On September 3, a parade was held to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. During the event, 80,000 peace doves were released on site. Afterwards, some of the doves returned home, but a number of them lost their way and couldn't find their way back. Some Beijing residents posted 'lost and found notices' on social media platforms.
On the afternoon and evening of the parade, netizens in Beijing posted messages on social media saying, “I found a chubby dove with the tag number 2025 01 0522204. Owner, please contact me. Gender unknown, but it's very friendly and especially well-behaved!”
Other netizens, after seeing the post, offered various suggestions: “It’s probably tired or injured—give it some water, corn kernels, or dry peanuts to help it recover,” and “You can look up the owner using the foot ring code through the homing pigeon association and contact them directly.”
An official from the Beijing Homing Pigeon Association had earlier stated that the doves were sourced from pet pigeon owners. Since the weather was hot, dehydration or stress responses might occur, but most doves can fly home on their own once their strength is restored or after the emergency state is over. “If residents see lost peace doves, it’s best to observe from a distance. If the dove appears healthy, there’s no need to interfere; if it’s injured or sick, residents with pigeon-keeping experience can provide some water to help it regain strength, and release it after a few days. Doves generally have strong healing abilities.”
The 80,000 peace doves were actually selected from more than 600,000 colored doves. On the day of the parade, the doves were brought to the site in the early morning, allowing them to use magnetic field orientation to identify the direction home before being released.