# A Little Friend in Need



## sunsettractor (May 28, 2005)

Hello, my first post here. Our home in the high desert in Caliifornia has become home as well for a number of wonderful birds,We have two conures, two cockatoos, seven parakeets, and six pacific parotlets. We are very fond of our special freinds. We also enjoy the company of an evergrowing wild bird population around our home.We have several feeders and bird baths in our yard that are visited regularly by a variety of finches, sparrows,doves, pigeons and others. Last weekend I was watching out in the yard as many of our "wild" freinds were eating and noticed a dark pigeon hopping around on one leg, one of its feet was hanging rather limp, it looked as if it was tired, but was pecking seed off the ground.When one of our dogs barked at somthing, the flock flew away, all but the little guy with the droopy foot, he stayed behind. I went out to see if the little bird was allright, as I approached the pigeon it flew off with the grace and speed of the others, and that was the last I saw of it untill today. I was out back watering, when I was finished I was putting the hose back and noticed one little pigeon by itself in the yard, when I got closer It appeared to be the little guy I spotted last week with the droopy foot, and it was. Only this time when I came close to him he did not fly off, I stood about ten feet from him ,he looked dazed, I spoke to him and he just stood there on one leg,I got closer ad he looked wobbly on his one leg, his other foot that he was holding up, looks as if it has been somehow smashed, not bloody, but very damaged. As I knelt down to look closely at him he almost fell over, I cupped my hands and picked him up, he did not resist at all.I do not know what could have happened to this poor creature, but I just felt heartbroken to see it this way. It appears to have lost one of its eyes, I've no idea how long ago this may have happened, there is no blood, just some dark matter where its eye used to be. The other eye looks clear but he dosent seem to respond to me moving my finger back and forth near it, it feels very boney,and seems very light for a bird of its size. It has been very hot here lately, im sure that is not helping. My Wife And I sat with the bird for a while, it seemed calm. We got a little dish of water and offered it to him, at first he did'nt seem interested, but soon started drinking like he was quite thirsty. I offered some seed , it was not interested, We mixed up a batch of katee exact but he would not try it off a spoon, so we got a small feeding syringe and were able to get it to sample a little bit.This poor kid really has had some terrible luck, We would love to help this little guy, he needs a lot of help. With all of our other birds we have several extra cages, we lined the bottom of one with some shredded paper, put in a small dish of dilluted silver water, and a small dish of seed, then added the pigeon. after a short time he stood up and stretched his wings, he seemed alert. We covered all but one side of the cage so we could keep an eye on him. We put the cage in a secure spot in the garage and turned out the lights to let it rest. A little while ago I went out to check on him, he had settled down into the shredded paper and was all fluffed up with his head on his back, sleeping like a perfect little bird. Maybe tomorrow I could take and post some pictures of him and its injuries, I know it could fly very well last week, even though it had the foot injury, I could'ent tell last week if the eye was damaged then or not. He has very nice feathers now, they are not ragged and are very soft. Is there a chance this little friend could have any kind of a good life given these circumstances? My Wife says that even if it recovers from the stress is is now in, It will not likely survive out in the wild again with the handicaps it has aquired, I believe she is right. Any opinions on this? In the past my Wife has been very successful in the rescue and rehabilitation of some injured and baby birds that we found in our yard, nursing them back to good health and returning them outdoors. I would hate for this little bird to live in pain, I dont know if I could afford to have a vet try to fix or remove it's injured foot. We will do whatever we can do for this little guy, and would welcome any ideas, help, or opinions that would help us to do what is right for this little friend in need. Thanks.....Tom


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Hi Tom, 

Welcome to Pigeon Talk and thanks to you and your wife for taking in this unfortunate pigeon. Sounds like you've been able to stabolize the bird for now which is good. Hopefully you can take some pictures for us to see the extent of the injuries. Given that he's got two handicaps now, I don't feel that this bird will be able to go back to the wild and live a long life. The foot really does need to be dealt with somehow. You can try to find a vet that will help wildlife and they may do it for free. Other members will be along later today to offer more advice. Keep us posted!


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Hi Tom, 

Nice work...glad you were able to agree with him that some rest and nurture would be a good idea about now.

Keep him safe from drafts, and maybe even allow a heating pad in the night for him to be warmer on if he likes, wrap an electric heating pad in a layer of towell, and have it so he can be on it or not on it as he likes.

Lots of good Seed with extra pro-biotics and other nutrients in it, sticking to it even with a very light amount of fresh Olive Oil.

Sounds like he could use some good food and comfort for a while...for sure.

Observe the poops, and their consistancy and color and so on and h ow they may be responding to the improved food and water and rest he can have now. They should soon become damp-firm and luscious, white and brown-green.

