A bird in the handbag is worth two in the bush — just ask this posh pigeon mama.
While the Paris Hiltons and Justin Biebers of the world are well known for carting their precious puppies around in pricey luxe label totes, Abby Jardine’s pocketbook is full of feathers instead.
“If I want to go out for drinks or dinner with friends, I just put her in my bag and she’s down to roll,” Jardine, 26, a party products developer from Brooklyn, told The Post of her pet pigeon, Pidge. “She’s super social and super chill, so we’ve never been kicked out of any bars or restaurants.”
The bougie bird keeper has sent over 2.2 million folks flocking to TikTok for sights of her viral “Purse Pigeon” series, featuring clips of Pidge being transported from NYC hotspot to hotshot in a crème-colored leather carryall. The unlikely twosome typically spends nights out on the town grabbing martinis, catching Ubers and hitting up intimate soirees.
“[I’m] just out here making pigeon propaganda until their bad PR improves,” Jardine penned in the caption of a buzzy post starring her little — and literal — wing-woman, whom she rescued from certain death in May 2023.
“I found her scared and alone by some trash near my apartment at 3 weeks old,” the animal-adoring Gen Zer told The Post. “She was just a baby, couldn’t fly and shouldn’t have been out of the nest.”
Jardine contacted Wild Bird Fund, a critter rehabilitation center on the Upper West Side, then scooped up the hapless hatchling and took it to the facility for treatment before ultimately deciding to become its adoptive mom.
“I had never owned a pigeon as a pet — I’m not even a bird person,” she admitted.
“But I did know that pigeons can be domesticated,” continued Jardine. “When I saw how cute and friendly she was, I knew she was my forever baby.”
And as a pigeon parent, she does it all — including bathing, feeding and even potty-training.
“If we’re out somewhere, I just take her to the bathroom every 30 to 40 minutes, hold her over the toilet and she goes,” said the zoo-ish zillennial, noting that a healthy pigeon’s excrement is a tiny, odorless brown ball comprised of both its urine and feces. “I’ve tried to [make her go] over trash cans, and she’s definitely wary of that. She prefers an actual bathroom.”
Birdwatchers online are stunned by the pigeon’s high life.
“She gets to live the best life and I love it,” fawned a fan of the fab flapper beneath Jardine’s videos.
“I need an emotional support purse pigeon,” another whined.
“It’s a Birdken,” joked an equally impressed onlooker, likening Pidge’s purse to the ever-chic Birkin bag.
Designer imprint Coach even chirped in on the fun, writing: “We’re here on behalf of the bird” via its verified account.
But Jardine’s spoiled sweetie isn’t the only pigeon of the concrete jungle to experience the splendors of haute couture.
Daphne Ciccarelle, 24, a marketing manager living in Chelsea, treated her pigeon pal to a free ride around the city in a Chanel bag after finding him injured near Battery Park days before Christmas 2023
“I picked up a 100%, real live pigeon, put it in a Chanel shopping bag and took it with me up to 86th Street,” the brunette told The Post. “If I [had been] robbed I just planned to yell, ‘It’s a pigeon! It’s a pigeon! Please believe me!”
Although the birds are oft-maligned as “sky rats” and shamed for carrying an alarming number of disease-spreading pathogens such as E. coli and salmonella, pigeon germs are rarely transmittable to humans.
And the tiny gray creatures aren’t the only high-rollers having a moment in the sun.
Raptors, falcons and other birds of prey are being tapped to star as special guests at weddings.
“We had a hawk as a ring bearer at our wedding,” Florida bride Courtney Laney boasted of her wild nuptials.“[It] was super badass.”
Jardine feels a similar rush every time she looks into Pidge’s bulging eyes.
“Having her has been the best thing ever,” she told The Post. “We keep each other company, and she’s a great companion whether we’re staying in or going out.”
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