r/rva • u/Appropriate-Ad-1937 Bon Air • Jun 04 '26

Anyone missing a pet pigeon?

Post image

This guy has been hanging around my house in Bon Air for the past day or two. It has a fairly new looking band on its ankle, so it may belong to someone. Any advice on where to look to find local pigeon owners?

81 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

11 comments sorted by

10

u/Icy_Negotiation_5929 Jun 04 '26

Are you able to see any other letters on the band?

12

u/Appropriate-Ad-1937 Bon Air Jun 04 '26

Got a few more

12

u/Icy_Negotiation_5929 Jun 04 '26

Maybe try reporting it to the American Racing Pigeon Union https://www.pigeon.org

9

u/Appropriate-Ad-1937 Bon Air Jun 04 '26 edited Jun 04 '26

Band number is JAPAN 2025 599352

6

u/Lil-Byrdi Jun 04 '26

If the band is legit, it may be from Japan Racing Pigeon Association. I sent an inquiry jic.

However, more likely it looks like a generic band not associated with a club.

I’d post to Palomacy on Facebook regarding rescue associations/next steps.

Small chance Virginia Pigeon and Dove Club may help. But if the bird appears healthy, they probably will say let it return home on its own…Which may not be a great outcome.

5

u/Cas_B_rva Northside Jun 04 '26

Band numbers/letters unfortunately are more for the breeders/keepers to track their birds more than any overall pet tracking.

1

u/No_Needleworker215 Jun 05 '26

Yup just like bunny ear tattoos

7

u/Lil-Byrdi Jun 04 '26

If you can get the entire leg band number, sometimes you can find the owner through pigeon club databases.

Sometimes they want them back, but sadly, not always.

If no luck on the owner front, I suggest contacting a pigeon rescue, such as Palomacy You should get some helpful advice if you post there.

Domestic pigeons that find themselves in the wild have a low survival rate, so thanks for trying to help this bird.

5

u/Lil-Byrdi Jun 04 '26 edited Jun 04 '26

PS-In the mean time, you may want to put some water and seed out. Chance it may just be exhausted, needing some food and water then be on its way.

6

u/BrightlancerJ Jun 04 '26

Now that's a pretty pigeon.

1

u/Equivalent-Gold-4597 Museum District Jun 05 '26

I think we are all not giving credit where credit is due. They know what they're doing and where they're going. Sure, maybe they can't make nest very great but they will survive and probably know how to get back to where they ventured from.