Baby Pigeon around 17-23 wks - Trouble Feeding It!

[rifhat]

Hi Folks!

Whilst searching information on how to feed a baby pigeon I came across this forum.

I need help; my dad rescued a baby pigeon from the crows who I think must have got it dropped from the nest. The poor squab looks to be around 17-23 weeks old and its one eye is blind and its one claw is bent.

When trying to feed it is every difficult to feed as one has to force its beak open to feed and in most times it is stubborn it blindly beaks around or at the hand but when you try to feed it turns its face on the other side.

We have been feeding it through a syringe but with great difficulty, we also tried to feed it using a spoon but it gets quite messy and no results! We have been giving it maize flour mixed with rice flour in water and wheat bread soaked in water with porridge oats…

What should I feed? Oats, Wheat bread soaked in Water? Is that fine?

Please assist, and when does the squab learn eating by its own?

I am from Tanzania which is in East Africa, climate here is Tropical climate.

Eagerly awaiting your tips,

Rgds,

Rifhat

[Trees Gray]

Hello and Welcome to pigeon Talk,

Thank you for helping this youngster.

Do you mean it's 17 to 23 DAYS old?

Pigeons are seeds and grain eaters, while oats are okay, seeds and peas and corn are better. The youngster should probably be graduating from baby bird formula. You can give it corn or peas that are drained of excess water or soaked puppy chow that is also been drained. Break into small pieces and gently open the beak and put behind tongue and allow it to close beak.

He will soon be on an all seed diet, so if you can accomplish feeding him that it would be best. You can soak seeds for 10 minutes, then drain and feed it to him also. Throw any access away and make a new batch as you feed him again.

[Reti]

Thank you for rescuing this poor baby bird. I asume you mean he is 17-23 days old?
Is he feathered?
Also could you descibe the blind eye a little more? Is it injured, bleeding etc?
The fact that he doesn't want to eat is either because he is sick and doesn't have much of an apetite or he is in pain or in shock.
It would be helpful if you could post a pic of the baby and his injuries.

For now keep him safe and warm and give only water for a few hours. Later you can start feeding and you can try some corn, peas, lentils and any kind of bird seeds. You will have to open his beak and put the seeds in one by one.
I don't know if you can get any baby bird formula, that would be another option. Baby cereal would work too. Those you will have to feed with the syringe and it tends to get quite messy, also if he resists your feeding attempts he might aspirate food, that is not good.

Thank you and your father for rescuing this little baby.

Reti

[maryjane]

Thanks for saving this baby. How long have you had it? If its been with you for a few days then it should be stable already and you can give it food okay. If you can't find any baby bird formula, try human baby food. The best method I have found of hand-feeding a youngster is this:

http://picasaweb.google.com/awrats3333/BabyFeeding

Using this way, they pretty much feed themselves. With a parent, the baby will stick its beak into the parent's beak and then begin eating. This method is similar and they usually pick it up right away. Good luck and keep us updated, please feel free to ask any other questions.

[nikku-chan]

When you say he is trying to "beak around, or at the hand", this is him probably trying to find his mother's mouth. Baby pigeons are used to putting their mouths inside their mothers to eat. Baby pigeons tend to "nuzzle" you, trying to find the food, and in my experience, they always go for your hands, and in between your fingers, rather than the syringe at first.

When i was feeding my baby, i had difficulty in getting her to learn that the syringe means food. She would just ignore it, or try to nuzzle around or on the sides of it. If you can get your baby to realise that the syringe means food, then he will soon learn.

With my baby, i ended up feeing her her with my hands (putting lumps of mixture right at the tips of my fingertips, and feeding her side on, so that she could gulp the lumps of food off the ends of my fingertips without getting a mouth full of my fingers).

However, try every other method first, as this is quite messy, and not ideal. The syringe method where you cut off the tip, and place a balloon, or piece of fabric with a hole in it, seems to work for most people. If he still goes for your hands, try guiding his beak in with your thumb and index finger when he starts to nuzzle you. (he will nuzzle these fingers if you wet them with warm water, and when he sticks his beak between them, keep a gentle pressure at the sides of the base of the beak.)