$1,000 fine for feeding the birds! (pigeons, raccoon, geese, wildlife)

[Marylandkitten]

Stop feeding the Pidgeons of New York

"NEW YORK - Put your hands up and back away from the breadcrumbs. Feeding New York City pigeons could soon be banned under a proposal to thin the flocks of the birds sometimes referred to as "rats with wings."

...I'm sorry, after reading the article completely, I have to put in my two cents, albeit DRIPPING with sarcasm here.

I love all animals. New York belonged to the birds long before we came in and metropolized it. . .now they are trying to kill and starve them off by banning the only decent people left that take the time out of their day to enjoy the birds or care for their welfare?

That would be like putting a 1k fine on feeding third world civilizations and whatnot, or trying to help increase the immunization in their elementary schools, because then feeding them, and supporting them financially would be less of a burden if they all just died off and stopped being our problem.

I know it can be annoying to see bird poop on your car, but c'mon people. Common sense can't dance hand in hand with border line animal abuse and lunacy. Sometimes, enough is too much. Sheesh!

[eevee]

I actually agree w/ the ban (though I think $1k is a hefty price). I'm an animal lover too, and despite not liking the damage they can cuase, I do like pigeons (especially the all white or brown ones that pop up every now and then).

Animal lovers/activists are a funny bunch (not saying that to be mean). Why do people seem to think that the pigeon population will die out if people don't feed them their leftover stale bread and Micky D fries? Isn't people feeding wild animals an act of interfering with nature? aren't animal activists ALWAYS cautioning against this, saying that wild animals should be left alone and people shouldn't feed or mess with them? Why is feeding pigeons ok, but feeding (either directly or indirectly) bears, raccoons, and rats not ok? If people stop feeding pigeons, they won't die off; yes some will face hardships due to the decrease in food, but the majority will continue on just as they always have before people started tossing them old pizza crusts. Then of course, there the whole "survival of the fittest" thing. Nature has made it so that sickly, weak animals that can't properly feed themselves die off so that they can no longer breed. Aren't we screwing this up by feeding sickly birds that would have otherwise died? How long before the population gets so out of hand that people must feed them otherwise the ecosystem can't support the artificially increased number?

Honestly, all this pigeon and even squirrel feeding, while cute, may actually be domesticating these animals or forcing them to rely on humans for food. When I lived in Boston, there were a lot of fearless squirrels in the Boston Common that would run up to people and even crawl up their legs for food. are these squirrels even "wild" anymore or just free range public pets?

Plus, it's amazing the amount of pure crap people feed to pigeons and other animals. Leftover fast food, restaurant trimmings, including rancid meat, chewing gum, chocolate, chewy, gummy candies, etc. How the heck is feeding any animal this crap helping them?

Then there's the fact that this leftover pigeon feed can attract other animals. People who toss out pigeon feed at night (when the birds can't really see it) are really just feeding the sewer rats and raccoons. Cities go through a lot of effort trying to decrease wild rat population, but people tossing out bags of bread chucks to the birds are reversing their efforts in many cases.

I love animals too, but I realize that I can't keep interfering with nature. Feeding wild birds does more harm then good to the animals. If you want to feed the birds, check out wildlife sanctuaries and ask if you can do so there w/ the approved foods, or just go to the zoo. don't treat wild animals as pets, unless you're willing to take the FULL responsibility for their lives as a pet owner

[hjlacey]

I have been in NYC when pigeons swoop at heads and fly up in your face while you are walking. They will not starve to death, they will just go somewhere else where people will feed them like seagulls on the beach!
In my town a little upstate from NYC we had trouble with people feeding the canadian geese. Not only did they ruin the walking areas and playing fields with goose s*** but they actually started falling ill with something growing in the bread. I think a kind of yeast. Many geese died from it.