Anonymous Guest Post

Our older two kiddos are AuDHD and struggle with anxiety. While it looks different for both of them, pigeons have been an incredible support to our family. For our oldest, who “got us into” pigeons, it was initially a special interest, which broadened to birds generally, vegetarianism, food systems, and education/advocacy as he’s grown, giving him a purpose and a focus.

Roosevelt, Clover’s husbird who recently passed away, was responsible for helping him learn to read — he struggled to engage and be still enough to work on reading skills, unless he had a lap pigeon. As a teenager he now works as a counselor at a local naturalist club as well as a preschool, and has learned so much about teaching and advocacy through pigeons, and has introduced now hundreds of preschoolers and elementary kids to pigeons. The pigeons have been a way to interact and connect with other people for a kiddo that has struggled, a calming presence. This has been huge as we spent over a year navigating mental health supports — the pigeons really got him through that time.

Our middle struggles with emotional regulation, and when his feelings are especially intense he can struggle with hand banging and generally being overwhelmed. We have tried for years with various supports and interventions, and the one thing that helps him the most right now is having a pigeon with him when he is doing challenging or frustrating work, or even when he starts to get overwhelmed. We share our home with many other animals, but pigeons are the specific presence that is the most calming and supportive for my oldest kids.