Homeless, injured birds fly anew at Great Lakes Pigeon Rescue: ‘They are really clean creatures’
Homeless, injured birds fly anew at Great Lakes Pigeon Rescue: ‘They are really clean creatures’ OSWEGO, Ill. — In the hands of owner Blanca Uribe, a retired racing pigeon named Astrid gets the exercise she needs through “happy flappies,” moving her wings while being held because she’s paralyzed, and can’t use her legs or feet. Astrid is one of several special needs pigeons cared for or fostered by Uribe and her husband, Guillermo Alvarez, at their Oswego home, through the non-profit organization Great Lakes Pigeon Rescue. “I’ve loved pigeons since always; I’m a bird person,” Uribe said. “But my husband, he developed a love for pigeons; he loves me, so he loves the pigeons now.” Uribe serves as medical director and vice president of Great Lakes Pigeon Rescue, founded by Chicago-area pigeon enthusiasts. The multi-state rescue and foster network serves homeless domestic pigeons as well as injured, non-releasable feral pigeons in Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana and Michigan. “We just started a network, started to get to know each other, and just decided to go for it to give the pigeons a better chance,” Uribe said.