New Article: How Pink Pigeons Saved Me from Life as a Lawyer

[findi]

Hi All,

Please check out: Lawyer to Zookeeper; plus Notes on Pink Pigeon Conservation

First, I should explain the odd title. I grew up near the Bronx Zoo and dreamed of a career there since early childhood. Early on, however, responsibilities made it impossible for me to consider zoo work, a notoriously low-paying field. By the early 1980’s, however, things changed and I was volunteering at the Bronx Zoo and doing everything else I could think of to break into the field. But I was a lawyer at the time, and, despite years of experience with well-known animal importers and bird breeders, the zoo’s management did not believe I seriously intended to abandon such a lucrative profession. Then the Pink Pigeons came to the rescue…Read article here:
How Pink Pigeons Saved me from Life as a Lawyer | That Bird Blog

Comments and questions appreciated,

Thanks, Frank
http://twitter.com/#!/findiviglio
Frank Indiviglio | Facebook
Bio: That Pet Place welcomes Zoologist/Herpetologist Frank Indiviglio to That Reptile Blog | That Reptile Blog

 

[osnyder]

Neat! So, how long were you a lawyer before you left the field to work with animals full time? And, did you ever end up doing university work in biology or zoology (or other animal-related area)?

I'd love to hear about what creatures live with you!

Olivia

 

[findi]

Neat! So, how long were you a lawyer before you left the field to work with animals full time? And, did you ever end up doing university work in biology or zoology (or other animal-related area)?

I'd love to hear about what creatures live with you!

Olivia

Hi, Thanks very much.

I worked for a year full-time, kept the license after that as zoo work pays very poorly (esp re NYC cost of living) but found non-legal part time work after awhile...wrote a few books, nuisance wildlife trapping, teaching. Was involved in a good deal of field research, USA, Latin America and Japan, but more often with reptiles/amphibs than birds (although I did get to work with spoonbills, hoatzins, owls, monk parrots in the field). Eventuall became involved in zoo/museum consulting/design. Have lectured at universities, but most teaching was with younger students, Columbia Prep for a time...all in all, very lucky,, lots of fun. Best, Frank

 

[MikeyTN]

As always Frank, great article!!! Pigeons and Doves were actually my very first fascination with birds when I was a toddler. As my uncle had a homing pigeon coop up on the roof of my grandmother's house. I was never allowed up there because I was too young to be on the roof of the house. But I watch from the side of the house as he gets them out of the coop for a flight. Then later on I took in hurt Mourning Doves to re-establish their health before releasing them back out into the wild. I love the way they coo.

 

[findi]

As always Frank, great article!!! Pigeons and Doves were actually my very first fascination with birds when I was a toddler. As my uncle had a homing pigeon coop up on the roof of my grandmother's house. I was never allowed up there because I was too young to be on the roof of the house. But I watch from the side of the house as he gets them out of the coop for a flight. Then later on I took in hurt Mourning Doves to re-establish their health before releasing them back out into the wild. I love the way they coo.

Thanks so much! Homing pigeons were still being kept when I was growing up in the Bronx as well, and they provided me with my first close-ups of birds on the nest and so on! Injured pigeons were among my first "patients" also! Mourning Doves were rarely seen in NYC back then, but are now common almost everywhere, Best, Frank