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I got a baby pigeon from a breeder to be a companion for myself. She/he is an indian fantail and the parent birds are lovely and healthy. When I got the baby she was 15 days old. Full crop and well fed by the parents. I picked up Kaytee Exact, Applesauce, ACV and pigeon prebiotics incase of crop issues while hand feeding. I've been giving her Des Moines 18% Squab seed mix with a little millet and Versele Laga Black Label.
So now my baby is 33 days old and I feel as if her growth is stunted. Every pigeon growth video I've seen by age 30+ they're fluffy and fully feathered and basically the size of an adult. She feeds herself seeds once in a while if I leave a bowl down for her and she is very curious and likes to explore. But she looks to me to be at the stage of what a 17-22 day old pigeon would be. The breeder told me sometimes babies lag behind on growth but will catch up and there's nothing to worry about. But I guess I am worried. She seems a bit too skinny also for a baby and I can easily feel her pelvic bone. She doesn't appear to have canker but I am treating for it currently just in case. I know most treat possible sour crop with Nystatin but I have no idea how to get any of it without a prescription.
The baby is at the point now where during hand feeding she rejects the food if it has formula in it. So now its just seed and water. I sneak a little formula in her water though so when she drinks she still gets something out of it. She's very healthy and lively but these are the things I've noticed about her:
1. She doesn't like to eat too much. She use to eat til she got a full crop but now she only likes eating until its half full and won't eat more than that. But she has a healthy appetite.
2. I noticed she holds her tail to one side all the time and tends to walk in circles a lot. I was a bit confused about why she does this. Not all the time but often enough to notice.
3. Her feathers are coming in kind of scrungly. I've also noticed stress bars on her tail and feed.
I've attached pictures I've taken of her over the past 2 days. I will try uploading a video of her circling onto YouTube and link it here when I can.