Taming doves.

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Taming doves.

Post by Supposedly crazy » Wed Aug 24, 2016 9:08 pm

Has anyone ever successfully tamed a pair of diamond doves?
And if so, how tame were they?

Just curious.

Sheather
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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Sheather » Thu Aug 25, 2016 2:41 am

I had no luck.
Even babies which I held every day for an hour or so became absolutely wild by a few months of age.
~Dylan

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Supposedly crazy » Thu Aug 25, 2016 4:57 am

Hrm #-o ...
I guess they are just too timid.
I know it's very possible to tame a single dove, but I personally believe doves should always be given a mate.

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Sheather » Thu Aug 25, 2016 11:06 am

Ringneck doves are easily tamed when young though.
I have one who doesn't get along with other doves at all, but loves people and is closely bonded to a cockatiel.
~Dylan

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Supposedly crazy » Thu Aug 25, 2016 2:56 pm

Are they caged together?
I know there's exceptions, but cockatiels can really injure a dove if given the chance.
A bored cockatiel can get really keen on ripping its cage mate's feathers(and toes if given the chance) out. I've seen it with both a mother and her chicks, as well as a bonded pair.
Keep in mind they WEREN'T my birds, and they were kept in less than ideal conditions, so stress could be a factor.

But it's very possible that nothing will happen, just be
prepared if anything does.

Sorry if I'm sounding condescending.


Yes some birds prefer people, and if so, then by all means.
It's nice that he/she at least has one birdy freind, only because I know that a great majority of bird species have their mate with them nearly all the time. As a human, it's hard to compete.

I'll probably try to tame a pair anyways, I'm a rebel :)
I don't have my heart set on it though.

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Sheather » Sat Aug 27, 2016 3:11 pm

They do live together. The cockatiel was introduced to the dove as a newly weaned baby earlier this year. They preen one another and sleep next to each other now, and both are upset if they are separated. Since she (the cockatiel) is still young I'm keeping a watch in case something changes as she matures, but so far, they're best friends.

I try to keep their environment enriching so they are never bored. The dove doesn't play, but the cockatiel always has something to chew and to shred.
~Dylan

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Supposedly crazy » Sat Aug 27, 2016 3:20 pm

They sure love to shred stuff.
My male got into my closet once and chewed up the covers of all of my books [-X .
He got a bit protective of that spot, lil guy thought he made a nest.

I would double up my guard when she hits sexual maturity, a time of changes in my experience.

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Nipper06 » Thu Dec 08, 2016 12:42 pm

This is an old post I am replying to so I don't know if anyone will see my response! But, YES, Diamond Doves can be tamed. Below is a male Diamond Dove, I had from 1982 to 1997. I got him as a juvenile from a pet store. I assumed he would not become tame but I let him fly around my apartment and after a short time, he flew to me and became totally tame. His would fly to me when I called him and sit on my shoulder as long as I would let him. What did I do to tame him? Nothing except I was always very gentle and never chased him, never grabbed him, never clipped his wings... I just let him come to me, on his own terms.

His name was "Pecker" and most of the time, he was alone with me. I did get mates for him but he was very aggressive with them so I eventually sold his mates with their babies so they would get some piece. As you can see from the dates I had him, Pecker lived to be 15 years old.

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My Pets: 2 Java Sparrows, 1 Canary, 4 Gouldian Finches, 1 Green Singer, 2 Ringneck Doves, 1 Budgie, 2 Rosy Bourke Parakeets, and 1 Mixed-breed Terrier

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Supposedly crazy » Thu Dec 08, 2016 6:37 pm

I am very aware that a single bird can be tamed.
My question was if a pair could be tamed together.
Not to sound snooty.

Snooty? Is that even a word?

I appreciate the fact that you tamed him by letting him do his own thing.
Some 'taming methods' seem a little stressful to me, and quiet unnecessary.

After all, we should be happy to simply share a home with these creatures, yet some people act as if the birds owe us their companionship, when it's really the other way around.

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Nipper06 » Sun Dec 11, 2016 11:02 am

I appreciate your comments. I cringe at some of the things I read on forums about people pushing too hard to tame small, frightened birds. They want their poor scared Budgie to be tame in 1 day. If it doesn't cooperate, they wing-clip the poor thing and subject it to what in my opinion is "over-handling", like petting and stroking their birds - which I think most birds absolutely don't like because it is "unnatural touching" for them. Birds are not petters or strokers - that's a "mammal thing" - but people try and turn their parakeets into flightless hamsters!!! All that really bugs me!

I'm into just letting my birds fly free and come to me, when they want to. You do have to "push" a little bit sometimes to get them tame enough to step on your finger - but I leave it at that. And I even let my Canary flight around, without him being that finger tame. He's tame enough to fly around and will occasionally take egg food from my hand - but he won't step on my finger and I'm OK with that. But he's learned to be not super frightened of me and will return to his cage on his own or at my gentle urging. So I have a Canary that gets lots of free-flight time... better quality of life for him than most canaries get. No wing clipping at my house!

