How to get rid of pigeons from rooftops, balconies, and industrial buildings is one of the most often asked issues by those who have pigeon difficulties. Pigeons are generating an annoyance at best and a health concern at worst. Pigeon excrement are acidic and may etch through metals or even concrete, regardless of the mess.
We'll go through how to get rid of pigeons using several approaches in this post so you can quickly discover the best answer for your situation.
What is the Best Way to Get Rid of Pigeons?
- Culling Pigeons: This strategy involves shooting, poisoning, trapping, and even utilizing raptors.
- Reducing Pigeon Reproduction: This approach involves the use of pigeon birth control, nest destruction, and dovecotes, as well as egg removal or replacement.Physically Excluding Pigeons: To keep pigeons away, this strategy includes employing spikes, wires, slides, and shock tracks.
- Using Deterrents: Sonic and ultrasonic emitters, effigies, reflected and direct light sources, propane cannons, and trained raptors are used to dissuade pigeons in this manner.
- Using Repellents: To repel pigeons, this strategy comprises the use of gels and pastes, optical gels, fogs, and fumes.
| Method/Product | Best Used For | Advantages | Disadvantages |
| Culling | |||
| Shoot | Killing birds | Immediate action, low cost | Generally prohibited in public. Represents a harvest as opposed to a control program |
| Poison | Killing birds | Immediate action | Non-target risks; socially unacceptable, short-term solution; dead and dying birds |
| Trap and euthanize | Killing birds | Immediate action | Often unacceptable where people are present. Short-term effects; birds get “trap shy” |
| Raptors | Predator and prey | Pigeons are a natural prey species; environmentally sound solution | Mating pairs are difficult to attract under most urban conditions. Raptors migrate and will leave the area part of the year |
| Reduce Reproduction | |||
| Birth Control | Abatement alternative | Gradually but predictably unwinds the pigeon population | Takes some time to work |
| Nest destruction | Destroy individual nests | Best for a small number of nests where exclusion will be installed | Completely ineffective since the mating pair will just build new ones. |
| Dovecots combined with egg removal or replacement | Commune with nature in a park | Provides a safe and secure way of harvesting eggs | Ineffective at controlling a population of pigeons; only provides extra housing for the birds. |
| Physical Exclusion | |||
| Spikes | Rails, perching areas | Inexpensive; can be highly effective under the right set of conditions; easy installation | In best case, will only move birds to the next best location |
| Bird Wire | Rails, fences, rooflines, perching areas | Useful tool to keep pigeons off perching areas. | More complex installation especially on rooflines |
| Slides | Narrow perching areas | Inexpensive and relatively easy installation | Only suitable under the appropriate conditions where a slide can be installed. |
| Netting | Gold standard for physically excluding birds from both large and small areas and structures | Tangible and immediate effect; can represent a permanent fix for problem birds. | Costly installation requiring professionals. Moves the problem to neighboring structures or facilities |
| Shock track systems | Rails, perching and loafing areas and surfaces | Highly effective in keeping birds off landing and perching areas | Equipment can be complex. Professional installation normally required. More costly than spikes |
| Deterrents | |||
| Sonic and ultrasonic emitters | Aural harassment | Can be used in larger areas where exclusion is not practical | Birds acclimate to the sounds |
| Effigies – plastic owl, rubber snake | Visual harassment | Can be effective short term | Birds acclimate to effigies |
| Reflected and direct light sources | Visual harassment | Can be effective long-term under appropriate conditions | Costs have a wide range; from shiny pie plates or CD’s to industrial lasers |
| Propane cannon | Harassment | Tangible and immediate effects | Birds acclimate and eventually ignore the noise; not suitable for urbanized areas |
| Trained raptors | Harassment with predators | Pigeons will flee raptors | Pigeons come right back when the birds of prey go home |
| Repellents | |||
| Gels and pastes | Perching areas | Inexpensive | Can kill smaller birds; requires consistent reapplication |
| Optical Gel | Perching and loafing areas | Small and inexpensive; easy to install | Not necessarily appropriate for larger areas. Intensive cleaning required. |
| Fogs and vapors | Large indoor areas | Ideal for large volume structures | Inconsistent action |
Pigeons on a Balcony: How to Get Rid of Them
Pigeons may be removed from tiny places, such as balconies, with very easy common-sense measures. To keep pigeons from perching on rails, use a wire coil or stainless-steel wire.
- Shock Track: To prevent birds off balconies, some companies provide a "shock track" device.
- The shock track does not harm the bird, but it stimulates it enough to make the intended perching place unappealing.
- Consider installing a netting system to physically keep birds off of balconies. This is the most expensive option, but it is 100 percent effective if put correctly. Netting has improved to the point that it is almost undetectable. Sound or reflected light are two examples. Sound or reflected light is the most effective approach to keep pigeons away from your patio, deck, or balcony. A wind chime, Mylar balloon, aluminum foil pans, or even hanging CDs can be used to do this. The birds are thrown off by the reflected light.
