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We Help Animals, But Some People Don't Like It
Yesterday I showed a letter which we had received because people nearby - including us - feed birds. The letter ended by saying that if we wish to "discuss this matter further" (as we do), then we should contact "Pest Control" at "pest.control@manchester.gov.uk".
The official address has just admitted to me they "do not have any legal powers in issues of this kind."
Hello Roy Schestowitz,Please redirect your comments to the office from which the original email was sent. You have not provided an email trail or your address.
"Pigeon Feeding" (PR202601-1720952) did not originate from MCC Pest Control who do not have any legal powers in issues of this kind.
Kind regards,
Pest Control Service
Neighbourhoods Directorate
Manchester City Council
1 Hammerstone Road
Gorton
Manchester
M18 8EQ
Since I did in fact provide the reference number, there seems to be lack of coordination and communication here.
In the interim we feed the birds once a day at a fixed time (not feeding them at all would be a form of torture by starvation or anxiety), as it's deemed permissible by all the official government sites that we studied in recent years (it is even actively encouraged).
My wife and I were abused by an American who allegedly (according to his spouse, claim made repeatedly) broke a puppy's leg, so we won't capitulate easily to opponents of bird-feeding. We stand our ground. If you have a dog, imagine a local authority demanding you stop feeding the dog and instead trust the dog to strut astray around the streets to find edible things. How you would you respond?
If you don't have a dog but do have a cat (or fish), imagine people saying you must refrain from feeding the cat (or the fish starving inside the tank). You would find that maddening, surely.
Now you understand how we feel about the letter, or we assume the analogy puts some of the necessary parallels in perspective. "Feral" and "domesticated" are subjective terms; I've never in my whole life seen "domestic pigeons" sold at a shop. They are as "worthy of life" as any other animal, including squirrels and various mammals (provided they don't invade homes or mess up people's bins). █
Image source: Jail Bird