1 - Professional Control

There are professionals and companies out there that will come in, remove the pigeons, and then seal up the space afterwards, taking the debris and mess out with them when they leave. These people don’t do the job for free, of course, as pigeons usually require quite a lot of work to get rid of and then clean up after. In some cases, particularly those with well-established nests, the repair work necessary for a post-pigeon attic or roof can run into the thousands of dollars in costs.

The pros of using a professional is that you can get the job done properly, not allowing the pigeons any more time to establish themselves, build nests, or defecate all over the place. They’ll have the right licenses, and permits to ensure no unlawful activity takes place. They’ll also have experience on their side, a wealth of knowledge about the animal in question, and the right tools for the job. They’ll also be able to educate you and put modifications in place to ensure the pigeons can’t return to their roosting or feeding spots and cause further problems and disruption.

The cons of using a professional is that the service can get quite expensive. When you bear in mind that this is usually a one-time only job, however, it often works out much cheaper to hire someone than to try and fail with DIY bird control methods and items.

2 - Shooting

Lethal force is not really considered the best option for pigeons, mostly because they’re not actually the easiest animal to kill. Shooting is a good option, if you’re a good shot, but you must take local laws into account before running rampant with your rifle.

The pros of shooting pigeons is that the pigeon is dead, no longer able to cause problems to other land owners, and can’t spread any more disease ... providing the carcasses are picked up and disposed of.

The cons of shooting pigeons is that you can only shoot one pigeon at a time, you’ll be there forever trying to get them all if the flock is a large one, and it might not be legal for you to use a weapon, or use a weapon against that animal, in that area. Not only that, you’ll be left with the unpleasant task of locating the pigeon carcasses you leave behind, and make sure they are definitely deceased.

3 - Kill Traps

There really aren’t suitable kill traps or lethal cage traps for pigeons. If you attempt to use a trap that has been designed for another animal, particularly a land animal, you might injure the bird without causing death instantly, and this is not the humane approach you had hoped for.

4 - Live Traps

To be honest, live traps are not a suitable option for bird or pigeon control, either. Pigeons fly hundreds and thousands of miles around the world, migrating from cold to warm, and this makes it tougher than other animals to try and relocate. If you drive twenty miles and then release the bird, it’ll just fly right back to the point you just captured it at. Even if you were to successfully trap a pigeon in a cage trap or similar, you would probably find that the best outcome would be extermination anyway.

5 - Funnel Traps

Funnel traps are a type of exclusion device that is designed to allow the pigeons one-way movement only ... out and away from your property. These should only be used by someone who has done a great deal of research on the approach, as the wrong-sized funnel or a funnel made out of the wrong material could very easily cause injury and death to the pigeon population. You are then left with the troublesome task of untangling the birds and disposing of them, or attempting to find them if they managed to break free and travel a little distance.

6 - Repellents

There are a number of repellents on the market for birds, but very few of them work half as effectively as expected. Anything that tastes or smells bad will probably not have much effect at all, especially when you consider that these are garbage-rummaging birds. Other types of gel or liquid formulas have been considered dangerous for birds, as it could leave them with a sticky coating that then renders them unable to fly. As a result, they then fall foul to predatory attack, perhaps from pets in the local area. If the pigeon is infected with a disease or carries a bug or parasite of some sort, it would then be easy for them to pass those problems and afflictions over to the pets that captured and perhaps feasted on them.

7 - Bird Spike Strips

These are actually very great things to use when you have birds landing on a straight surface, such as the top of a fence or wall, on the roof, TV aerial, chimney, windowsills, etc. A few moments installing the strips will leave you with a barrier that prevents the birds from landing there. It only requires minimal maintenance — removing leaves and other garden and outdoor debris that might get blown and stuck on them. They’re also not overly expensive to buy, or difficult to install. The only problem is that you may be required to jump on the roof to install them. If it isn’t safe for you to do so, leave it to the professionals.

8 - Bird Netting

This is usually used for larger spaces, such as warehouses, council or government buildings, etc, but can prove quite effective in smaller areas, too. Bird netting comes in handy for those difficult spots that won’t be suitable for spike strips and the similar, but might not work for when you have other bird species, such as starlings and sparrows, alongside pigeons.