Many people in the United Kingdom as well as the United States are puzzled by how Bob, a homing bird from England, ended up over 4,000 miles away from his Alabama home. BBC reported.
Bob was supposed 400 miles to Fly to Gateshead. This was supposed to take 10 Hours. However, the pigeon never got to his destination.
Bob’s owner, Alan Todd, said he thinks his 4-year-old pigeon may have taken a wrong turn and landed on a ship.
Ultimately, he crossed the Atlantic Ocean and continued flying until he landed 4,000 miles from home in Monroeville, Alabama.
“He wouldn’t have flown all that way,”Todd narrated The Guardian. “He was covered in oil – it could have been an oil tanker.”
Todd was contacted by the Monroeville Animal Shelter after they said they were contacted by a man asking for help dealing with a pigeon that would not leave his home, ITV reported.
After Bob was brought to the shelter, staff checked to make sure he was microchipped. The bird was worth over $1,200 and had a chip. Authorities were shocked to discover that Bob hails from Gateshead. ITV reported.
“We gathered he was in a race near Guernsey and I guess he got lost and hitched a ride on a cargo ship and made it to Alabama,” Megan Bryan from the shelter told ITV.
The shelter was able to contact Todd, who was relieved to learn Bob was in safekeeping.
“He was on a Zoom call and he heard Mr. Alan’s voice and as soon as he heard it he turned his head and he recognized his voice straight away and I thought that was the sweetest thing, so I think he’s probably ready to go home,” Bryan told ITV.
Todd stated to The Guardian that he will fly to America to collect his beloved bird. This is despite the fact that his long journey has been difficult.
“They are obviously looking after him very well – when I saw him yesterday he didn’t look in a good state, but looking at him today he looks a lot better just in one day,”He stated.