Sweety the chick, for real, what do I do?
Discussion
Not taking the piss here, and its nothing to do with ringtones...
My dog drew my attention to a baby chick that had fallen from its nest in our eaves, onto our stone patio (two storeys down :eek:)
He's still alive but how can I tell if he/she's in pain? It'll drink water from a tea spoon and has had a couple of lumps of bread soaked in milk, which have been fed via tweezers.
Also not sure if his neck is damaged or if they are naturally quite floppy and uncontrolled when they are still so young.
Obviously we couldn't put him back in the nest... we tried this before and the parent kicked it back out again.
Is it possible to rear a wild bird in captivity, and is it going to have a shit life?
Not sure what to do, but I'm not performing Euthanasia, so no sick comments please :)
My dog drew my attention to a baby chick that had fallen from its nest in our eaves, onto our stone patio (two storeys down :eek:)
He's still alive but how can I tell if he/she's in pain? It'll drink water from a tea spoon and has had a couple of lumps of bread soaked in milk, which have been fed via tweezers.
Also not sure if his neck is damaged or if they are naturally quite floppy and uncontrolled when they are still so young.
Obviously we couldn't put him back in the nest... we tried this before and the parent kicked it back out again.
Is it possible to rear a wild bird in captivity, and is it going to have a shit life?
Not sure what to do, but I'm not performing Euthanasia, so no sick comments please :)
KingRichard said:
Not taking the piss here, and its nothing to do with ringtones...
My dog drew my attention to a baby chick that had fallen from its nest in our eaves, onto our stone patio (two storeys down)
He's still alive but how can I tell if he/she's in pain? It'll drink water from a tea spoon and has had a couple of lumps of bread soaked in milk, which have been fed via tweezers.
Also not sure if his neck is damaged or if they are naturally quite floppy and uncontrolled when they are still so young.
Obviously we couldn't put him back in the nest... we tried this before and the parent kicked it back out again.
Is it possible to rear a wild bird in captivity, and is it going to have a shit life?
Not sure what to do, but I'm not performing Euthanasia, so no sick comments please
Take it down to your local RSPCA, they'll help it out. Or incinerate it.
You should never touch a baby bird. THe parents "kick" them out of the nest just before they can fly. This stops the nest being found by a predator and the whole clutch being lost. The chicks will be distributed around the garden and there is less chance that all chicks will be lost.
If you handle the chick the parents will not feed it as they do not like the "human" sent.
Dont touch, keep your distance and lock up the pets for a while.
If you handle the chick the parents will not feed it as they do not like the "human" sent.
Dont touch, keep your distance and lock up the pets for a while.
Two years ago a blackbird family round here lost a fledgling from its nest. It seemed oblivious to fear despite the fact that this area has at least 4 patrolling cats. I didn't think it would last the night.
But the parents were brilliant. They kept guard 24 hours a day, scaring off any cats, and trying to encourage the chick the fly up some low branches for safety. After about 3 days of this nailbiting drama, the chick eventually made it.
I can't think it's a parental instinct to kick one chick out of the nest just to feed the local moggies...?
But the parents were brilliant. They kept guard 24 hours a day, scaring off any cats, and trying to encourage the chick the fly up some low branches for safety. After about 3 days of this nailbiting drama, the chick eventually made it.
I can't think it's a parental instinct to kick one chick out of the nest just to feed the local moggies...?
If the local moggies came across the nest with all the un-fledged chicks, then the cat would kill all the chicks.
If the chicks are spread around the garden, the cat may find one or two but the chances of loosing the whole clutch is far less.
At this time of year, make sure the cats are well fed.
If the chicks are spread around the garden, the cat may find one or two but the chances of loosing the whole clutch is far less.
At this time of year, make sure the cats are well fed.
gooby said:
You should never touch a baby bird. THe parents "kick" them out of the nest just before they can fly. This stops the nest being found by a predator and the whole clutch being lost. The chicks will be distributed around the garden and there is less chance that all chicks will be lost.
If you handle the chick the parents will not feed it as they do not like the "human" sent.
Dont touch, keep your distance and lock up the pets for a while.
Believe me, it can't fly... it hasn't got any feathers hardly and its really small, no stability on its legs either
Missed that one! 
It is a bird not a rat.
it's done 
KingRichard said:
Not taking the piss here, and its nothing to do with ringtones...
My dog drew my attention to a baby chick that had fallen from its nest in our eaves, onto our stone patio (two storeys down
Nest in eaves. Is this a pigeon, or some other bird? Is it covered in little yellow sort of hairs with a beak shaped like a boat? Pigeons are what I can offer help about best, and they are also much easier to hand-rear than most other birds.
