squabs each month without being fed especially by the pigeon keepers. For a greater yield, commercially raised squab may be produced in a two-nest system, where the mother lays two new eggs in a second nest while the squabs are still growing in the first nest,[22] fed by their father.[23] Establishing two breeding lines has also been suggested as a strategy, where one breeding line is selected for prolificacy and the other is selected for "parental performance".[24]
Hazards
Keeping pigeons has been found to lead to a condition called pigeon fancier's lung in some fanciers.[25] Pigeon fancier's lung is an extrinsic allergic reaction resembling asthma which occurs when a person has been exposed to certain proteins in the dust associated with a pigeon's feathers over long periods of time, usually several years.[25] When a fancier develops this condition, there are several treatments which may help him or her to keep his or her pigeons.[25] However, some cases are so severe that the fancier must avoid close contact with pigeons.[26]
Famous fanciers
Al-Muzaffar Hajji (died 1347), Mamluk sultan of Egypt, who was well known for engaging in pigeon raising and racing to the chagrin of his senior aides.[27]
Maximilien Robespierre, French revolutionary, raised pigeons and sparrows in his youth.[28]
Thomas S. Monson has enjoyed raising Birmingham Roller pigeons since he was a young boy.[29]
Duncan Ferguson, former Everton player, enjoys the sport of pigeon racing.[30]
Queen Elizabeth II was a fourth generation member of the Royal Family who has enjoyed the sport of pigeon racing.[31][32] The first racing pigeons at Sandringham were a gift to the future Edward VII by King Leopold II of Belgium in 1886.
Karel Meulemans, a noted pigeon fancier in Arendonk, Belgium.
Dušan Ivković, basketball player and coach, FIBA Hall of Famer, EuroLeague Basketball Legend
Franz Liebkind, the deranged ex-Nazi writer in the musical The Producers.
Paddy Ambrose (1928–2002), Irish international footballer was said to prefer pigeon racing to the sport that he became famous for.
Nikola Tesla, famous inventor, fed the pigeons of New York City, nursing those who were sick or injured. Of the birds, he said, "These are my sincere friends."
Gerry Francis, English footballer, coach and commentator is a pigeon racing fancier.
Pablo Picasso, famous artist who kept fantails named his daughter Paloma which means pigeon in Spanish.
Charles Darwin, English naturalist, kept fancy pigeon breeds for observation and anatomical study of his test breeding.
Yul Brynner, actor, The King and I, owned Roller pigeons, known to take private helicopter to view aerial performance of his pigeons.[33]
Mike Tyson, After retiring in 2005, Tyson had a massive pigeon coop constructed in the backyard of his Paradise Valley home for his 350 pigeons; and even appeared in one season of an Animal Planet series in 2011 that documented him competing in the sport of pigeon racing.
Manuel Noriega, deposed Panamanian dictator, had many palaces to house fancy pigeons.
Queen Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom who was fond of the Jacobin strain of fancy pigeons whose feathered "cowl" resembles the garments of Jacobin monks.
Bill Lawry, former Australian cricketer and Channel Nine cricket commentator. Bill's love of pigeons has been parodied in the successful The Twelfth Man comedy recordings.
Jonathan Buckley DUP member of the Northern Irish Assembly, representing the Upper Bann constituency. Jonathan comes from a family lineage of pigeon fanciers which dates back four generations.[34]
See also
List of pigeon breeds
Pigeon racing
Dovecote
References
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Schiere, Hans; van der Hoek, Rein (2001). Livestock keeping in urban areas: a review of traditional technologies based on literature and field experiences. FAO animal production and health paper. Vol. 151. Food and Agriculture Organization. p. 29. ISBN 978-92-5-104575-6. Archived from the original on 2021-10-08. Retrieved 2021-10-08.
Bolla, Gerry (2007). "Squab raising" (PDF). New South Wales Department of Primary Industries. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2008-09-05. Retrieved 2009-09-03.
Aggrey, S.E.; Cheng, K.M. (1993). "Genetic and Posthatch Parental Influences on Growth in Pigeon Squabs". Journal of Heredity. 84 (3): 184–187. doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.jhered.a111314.
Bourke, Stephen; Boyd,Gavin (1997). "Pigeon fancier's lung" (Web Article). BMJ. 315 (7100): 70–71. doi:10.1136/bmj.315.7100.70. PMC 2127076. PMID 9240034. Archived from the original on 2008-05-14. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
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Robespierre, Charlotte (2001). Memoirs. Adamant Media Corporation. ISBN 0543909700
Heidi S. Swinton, To the Rescue: The Biography of Thomas S. Monson (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 2010)
"Pigeon Crisis For Ferguson". Union of European Football Associations (UEFA.com). 16 May 2003. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
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Bibliography
Kociejowski, Marius The Pigeon Wars of Damascus [Biblioasis, 2010] contains six chapters on the history of pigeon fancying in the Arab world
Levi, Wendell (1977). The Pigeon. Sumter, S.C.: Levi Publishing Co, Inc. ISBN 0-85390-013-2.
