Baby Pigeons - UK

[lalatuna]

hi i wonder if you could help i live in sussex too and have a nest outside my flat in a tree with two baby pigeons they have been there about two weeks but the mother has not come back to them for about two days now. i am getting very worried as i do not want to watch them die. i have called the rspca and they said because they are still in the nest they cannot touch them. I am more than willing to try to rear them myself but i do not want to interfer if the mom does come home? how long shall i leave them? the nest is just too far away to reach to try and feed them where they are. any advice?

[kippermom]

Hopefully someone nearby will step in shortly. If you are sure no adult bird has been to the nest in two days then perhaps the parents have been killed or??? But 2 days is too long. You will need to retrieve the babies and give them water and food yourself or get them to a vet or rehabber. Even if you take them down and check on them and find them to be cared for, you can replace them in the nest and mom or dad will still feed them. You can feel the front of their throats and feel if they have been recently fed. If yes, leave them alone, if no...take them in and do your best until more help arrives. Trickle water onto/into their beaks. An emergency hydration solution is a cup of water with a pinch of salt and a pinch of sugar. Water and warmth is most important initially. If you get this far, check back here in the recources section or other threads for feeding directions...again...hopefully someone local will be along shortly.

[cyro51]

Are the babies looking bright eyed and alert? If so, I would say that they are being fed. When they are about 10-14 days old the parents stop sitting on them and just pop back to the nest to feed them. Could this be what is happening in your case?

Both parents feed the babies, so it would be strange for both of them to have an accident at the same time.

Can you take a photo for us to check?

Cynthia