It goes without saying, that a livestock ship is primarily used to transport livestock. But as anyone who sails can attest, nothing is off the table and life at sea is never boring.
On September 25th 2018, I was sailing en-route to Vietnam with a boat load of Brahman. We were due to arrive on the 27th. The weather was fine, clear blue skies and a warm temperature. In the mid afternoon, I exited the cargo hold where the cattle reside to go and have a breather and a cup of tea for afternoon smoko.
I strolled along the starboard side towards the accommodation building, and despite the noisy environment that is a big ship, I heard voices above me. I looked up and saw Dino, one of the Filipino crewmen, hanging over the rail, an expression of excitement on his face. To be honest with you, Dino’s usual facial expression was one of craziness & pure cheek, but today that mad look in his eye was amplified.
“Come up here Miss Alex, we have another animal for you to look after!”
Ooh! New animals!
“One moment!”, I yelled, as I raced up the two flights of stairs and then snuck along the floating walkway on the port side to access the top storage deck.
On this deck you can find pallets of chaff, wrapped up against the elements waiting to be fed out to the hordes below, sawdust and bits and pieces, odds and ends. If you look hard, you will also find the painted lines of a basketball court beneath your feet, an area that the crew utilise on their return trip to Australia when the ship is empty and the pallets of chaff have been consumed.
I sidled up to Dino. “Mate, what’s all the fuss about?”, to which he ducked down and pointed to a stack of pallets. “It’s our new mascot, Miss Alex, a racing pigeon!”
“A racing pigeon?!” On a boat? In the South China Sea?!”, I exclaimed.
The mind boggled.
But surely enough, moments later out waddled a pigeon. He was a handsome grey and black fellow, with his ankle bracelet easily visible. Dino, and the electrician who had been taking his lunch on the deck in the sun, pointed to the rice they had offered him, and said that they had been holding him earlier.
I must have shown disbelief on my face, as a moment later, the Electrician ambled over and calmly picked the pigeon up.
We stretched his wings out and were amazed to find stamps on both sides of his wings.
I hadn’t been to China yet at this point, but between the three of us, we decided that they had to be Chinese symbols, and, as he had landed on our boat in the South China Sea, he had to be a Chinese racing pigeon. What a long way he had flown!
The Electrician said that he landed on the ship a few hours earlier, and appeared to be having a rest while catching a lift. We hoped that we were headed in the right direction for him. The ship was doing about 14 knots an hour heading north to Vietnam, so perhaps the clever fellow realised he could catch both a lift AND a rest by joining us onboard.
As with any animal in my care, I wanted to ensure he had access to appropriate food and water, because #animalwelfare #knowsnoboundaries
Earlier that morning, I had sprinkled a Paleo nut mix on my cornflakes, that my fellow stockwoman, Jackie McGrath had left onboard on the previous voyage. I quickly realised that a Paleo nut mix was a perfect ration for a live export pigeon! Much more palatable and species appropriate than cooked rice, plus, an avian athlete mightn’t like to consume starchy carbs this late in the afternoon.
I ran down to the kitchen, calling out a g’day to Ronaldo the chef as I slipped past the Galley into the dining room. The Paleo nut mix was sitting on the fridge awaiting me.
On my way back out to the pigeon, I pinched a couple of paper cups from the Galley and grabbed my water bottle.
Back up on deck with our feathered friend, I got to work setting up a feed and water station for him in a quiet area of the basketball court. By tearing the paper cup down by two thirds, I created both a little water bucket and a little feed trough for him.
I didn’t want to ask too much of him and scare him away, so I utilised pressure and release to gently guide him over to his tucker. It took only a few moments, and the confident and curious fellow started munching away. It was so rewarding to watch.
If there is anything I love doing in life, it is watching animals enjoy their tucker.
Cattle, when eating pellets on a boat, will take a mouthful and raise their heads, often gazing off into middle earth, contentedly chewing, the occasional shoelace of drool and pellet falling from their mouths.
Racing pigeons, on the other hand, are not serene at all. They somehow manage to both peck and throw feed to the side in the one swift movement, effectively eating and making a huge mess at the same time. Despite his lack of manners, he seemed grateful.
Our pigeon friend flew away that night. Feathers (and fingers) crossed he made it back to China.
