[mikis343]

This lady who works at my local pet store said that after her store got their air conditioner removed there was a pigeon nest under it and the workers gave her the baby. She gave it to me today and after doing a lot of research I believe it is 3 or 4 days old I fed it today once because i believe she had already fed it today and I was planning to feed it twice a day. To feed it I used a saringe with the end cut off and I wanted a ballon but I had to use a plastic bag to cover the opening and cut a little hole in the plastic for his beak. I used kaytee exact hand feeding fourmula and mixed it 8% food and 92% warm water as instructed on the back of the container. I have him in a small plastic kritter keeper with a little makeshift nest of paper towel and I have a 60 watt infrared reptile heat bulb to keep him warm. Is there anything else I need to do? Is there anything I am doing wrong? When is he old enough to be weaned off the liquid food and able to eat solid foods? Also when do I stop feeding him because even after his crop was very full and inflated he was still squeeling and rubbing his beak around my hand looking for more food. Does this mean I need to feed him more?

 

[Jay3]

Those heat lights can be dangerous. They can shatter and cause a fire, so be careful. I have used a reptile heat emitter, which costs a bit more, but won't shatter. I keep a thermometer by the nest so that I can monitor the temperature, so that it isn't too hot or too cool. Can you post a pic of the baby with a full crop? He needs to be fed lots more than that. 3 or 4 times a day, depending on how fast his crop empties. Only feed him again once it empties, but get in more feedings a day, which means you may have to start earlier, or feed later in the evening. The self adhesive bandages work well for the end of the syringe also. How much are you giving him. A picture would help.

 

[Jass SamOplay]

Thanks mikis343 for saving the squab and taking his responsibilty.

Please donot fill his crop to the maximum it can contain, feed it to 80% so that the baby doesn't aspirate or have problems while breathing. Also keep all his feeding apparatus sterile. Feeding once a day is not sufficient,pls feed him 4-5 times a day and ensure his crop's moving. Maintaining pigeon favourable temperature is very important for his growth and development. He won't even be able to digest his feed without favorable temperature.
You can supplement his feed by giving him soaked(for an hour or two) feedmix, a week later.

 

[mikis343]

thank you for the advice I will start feeding him 4 times a day. when i got him his crop was very full probably to the max i now fill it to about 80% of that each time i feed him

 

[Jay3]

Could be hard to get in more feedings than 4, as it takes time for the crop to empty. I raised new babies and aimed at 4, but sometimes they only got 3, as I worked also. They did fine. But 4 times would be preferable, if the crops empty fast enough.

 

[mikis343]

I also noticed that on the container of kaytee exact it said to wean at five days and i think he is going to be five days tommorow so should i wean him tommorow? or is that just for the tropical birds you are expected to be feeding with the kaytee exact formula? because i dont think he will be old enough to eat solid food by tommorow

 

[Jay3]

Pigeons can start being weaned at around 3 or 4 weeks old. Their parents feed them in the nest till they are at least a month old, and a bit longer. But I keep a dish of seed in the nest box, and when they see their parents eating they often will start pecking at the seed at around 3 weeks old.

 

[mikis343]

Yesterday he was a picture of health but this morning he was dead. I don't know what happened. I did start making his feed a little thicker yesterday but did this realy kill him? I just realy want to know why he died

 

[Jass SamOplay]

Oh lord!
Its shocking. I'm so sorry to hear. Now the time has been lost. His death would remain a mystery. Probably, salmonella or e.coli or herpes.
Did you notice any abnormal symptoms that he might have shown before he died?
Are you SURE you didn't aspirate him?