I found a baby pigeon in downtown Montreal, please help.

[LovelyFlight]

This morning I found a baby pigeon walking on St Catherine street near Alexis Nihon mall (Atwater). She cannot fly. From the little research I did online she looks to be about 18 days old. There was no nest around where I found her and there are a lot of cars and people.

I brought her home and fed her baby bird food in warm water, she ate about 40 ml already. She seems to know how to eat from the syringe (I was worried I would choke her, I have absolutely no experience with birds). She does not look injured but her feathers look a bit rare, although I don't know what she's supposed to look like...She pooped twice already, it looked like regular bird poop. I placed her in a big recycling box lined with an electric blanket and paper towels, and the box is in our spare bedroom, safely away from our two, very curious cats

I have to say that she is the cutest little thing, she is very vocal and full of energy and very affectionate. She climbs on my shoulder and rests under my cheek and pecks at my face

My questions are:

1. Is there anything else I should be doing right away?
2. How often should I feed her and how much?
3. It is getting very cold out there, I will not let her go until I know she is going to be perfectly fine; is there a sanctuary in Montreal where I could bring her so she could socialize with other pigeons?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, I will keep researching.

Thank you!

[Tamara21]

Can you post a picture of her so we can get a better assesment of her condition.Make sure that the electric blanket is on low and that she has a way to move away from the heat source should she get to warm.You did the right thing and thank you so much for that.You can provide water in a small container (they sip it up so it needs to be deep enough for its beak) you can dip it in the water and see if it drinks on it's own.You can also use defrosted peas and corn - warm them with hot water and I always test on my wrist so they don't burn them, but you can pop them in thier mouths and just rub on the throat.About 40 should do for each feeding.You can also try some wild bird/dove seed and put it next to her to see if she trys to eat it on her own (but continue with the peas/corn)...I have never syringe fed but there are lots of links on here how to do it..search for that...be careful with the feed because some of that is not safe for pigeons...so you may want to do the peas and corn until you can confirm your bird fed is safe. Good luck and other members will be posting soon I am sure!!!

[LovelyFlight]

Thank you for your prompt reply and advice.

We are going to get the frozen peas and some seeds soon; she's been feeding herself using a home-made device (we found pictures on this site) where she can put her beak in and take as much food as she needs until her crop is full. I got the bird food at the pet store; it's good for baby pigeons. She is not drinking on her own.

There is no way we are going to release her; it just started to snow here.
Can anyone help me find a sanctuary in or around the Montreal area? We cannot keep her for too long.

Here is a picture of the little angel:

[Charis]

I have tried and tried to find a resource in Montreal and each time I come up with no one. It's very frustrating because the wildlife rehab places think of Pigeon as dirty and as pests. Those of us the rescue/rehab feral Pigeons know they are clean, smart, loving and absolutely amazing. They also make wonderful companions for humans.
I think you have a little girls there and she is precious.
I'm going to go grab you the pre-written instructions for feeding the defrosted corn and peas.
Before I do that...let me suggest that the way to find a Pigeon person to take her may be to call vets in the area to see if they know of anyone. What ever ...don't let anyone talk you into just letting her go, because she won't survive on her her own this time of year even after she leans to eat on her own. She won't have a clue as to how to find food.
Don't let anyone talk you into euthanizing her. There just could never be a reason good enough to do that unless she was suffering from a terminal disease such as a cancer.

[Charis]

Here they are...

You can hand feed defrosted corn and peas. Run some hot water over them until they are defrosted and slightly warmed.
Put the bird on your lap and hold her next to your body.
Gently open the beak and pop the piece of corn and peas at the back of the mouth and over the throat.
You will need to feed 40-50 per feeding and every time the bird’s crop empties until you know she is eating on her own. This is a wonderful method for teaching babies to eat because they feel the whole food in their mouth and it’s soft and easy to pick up and hang on to. The next step… seeds.
The crop is located right below the throat and with food it fills up like a little balloon. The peas and corn make it lumpy and squishy.

[LovelyFlight]

We got frozen peas and corn and fed her about 50 pieces. She loved it!!! However she is still not drinking water on her own. Her poop had become watery, probably due to the baby bird food she was eating before.

Is it safe to leave her alone for the night or should I check on her from time to time? When should I feed her next? Some people say she should be fed every 15 minutes, others every 2-3 hours, others say it's ok to leave her alone in the dark to sleep during the night....

Thank you, all help is appreciated.

[LovelyFlight]

Originally Posted by Charis

let me suggest that the way to find a Pigeon person to take her may be to call vets in the area to see if they know of anyone. What ever ...don't let anyone talk you into just letting her go, because she won't survive on her her own this time of year even after she leans to eat on her own. She won't have a clue as to how to find food.
Don't let anyone talk you into euthanizing her. There just could never be a reason good enough to do that unless she was suffering from a terminal disease such as a cancer.

Don't worry, there is NO WAY I am not seeing this through. When I found her this morning the weather was not that bad but it has snowed since and I am sure she would not have made it. I am lucky my boyfriend is also an animal lover so we will both do our best to ensure her safety. We will release her with other pigeons when she is strong enough. We will keep looking for a sanctuary...so far that seems the best solution. I will take your advice and start calling vets tomorrow.

In the meantime I am educating myself since I have only had cats and dogs as pets in the past. We are also looking for a good name to give her. She is a lovely being; she is affectionate, funny, full of life, LOUD, super cute....and I can't wait to see her fully grown and strong.

My first dilemma though, what should I do tonight?

[yopigeonguy]

Hey,

She is very cute. If her last feeding is at about 8-9 P.M. she will be fine for the night... all pigeon parents get to sleep through it.

She should be weaned at about 25- 30 days- you can peck at the seed with your finger and she will certainly repeat after you. And for the drinking take her beak gently and dip it in the water do this a couple times and she will be feeding herself in no time.


She will need lost of exercise so that she can fly so make her walk around for her food

[LovelyFlight]

Thank you! I will follow your advice; she just ate so she should be good for the night.

Now I am worried about what I should do with her. There really are no sanctuaries in Montreal and the weather is getting very cold...I have started looking for sanctuaries in Ontario.

[yopigeonguy]

o ya i forgot... take a small towel or wash cloth, fold it over and place it on her so that she is completely coverd. she will be quite until you take it off and she will feel comforted and sleep better. it is like her mother was there.

[Charis]

I agree that she will be just fine over night. The peas and corn have a lot of water in them which is one of the reasons they make such great hand feeding foods.

[LovelyFlight]

Can anyone give me their guess on her age? I think she is around 18 days old.

[yopigeonguy]

I live in belleville ont. and there is a really great rehad in nappanee.

or if you could transport her to me i could help you out as i have handfed many birds and i have some homers and helmets ( all breeds of pigeons ) so she could imprint on them and i found a feral chick too back in august so it comes every day to hang out and eat!!!!

[yopigeonguy]

she is about 18- 21 days old

[Charis]

Originally Posted by LovelyFlight

Can anyone give me their guess on her age? I think she is around 18 days old.

I think you are about right.
By the way...I think she would be better with a private rehabber rather than a big place. Too easy to get lost in the shuffle and I doubt many of them would be able or willing to hold her over the winter.