Читать книгу Birds For Dummies - Gina Spadafori - Страница 31

Pigeon-hearted? It doesn’t mean what you think. G.I. Joe was a homing pigeon noted for his service in the United States Army Pigeon Service, used for communication and reconnaissance during World Wars I and II. Hatched in March 1943, he was presented with the Dickin Medal — the equivalent for animals of the Victoria Cross or Medal of Honor — for gallantry, awarded for “the most outstanding flight made by a United States Army homing pigeon in World War II.” His 20-mile flight, achieved in an impressive 20 minutes, saved the lives of more than 100 troops by delivering a message that prevented a friendly-fire event. After World War II, he was housed at the U.S. Army’s Churchill Loft at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, and died at the age of 18 at the Detroit Zoological Gardens. In 2019, he was posthumously awarded the Animals in War & Peace Medal of Bravery.

Although lories and lorikeets may be the messiest, no bird can be considered truly neat. Well-designed cages, plenty of newspaper, a hand-vacuum, and a large assortment of cloth and paper towels can keep things under control, for the most part. Again, it’s all a matter of preference, tolerance, and mutual compatibility.

You can train many different kinds of birds to eliminate on cue. This allows you to hold them over a wastebasket or other container to capture the mess. For help in accomplishing this nifty feat, see Chapter 7.