Birdman of Brittany: French pensioner befriends pigeon

[June 18, 2021]    By Stephane Mahe

GOMMENEC'H, France (Reuters) - When 80-year-old Xavier Bouget goes for a ride on his bicycle, tinkers in his workshop, waters his garden or sits down to eat a biscuit, he has a constant companion: a white female pigeon called Blanchon.

Xavier Bouget, 80 years old Frenchman, who built a strong relation with a wild pigeon called "Blanchon", rides his bicycle with the pigeon on his head in the village of Gommenec'h, in Brittany, France, June 14, 2021. Picture taken June 14, 2021. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe

Bouget, a retiree from the northwest French region of Brittany, befriended the bird when it was a chick and now it tags along with him everywhere, sitting on his shoulder or walking along beside him.

"There's a desire to be together, because it feels good," said Bouget, who before retirement worked in the building supplies trade.

The pair first met when Bouget was out near his home and saw a tiny pigeon fall to the ground as it tried to escape from a cat. Bouget later mentioned what he saw to his wife. She asked him why he didn't pick up the bird. So he went back.

"I came home with Blanchon in my pocket," he said.

He said he is often asked by people how he managed to train the bird to be so tame, but he replies that there is no trick, just mutual respect.

Any human can build a relationship with an animal, he said, "once they respect the animal for what it is, that is a living creature that shares the Earth with us."

"You just need to be patient, to understand how they live and adapt to their life, because they will adapt to yours."

(Writing by Christian Lowe; Editing by Mike Collett-White)

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