TUMPAT, Jan 30 — An enterprising trader who painted his pigeons with colours has opened a new door for sustenance when the uniqueness of his ‘Rainbow Pigeons’ caught the public eye.
As sales have shot up for pigeon and serama (bantam breed) chicken trader Ismail Che Daud, 55, said the bright idea of ‘Merpati Pelangi’ or ‘Rainbow Pigeons’ arose when his business dipped during the monsoon season last year.
“Pigeons usually have only one colour tone, which is white, grey, brown or black, and over time the largely monochrome bird attracted only poor sales.
“I started thinking about how to attract buyers so as to improve my sales which was declining since the monsoon season set in, with only two to four pigeons sold in a day.
“From there, I hatched this idea to start colouring the pigeons to catch the public’s imagination with a mixture of two to three colours on each bird and make it look like a ‘rainbow pigeon’,” he said when met by reporters at his shop in Simpang Tiga, Kampung Kepulau, here, today.
The father of three said the choice of colours must suit the base colour tone of the pigeon as well as be eye-catching to attract buyers.
According to Ismail, he would normally choose a colour mix between pink and blue or pink-red mixed with a pinch of black to be painted on the mature pigeons.
“Before spraying the paint, I will cover the bird’s eyes to ensure that the paint only sticks to the desired parts. The paint used is harmless because it is not permanent and only lasts about five to six months or until the bird sheds old feathers for new plumage.
“Apart from pigeons, customers also have other bird options including tekukur (dove), Javanese tekukur, merbuk, buffalo shepherd, yellow merbuk, serama chicken and jungle fowl which are sold at prices as low as RM15 and up to RM600 each. depending on the type,” he said.
Ismail said that since highlighting the uniqueness of his ‘Merpati Pelangi’, he was now able to sell almost 10 birds a day with a monthly income of nearly RM1,000 per month.
His pigeons come from suppliers around the state with an average of 20 pigeons within two weeks.
“In fact, some of the pigeons obtained are tame, that is, even if they are released into the surrounding area as an attraction for the public, it will not run away… even if it flies off, it will return to its original place (shop).
“Usually, I will take about a month to tame the pigeons through the technique of feeding only when they are hungry,” he said.
A visitor, Siti Rohana Idris, 42 from Kampung Alor Pasir, Wakaf Bharu, said she was curious to see the colourful pigeons sold by Ismail, calling it her first such encounter in the state.
“I am excited to see the uniqueness of the colourful pigeons and being released just like that drew my attention to visit Ismail’s shop to have a closer look, as well as the opportunity to take pictures with the ‘Merpati Pelangi’,” she said. — Bernama