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Ron

My Pets: 2 Java Sparrows, 1 Canary, 4 Gouldian Finches, 1 Green Singer, 2 Ringneck Doves, 1 Budgie, 2 Rosy Bourke Parakeets, and 1 Mixed-breed Terrier

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Nipper06 » Sun Dec 11, 2016 11:06 am

A few more shots of my "flock"...

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Ron

My Pets: 2 Java Sparrows, 1 Canary, 4 Gouldian Finches, 1 Green Singer, 2 Ringneck Doves, 1 Budgie, 2 Rosy Bourke Parakeets, and 1 Mixed-breed Terrier

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Supposedly crazy » Sun Dec 11, 2016 7:00 pm

They are absolutely beautiful, i always wanted a pair of rosie bourkes, they seem so polite.

And i absolutely agree about the wing clipping, especially on small birds such as parakeets.
Reminds me of my ninth birthday. I asked for a budgie, and well, i got one.

First off, the store employee recommended a shamefully small cage, which was cheep, so thats the one we bought.
And then my stepmother decided (hardly a day later mind you) that she was a bird expert. And that she could instantly tame the poor thing.

Long story short, he became severely hand shy and afraid to leave his tiny cage.
I still get sad thinking about it. I can only hope that these days most pet stores will insist on appropriate cages.
Thats the least i could hope for.
Small animals seemed to be doomed as simple play things for children.
Honestly as much as i love animals, sometimes i wish i wasn't given so many pets as a child.
I wasn't wise enough to give them optimal care.

I love the fact that you even let your canary out of his cage. So many people decide that they are small enough to live their whole lives in a cage.

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Nipper06 » Wed Dec 14, 2016 10:54 am

My Canary "Tweety" (what else?) LOVES to be out of his cage and is no problem. I have gotten him to take a few pieces of hard-boiled egg out of my hand but he is not really hand-tame. But he is not flighty or fearful. By being gentle and calm around him, I can be within a foot or so of him and he doesn't fly away. He likes to "visit" with my parakeets, go in their cages, try their food, etc. And when all my keets are sitting on my arms, sometimes Tweety will do a "fly over", like he is "thinking about it". He has even flown into the kitchen, presumably to see what I was doing. He has a cute personality that I expect most Canary owners never see. If people would just relax and not constantly try to "pet" and handle their birds (like they were kittens), and tolerate them exploring a little at their own pace, a lot more birds and bird species - like Canaries - could be manageable outside their cages and they'd get a better quality of life as a result.

I realize free flight doesn't work for everyone's situation - but I think it could work for more people if they knew how to do it. But when I mention it on other forums, the "pro clipping" crowd usually shouts me down and claims I am being "judgemental" on how they keep their parakeets! (hmmm, a little guilty conscience there maybe?).

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My Pets: 2 Java Sparrows, 1 Canary, 4 Gouldian Finches, 1 Green Singer, 2 Ringneck Doves, 1 Budgie, 2 Rosy Bourke Parakeets, and 1 Mixed-breed Terrier

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Maleficum » Wed Dec 14, 2016 5:53 pm

I have a free flying ringneck dove (Sixten), one who I bred 4 years ago but moved back home this fall, had all my ringneck doves free all the time (don't have any permanent cage). But right now it's not safe for my canaries to fly free and I can't make it 100% safe for them (a few years back I lost a parakeet when he manage to crawl through a really small gap on my aquarium top and drown and the way my aquariums is now I cant make them without any gaps and I don't want risk loosing more birds that way), but they have a large cage with room to fly (W 110cm D 80cm H 140cm).

Here in Sweden it is actually against the law to wing clip a bird. Sadly some people still do it but it's not the norm especially not for smaller birds (have always been more common in large parrots).

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My canary Amy I had many years ago, she preferred to be with me instead of my other canaries.

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Octarine, mother to the dove I have now (and our lab Gletta who is afraid of my birds so we did a little bird training).

I don't like having my pets in cages so I try to have them free.

https://youtu.be/jXwSNGQp1Pc
Short video of Sixten, my "lodger" dog Fjant and my blind angorabunny Kenzie.

https://youtu.be/jUTmSjWmQ6g
Fjant and Sixten trying to "kill" the stuffed toy together. I'm glad Fjant is so gentle with my other animals (Kenzi is the boss though).
Deviantart <-- Drawings, Photos, Porcelain painting.

Instagram <-- Follow my blind rabbit on Instagram.

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Re: Taming doves.

Post by Supposedly crazy » Thu Dec 15, 2016 6:34 pm

Well it's reasonable if the cage is a good size, what really upsets me is when it's small cages, especially round cages.

And what else could possibly name a canary? Lol

That rabbit is adorable, and the background audio makes it perfect.

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