CLOVIS, N.M. — Employees at the Curry County courthouse are crying fowl over a stench that has permeated the building since recent rains mixed with pigeon droppings on the roof and dripped into offices.

County Maintenance Supervisor Lee Delk said the ceiling seeped because a mud-like substance — created when water blended with droppings — clogged drains and leaked into the building through fallen ceiling tiles.

“It was nasty,” Delk said. “We cleaned up about a gallon, but it smelled like a ton and a half.”

Employees opened windows and used air-freshener sprays. Each office is equipped with an air purifier.

Delk said about 50 pigeons live on the courthouse rooftop. Many residents enjoy feeding the birds, so the county has tried to deal with the birds humanely.

“We have used nontoxic chemical spray and hired an individual to do live trapping,” Delk said. “But they keep coming back.”

Juan Gonzales of Clovis said he would hate to see a pigeon-free downtown. A retiree, he visits Main Street a few times each month, bread bag in hand, to feed the birds on the sidewalks.

“They need somewhere to live, and I like to watch them eat and fly,” Gonzales said.

County officials plan to construct a modified rubber roof identical to one on the Curry County Juvenile Detention Center. Delk said for some reason, the pigeons won’t nest there.

“It’s all in a day’s work,” he said. “We deal in poo every day.”