Pedro Leonardo Paloma, an emotional support animal and domesticated pigeon, has his own room in Logan Square that he likes to keep messy. He lives with his mom, Iris Gutiérrez Berríos, and housemate Daniel Hernandez, and has become a curious star in the neighborhood since finding his own social circle in recent months, popping up at art fests, protests, mutual aid fundraisers and business events.

Pedro’s Story

Pedro is Gutiérrez Berríos’ emotional support animal, and she brings him everywhere. The two have become inseparable, with neighbors asking for a photo with Pedro or to give him a pet. He often wears a diaper and a leash, though the leash has become less frequent as his training and comfort increases, his mom said.

Pedro, who Gutiérrez Berríos estimates is about 4 years old and rarely flies, comes from the Great Lakes Pigeon Rescue. He was bred to be a racing pigeon somewhere in the Midwest but after he got lost during a race, the rescue group took him in.

Community Impact

Gutiérrez Berríos found Pedro through an unlikely search that stemmed from her loneliness, PTSD and depression, she said. An artist and former immigration attorney who got laid off in 2020, she began looking for animals to foster in Chicago that could help with her mental health.

Since adopting Pedro, her stability and community circles have increased, her art and business has grown and managing her health and PTSD has become less daunting. It helps that he brings joy and curiosity out of people he meets, she said.

Pedro is also a litmus test for people’s misconceptions about pigeons, his housemates said. Sometimes called rats of the sky, pigeons have a reputation for being dirty, diseased and just plain dumb. Pedro, by contrast, spends hours grooming himself and using the cat’s water bowl as a bathtub. He’s a smart animal, Hernandez said.

Original reporting: Block Club Chicago — read the source article.