Rare pigeons — and bird lovers — spread their wings at California State Fair
A small white pigeon raised its head from between Terry Gier’s fingers. It’s a Valencian Figurita, he said, first bred in Spain centuries ago. Behind him, around 20 other pigeons lounged in cages — brown and white curls billowing over a Frillback’s wings, a stout Polish Lynx raising its head with dignity.
These weren’t the ordinary pigeons that hunt for scraps in public parks.
Gier, representing the Northern California Pigeon Fanciers, will display his rare birds at the California State Fair every day until July 25. He has participated in the California State Fair almost every year since co-founding the club in 2009. The pigeons are a little harder to find this year — they stay cool in the air-conditioned Building A, away from the other animals at the fair — but they wait patiently for visitors with inquisitive eyes.
“You’re never going to see these on the street,” Gier said. “They would not exist without man.”
Pigeons get a bad rap as so-called rats with wings — vectors of disease, dispensers of droppings. But they were once one of man’s first and most respected avian friends. Mesopotamian cuneiform tablets suggest pigeons were domesticated as early as 5,000 years ago, and hieroglyphic evidence suggests the Ancient Egyptians used them as messengers. Homing pigeons bearing coded messages famously braved enemy skies during World War I. And what we think of as majestic doves soaring through Greek myths and the Bible might as well have been pigeons: according to Woodhouse’s English—Greek dictionary, the original Greek does not distinguish between the two birds.
The pigeons at the State Fair make up just a small percentage of the 300 friends nestled in Gier’s backyard. His love for the birds spread its wings at age 11, when he first marveled at the pigeons displayed in shows. They were beautiful. But it was the close-knit pigeon fancier community that encouraged him to keep breeding and showing his pigeons.
“It’s the people,” he said. “I’ve got friends all over the country ‘cause I probably go to more shows than most guys.”
Gier is now 72. His pigeons have won at least 50 Best of Breed awards at national shows.
In 2009, Gier and a friend established the Northern Californian Pigeon Fanciers. They put on local shows and races across the country, drawing thousands of pigeons and pigeon-lovers into a single space, and compete in national events.
On the table in front of the pigeons rested a photograph of Gier at the 2015 Grand National Pigeon Show. His lips are pressed together as if stifling shy happiness, and for good reason — standing next to him with a big smile is Mike Tyson.
Tyson’s love for pigeons is well documented. On a 2013 episode of “Boomer and Carton,” he even noted that his first fight was over a pigeon.
“The guy ripped the head off my pigeon,” he said. “This was the first thing I ever loved in my life, the pigeon. That was the first time I threw a punch.”
It’s clearly a hobby worth fighting for. But many have dropped out. At their peak, Northern Californian Pigeon Fanciers had 60 members. Now, it’s just Gier.
“The pigeon hobby is an old man’s game,” he said. “They’re dying off and it’s hard to get kids involved.”
Previous state fairs housed the pigeons in the Fur and Feathers building with the other animals, drawing droves of children enthralled by livestock and birds. But the Fur and Feathers building closed right before the coronavirus pandemic. Now, all the animals frolic in the outdoor Kids Adventure Outpost — except the pigeons, which need to remain indoors for security reasons.
Pigeon-rearing may be an old man’s hobby, but young bird enthusiasts remain. Maci Kinney, 19 and a self-described “big pet person,” visited Gier’s stall to learn more about adopting a pigeon.
“I really like birds,” she said. “I just think they’re really cute and wanted to take a peek at them.”
Gier said he often stands in the center of the exhibition to answer questions. Occasionally, he’ll pull a pigeon out to the delight of visitors, who coo much like the bird itself.
“(The exhibit) is not what people think about pigeons,” he said. “It’s interesting, and if you want to get involved, I can turn you in the right direction.”
Shifting in his palm, the Valencian Figurita nodded.
This story was originally published July 16, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
