Pigeon dies after having tiny cowboy hat glued to its head

The rescuers of a pigeon who was found on the streets of Las Vegas with a tiny cowboy hat glued to its head have confirmed that she has passed away.

Staff from the Lofty Hopes Pigeon Rescue - who took the bird in last month and named her Billie the Pidge - said fumes from the adhesive may have poisoned her.

Billie was one of three pigeons who were spotted roaming around the Nevada city wearing tiny hats - leading to them gaining popularity across social media.

Check out a report of the viral birds in the video below:

In a statement released on their social media accounts, Lofty Hopes staff said:

"The staff and volunteers at Lofty Hopes are saddened to report that Billie The Pidge, one of the Cowboy Pigeons in the red hats, has passed away of an undectected illness.

"The hat could have interfered with her being able to dislodge small insects from under it, and pigeons are very active preeners (groomers), not just for themselves, but for the others in their flocks. The fumes of the glue [could] have slowly poisoned her. Pigeons have a very fragile respiratory system. So many things could have gone wrong.

"From the time we spotted and captured her she didn't have the same wild fight in her. She was a pretty easy capture. She had string foot embedded into the skin. Surely this was an issue when she was trapped and had a hat cruelly glued to her head, but her captor, instead of helping her, released her not caring that she would lose more of her toes.

"We are truly saddened by her loss and will always remember her struggle. Please know, that our efforts to find the remaining 'Cowboy Pigeon' continues. Thank you for caring."

Since the news broke, tributes have flooded in for Billie:

Credit: 2515

The two other hat-wearing pigeons who were rescued alongside Billie - named Cluck Norris and Coo-lamity Jane - will continue to be cared for by the rescue shelter.