Legendary heavyweight Mike Tyson’s life after boxing revolves around his other love: the Baddest Man on the Planet’s several hundred—“maybe a thousand”—pet pigeons.
“Boxing is over and pigeons are still here,” he told People.
Tyson’s unlikely lifelong love affair with the bird is well-documented. Writing for The New York Times in 2011, he explained that he is the rare New Yorker who relishes seeing the airborne vermin.
In the piece, Tyson said that pigeons were his “first loving relationship.” He even credited them with kick-starting his boxing career, recounting a fight with a bully who killed one of his birds.
Over the years, Tyson’s love for his pigeons has remained strong, he explained in an interview with People.
“I own hundreds of pigeons,” Tyson said “I own some in California and New Jersey. I have some in Florida. I have some in Vegas. I have hundreds, maybe a thousand.”
“Pigeons got me out of trouble, pigeons got me into trouble, and it’s just been my whole life,” he added.
Some of Tyson’s birds are homing pigeons bred specifically for competitive racing. The sport sees the birds vie to see who can return to their home loft first, often covering hundreds of miles.
While his he has raised pigeons since his childhood, the 2011 Animal Planet show Taking on Tyson documented his foray into competitive racing.
Tyson is a former undisputed heavyweight world champ who was known for his ruthlessness in the ring—he famously bit off part of Evander Holyfield’s ear in the middle of a bout.
He retired in 2005 but staged a one-match comeback, against YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul, in 2024. He lost by unanimous decision.
Tyson places his love for pigeons on the same level as boxing. “I’ve done pigeons longer than I’ve done anything—boxing, and everything,” he told People.
Tyson said that his affection for the birds is not the only way in which he is a sensitive person. Like anyone else, he sheds tears at sad movies.
“If you’re a human being, you have to cry over life,” Tyson said. “Life is worth crying for. Life is worth smiling and being happy for. If you’re living in this world, you’re going to cry over life. And life is on television.”
Other than his pigeons, Tyson explained that he spends his time with his kids and travels the world.
“I’m all about being a father, taking care of my family, doing the right thing,” he said. “And that’s success for me. Sometimes, success is getting a million bucks, but to me, success is just being able to love everybody in your family and be involved with their lives.”
