Pigeons reach sexual maturity at about 6 months. If your pigeon hen lays eggs and hatches chicks, she and her mate can do most of the work themselves regarding care of the offspring. Pigeons -- both male and female -- actually produce milk in their crops for their young. The crop is part of the digestive tract of many avian species, but few produce milk. The milk is far healthier for squabs, or baby pigeons, than any other type of food.

If you must care for a baby pigeon without the aid of the parents, ask your veterinarian for a suitable pigeon milk recipe. She may recommend a commercial baby bird formula blended to a liquid state for newly hatched chicks and fed via syringe.

When placing the syringe into the bird's mouth, make sure the tip goes all the way into the crop. Place a bit of petroleum jelly on the tip of the syringe for lubrication.

• Until the bird is about 5 days old, feed the liquid mixture two or three times a day. 
• After day 5, you can switch to a larger, feeding syringe. 
• At about 3 weeks, leave small numbers of seeds in the baby's cage, so she can learn to peck. 
• Teach a baby bird to drink by dipping the beak in a small dish of water, also left in the cage. 
• Wean the baby by leaving appropriate food out for her, and hand-feeding just once a day, until it's obvious she's eating and drinking heartily.

Pigeons fledge between the ages of 4 to 6 weeks. By that point, they can consume adult feed.