The German Animal Welfare Federation, together with its state animal welfare association in Hesse and the Limburg Animal Welfare Association, is appealing to everyone in Limburg to avert the planned killing of the city's pigeons. On June 9, the city will hold a referendum to decide whether the decision to kill the animals should be revoked. As an alternative, the animal rights activists are campaigning for an animal-friendly city pigeon concept and - together with successful animal rights activist and content creator Malte Zierden - are offering their support to Limburg's mayor.
“We appeal to all eligible voters to save the lives of pigeons and vote ‘yes’ on June 9 - for the repeal of the city council's decision to kill them. There are other, animal-friendly ways to get a city pigeon population under control,” says Katrin Pichl, expert for city pigeons at the German Animal Welfare Federation. Municipal urban pigeon management with supervised pigeon lofts in which laid eggs are exchanged for dummies is the only animal-friendly and sustainable alternative to keep the population at a healthy, low level in the long term, says Pichl. The German Animal Welfare Federation has therefore once again approached Limburg's mayor Dr. Marius Hahn and offered to advise him at any time on the development of such a concept. The federation is supported by Malte Zierden, who is using his reach to campaign for the pigeons.
Killing neither ethically justifiable nor compatible with animal welfare legislation
For the systematic killing of the Limburg city pigeons, a falconer is to lure the animals into a trap with food, stun them with a blunt blow to the head and break their necks by hand. According to the German Animal Welfare Federation, the killing can neither be ethically justified nor does it comply with the requirements of the Animal Welfare Act. There can also be no talk of a “sustainable solution”: any “gaps” in the population are quickly filled by young birds or pigeons flying in due to the pigeons' “breeding compulsion”.
No increased health risk - prejudices refuted long ago
“Unfortunately, animal welfare doesn't seem to play a role for most politicians in Limburg,” says Pichl. Instead, prejudices about urban pigeons are currently being used by the Limburg city parliamentary groups CDU, FDP and SPD to promote the killing of pigeons. “There is plenty of evidence from science and practice that shows that pigeons do not pose an increased health risk and that pigeon droppings cause little or no damage to building structures. Projects in other cities have also shown that managed pigeon lofts can contribute effectively to population control and at the same time ensure clean cities. Because urban pigeons spend more time in the lofts, the pigeon droppings mainly collect there and can be easily removed.
Note to editors: The German Animal Welfare Federation has been dispelling prejudices for years with its #RespektTaube campaign and is campaigning for an animal-friendly approach to urban pigeons. More information at: www.tierschutzbund.de/taubenschutz
