In the many towns and cities that I cover feral pigeons are an increasing problem. When you walk around Preston, Bolton, Wigan and even some of the smaller towns such as Chorley and Leigh it is quite obvious the huge numbers of feral pigeons that make their home there. As somebody who offers a pest control service in these areas I need to be able to supply the correct advice and service, which could be pigeon proofing a warehouse in Preston, attaching repellants to window ledges on old buildings in Bolton or reducing pigeon numbers within underground car parks and other areas with public access.
WHY CONTROL FERAL PIGEONS?
Problems caused by feral pigeons can generally be divided into 2 categories –
- Damage to property and buildings- One of the problems caused by feral pigeons to buildings throughout Lancashire and the Northwest is simply damage to building structure such as damaging roof tiles as they try to gain entry to nest and roost, this can lead to general deterioration of a property in quite a short amount of time. Another aspect of this is the massive amount of feathers, nesting material and droppings that build up very quickly once pigeons gain access, this can block drains and gutters adding to the problem. The droppings of feral pigeons also deface the surface of buildings adding to the erosion of old stone work.
- Public health- The risk to public health through having large numbers of feral pigeons should not be under estimated. Feral pigeons commonly carry diseases such as salmonella, psittacosis and pseudo-tuberculosis and their dropping are ideal places for bacteria to grow. When pigeons make their home close to human habitation we also have to deal with the parasites they carry. Pigeons will often be found to be carrying mites, lice and bird fleas which can very easily infest ones home. Bird fleas are species specific meaning that they will only thrive on birds but this will not stop them infesting your home or work place and feeding off humans. I once was called to deal with a re-occurring flea problem in Wigan that a different pest controller had failed to solve, after carefully surveying the property I found feral pigeons living in the apartment roof space to be the root cause.
Also the damage to stock in warehouses and shops can be massive in financial terms, this is especially so when feral pigeons gain access to areas used to store food products.
For any feral pigeon problems Call Ian Smith 07821318954