Keeping Pigeons

I suppose I'm reading about keeping pigeons in relation to my artist in resident position in the Mining Institute. It was a pastime of the miners, a very popular one. I would probably be deemed disrespectful by calling keeping pigeons 'a pastime' because it was an art and a science.I know it probably sounds logical but I didn't really know that keeping pigeons means specialized structures are built to house the birds.These pigeon houses often contain specially constructed openings to allow the pigeon keeper to give his animals liberty for purposes of exercise while allowing them to re-enter the housing without special assistance from the keeper. At the same time these houses are constructed to keep the pigeons safe from predators and weather and give them nesting places in which to raise their young.