KingRichard said:
He's still alive but how can I tell if he/she's in pain?
With great difficulty. Birds seem to be incredibly hard. Best thing to do is be as gentle as possible.
KingRichard said:
It'll drink water from a tea spoon and has had a couple of lumps of bread soaked in milk, which have been fed via tweezers.
Drinking from a teaspoon does suggest a pigeon as pigeons are unique in being able to suck. Don't give it milk! It goes off in the crop and befouls any other food that goes in with the result that the crop doesn't empty into the intestines.
Pigeons feed their young on "pigeon's milk" for the first week or so. This is a secretion from the lining of the crop which is really rich in protein and fat. My substitute recipe uses Sainsbury's dried soya mince, which is just pure soya, not flavoured or salted or anything, and comes in a little rectangular plastic bag with an orange top. Rehydrated and made into a fairly runny paste with one of the fake butter products which advertises itself as dairy-free. I add a crumb off a multivitamin pill and a crushed crumb of chalk, dried plaster, old mortar or other stuff containing calcium carbonate because calcium deficiency is quite common in nestlings, especially when hand-reared, and leads to deformed legs.
They are probably easiest to feed by putting the sludge in a balloon with the tip cut off so they can poke their beak into the hole, which is a reasonably good simulation of being fed by a parent pigeon. As they feed you will see and feel the crop fill up; stop when it is full but not packed. Then keep an eye on them and feed again when the crop is empty. If the crop goes hard, or starts to hang down and look like a pair of bollox, give them water and massage the crop back to liquidity.
Birds other than pigeons I don't know a great deal about, but many of them are fed on insects, and can be fed on mealworms and the like. Cat food will do at a pinch.
KingRichard said:
Also not sure if his neck is damaged or if they are naturally quite floppy and uncontrolled when they are still so young.
Sounds a bit like he had a bang on the head when he fell. This is usually self-repairing in such young birds. However, the other possibility is hypothermia. Keeping them warm enough is harder than people realise. They need to be kept at 35 deg C, and it's hard to find somewhere in a house which is as warm as that. On top of the hot water tank (lagged) usually seems to do the trick, but do use a thermometer. The bird's body should feel warm to the backs of the fingers. Failing to keep them warm is what causes most rescued baby birds to not survive.
KingRichard said:
Obviously we couldn't put him back in the nest... we tried this before and the parent kicked it back out again.
Hmm, may not be a pigeon then. Moving pigeon chicks between existing nests is usually very easy.
KingRichard said:
Is it possible to rear a wild bird in captivity, and is it going to have a shit life?
It's possible but not very easy. As I said keeping them warm enough is often a problem and they need looking at frequently to check on them and feeding every few hours. Pigeons are easier because the feeding intervals can be longer than most birds.
If the local vet / RSPB can put you in touch with someone local who is experienced in rearing baby birds to take it off your hands it'll stand a much better chance than if it's your first attempt.
Is it going to have a shit life... well that's pretty hard to judge. It's quite likely to grow up thinking it's a human so it may not be possible to release it, though they often "go wild" when they get to the age of leaving the nest, and if there is a flock of other pigeons around it will rapidly learn wild pigeon behaviour from them. Non-flocking birds are more of a problem, and you tend to have to get into the feeding them with tongs and keeping them in a cell thing so they don't imprint on you. If it does end up not being releasable, then they are generally happy as long as they have decent space to fly in. They won't "miss" the outside world if they've never known it, and they will have a constant supply of good food and shelter, which is more than most wild creatures get.
KingRichard said:
Not sure what to do, but I'm not performing Euthanasia, so no sick comments please
Good on you mate. Hope it works out OK.
Ah, your photo wasn't there when I started composing my reply. That's not a pigeon, it's an insect-eater of some kind, so disregard all the stuff about pigeon diet and feeding by balloon - it'll want mealworms or similar fed with tweezers. Much harder to keep going than a pigeon. Warmth is essential, and do try and find someone local who takes in such birds as their experience will be invaluable.
Pigeon said:
Ah, your photo wasn't there when I started composing my reply. That's not a pigeon, it's an insect-eater of some kind, so disregard all the stuff about pigeon diet and feeding by balloon - it'll want mealworms or similar fed with tweezers. Much harder to keep going than a pigeon. Warmth is essential, and do try and find someone local who takes in such birds as their experience will be invaluable.
Thanks mate... I'm gonna get on the blower to the RSPCA now then... not fair for me to have a bash... He's in the kitchen at the moment, I take it that'll be warm enough on a day like today?
Gassing Station | The Pie & Piston Archive | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff