Sticky (Then called “Wish I Never Hatched) back on 9/11/2006
I tried to get close
She looked so desperately in need of a bath and a hug
Some say Pigeons are dirty. This bird would seem to bolster that claim.
The thing is though, all the Pigeons in the world together
couldn’t create a filth this intense, this permanent. It takes Mankind to create that
kind of toxic waste, and it takes a Man to dump it on the enviroment.
Al Striet and I were walking past the filthy gas station January ’06 when we saw her,
obviously flight impaired as she was roosting only a couple of feet off the ground.
She was an easy catch - I took her in.
She’s already cleaner than when I saw lasr September.
Sticky (Wish I Never Hatched) - 101
A couple of baths later it becomes evident thst she
is a Blue Bar.
She loves to take baths on her own - or with friends...
She fell in love with this squeaker “Mini”
Mini is a tiny bird, Al and I picked him up one week after
Sticky was picked up, from the same area.
They became inseparable.
Splish
Splash
Splish
Splash
Splish
Splash
It became clear her head and neck would have to be plucked.
I took a week to pluck a few every day till she looked like
this.
The feathers were like clumps of old rubber.
It’s amazing how quickly the feathers grow back in.
They are like nails being hammered from the inside out
When they are more grown in I’ll pluck her neck.
I’ve tried washing the feathers more - but no improvement.
The quicker they are gone the quicker she has new ones.
I don’t want to overload her system too much trying to grow too many feathers...
so I do it bit by bit. It’s less traumatic.
With her beloved Mini.
Yawn. Growing feathers can be boring.
Ah! She’s trying harder - here they come!
She didn’t like how she looked bald...
but they grow back quick! Time to start on her neck.
During this time, she laid a couple of eggs!
She was devastated, when the next day, I took Mini, the
love of her life, away for soft release.
She was depressed for a month. So was I.
Mini was too young for her... She didn’t come out of her box for a month.
She wouldn’t poop in her box either - several times a day I took her out and held her over the bin,
she would release humoungous droppings, then go strait back to the box and her (wooden) eggs.
Then came fluorescence! Bright green and some purple.
She finally came out her box and gave up on the eggs.
This is the remains of her flock, as of 3/29/2006 Somebody threw them bread, someone else threw bottles. bottles.
Sticky's Flock's Roost.
Sticky on 4/1/2006
Wish-I-Never-Hatched AKA “Sticky”
 
I first spotted this poor creature back in September ’05 down in the Chelsea High Line area. Covered in oil / tar since she hatched. I couldn’t get it then. Back in January 2006, Al and I caught her. As of today (4/1/2006) she’s still on the mend - an ongoing story. Scroll down to the bottom to see video of Sticky’s flock in their soon to be demolished residence. Dave New York City Pigeon Rescue Centralhttp://nycprc.org/http://nycprc.org/http://nycprc.org/shapeimage_2_link_0shapeimage_2_link_1shapeimage_2_link_2
This is the remains of Sticky’s flock pecking at bread and broken glass. They are behind a fence, at least one can’t fly, there is no water.