fledgling robin...help/advice please?

[pinkprint]

Well, first of all, hello! My name is Jessica, and I'm a 16 year old from the fabulous second city. (chicago.) =)
I'm new to Pigeon-talk, and I have a question for you guys.

Okay. So since I was about 13 I've been taking in baby birds that have fallen out of nests, and raising them and releasing them. They were mostly house sparrows (which, under federal law, I am allowed to own). And I have been very successful in raising them with out taming or imprinting upon them. I currently have two sparrows that were unable to be released into the wild as pets. One is three years old, and the other is a 3 week old.
So, to say the least, I am aware on how to raise baby birds. =)

I have accquired a baby american robin (I'm guessing that he was about 7 days old when I got him) that was missing three toes and bleeding horribly when I got to it. We're not sure how it happened.
Luckily I have an amazing vet that doesn't charge me when I bring in wild birds for him to look at, and even though it is illegal for me to own the bird...he really thinks that since my bird is obviously going to be taken care of (reguardless of whether he can be released or not) that me keeping him should not be a problem. =)

He took a look at the toes (I had stopped the bleeding in the car with some septic powder that I have; i keep it handy in the house so when I'm clipping my birds nails I dont need to worry about bleeding) And he recommended that I just put neosporin on it and remove the wrap that he put on it for the night and just keep an eye on it.

Well, the bird is now almost 3 weeks old, and is perching -very- well considering his injury. My only concern now is feeding him. I had tried to keep handling to a minum, but I'm afraid that the bird has already been imprinted on me, (he certainly is tame..) and I'm also scared that his injury could get him killed in the wild, so I've made the desicion to keep him as a pet.

I have a large flight cage for him, and I've been weaning him off of the forumula that I made for him, and now giving him mealworms. I've never had a problem with my other birds eating seed, but for some reason I just don't think that he understands the concept of a seed. He is already drinking/bathing himself in the water dish, too. I've had the idea to put the mealworms inside of his seed (so that he'd have to fish around for them) but still nothing; he wont eat the seed.

Do you guys think that he is too young to be eating seed? Or maybe I'm doing something wrong? But I've been feeding my passerines canary bird seed (under the vet's reccomendation) and they've always eaten it no problem. Is this odd for a robin? I've never delt with one before, so this is sort of new to me. =P

Anyway, I apologize for the length and thank you in advance. =)

[Lin Hansen]

Welcome Jessica,

I'm not too versed on Robins, but some members have experience with them and I'm sure they'll be along to offer advice.

In the meantime, here is a previous thread that should be helpful...just click on it:

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=21758

Good luck with the Robin....

Linda

[Charis]

Hi pinkprint,
Robins are so sweet. I've enjoyed many through the years and I have some great Robin story's.
The reason the Robin isn't eating the seeds is because Robins are not seed eaters. They eat fruit, bugs and worms. Try berries, grapes, apples, melons, figs, soaked dry cat food and cooked eggs. You must be careful with the latter of the two because if they spoil and the Robin eats them, it could become very sick.

[pinkprint]

Thanks so much for all the info. =) So, the soaked dog food thing seems good...but I really dont see that working for me. o_o I would prefer to feed him something that doesn't spoil and that would not stink up my bedroom, haha.
Anything that I can buy bagged? Or something where I would only need to add a few things? I have a lot of pets...horses, dogs, cats, other birds, a bearded dragon...and convience is the name of the game for me. XD
He already decided it would be lovely to fling a few worms on to my floor. =) To say the very least, my mother is -pleased- xD

[Charis]

Vita Vittles used to make a product called, Canary, finch and softbill+. I don't know if they still make it but my Starlings loved it. Had ground up bugs in it.

[pinkprint]

Would Kashi cereal be a good food? If I mixed in mealworms/waxworms and fruits? Kashi has a ton of fiber and protein, and its really low fat, I could soak the cereal in water beforehand to soften it as well. I could also add avian vitamins. Does this sound do-able?

[Charis]

I think you should check out, www.starlingtalk.com. Likely they will have some information that you will find valuable. I think you will enjoy the site as well.

[Lady Tarheel]

Hi Jessica and welcome to the forum. Thanks for rescuing the little robin.

Personally, if this little guy is able to perch, the kindest thing you could do is locate a licensed rehabilitator who has an outside aviary who will take your bird and keep it in the aviary for a few weeks to acclimate him to the outside and become wild again. They will do this quickly.

As Charis mentioned, robins are not seed eaters. He will do fine on a good quality soaked dry dog/cat food (we used Science Diet Adult Bites), and fruit like grapes and cherries, every day. The fruit is important to prevent metabolic bone disease to which robins are very susceptible. You would need to change the soaked food at least every 3 hours so it doesn't spoil.

You would also need to get a good vitamin supplement high in vitamin D, that you can add to his water about 3 times a week, making sure you change the water in the evening to plain drinking water. Mealworms are fine in moderation, but they should not be the sole source of his diet. I sometimes added boiled or scrambled eggs to the soaked food. The soaked food will not smell as canned food does provided you change it frequently.

[pinkprint]

Well, I followed your advice and called a wildlife rehaber...and she was very rude and short with me. I explained how i was taking care of the bird, and she was just...rude. I was not comfortable with leaving my bird with her.
So I called my vet who looks at my sparrows all the time, and he's going to give me a call back tonight. I'm very comfortable with him and I trust his opinion. So we'll see what he says tonight. =)
thanks for all of your responses! I'll let you know what happens.

[mr squeaks]

Question: instead of, or in addition to, kibble, would Monkey biscuits (after water is added to make them spongy) be OK to feed a Robin?

I am giving this to a baby Grackle, along with watermelon and hard boiled egg. He seems to like it. A rehabber told me about the biscuits and the feed stores around here sell them very inexpensively.

Shi

[naturegirl]

Hi Pink print, well Like the others said they are not seed eaters but bugs and fruit, I feed my robin Soaked puppy food and fruits and bugs, if you go to the grocery store they should have an area where they sell dried fruit. I also buy this and rehydrate it and give him that as treats usually everyday. I also bought a small styrofoam cooler put some dirt in it and keep worms for him (leaf worms), mealworms,wax worms, crickets they like, spiders which they like but I don't so he doesn't get those. I also mix vitamins with the hot soaking water for the puppy food. They also like to take alot of bathes at least Robbie does. Hope this helps

Cindy

[Charis]

pinkprint.
I'm glad you are getting some other opinions. Have you checked out the starling talk site yet?

[pinkprint]

thank you all so much!
And yes, I've been to the starlingtalk site before. Thats the first website I went to when I got my first sparrow 3 years ago. =)

[Lady Tarheel]

Originally Posted by mr squeaks

Question: instead of, or in addition to, kibble, would Monkey biscuits (after water is added to make them spongy) be OK to feed a Robin?

I am giving this to a baby Grackle, along with watermelon and hard boiled egg. He seems to like it. A rehabber told me about the biscuits and the feed stores around here sell them very inexpensively.

Shi

Shi, absolutely. Monkey biscuits are very good for them. I'm glad you mentioned them because I used them, alternating with the regular Science Diet. We still keep monkey biscuits on hand and I put them in the blender to make a fine powder which I use as one of the ingredients to feed our meal worms.

Bet you're having a good time with the little fellow.

[pinkprint]

I'm a little worried...the part where his toe was severed off is starting to get a little red and puffy. If its infected, can I just treat it at home? Like, with neosporin and such? Or would it require a vet trip?