Is there likely to be any side effects from eating a whole pigeon?  The pup got hold of a freshly dead pigeon in the park and scoffed the lot, beak, feet, feathers the lot.  I had to take my other dog back to the car and then try to entice the dark destroyer to part with his prize but as I only had Lidl dog treats it wasn't doing the business.

I still can't believe he ate the lot but hasn't poo'd or puked yet and it happened at about 5.30pm (approx 5 hours ago) and no side effects.  He didn't get his tea as I don't think he needed it but do I need to be worried.  I am aware of the usual get to the vet if he doesn't poo, has extensive dire rear or appears unwell but I am curious whether I am likely to come down to puke or dire rear in the morning. Yuck!

Should be fine. This is the ultimate in BARF - people spend a fortune trying to reproduce this diet and here is yours doing it for free!

what do you think he would eat in the wild?  They wouldn't pluck the bird first would they???  (Now that is a sight!)

You have said the answer already, keep an eye on him, if at all worried go to the vet.  My guess will be though that his fine :)

yeah but it was the feathers that put me off and watching the scratchy toes disappearing down his throat.  If I hadn't been so repulsed I might have laughed when he let out a cough/spluttery noise and up came some feathers like a tom and jerry cartoon.  Vile creature!

You will love him again by bedtime! :P

errr no, he is banished in the kitchen in his bed with no cosy covers and no licks or kisses as pigeon entrail drool on my toes is sooooo not appealing.  Maybe by tomorrow he will be loved again the big lump.  Aaaah, actually he is still loved until tomorrow when there is pigeon puke all over my kitchen floor :)

maybe he is telling you he wants to go raw LOL

Ahhh... bet he will be 'coooing' all over you in the morning :-P  sorry.. could not resist  :-D

I doubt that you will have any bad reaction at all.

Years ago, when I was married (hasten to add, this incident was not the reason for divorce)  :-)   I had adopted a Jack Russel bitch when a neighbour died, and nobody wanted her. 

My husband was more into feathers and fins, and had 2 cockatiels in a really huge parrot cage.  This bitch got under the cage when we were out, and banged the bottom out.  One bird flew to the top and stayed there.  Hubby used to go home in his lunch break to let dogs out. 

When he arrived, the kitchen floor was covered in feathers, and he looked everywhere for his bird.  :-(

She had already been eaten.  She was ringed, so Judy must have swallowed legs with ring, and nothing was ever found.  The only time I ever thought he was going to hit one of my dogs, but he didn't.  He was absolutely gutted, as you can imagine.  But the Jack was fine.

At least he didn't skin it and leave the remains on the door mat as an offering, as my cat Belle did to me this morning :-(

YUK lol but i bet they loved it :-)

Ahhh poor birdy,

The feathers are good roughage to help it all pass through efficiently. :-) One of mine loves eating feathers he finds when we're out.

One of ours ate a baby bird yesterday. I called my boy back and he listened, i went to pick the baby bird up to see if there was any chance for the wee thing, my fathers pup came bounding over and snatched it, didn't live any longer from there on in.
Yes he ate it and not had any problems with his stomach. Wasn't too happy about him eating the bird, but hey ho, normal dog behaviour to me.

> The feathers are good roughage to help it all pass through efficiently.

LOL, my boy cat once ate a whole blackbird and all the feathers got stuck in his gut, he ended up having an enema.  A true example of karma :)

> Ahhh... bet he will be 'coooing' all over you in the morning :-p  sorry.. could not resist  :-D

lol :)

This morning when I got up there was a matted quill of feathers on the floor and some clearish liquid (probably water).  I'm not sure which end they came out of but he is pooing and eating fine.  I might not have been so upset if it was a less tinky bird but it was a free range flying rat which I am sure will be heaving with disease - yuck.

All my dogs race down to the bottom of the garden to chase away any birds that might dare to land on "their" land and until last week all birds would fly away safely..... until Charlie 13 month old Dal caught one MID-AIR!!!
He jumped right up, caught it, then spat it out and was nudging it wondering why it had stopped the fun game!! Poor Bird
At least yours had the decency to eat it... not waste it. :(
Charlie is fed raw but obviously hasn't got the killer instinct....prefers his food in a bowl LOL ;)
Paula

Ohh dear!

The other week Carmen wouldn't come in when I was calling her.  Gave her one last should and she came in teeth chattering away, but Calida her daughter rushed outside.  Called her in and she came running in with a baby bird still alive and gently gave it to me.  I think Carmen was actually looking after it as though it was a pup and now at least I know Calida has a soft mouth.  Unfortunately it died soon afterwards, more I would think due to the stress of two dogs giving it attention!

Whilst I don't accept the propaganda that pigeons are flying rats, he would probably thoroughly enjoy a rat too, given half a chance. Their guts are designed to cope with all kinds of bacteria and other things that we would consider virtually life threatening :)
You get far less squeamish if you become a raw feeder :)

Something is in the air - Jazz caught a baby bird in our garden yesterday. first I knew was when he threw it in the air to play with it. I yelled "DROP" in my most menacing voice (not very) and bless him he dropped it. I went to investigate and although it was still alive it was in a bad way. I had to get N to "deal with it"

We then put it in the dustbin. Maybe I should have just let him eat it!!!!! After his grapes incident I am so wary of letting him eat anything that I haven't given him.

> The pup got hold of a freshly dead pigeon in the park and scoffed the lot, beak, feet, feathers the lot.

I have taken a freshly killed one home for a treat for my lot before now, had one get swiped by the mirror on a bus right in front of me.

Years ago my Tula then 5 months caught and ate a Yellow Budgie the kids had let out of it's cage ;(

I feed the BARF diet and i know mine would of loved it, if he fancies sharing next time he's welcome round lol

Talking of budgie's my terrier has eaten 2 with no side effects and that was before he went on the BARF diet, so i'd say he'd be fine