EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Local animal advocates are sounding the alarm over pigeon trapping practices in El Paso, accusing trappers of animal cruelty while the trappers maintain they are providing a necessary—and entirely legal—pest control service.
Advocates say groups of people are using large nets to round up pigeons from nests under freeway overpasses and on private properties across the city. The practice is raising serious questions about the safety and treatment of the animals.
Josie Karam, a Certified Wildlife Rehabilitator with Second Chance Wildlife Rescue, is among those raising red flags. Pointing to images of overcrowded cages, advocates are questioning whether the captured birds are being fed and alleging that chicks are being left behind to die painful deaths.
“These guys are just eradicating all the groups of pigeons that they can find. And I think that’s morally wrong,” Karam said. “They’re abandoning the babies. The babies cannot survive without their parents. They need [them] for warmth. They need them for food.”…