By Amy Reast
A woman has a pet pigeon who lives in her apartment and loves to kiss and cuddle her.
Aleksandra Bezrukova, 25, discovered a pair of eggs which hatched baby pigeons – known as squabs – on her balcony and she fell in love.
After they grew up and flew away, Aleksandra became determined to raise a pigeon of her own.
After finding a pet pigeon that needed re-homing she took the bird in and named her Coco.
Coco has been living in Aleksandra’s apartment with her husband, Alexandre Pastemps, 29, a crypto trader, since October.
Both of them adore Coco and she grows more friendly by the day – even giving Aleksandra kisses and cuddles.
Aleksandra calls her a “little sweetheart” and reckons pigeons have a worse reputation than they deserve.
She claims even once-skeptical family members are smitten with Coco now too.
Aleksandra, a clothing shop owner, living in Chloet, France, said: “When those eggs first hatched on my balcony, something inside me woke up.
“They were so cute, I spent hours each day looking at them.
“When they grew up and flew away, I was heartbroken – so I researched online about having a pet pigeon of my own.
“As soon as I saw Coco I loved her and our relationship grows each day.
“Pet pigeons are so lovely – they’re super smart and clever, and cute.
“I think people who feel negatively just don’t understand them.”
Aleksandra found herself captivated by pigeons after seeing two little eggs in a nest on her balcony in August 2023.
She left them where they were and saw the parents tending to the nest for over a month – then eventually two little chicks were born.
Over time the chicks grew and learnt to walk, then flap their wings – before Aleksandra had to say goodbye for good when they flew the nest.
She said: “I looked at them every day, I would just open the window and sit and watch them.
“I was heartbroken when they flew away.
“Something inside me woke up – I started to be curious about pigeons and watched videos about pigeons as pets.
“I decided I wanted a pet pigeon too.”
After finding a local man looking to re-home a seven-month-old pigeon, Aleksandra “fell in love” and the rest was history.
She said: “When I saw her I loved her, and I wanted to give her the best life.
“She was super cute, and let me take her from the guy’s hands straight away.”
When Aleksandra first brought Coco home in October 2023, she said the bird was timid – but over time became more trusting.
The first milestone was landing on Aleksandra’s head, before nipping her cheeks softly – the equivalent to a pigeon kissing affectionately.
In December, Coco let Aleksandra cuddle her for the first time and sat on her shoulder.
Now they share a special bond, and pigeon cuddles are a regular occurrence.
Coco lives in their apartment, and sleeps in a cage but is free to fly around indoors all day long.
While it can be dangerous for house-trained birds to fly outdoors on their own, Aleksandra is looking to get Coco a leash so she can fly outside safely.
She is also looking to start teaching Coco tricks – such as responding to her name, and recognising different colours.
Aleksandra says most people are supportive – but she had a few negative comments online.
She said: “People when they see Coco, they say how beautiful she is.
“She is super white with beautiful brown eyes and a fancy tail – they ask if she is even a pigeon.
“Most people think she is a sweetheart but some people say pigeons are dirty and spread disease.
“But humans spread dirty things in the world too.”
She added: “Pet pigeons are like little puppies, sometimes when I get home Coco welcomes me back through the door.
“Sometimes when she coos, I coo back and we speak in a pigeon language together.
“Pigeons can be super smart and affectionate. They’re such interesting pets.”
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