Why Sky Puppies?

We want everyone to realise there’s no important difference between land and sky puppies.

The only reason we treat pigeons differently from dogs is because of speciesism – the misguided idea that one species is more important than another. No one in their right mind would dare poison a cute little puppy or shoot dozens of dogs for “sport”. But the same things are done to pigeons all the time.

All they want is to live out their lives in peace with their loved ones, just like the puppies of this world.

What Makes Them So Great?

 

These Fidos of flight are maths whizzes of the animal kingdom – they can distinguish between number groups and learn abstract mathematical rules. We’ve seen only two other species on Earth do this: humans and rhesus monkeys.

Sky puppies can also pass the self-awareness “mirror test”, which only a handful of other animal species have done. They can recognise all 26 letters of the English alphabet and are great problem-solvers.

Sky puppies also understand space and time, and given their unique brain structure, we’re not even sure how! These gentle animals have a culture, mate for life, and are wonderful parents.

Protect Sky Puppies From Being Trapped

All across the country, in public spaces – outside shops, at train stations, and under bridges – sky puppies are dying in pain after becoming trapped in netting designed to deter them.

Often, netting doesn’t effectively keep sky puppies away, but it can cause them to become fatally entangled. As much as they struggle, in many cases, they can’t escape, and suspended in mid-air, they endure a slow, agonising death from starvation or strangulation.

Seeing sky puppies suffer is extremely distressing – but you can take action to help them:

 

  • Check to see whether there’s any way that you can safely help the bird escape.
  • If not, report the trapped animal immediately to the shop, council, or organisation responsible for the netting. It has a legal responsibility to release the bird and prevent more birds from being trapped.
  • If no action is taken, contact the relevant authorities. In England or Wales, call the RSPCA’s cruelty line on 0300 1234 999. In Scotland, call the Scottish SPCA’s animal helpline on 03000 999 999. In Northern Ireland, call the police on 0300 200 7840. And in the Republic of Ireland, call the ISPCA’s cruelty helpline on 1890 515 515. Take photographs as evidence, and give as much information as you can about the bird’s location and condition. Ask that an inspector visit the location.

For ongoing problems in England and Wales, such as netting in which you have repeatedly seen birds become entangled, you can also e-mail the RSPCA at [email protected], call local police on 101, or contact the council.

Helping trapped sky puppies is an example of everyday activism that anyone can do, and it really can save lives!

Protect Sky Puppies From Being Forced to Race

A PETA US undercover investigation into the largest pigeon racing organisations in the UK  revealed massive numbers of birds were lost or died during gruelling and hazardous races. In one race, more than 90% of the pigeons didn’t return. Many of the survivors who struggle against the odds to return to their lofts but aren’t deemed valuable enough for future races or breeding are killed by gassing with car exhaust, drowning, or neck-breaking.

There are more than 40,000 sky puppy racers in the UK, and they raise an estimated 2 million birds annually.

Please take action to prevent more pigeons from suffering in cruel races.

Be Kind to Sky Puppies

Pigeons and dogs – there’s no important difference between the two. They’re both charming and intelligent beings. Just like dogs, pigeons feel joy, fear, excitement, and pain and value their lives. The only thing separating pigeons and puppies is speciesism.

Change the perception – call pigeons “sky puppies” whenever you can, and encourage your friends and family to do so as well!