i found a baby pigeon please help

[lou lou]

today i found a baby pigeon on the highstrret it is dehydrated and is not banded it was on the floor and was really cold i have fed it a bread and milk solution but now i dont know what to do. someone please give help and suggestions im afraid it will die. lou lou

[Reti]

Hi Lou Lou.
Thank you for rescuing this bird.
Please do not give the bird milk. Birds are lactose intolerant.
Pefore you give him any food give him some Pedialyte, unflavored if you have.
If no Pedialyte is available, you can give water at room temperature to which you add a pinch of salt and a little sugar. You can give him with a syringe or eye dropper every hour 5-10 cc's depending on the size of the bird. He needs to be hydrated before he can digest any food.
Is it an adult bird, a baby or youngster? Are all feathers grown in? Does he have any yellow hairs?

Also very important is to keep the bird warm. If you have a heating pad set it on low, put a towel between the bird and heating pad. If you don't have a heating pad, put warm water in a bottle, wrap it in a towel and put it next to the bird. Keep him in a quiet area away from traffic. But please keep the bird hydrated and warm for now.

Let us know how he is doing and then we figure out when and what to feed him.

Reti

[Trees Gray]

Hello and Welcome to pigeons.com

Thank you for helping this baby.

Please follow Reti's excellent advice, putting the baby on a heating pad set on low for 20 minutes, first, and then give rehydration fluid.


Please check this site for the age of this baby and let us know:

http://www.speedpigeon.com/baby_racing_pigeon.htm


and for wild life rehabber in your area check:

http://wildlifecare.org/list.html

http://www.pigeons.com/prd.htm

[lou lou]

hi its lou lou again the bird does have yellow hairs and i have put a warm bottle in a towel next to him. Is it right for him to have yellow hairs?

[Trees Gray]

Thank you again for helping this youngster.

The yellow is the baby fuzz that they shed as the become young adults, yes it is normal.

Please identify the age, so we can give you the appropriate diet requirements.

[John_D]

Hi LouLou

if you are in th UK, can you give us a rough idea where, in case we have someone near or there is a convenient wildlife hospital?

Cheers

John

[lou lou]

hi i live in brentford middx. ive rehidrated the bird and it seems perker,i dont knpw how old the bird is but cant fly, it is half feathered, but still has some yellow

[Victor]

Hello Lou and welcome to pigeon talk. Thank you for rescuing the little one.

At the top of this section are threads called "sticky" threads. Plese click on them as they have much useful information on the proper care of those poor ones in need of help.

[lou lou]

sorry i can not seem to find the sticky thread do you have a link. Can my scent on the pigeon make it unable to live in the wild.

[Trees Gray]

Hi lou lou,

Your scent won't affect the birds ability to live in the wild.

Just go back up to me original post, and bring your mouse to each site and click on them, they will open up, and have valuable help for you.

[John_D]

Hi LouLou - do the pics on the site Treesa posted help any in checking his age?

How you care for him may depend on what stage he is at with feeding. Some youngsters can peck for seeds and eat but still squeak at their parents to be fed by them.

Sometimes, scattering a little mixed corn, or just wild bird seed, and making pecking motions with a finger can encourage them to eat.

Many need to be fed with a formula such as Kaytee Exact for baby birds, chick crumbs mixed up with warm water, or even chicken flavor human baby feeding formula. Here is one method for doing so:

http://community.webshots.com/user/cyro51

look at 'syringe and balloon method'

They may also accept being fed by placing food items into the beak - such as thawed out frozen peas and sweetcorn, or pellets made of moistened eggfood (CeDe eggfood from pet store, Pets-At-Home for example). At a pinch, small bits of bread soaked in water - that way they get only a little nutrition but do get some liquid.

With water, they may be encouraged to drink by gently immersing the beak below the nostrils in a small pot of water. They suck up water rather than sip like most birds.

John