I had a pair of about 2 week old squabs attacked by another bird . I have them isolated and put TriA ointment on the spots where they were pecked . I have Mom and Dad in the cage with them . Should the need arise , what should I feed them and how ? Thanks
Squabs were attacked
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Jay3 a bigger pair ran rough shod over that next box and were and did claim it for themselves . Pictures maybe ? The male of the other pair would have killed them , I know this for sure . I took a bad fall 2 weeks ago and haven't been out as often , fractured some vertebrae . The wounds look like they can be treated topically .
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are the parents not feeding them anymore since you moved everyone, and what kind of baby cereal, not squab formula?
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Mom-n-Dad should resume feeding them just fine.
Parents may reject Babys if they intuit that the Babys are coming down with an illness.
If the parents do not resume feeding the Babys, then please consider to post some images of the Baby's freshest poops, and, we can see about deciding on that slim basis, what sort of illness they may have.
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I can tell you that I wouldn't have that male in my loft. He'd be gone fast. You should remove them from that box and separate him from the other birds for a couple of weeks. Put the female back where she belongs. Leave him in a cage in the house if you have to. Where he can't see or hear the other birds. After a couple of weeks try returning him to the loft. If he is still a bully, try again with separating him. You can't let him do that, or he will do it again. Many cocks will try to take over as many boxes as they can. When they are removed for a while and then returned, now they are "the new guy on the block". They aren't numero uno any more. It often works. If you let him be, he will hurt others, and take other boxes.
I'm sorry you fell and hurt yourself. I hope you are feeling better soon.
The parents will probably continue to feed them. Like I said, get the other bird out of there. Let them have their box back, if they will still use it. The parents are more likely to continue to care for the babies if they are back where they were. If they won't continue to care for them, then you can bring the babies inside in a cage. But leave the parents in the loft. No point in bringing them in if they aren't feeding anyway. Do you have bird formula? Or can you get it?
Actually, at two weeks, you can hand feed frozen peas and corn, that you have defrosted and warmed under warm running water.
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scalped babies usually recover well ..it looks bad but heals pretty quick.. I think you did well to keep the family together.. the cock should still feed them...if not then the hand feeding needs to continue at which point the parent birds can go back out and perhaps find another box.. as said the bully bird should be removed for a few weeks.. it may take him down a peg or two.
I have chosen to hand feed , baby cereal will have to do until I can get my wife to drive me to a pet store and pick up baby bird mix , I have seen on here where some use Kay-tee , is it a powder that is mixed with water and given by syringe . I have raised small parrots and feel confident that I can do this . The runt doesn't eat like his/her nest mate does . The bigger squab chug a lugs his/hers . Would some applesauce mixed in with the cereal be okay to use as well ? Feed as often as the crop is emptied ? Since the fall my wife has to escort me out to the loft . She feeds and waters them , but I am going to do the hand feeding . That way I can keep them in the house and have my eye on them .
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sounds like a plan.. a bit of apple sauce is fine..it is usually used if there is a slow crop.. I would get the kaytee asap.. they do need allot of protein so not sure what the ceral has in it for that.. pigeon milk I is very high in protein.. what age are the babies? sorry if said before just must of missed it.
The baby cereal is a mixed grain , they are 2 weeks old , the cereal is 12g carbs and 3% protein ,is there something else I might add to boost the protein until I can get the K-T , I am basically flat of my back or I would have it now . Is there anything I can puree with the cereal ? Is using a syringe okay ? I looked at a site where a member used tape over the barrel end and let the chick eat out of the slice they made in tape . I don't want to damage their little beaks . I told my wife if we were successful at this , these two would become pets .
Since they are 2 weeks of age they would no longer be getting pigeon milk, so at least you will not have to worry about this. If you are out of commission for a few days, I don't see it as a huge issue feeding them the cereal, for a day or two, until you get the Kaytee. In the wild, at least for city pigeons, a good deal of what the parents would be feeding them would be high carb stuff (bread in all its different forms) anyways (make sure you do get the Kaytee though, and not try and make do with the cereal).
Here is a link to a bunch of other links on feeding, right up to weaning, you may find useful. Have a good look at the link by Msfreebird on bottle feeding, this may be the best bet for you, make sure you keep the cereal and later the Kaytee fairly runny, so it flows, about like a melted milk shake, as when following instructions on the Kaytee package, you will end up with something a good deal thicker than this and too thick formula brings on a bunch of other problems you don't want to have to deal with.
http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/f6/rescued-feral-help-please-48513.html#post522672
Good luck,
Karyn
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human baby soy only formula, you could mix it with the ceral..
parent birds need at least 16% protein in their grains..usually peas and oil seeds..when feeding babies.Jay3 , my wife came home with a baby bottle and some bandage , I saw a video clip on how to set this up and it worked beautifully . They were so cute while they were sticking that little beak in the slit on the bandage and just gulping away . Will I have to do the "pop" method for the peas and corn ? If so how much and how often , then wet seeds ?
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I'm glad it worked well with them. As far as the peas and corn, just hold the bird on your lap and against your body. Open his beak, and put the pea to the back of his throat, over his tongue. Let him close his mouth and he will swallow. You could start with maybe 30 peas. Til the crop feels squishy. Then feed him again when his crop empties. You would have to do this a few times daily. Soon they learn to pick them up themselves. They seem to find it easier then with seeds, probably because they are soft and a good size. Then they will easily wean onto the seeds. You don't have to soak the seeds. They don't need to be wet as you mentioned. Just make sure they learn to drink water. Do this by guiding their beaks gently into a small crock of water, but not over the nose. Keep doing this and they will learn.
My wife and I would like to thank everyone for the helpful suggestions and video clips . There were tons of information, as we perused through all the posts and links that are now filed away under "squab feeding". Have a happy and safe 4th of July !
Glad things went well and you feel you have a handle on things. Any other questions, just ask.
Good luck,
Karyn
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