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Questions from private individuals

Can I buy this corn myself?

Neither R-12 nor nicarbazin is available in the hobby circuit. It’s a veterinary medicine that’s used for the prevention of coccidiosis, an intestinal parasite in birds. Treatment with R-12 in a town or city, or at a company site, can only be started under supervision from a vet and is administered strictly locally.

R-12 cannot be purchased by private individuals and is not suitable for use in the garden or allotment, or on balconies or patios.

Why is there a feeding ban in my town/city?

A feeding ban is an important factor for keeping pigeons away. Pigeons quickly become conditioned. If they are fed every day, they will always keep coming back, with the inevitable nuisance that this brings with it – droppings and birds swooping around and being aggressive. If pigeons are not being fed, they will seek food elsewhere. There is plenty of food available for them and they are very resourceful. so they’re not at risk of starving or dying.

If you would like to help by feeding R-12, you can register as a volunteer with your town or city.

Do weaker birds get enough food?

There’s enough corn for all animals. The dominant animals get the most corn kernels because they eat the food in middle, but there’s enough food left over for the peripheral eaters.

Does the corn attract pigeons from other places?

A dominant group of animals will always survive because not all of them will consume enough of the contraceptive. Pigeons are defensive and aggressive towards outsiders. Those that remain will therefore protect the colony against intruders.

Does R-12 attract rats?

Urban pigeons are greedy eaters. When feeding R-12, the corn kernels are fully consumed within a few minutes. It’s very rare that there’s any corn left over, and anything that remains is cleaned up quickly. This means there’s nothing left over for any scavengers, such as rats, so there’s no nuisance.

Will all the pigeons disappear?

You’ll never reach all pigeons when feeding R-12. A pigeon needs to eat at least 8 grams of R-12 five days a week to become and remain infertile. Not all pigeons consume this portion, so there will always be couples reproducing new chicks. To illustrate: a pair of dominant urban pigeons can reproduce up to 12 chicks per year.

Birth control organically thins out the population. Fewer chicks are born and the population decreases through natural mortality. As the population becomes smaller, so too do the doses of R-12. This leads to a healthy, stable and balanced population.