Pigeon dropped from the L in Chicago

[mg27]

I was standing under one of the L train platfroms in Chicago when a bird fell to the ground. It didn't really look injured so I picked it up and walked around trying to find its nest. Eventually, I took it home. I found the bird around 6 pm cst and it is now 11:15 pm cst. Since then, it hasn't done much but sleep. It hasn't cried for food. Since it has been a solid 5 hours, I have made several attempts to put that universal rehydrating solution on its beak. Everytime I try to, s/he starts shaking his head violently for a couple of seconds and then goes back to sleep. Any advice? I've been reading some posts but I guess I need more personalized advice. I have it in a box with paper towels next to a large jar filled with hot water that is wrapped in a blanket. I appreciate any advice. Thanks!

[AZWhitefeather]

Originally Posted by mg27

I was standing under one of the L train platfroms in Chicago when a bird fell to the ground. It didn't really look injured so I picked it up and walked around trying to find its nest. Eventually, I took it home. I found the bird around 6 pm cst and it is now 11:15 pm cst. Since then, it hasn't done much but sleep. It hasn't cried for food. Since it has been a solid 5 hours, I have made several attempts to put that universal rehydrating solution on its beak.

* Everytime I try to, s/he starts shaking his head violently for a couple of seconds and then goes back to sleep. Any advice?

I've been reading some posts but I guess I need more personalized advice. I have it in a box with paper towels next to a large jar filled with hot water that is wrapped in a blanket. I appreciate any advice. Thanks!

Welcome to Pigeon-Talk mg.

Thank you for taking this bird under your wing.
Is this a pigeon we are talking about? If so, does it appear to be a youngster?

* I have had some that will do that.
If you haven't already done so, could you gently open it's beak & check the inside of the mouth? It should be nice & pink & free of any obstruction.
Could you also check him for any visible injuries on his body, legs & wings (including under his wings) or anything you feel might be questionable.

Cindy

[mg27]

The inside of the mouth seems to look perfectly normal - nothing in there that doesn't belong. The rest of the body is fine too, which is pretty surprising to me. I knew pigeons were resilient but the drop down from the L was pretty far.

Looking at the pictures in the forum, I've confirmed that it is a pigeon. He doesn't really open his eyes a lot, only to kind of blink a couple of times before going back to sleep. He still has some yellow fuzz, so I'm thinking he's on the younger side? I found it pretty hard to compare him to the pictures in the posts. His body is still mostly white and yellow peeach fuzz as is his head. The face doesn't really have that much hair. The wings and tail are mostly gray.

[mg27]

Forgot to mention, thanks for such a quick response!

[AZWhitefeather]

Could be he fell from his nest & is just too young yet to fly.

Is there any chance of posting a picture of the little one?

You might want to try offering him a little rehydrating solution in a small glass (shot glass works well). Try to guide his beak, if possible.
If he doesn't drink on his own, I would continue trying to administer the soluition alongside his beak.

Any droppings to give us a report on? Color and consistency.

It sounds like you have things pretty much under control.

Cindy

[JGregg]

Thank you so much for helping a creature in need!

How is the little one doing? Have you offered it food, and it it eating seeds and drinking on it's own?

Feel for seeds in the squeaker's crop (this is a pouch on the squeaker's chest). If you don't feel seeds in the squeaker's crop and/or it is loosing weight (you'd have "bad" poops too) hand feeding is the way to go. Don't worry hand feeding a squeaker isn't hard.

To hand feed soak some dry dog kibble in water until its soft. Place the baby on a table on in your lap (you can wrap the baby in a towel to minimize wiggling, and be careful the baby doesn't fall off of the table or your lap) and gently open the baby's beak (as pigeons don't gape) and gently insert a bite sized (for the pigeon) hunk of dog food into the baby's mouth, and the baby will take over swallowing the food. Feed until the crop is soft and full but not taunt, overfeeding can cause a impacted crop (can be fatal). Repeat after the crop empties. You can also use a little hand feeding to ensure that the squeaker is hydrated. Make sure you soak new food for each feeding, the shelf life of soaked dog food is short!

[feralpigeon]

See post number 8 of this Rescue and Rehab post:

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=8817

If you need help, there is some available in Chicago.

fp

[Maggie-NC]

Welcome to the forum and thank you for rescuing this baby.

Please check his body carefully for any bruising or swelling. Pigeons don't have lungs but they have several air sacs at different areas of their body. In falling, an air sac can be damaged and this can cause an air bubble to form that is visible on the outside of its body. Often, these will go down on their own but sometimes intervention is needed to deflate them but we can go into that later on if he does have this problem.

Babies will sleep a lot but the most important thing right now is the heat you're providing and rehydration.. Please continue to dribble the rehydrating solution alongside his beak as often as you can. Keep him in a quiet area, away from drafts.

If he is bruised from the fall, this too will often go away after a week or two but can make it uncomfortable. Try putting him in what we call a donut towel. Simply make a donut out of a towel with the hole just large enough for his body to settle on and this will take the pressure off any bruised areas.

The soaked dog/cat food will do very well in the interim until you can get a baby bird formula such as Exact Hand Feeding Formula for Baby Birds. This is an excellent product and will provide all the minerals, vitamins, etc. he will need until he learns to feed on his own.

We use a dry pellet product, Science Diet Adult Bites, in an emergency. Simply soak it in very hot water until the entire pellet is softened but not mushy. These pellets are fairly small but I always split one in half to feed the bird. In feeding either the pellets or Exact you shouldn't need to give it water since either contain sufficient moisture for him.

Personally, I don't make a fresh batch of soaked pellets every time. (I make enough to last a day and discard after the last feed and make a fresh batch the next day.) Instead, I soak about 1/4 cup of pellets with enough hot water to cover plus about another inch of water, let it soak, then drain off any excess water and refrigerate. As I feed a baby, I will take out about 8 pellets, put in a strainer and run very hot water over them to get the chill off and let them sit about 10 minutes so they will not be too hot to burn the crop when you feed them. You can break them in half and feel the inside to make sure they're not too hot. Never, ever, heat either the pellets or formula in the microwave because they could cause severe crop burns.