Pigeon Feet

[saffstar]

Does anyone know why so many pigeons have toes missing? Is it due to some disease/parasite that they suffer from or is it that they're just unlucky?

[Greedyfly]

It is to do with accidents and disease - im not sure of the name but just recently someone asked this question or one simular and the name was given there. The question was originally asking if pigeons are vermin and we pretty much decided that they were dirty flying rats ; )

[David H]

It's a degenerative disease called bumblefoot, but no one knows what causes it. It doesn't seem to bother them much, or have any other symptoms.

[apricot]

I have pigeon phobia, largely due to their deformed feet I suspect. Is there a name for pigeon phobia?

[incitatus]

bumblefoot is a streptococcal infection of the feet- but as stated above the etiology is unknown

[melv]

One of the reasons is that when its cold weather and pigeons sit on Telegraph wires their feet freeze onto the wires. When they come to fly away as their joints are so frail, their feet stay attached to the wire and they fly off without their legs. Also, apparently it is 28% of pigeons which only have one leg (in London)

[Jenny Tools]

Their reluctance to wear steel toecaps don't help.

[El C�rneo]

apricot - peristerophobia is a fear of pigeons. Found on http://www.islandnet.com/~egbird/dict/p.htm

[jjf2003]

They've been in a fight and been de-feeted (arf! arf!) :-)

[firefly]

Hasn't it something to do with an acid which is placed on buildings to keep pigeons off?

[gnasher]

i hate the filthy flying rats . i wish they had no feet so as they wouldnt be able to land !

[fayley]

Also they don't keep their nests clean - as a result the chicks get muck stuck around their toes which dries rock solid. Then more muck gets stuck on etc until they have solid balls around their toes. As the toes grow they get squashed until the blood supply is cut off all thogether and the toe dies and falls off - we used to keep pigeons and were forever having to clean out the nests and break the dirt balls off to prevent this happening. Yuk! They really are dirty birds!

[David W]

It is because their diet is so varied and mostly rubbish that all the toxins/acids in their droppins melt them.

[p beesty]

pigeons with toes missing is because when they go down to river bank for a drink they get caught up in fishing line and cut off blood supply