- Rubber snake or a plastic owl: Use scarecrows (also known as "effigies"). A plastic owl or a rubber snake are the most typical examples. Regrettably, the results will most likely be transient. The scarecrow becomes familiar to the pigeons as something that is not a threat.
- Spikes: Anti-perching spikes can be placed wherever where birds prefer to perch to deter them from doing so. Spikes are best used in small areas if the purpose is to transport the birds to another location. They come in a variety of materials, ranging from plastic to stainless steel.
- Repellants made of gel: Gel repellants can be applied on ledges where pigeons perch. The gel coats the surface, making it sticky, and the birds will avoid it. Unfortunately, dust and dirt take their toll, necessitating frequent reapplication. Gel repellants should not be used in areas where there are tiny birds. They may become caught in the ooze indefinitely.
Pigeons on a Roof: How to Get Rid of Them
It might be far more difficult to get rid of pigeons from a home or business roof. All of the strategies for keeping pigeons off a balcony (above) may also be used to wider open locations, albeit some are better than others. To keep pigeons from perching on the ridge, use a wire coil or stainless-steel wires. A "shock track" technology might deter birds from landing on roofs. Wire or netting can be used to cover nooks in a roof design. You may also use netting to prevent the pigeons from building a nest.
Pigeons love solar panels because they give good shelter. The most efficient way to keep birds out is to use metal grid netting. The problems of flat commercial roof designs are unique. The first approach is to electrify the perching spots on the parapet. Installing basic spikes is the second method. Be aware that pigeons like the convenience of HVAC systems. Consider netting these units as a solution.
How to Get Pigeons Out of Industrial Buildings
Pigeons are attracted to contemporary industrial facilities because of their fundamental character and extent. The architecture of these facilities is frequently open, allowing birds easy access in and out. Pipes, beams, poles, and catwalks, furthermore, provide a variety of harborage and nesting opportunities. Pigeons, as mobile pests, may travel easily from one section of the plant to the next, and food supplies are usually close by.
Pigeons may be an expensive nuisance for plants, and in many cases, they've been around since the facility's inception. The nests, dung, and detritus may cause significant damage to the mechanical and electrical components of a plant over time. Furthermore, the birds' droppings and other trash contribute to an already dangerous environment, posing further health risks.
The majority of traditional pigeon mitigation strategies provide little comfort to an industrial site, therefore decision makers frequently choose culling solutions since everything else is either excessively expensive or impossible. Methods such as catching and killing the birds may temporarily relieve the situation, but pigeons invariably return and repopulate the extremely desirable place in a few weeks or months due to their quick reproduction. Physical isolation is usually not a possibility at a bigger facility, despite the fact that it is very successful at smaller facilities. A net cannot be used to protect an oil refinery or a power plant.
The more prevalent methods for smaller facilities are only suitable for solving isolated problems in a bigger operation. Physical exclusion to keep birds out is required in areas where there is zero tolerance for birds, although the overall management plan must focus on abatement. The following diagram depicts the many bird control choices available. There are just two options available:
- Increase mortality by using typical culling methods like as trapping, shooting, or poisoning.
- Use a contraceptive to limit reproduction.
A control program based on OvoControl is the most effective technique for a complicated installation. In these vast sites, where traditional bird control tactics may not be feasible or cost-effective, a contraceptive might be quite useful. While it may appear contradictory to some that luring birds without killing them is a good idea, the long-term success of OvoControl at a variety of industrial locations proves otherwise. OvoControl is a safe, simple-to-use, and successful solution for pigeon population management in everything from oil refineries to power plants.
Over time, OvoControl shrinks the population organically through attrition. The population drops at a rate of around 50% each year with sustained usage. Industrial establishments will reduce their pigeon population by 90 to 95 percent with a proper contraception program. Furthermore, many industrial complexes have difficult environmental stewardship locations. Fortunately, OvoControl is an ecologically friendly pigeon abatement approach that poses no harm to raptors or scavengers.
Conclusion
There is no single method or solution that can address all pigeon issues. There is no guaranteed technique to get rid of all the birds short of exterminating them. Pigeons have been among us for thousands of years and, like rats, aren't going anywhere anytime soon. Unfortunately, even fatal tactics only have a short-term effect since the remaining flock quickly breeds back the ones that have gone missing. Instead of a true control scheme, lethal remedies are frequently used to "harvest" pigeons. The strategies indicated above may be used to tackle both large and minor challenges, while all but the simplest locations will require some observation and preparation to build a safe and effective strategy for success.
Why Don't We Just Shoot the Birds?
Regardless of any humanitarian concerns, the casual observer frequently asks, "Why not just shoot the birds?" to solve a pigeon problem quickly and effectively. While culling alternatives give a quick and concrete remedy to a pigeon problem, the results are temporary. Most of the time, the population will simply "backfill" the hole left by culling by increasing reproduction and bringing in even more birds. Unfortunately, simply killing the birds gives the appearance of control. You can only properly regulate the population in a way that provides long-term control by restricting reproduction. Killing pigeons has become more akin to a harvest than a true control program over time.