A pigeon that was allegedly dyed pink at a gender reveal party has sadly passed away as a result of the toxins from the dye, a wildlife group has said.
The bird, who was aptly named Flamingo, was rescued after being spotted in Manhattan's Madison Square Park in a malnourished state, the Guardian reported.
It was taken to the Wild Bird Fund for treatment, with the non-profit group believing that Flamingo was deliberately dyed to be used to reveal the gender of a baby.
After taking the pigeon into their care, the fund spoke out on Twitter: "Pigeons come in many different colors, but pink isn't one of them. This king pigeon was deliberately dyed and released. As a domestic bird unable to find food in the wild, fly well or escape predators, this poor kid had it bad enough before being dyed."
The non-profit organization went on to reveal that Flamingo was "barely more than a fledgling" and concluded: "PSA: Please never release a domestic bird to the wild. It will die of starvation or predation. If you find an all-white pigeon (or any odd color), especially one looking scared and lost, it needs help. Please catch it and contact us or a pigeon rescue org near you."
Sadly, the group revealed that Flamingo has passed away as a result of being dyed for the party, and they have expressed their anger on social media.
"We are deeply sad to report that Flamingo, our sweet pink pigeon, has passed away," the statement began. "Despite our best efforts to reduce the fumes coming off the dye, while keeping him calm and stable, he died in the night. We believe his death was caused by inhaling the toxins."
The charity thanked well-wishers for their support for Flamingo and said that they hope this story will prevent further acts of senseless animal cruelty from being committed.
They also added that even without the dye, the pigeon likely wouldn't have survived in the wild due to it being young and domesticated.
"Domestic birds — birds raised in captivity — should never be released to the wild. They will die of starvation or predation. Based on the hundreds of comments we've received, we know YOU know this, but please try to discourage others from releasing domestic birds for any reason," Wild Bird Fund said.
"'Dove releases' sound romantic, but take away the decorations and Instagram photos, and they are the equivalent of dumping your helpless pets on the side of the road. This is no way to celebrate anything."
The organization did everything they could to save Flamingo's life, as they explained on Instagram just under a week ago: "We've got Flamingo on heat, oxygen and subcutaneous fluids, and we've added medication to counteract the effects of the toxin on his digestive system."
Gender reveal parties can often cause chaos and environmental damage, as one example in Brazil displayed when a couple dyed a waterfall for their celebrations.
People were left furious as investigators looked into whether it had caused long-term environmental damage, as well as polluting the water supply.
It goes without saying - don't harm animals or the environment when doing gender reveal parties!
