The Shower Cap Tradition is continued (8 days) and Angelo is sitting on my Hand

From the

Diary as of  7/29/ – 7/30/09

7/29 Today I discovered that both babies will have a few white feathers on their heads – so the shower cap tradition will be continued.You remember – Willy (the father) has a nickname: Shower Cap Willy because of his white feathers on his head!

Peppi will have white wing feathers and a totally white tushie. I cannot regognize though how Pina will be coloured. This is too early. But at least it is quite clear that both have completely different personalities: Peppi has his father Willy’s genes – always chatty, always moving around but not anxious. Peppi is not aggressive though as his father was, who was always picking at my fingers first before he realized how good this is -  getting stroked softly on one’s head.  Peppi is friendly and sweet. Pina is the calmer, the one who seems to think more, the little philosopher and she gets teased by her brother all the time.

7/30 Peppi and Pina are doing very well. They are awfully chatty – lol – so sweet and they are moving around a lot. I will have to be careful.

Today I tried to teach them to drink water – at least both swallowed – they seemed to be thirsty because it is quite warm and windy. The parents are leaving them alone quite often. Too often already for my taste.

Peppi is now 275 gr and Pina 250 gr – on the pics they are now 8/7 days old!

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Also today:

Angelo is carrying his name proudly and with every right – he is so intelligent and sweet. Today he sat on my bycicle again on the handle bar and I approached him with his favourite food: sunflower hearts of course. I let him pick up 2 or 3 seeds and then moved my hand a little bit further away so that he could hardly reach the seeds. I let him pick another one. Then I moved my hand even further so that he could not reach it any more and so he decided to jump on my hand and eat from there. What a clever boy and what a feeling. To have a feral pigeon on my hand whom I did not “raise” from the beginning. He even stayed there after he had eaten all seeds. So I could even walk with him on my hand a few steps until he decided to take off. What a moment!!!!

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Babies are so small – are they behind? (day2 to 7)

From the

Diary as of  7/22 – 7/28/09

7/22 The babies are sooo small still. So tiny and so vulnerable. But look how adorable they are still with lots and lots of yellow “fur”.

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Jimi and Joey are now coming in the morning for food and later on during the day or late afternoon again. They are both eating like crazy, they are even smacking and are in such a hurry that they eat the corn crossways, no matter how big it is. I would never have thought that they can eat such big pieces!!! I suspect that both have babies because they only eat as much as they can and then are off again in a hurry. Normally they would stay for a while and listen to me chatting with them. Now they have no time for me! Both are in the moult – especially Joey – he looks really awful, totally ragged and Jimi is missing a lot of feathers around his mouth.

7/23 Emma has laid her second egg – it is #27. How many still?

7/24 – 7/25 The babies are still very small – I am a bit worried because they are much smaller than their parents have been and the others. I compared the photos.

7/26 Today I weighted  Peppi – he has 100 gr – Pina has 90 gr after 6/5 days – is this good or bad? I have no idea how much a feral pigeon should weigh after that time.So many things to learn still. I decided to do a regular check on their weight until I am sure that everything is okay.

7/27 Unbelievable but both made a giant step. Peppi has 110 gr now and Pina 105 gr. So it seemed. I have yet to keep in mind that I do not know any more whether I weighed them yesterday before or after feeding.

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7/28 Peppi and Pina are both growing better now. It’s day 6 and 7 now. Quills are coming out and their poop – a lot – looks very fine – as it should: round, brown green little heaps with a white top. Perfect!
Willy and Winnie are wonderful parents although they are still so young and although it is only their 2nd clutch. The behave as if they had done nothing else. Remember – their first child was incredible Angelo! They do care a lot:  f.e. when it was windy and a bit cool today Winnie came more often and warmed the babies.

Both parents are feeding them simultaneously now quite often. One can see that the babies need much more food now. Winnie and Willy are often coming into my studio to “ask” for sunflower seeds. As if they exactly know how they could boost up the growth of their little ones. These little buggers know so well how they can make me weak!!

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Emma is okay again and Willy’s new Babies have hatched!

From the

Diary as of  7/15/ – 7/21/09

7/15  – 7/18 Emma’s poop is  still a bit thin but she seems to be okay again. I am so happy. She recovered very quickly.

7/18 Big highlight of today was: Angelo jumped on my hand in order to eat his beloved seeds directly there !! I tried this a couple of times, laying my hand with the seeds on the balustrade as usual and then moving it slowly further away until he could not reach it any more, making his neck as long as possible without falling fromthe balustrade. So he had to make a decision – either no seeds any more or jumping on my hand to reach them again. I know – I was mean but it worked:  today he was couragious and jumped on my hand. What a feeling this is.

Joey not coming for breakfast….

7/20 Yippee – Willy’s first baby of the second clutch has hatched during the night. Sooooo tiny but so full of golden hair….. thank heaven it is warm again!

7/21 Second baby hatched too – how wonderful. Willy is behaving like a berserk – protecting his precious nest and fighting everything and everyone who dares to come near.

Joey appeared this morning again to get food!

Emma laid an egg: it is #26! She will be ruining her little body if she continues like this…

And now I want to introduce Peppi and Pina to you:

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Now look at these lots and lots of golden “fur” –

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We have Twins!

From the

Diary as of 5/16/ – 5/17/09

5/16 WE HAVE TWINS! You won’t believe this but Wally and Randy – jumped out of their egg shells today, very early in the morning – around 4 °clock the first one and only a few hours later came the second! That’s why we called them twins. Now I have the problem that I do not know who is Wally and who is Randy. We will see in a few days who fits the name best.

Is this happening in pigeon lives that both babies hatch nearly the same time????? I knew it – we have some very special little guys!

AND Jimi is back today. He just appeared and asked to be fed. What a sweetie – he knows where his real home is! I am very relieved that he is doing okay. His beak and his whole little face looks really worn out – apparently he has some begging mouths to feed. It really looks as if some baby beaks are always trying to stick theirs into pappa’s. But it also could be that he is fighting all the time with other pigeon guys. I have seen him once with a “bloody nose” – which means that his beak’s knob was really incrusted with blood. Yet after 2 days theses injuries were healed. Thank heavens.

I really don’t quite get it anyway that “our” little philosopher – as I called him while he was sitting on my easel – has become such a macho and is battling with other guys. He always used to avoid any conflicts and rather flew away.

5/17 Wally and Randy’s second day on this world. Today I watched Pete already feeding them. That’s early. Both seem to be in good shape and already very vivid!!! So sweet both of them!!

And soooooo tiny!

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Coming back…(5 weeks)

From the

Diary as of 5/15/08

Big joy!! Willy found his way back in the morning – now the whole family is together again. I am soooooo happy. I would have been terribly sad if our cheeky Willy would have been gone. But apparently that was an experience he needed. I wonder where he spent the night…

Funny thing – now the parents did not come back in the evening. For the first time the kiddos were both alone. But from now on they don’t sleep in the nest (Flower pot) any more but on the side board in the basket. What a change….

the whole family together….

Willy – as cheeky as always and as if nothing had happened….

Where the hell has he been that he needs to clean himself up like this????

Emma – having a nap in the basket – no wonder after all those excitements…

Pete – as usual – doesn’t know anything….

Emma – taking the chance to explore the appartment…

Pete – of course – cannot leave her alone….

Willy and Pete in deep dispute again – the one among REAL men…

But from time to time he remembers still being a baby and begs for food – as if he could not eat all by himself!!!! tztztz

but Pete has a big heart for his greedy kiddos…