Q. Where do they go after they are released?
A. The birds circle above to get their bearings and then they fly to their home at my residences south of Rogersville Alabama. There they have a home, with nesting boxes, food and water.
Q. How do they know to return to their home loft?
A. Rock Dove, or homing pigeons have been studied for many years, it is thought that they navigate by being able to sense the earths magnetic field (They can tell their North and South).
Q. What type of training is involved by you?
A. Although it is the birds natural instinct to return to its home, just like a bird dog will point without being trained. Training the birds in different directions, taking them out from short to longer distances improves there navational skills. While training makes a good bird dog a better hunting partner. Almost always, my birds beat me home from a release.
Q. How long does it take them to get home?
A. They fly from 50 - 60 mph when in top condition, and usually fly non-stop until they get home.
Q. Why won't you release at night?
A. They cannot see very well at night, and if they have to set in a tree overnight they may fall prey to an owl, or other night preditor. Being white, they stick out like a sore thumb in the night to their preditors.
Q. What about the doves you find in a pet store?
A. The turtledoves (also referred to sometimes as ringnecks or mourning doves) are poor flyers and should never be released into the wild! They will fall prey to dogs, cats, hawks and won't fly over a few feet from your ceremony. They have NO homing instinct and it is considered cruel to release this type dove. Our birds are registered birds, They are vaccinated, wormed and fed special diets. They are , expensive, require a lot of time in training and require experienced handlers. You spend a few extra dollars hiring us, but you get peace of mind knowing you are providing guests with the proper enjoyment of a professional bird release.
Q. How do you prevent the birds from making a mess on our guests?
A. Just like human athletes, our birds have a special diet before big events so they can perform at top levels without "messing up". They also fly with their feet tucked up underneath and won't soil themselves.
Q. At what point in the ceremony should the birds be released? This is entirely up to you! There can be a lot of creativity in the timing and location of your release. We will cordinate with your photographer and coordinator of your event.
Q. What time of day is best for a release?
A. The specific time of day is flexible, but we never release birds less than one hour prior to sunset: (1) to ensure enough time for the birds to safely reach home, and (2) a flock of white birds airborne is very dramatic. The more sunlight, the better the viewing! A link to a U.S. Navy sunset chart is on my home page.
Feel free to ask me any other question you may have, I wll be more than glad to assist you.
