How a Pigeon Named Valley Found Her Forever Home

A special pigeon has made headlines after choosing shelter life over the wild. Last month, staff at the Montgomery County Animal Services Center in Maryland noticed Valley the Pigeon hanging around their building. At first, they didn't think much of it.

The Pigeon Who Wanted Inside

But Valley had other plans. She soon decided to use a staff member as a taxi, landing on them to hitch a ride inside the building. The friendly bird was healthy and had no band that would show she was a pet. So staff gently took her back outside.

Valley made it clear that she wasn't a fan of the outdoors. Again and again, she kept landing on people for rides into the building. This bird knew what she wanted - and it wasn't life in the wild.

A New Career in Photography

When a photographer came to take pictures of dogs up for adoption, Valley saw her chance. She landed on the photographer's head and refused to leave. While the photographer worked, Valley stayed perched there meeting dog after dog without any fear. She seemed to be making sure the photographer got all the best angles.

Finding Her Forever Home

The shelter staff noticed Valley lacked basic survival skills. She acted more like a pet than a wild pigeon. They decided she would be better off in a home than out in the world alone.

So among their posts for cats and dogs, the adoption center added that their pigeon was also looking for a forever home. The story ends happily - Valley was adopted by a woman named Karen who drove over 200 miles to welcome the bird into her family.

Now Valley lives a cozy life roaming freely inside Karen's home. Sometimes the perfect family member finds you, even if they come with feathers instead of fur.