EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14/CBS4) — Concerns over pigeon trapping in El Paso sparked debate outside City Hall on Tuesday, where animal advocates called the practice inhumane and urged city leaders to regulate businesses that trap pigeons.
Advocates gathered in a peaceful protest outside El Paso City Hall, urging City Council members to create an ordinance requiring pigeon-trapping businesses to register and be monitored.
They said the goal is not to ignore property concerns, but to ensure humane practices and accountability.
“We are Mexican. We feed the birds, we don’t kill them,” one protester said.
Josie Carol, a certified wildlife rehabilitator, said pigeons are being trapped and transported in ways she believes cause suffering.
“They’re being transported in a huge trailer on wheels, and they can’t get out,” Carol said. “So they die for a long death.”
Destiny Venecia reports on El Paso advocates push ordinance to regulate pigeon-trapping businesses amid debate (Credit: KFOX14)
Carol also said trapping operations she has seen involve large nets and can harm birds and nests.
“Has very long nets, probably 10, 12 feet high, and they went under the underpasses of the freeway, and they’re literally scooping these birds off of the ledges, and they’re scooping nests off the net ledges also, which they’re not taking the babies,” she said. Carol added, “They’re getting their wings broken, their legs broken, and I don’t know where they’re taking them.”
She said she was told “that they’re selling them for food.”
Carol said pigeons are a vital food source for hawks, falcons, owls, coyotes, and foxes, and that removing them disrupts the ecosystem and threatens predator survival. She said pigeons should be protected, not killed inhumanely.
Outside the council meeting, local pigeon trapper Juan Ortiz said he is not breaking any laws and has the proper permits.
“Okay, I trap the birds, I remove them from private properties, even in public areas that I can trap,” Ortiz said. “I take them to my ranch, and they get picked up by somebody else, and they go outside the state.”
When asked about who picks up the pigeons, Ortiz would not say.
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According to Texas Parks and Wildlife, a pigeon is considered an exotic nongame bird, meaning regulations are limited.
In Texas, a person is required to possess an active hunting license in order to trap them.
Advocates said they want changes to ensure humane treatment.
“No, I would just, I just want some humanity in this,” one advocate said.
“Pigeons have a right to live just like we do, just like all other birds do.”
City officials have not indicated whether an ordinance will be placed on an upcoming agenda.
For now, the debate over how to handle the city’s pigeon population continues.
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