Okay, I was in the car for about four hours today… I had some time to think… My mind started to wander, and the gears were spinning. I asked myself, if the S#!t has hit the fan while I was in Philadelphia, and I knew no one. If food supplies are low and I was in either the suburbs or in the city what would I do for food? Trap squirrels, well yeah, trap other small game where I can, um, yeah, but then it hit me. In EVERY city (maybe not every city) I am in, there are pigeons. Squab. It used to be a staple food on the American table, and still is in countries around the world. They are everywhere. Every park, every street, every alley way. Everywhere.
Well, onto my Internet research now that I am home for the evening… Hmmm… First, how would I go about trapping a pigeon? Well, I suppose I could try rat traps with seed on them (I suppose this would work for Squirrels as well), home made box trap, milk crate box trap, cardboard box trap, snare? Here is what I have found:
- http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/forum/showthread.php?t=291844
- http://www.ehow.com/way_5376784_homemade-pigeon-traps.html
- http://www.racingbirds.com/ptrap.html
- http://www.birdpestcontrol.net/bird-control/homemade-bird-traps-and-snares.html
- http://www.diychatroom.com/content/homemade-pigeon-traps_2955d336-f981-3132-e5ba-60ca5a68597c/
How to Make a Bird Trap
Pheasant Trap
Looks like box traps are the preferred method… I am not sure if the SHTF, that a box trap is the best way to do this, because they are easily spotted in busy suburban areas as well as urban areas. If anyone has any other ideas, feel free to share them.
Once you have trapped and killed your pigeon, you should pluck the feathers while the body is still warm not unlike a chicken or a turkey. Here is a video I found illustrating it:
Partn1
Part 2
Never done this with a pigeon, but the learning process continues… Once plucked and gutted, and prepped to be cooked, clearly you are going to want to roast it over a fire or over a small stove. I would suggest a small stove or makeshift stove if you are stuck somewhere so that you do not draw as much attention. At least that is what I think.
If you are camping and happen to have a camp stove or oven, here are a couple simple recipes I found online:
And here is a video showing how to cook a pigeon in a tin can in the field:
So, this is what I could find, this evening, and figured I would share it… Hope you enjoy. I learned something. Did you?
Have you ever actually tried plucking the feathers from a bird for eating? I have. It’s a b*tch!!!
I have not, but I figured it is a good time to learn… I’ve always wanted to go pheasant hunting, but have not had the opportunity to go, so this is really just a thought I had while driving down the road.
If you dunk the birds in boiling water [repeatedly until about right] it opens up the pores allowing the feathers to come out quite easily.
Interesting. Makes sense, but I never would have thought about it..
modern day pigeon isnt native to the US. It was brought over as food. Squab. That price tasty thing on the menu at high end restaurants is one in the same.
After plucking the feathers and pulling out the inners blanch it boiling water again just for good measure and cook thru.
The legs are rather chewy, almost in impossible to eat really.
The way to clean a Squab is to stand with one foot on each wing (underside) as close to the body as possable. Grab the legs and SLOWLY pull up. The brest will come out and leave everything else on the ground. Nice and clean. And fast.
Great advice… Thanks!