Comparative life-style of pigeons in rural and urban areas of Bangladesh

doi:10.15406/jdvar.2019.08.00246

Journal of

eISSN: 2377-4312

Dairy, Veterinary & Animal Research

Commentary Volume 8 Issue 2

Comparative life-style of pigeons in rural and urban areas of Bangladesh

Ashraful Kabir M

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Department of Biology, Saidpur Cantonment Public College, Nilphamari, Bangladesh

Correspondence: Ashraful Kabir M, Department of Biology, Saidpur Cantonment Public College, Nilphamari, Bangladesh,

Received: January 14, 2019 | Published: March 12, 2019

Citation: Kabir AM. Comparative life-style of pigeons in rural and urban areas of Bangladesh. J Dairy Vet Anim Res. 2019;8(2):75?76. DOI: 10.15406/jdvar.2019.08.00246

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Commentary

Urban areas are now more advanced on pigeons rearing than rural areas of Bangladesh. Urban people well known about pigeons and they get medical facilities from various corners especially vet. Moreover, they take it as a farm-based bird. In village, people rear it as a free range system. So, that pigeons are not their under control. Village pigeons go to the field and take insecticides and feed its young and ultimately their death is very common. Urban people take part in various seminars on pigeons, internet browsing and television program. Pigeon exhibition, good birds shop, marketing system, and imported new fancy breeds are available in urban areas which is more important to the beginners. Need to motivate to village people that pigeons can be a good source for income by hobby. In rural areas, pigeons are normally reared in free range system which is not scientific. Due to free rearing, the pigeons take food from nasty places or in the field where insecticides are available. Moreover, rearers are not well known of the pigeons’ disease. In urban areas people know about diseases and they rear it in confined areas with providing excellent food stuffs. If pigeon keepers take part about the diseases of the pigeons they will get benefit. Villagers do not rear pigeons as a productive item but in urban they take it as a farm-based and get huge benefit. Iron rod made cages, hygienic condition, and selective breeding are performed by the urban pigeon rearers where villagers do not. In Bangladesh, many religious places like mosques, churches, and pagodas are full of wild rock pigeons and for religious aspects in different races they do not catch pigeons for meat. So, its number is adequate in those places. In railway station, for great height buildings there are a lot of rock pigeons. Government rules as well as wildlife act, those pigeons are not normally disturbed by common people. Roadside pigeons rearing mainly tumbler pigeons are very common in Rajshahi division of Bangladesh but uncommon in rural areas. For proper maintaining the pigeons mainly its food and treatment of various diseases, the longevity of urban pigeons are higher than rural areas of Bangladesh.

Rural areas: The villagers are not well known about pigeons. They rear it open system, they do not know about good food and cannot provide proper treatment (Figure 1). They always serve monotype feed and for this reason pigeons get malnourish. The longevity of the pigeons here is less than urban areas. In field, most farmers use insecticides which are fatal for pigeons.

Figure 1 In rural area.

Urban areas: In those areas people know about pigeons. They serve excellent food for them as well as proper treatment. Though the urban areas are now transformed in high-rise buildings but their balcony and scientific rearing like other developed countries its management is fine (Figure 2). They collect food from the market and for their knowledge they wash out by water and after sun-dried they provide that food. Moreover, they collect genuine and brand food for pigeons.

Figure 2 In urban area.

Roadside: It happens in urban areas of Bangladesh and good for the beginners. For tumbler pigeons, the rearers get food only one time in a day. Before feeding at afternoon they fly those pigeons and after landing then 20-30 minutes break then feeding. For huge flying those pigeons are needed light food due to light body weight. Those pigeons are not good for breeding.

Railway station: For ancient and high-rise building in most urban railway station of Bangladesh we see lots of rock pigeons.¹

Ancient building: Most ancient buildings are located in urban areas.

Religious places: Most religious places are located in urban areas.

If we consider the life-style of the pigeons between urban and rural areas of course urban areas will get benefit for their mixed excellent food and management system. In urban areas, most shops which sell pigeons with other birds, their management and food are good.² In urban areas, rearers use their pigeons in selective breeding and they produce some crossbred pigeons which are good for fostering for fancy or rare breeds in semi-intensive system.³ Due to confined area in urban but proper care its number is huge than rural areas. Moreover, they can provide proper treatments of pigeons. Ultimately the longevity of those pigeons is higher than rural areas.⁴ Pigeons were very luxurious rearing birds from the Mughals.⁵ In urban areas, mainly in railway stations, many rock pigeons were found where people supplied baskets for breeding.¹ In rural areas, their supplied food was not well-mixed with various grains. In addition, those foods were not balanced and branded.³ In village, there is no vet hospital and the rearers are not well known about the diseases of pigeons. Available medicines are not adequate in rural areas of Bangladesh.⁴ Rearing system of those pigeons in rural areas mainly mixed type. They cannot maintain the specific breed due to ignorance. In village, this rearing system is mainly open so they cannot control the flock. Very dirty loft of pigeons were found in rural areas. No exhibition or good shops of birds in village where people can share the views of pigeons and collect their specific pigeon.² In urban area, there are some organizations for flying pigeon those are more important to the beginners. In rural, pigeon keepers are just flown their pigeons but not for competition. Very poor marketing system is found in village.⁶ The village farmers rear pigeons only their meat consumption and their birds are very low cost item. They do not know that by the same food and care, from fancy pigeons, we can get the profit double than the local breeds. Due to huge knowledge on pigeons the people of urban areas make nice and scientific cages so they get more benefit.

In rural areas, we can organize workshop for motivating the people for the pigeon keeping. We should say that pigeons can be a great source of income by scientific methods. We can export nice pigeons from Bangladesh. In Bangladesh, now lots of young or old people are passing their time by rearing pigeons. Pigeons are looked nice and good for its reproductive capability. Pigeons can be a lab or research bird. In rural areas, we need to provide the knowledge on pigeons especially their food and treatment.