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My Bro is in town for the first time in TX. He is big on shotgun, investment-grade shotgun. He is asking about where to hunt Pigeons (open season) in around DFW area. Any pointers are greatly appreciated.

He asked about pigeon not dove. Pigeon are not protected and can be hunted as an invasive species. My understanding is he will simply need a non resident hunting license.

Dirthawking wrote:He asked about pigeon not dove. Pigeon are not protected and can be hunted as an invasive species. My understanding is he will simply need a non resident hunting license.

Domestic Pigeons are sometimes called Rock Doves, though they are not regulated or listed as a game animal. Still need a hunting license, though. I would suggest finding a farmer with a field sowed with grain (wheat, oats, etc) whose willing to let you shoot on his property. You'll need permission and depending on which county you're in permission may have to be in the form of a signed note dated for the specific day of hunting/shooting. Texas land owners are pretty cautious about letting folks on their property so I wish you luck. I don't know if there are still any live pigeon shoots in Texas. If there are they're pretty hush hush as the animal rights zealots harassed them in the past. I've heard pigeons are great table fare.

Beiruty, Here's some information from TPWD. Be sure to look at the entire page as some pigeons are game animals and regulated.
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/outdoor-lea ... your-doves

Correct. I forgot about the band-tailed pigeon native to west Texas.

Dirthawking wrote:Correct. I forgot about the band-tailed pigeon native to west Texas.

.

And This One. Red Billed Pigeon


http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/outdoor-lea ... your-doves

Be Careful and know what you are shooting is wild pigeons. When I was a kid I raised racing pigeons, had a flock at my peak of over 100 birds. Some birds can cost thousands of dollars easy, not mine but others. We had 1 guy made more off racing his birds then as a High School principal. Anyway long story short back then they were protected by the Gov't for use during war as messengers not sure if still the case, at a minimum they are private property. Now my mother rented a shack on a farm they had lots of pigeons in the lofts, well she worked out a deal to catch the birds for free then sell to hunt club for .50 a bird.

puma guy wrote: I don't know if there are still any live pigeon shoots in Texas. If there are they're pretty hush hush as the animal rights zealots harassed them in the past. I've heard pigeons are great table fare.

I think live pigeon shoots...where you have a guy throwing the birds out from a trap, and they then have to be shot and fall within a marked circle...are illegal now in Texas, just like cockfighting...under the same rationale.... animals being killed for wagering purposes. Live pigeon shoots generally have some serious gambling taking place in conjunction with the shooting.

AndyC wrote:

Dirthawking wrote:He asked about pigeon not dove.

Good point, so let's wait for Beiruty to clarify.

Beiruty - this is a pigeon aka Rock Dove:

[ Image ]

Is that what he wants to hunt?

Dirthawking wrote:Pigeon are not protected and can be hunted as an invasive species.

Not exactly true there. Rock pigeon - true. Band-tailed pigeon - untrue.

Yes, We are interested in Pigeons hunts and not dove. I know the difference, my dad used to raise Pigeons for competitive bird races and sports.

I do appreciate the reminder that we need Hunting licenses regardless if they are non-game birds.

suthdj wrote:Be Careful and know what you are shooting is wild pigeons. When I was a kid I raised racing pigeons, had a flock at my peak of over 100 birds. Some birds can cost thousands of dollars easy, not mine but others. We had 1 guy made more off racing his birds then as a High School principal. Anyway long story short back then they were protected by the Gov't for use during war as messengers not sure if still the case, at a minimum they are private property. Now my mother rented a shack on a farm they had lots of pigeons in the lofts, well she worked out a deal to catch the birds for free then sell to hunt club for .50 a bird.

My dad did the same raised racing pigeons for sports only.

talltex wrote:

puma guy wrote: I don't know if there are still any live pigeon shoots in Texas. If there are they're pretty hush hush as the animal rights zealots harassed them in the past. I've heard pigeons are great table fare.

I think live pigeon shoots...where you have a guy throwing the birds out from a trap, and they then have to be shot and fall within a marked circle...are illegal now in Texas, just like cockfighting...under the same rationale.... animals being killed for wagering purposes. Live pigeon shoots generally have some serious gambling taking place in conjunction with the shooting.

I haven't seen any laws passed making them illegal. If you know of legislation that has been passed I'd be interested in seeing it. I agree with outlawing cockfighting and dog fights (pitting animals against each other in a slow traumatic death process, but I don't perceive pigeon shooting as being any more cruel than hunting wild fowl. There are wounded birds in both sport. Most are recovered and dispatched. We still use the word "trap" for clay bird sports and that term comes from live bird shoots.
I think live shoots in Texas have just gone "underground". Yes, I know there is serious wagering in the sport and I knew a fellow who made a lot of money back in the 60's. But there is serious wagering on professional sports, too.
I don't know if it's still legal in Pennsylvania or not, but PETA was using drones in to disrupt the shoots. I can only guess how that turned out!
Pigeons (Rock Doves) are a nuisance. Our facility spent thousands of dollars trying to get them to leave and then trying eliminate them. The guano was horrible and the feathers plugged screens on electric motors cooling fans and anything else that required a flow of air for cooling.

when I was a kid, almost 50 years ago, I was paid a nickel a bird for shooting pigeons with my BB gun inside a welding shop my Dad worked for. Kept me in a never ending supply of BB's

puma guy wrote:

talltex wrote:

puma guy wrote: I don't know if there are still any live pigeon shoots in Texas. If there are they're pretty hush hush as the animal rights zealots harassed them in the past. I've heard pigeons are great table fare.

I think live pigeon shoots...where you have a guy throwing the birds out from a trap, and they then have to be shot and fall within a marked circle...are illegal now in Texas, just like cockfighting...under the same rationale.... animals being killed for wagering purposes. Live pigeon shoots generally have some serious gambling taking place in conjunction with the shooting.

I haven't seen any laws passed making them illegal. If you know of legislation that has been passed I'd be interested in seeing it. I agree with outlawing cockfighting and dog fights (pitting animals against each other in a slow traumatic death process, but I don't perceive pigeon shooting as being any more cruel than hunting wild fowl. There are wounded birds in both sport. Most are recovered and dispatched. We still use the word "trap" for clay bird sports and that term comes from live bird shoots.
I think live shoots in Texas have just gone "underground". Yes, I know there is serious wagering in the sport and I knew a fellow who made a lot of money back in the 60's. But there is serious wagering on professional sports, too.

I don't know of any legislation that has been passed specifically related to pigeon shoots...just haven't heard anything about it in years. You are probably correct in that they have just gone WAY underground. They kept a low profile even 35 years ago... pretty much invitation only. My only experiences came in the early 80's when Edwin Edwards (at that time Govenor of Louisiana) and some of his friends had bought a big ranch nearby. They would fly in with a bunch of guys on weekends to hunt and party. I met them through some business dealings related to the ranch. He knew I was a local skeet and trap shooter, and he had built both a skeet and trap range there and invited me out a few times to shoot with them. One time they asked me if I could arrange some transportation to the ranch for a large group of people flying in for the weekend. Turned out to be a BIG live pigeon shoot, with top gunners from all over the country attending. I'd never seen it before, and was amazed at what the "thrower" could make the bird do by varying his release. There were National and Olympic Trap champions and alot of others that could really shoot. The "backers" were making bets for more money than I made in a year. It was quite an experience, but a few years later they sold the ranch when Edwards was convicted of racketeering and corruption and sent to prison. I agree with your statements concerning the sport not being any less humane than hunting.