[Mogkbr]

Please give me some advice. I had two pigeons I've kept since they where very young and i was very found of them. Today i let them out and stood by them as always. A halwk came and grabed Homer. Homer got away and fled to my nabors tree. Then his mate followed him and started to peck at the halwk. Homer is badly injured. His mate is no was killed by the halwks. He limps and i think may have a broken wing. I'm scared the halwk punctured his enternal organs but he's been eating drinking and pooping normal for about 9 hours. I'm scared. I love homer. He is scared and will not let anyone touch him. Please give me some advice. And excuse my spelling I'm in a rush. Right now Homer is inside my room with me in a cat carrier. I put his food and water and have been keeping the cage dark to stress him out less. Everytime i open the cage he coos at me and pecks me which is not like him.

 

[Charis]

Have you had a chance to look him over real good to see it there are any puncture wounds?
Did I understand correctly that his mate was killed by the Hawk?

 

[TAWhatley]

Welcome to Pigeon-Talk .. I'm very sorry your birds were attacked by a hawk. If I'm reading your post correctly, Homer is injured but his mate was killed by the hawk .. is that right?

If Homer's wing is broken, it probably needs to be taped/splinted in the proper position so it will heal correctly. Can you post any pictures of Homer and the injured wing? Is Homer bleeding anywhere? Does Homer have any puncture wounds that you can see?

I just got in a feral that was hawk attacked. One wing is broken, and there is a puncture into the crop and that wound is still bleeding.

Do you have access to a veterinarian that could help you take care of Homer? If not, please let us know where you are located in case we might have a member in your area.

Continue to keep Homer warm, quiet, and as stress free as possible.

Terry

 

[Mogkbr]

Yes Homer is the one who's wing is is injured an is limping badly. He is also very stressed out and nipping alot. Which he doesn't do very often. His mate was killed. I tried to save her but the Halwk actually tried to claw at me it was about a hand lenghth away. I did not know they would be that crazy. I will post some pictures of him tomorrow to keep you updated. I do not want to bother him anymore tonight. He is so stressed. Is there anything i can do to make him more comfortable? He has a puncture wound on his wing. But that is it. His poop was watery but no blood just to let you know.

 

[TAWhatley]

Yes Homer is the one who's wing is is injured an is limping badly. He is also very stressed out and nipping alot. Which he doesn't do very often. His mate was killed. I tried to save her but the Halwk actually tried to claw at me it was about a hand lenghth away. I did not know they would be that crazy. I will post some pictures of him tomorrow to keep you updated. I do not want to bother him anymore tonight. He is so stressed. Is there anything i can do to make him more comfortable? He has a puncture wound on his wing. But that is it. His poop was watery but no blood just to let you know.

If the only puncture is to the wing, then Homer should be OK for tonight. You are right to let him be warm, safe, and calm for right now. I'm so sorry that Homer's mate was killed by the hawk.

If you can get pictures tomorrow, that will be a big help to our members in offering advice.

Terry

 

[Charis]

If you are in a colder climate and have a heating pad, I would put it half-way underneath the kennel and set on the lowest setting.
Also make sure he has a thick towel or blanket inside the kennel for him to rest on.

 

[Mogkbr]

Thanks so much. I'll post pictures tomorrow sometime and then you guys can tell me what you think then.

 

[jameswaller]

by all means keep the bird at room temp,.with food and water close-,cat carrier is fine,-pain also kills-got any baby asprin/cut in half with a bit of sugar,grind up and see if he will suck it up/if not use a syring,eye dropper,.etc..one of my females had a wing set wrong,but she can still fly-but badly broken equals pain-an avain specialist should be consulted--hawk attacks are generally fatal--i have been there too..,road to recovery might be long,but you can do it ,we love these guys and some can,t figure out why!!,..sincerely..james waller

 

[Larry_Cologne]

Hello Mogkbr,

Homer's mate was one brave, dedicated pigeon. What was her name?

Where are you located? In case you need meds if you can't afford them, whatever.

Larry
(in Cologne, Germany)

 

[Mogkbr]

Thanks so much for your help. I live in Lancaster, PA, USA. There is only one vet here that takes birds but they are closed until after the holidays. I'm going to keep homer inside my room for awhile prob. until I expand his coop. He is doing about the same. Still limping and scared. When i open the carrier to put new food inside he pecks at me and tries to hit me with his wings. Is that a good sign? I should also tell yall that he was in GREAT health beforehand. He is really big. Perfect weight. My cats are scared of him he's so huge. I'm going to have my boyfriend take pictures when he gets home and I will upload them later tonight. He has only pooped once since the attack. I don't think he's eating or drinking. Should I do something about that? Or let him eat/drink when he is ready?

 

[Charis]

He probably really hurts from his injuries. Pigeons also get very depressed after the death of a mate. You said you have him in a kennel...is there enough light for him to see the food? I think it important that he eat and drink and you may need to hand feed him a time or two until he starts eating/drinking on his own.

 

[spirit wings]

what worries me is secondary infection from the wounds....he really may need an antibiotic, I would find a vet on call just in case he gets worse from the attack and he could meet you and give him an injection....just in case, you may not want to handle him, but he really needs to be looked over well, puncture wounds are hard to see sometimes and they can get infected...

 

[Lambish]

You should let birds eat and drink 'when they are ready,' but if they are not eating and drinking, it's a sign of trouble. Birds are also very emotionally sensitive. Homer could be in shock from the attack, but I am sure that we are all sorry that no vet care is available until after the holidays.

 

[Charis]

Do you have any antibiotics on hand...or any left over from human use?
Have you looked him over yet for puncture wounds?
Do you know of any others folks in your area that have pigeons that may have antibiotics?
How far are you from Beaver Falls, Pa...Foys Pigeon Supply?

 

[Mogkbr]

Homer is doing great now. My nabor had some antibotics for birds and now he is perfect. He is not limping anymore and it back to himself. Right now he is flying around my room and he wont let me put him away. Any advice on when to get hom a new mate and/or how to introduce them? ALso do you think its okay to put him back into his coop yet or should I wait a few more days.

 

[Charis]

I would wait a few days and watch him. What antibiotics did you neighbor give you?
If you have other Pigeons, please don't let them out because it's a guarantee that the Hawk will be back.

 

[ARHAM]

Hi, Sorry to hear about your bird. Don't worry your bird will be ok keep him warm and stop worrying . I had similar incident cooper hawk injured my bird badly but nothing happened. I have been dealing with hawk since 18 yrs. His mate was brave!! but you failed to save her. You scare to hawk I m sorry dude..