And, of course, look out for any signs of illness, while, letting him take it easy and eat all he likes for a while...

That he was still at it in the wild, and has nice Feathers in good condition, suggests to me either the injuries are recent, and set him back in the effeciency of his food forages...or, the innuries are not recent, but that some illness or other compromise has reduced him or obliged him to become emaciated. could be worms or who knows.

A one legged, one eyed feral Pigeon maybe could live for decades in wild surrounds which to not have Hawks or too many other preditors to opportune on his compromise.

Of course, see what can be done for the foot..

Sounds like he knew you wished to help him...!

Very cool...

Phil
lasvegas


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Poor little baby, he has had a rough time but hopefully with care he will recover and have a good quality of life.

I have a one eyed pigeon, a pigeon with no feet, a pigeon with only one leg (not even a stump to balance on) a pigeon with one wing and many more with similar handicaps such as missing a single foot or most toes. All enjoy a good quality of life .

I don't think this one would survive long in the wild, though. It seems as if his original imjury was sufficient to bring him down to the state he is in now.

Could you perhaps take a photo of the foot so that we can see the damage and assess whether there is anything that you can do for it without resorting to amputation? (For various reasons I try to avoid amputation).

Cynthia


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Hello and Welcome to Pigeons.com

Thank you for taking in this little noble pigeon.

He does need a lot of rest and care right now, and you sound like you have done a great job already. 

I also have several birds that are blind in one eye, they function like normal, and live normal lives, but they can never go outside as they too, are vulnerable with the limited vision.

We are looking forward to an update and picture too. Please don't hesitate to ask any questions necessary.

Treesa


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Hi Tom and welcome to the Pigeon-Talk board. Thank you and your wife so very much for helping this injured pigeon. Hopefully we can offer additional suggestions once you have posted some pictures. Where in the high desert are you located? I'm down in South Orange County in Lake Forest CA.

Terry


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

I am in Las Vegas, Nevada...kind of medium 'low' Desert I guess...

Phil


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## sunsettractor (May 28, 2005)

*update and link to pictures*

Hello and thanks for your replies. This morning I went out to check on our new friend, he was standing on his good leg and appeared to be very alert. Food had been scattered around the floor of the cage as well as on the floor, and it looks as if he has been drinking the water. When i made contact with his one eye he seemed to notice my presence, and was reluctant to have any contact by me. My Wife put her finger near his eye and his pupil reacted to her movement, so it seems he does have some vision in his eye, last night he did not seem to react at all. He has pooped a few times, it seems to be pretty runny, kind of a yellow green color. we have just been trying to keep him calm and comfortable, I havent really probed or moved him around today other than taking some pictures of him and offering him some thawed peas.I have a kodak camera and easy share software, but The file sizes are too large to upload to the link on this site, I have included a link to view pictures at another location, I hope that works. Please let me know if you would like to see a different veiw or a feature of this bird that is not shown, I would be glad to take and share more pictures, and again, Thank you for your help and concern, and for the gentleman that asked, we are located in Phelan ca, which is west of victorville off of Hwy 138. Will update.....Tom Link to pictures (I hope)http://www.fototime.com/inv/5024D07B33A7F76


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Thanks for the pictures, Tom. I'm the one who was asking where you were located, and though my nickname is most misleading, I'm actually a female .. no ruffled feathers or anything .. just wanted you to know.

Anyway, that poor bird! I'm so glad he found his way to you and your wife for help. Is that one eye socket empty or is the eyeball just cloudy and perhaps a bit malformed? The foot may be due to string entanglement, and there may even still be string, fishing line, or hair that needs to be removed. 

Cynthia, who is a member here, has had good luck massaging Rescue Remedy cream into mangled feet to help loosen any deeply embedded remnants and to also help remove some of the discomfort the bird may be experiencing.

If you don't mind getting a couple more pictures, I think it would be helpful to have a very closeup shot of just the bad foot and just the bad eye.

Thank you again for caring for this bird!

Terry


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Hi Tom,


This is still a Juvenile Bird whose wattles are not yet "white" and full.

As Terry mentions, a close examination of the closed Foot may reveal the presense of some constricting threads or hairs or something, it is not easy to tell from your images, but, inspect it verly closely...and see what you can find out as for that or any signs of injury or abrasion or discolores areas.

Feathers are sure nice!

Tom, if it was me, I would consider to replace the shredded Newspaper with a simple Terry-cloth Towell...makes it much easier to tell how much they are eating, and, to count and evaluate the poops.

Semi starved Birds ( I think, or, it is my present hypothosis anyway, ) will show small dabs of bright green poops with whit spots around them, or bright green with flat yellow spots. Once their system is running again with something to run decently on, the poops should show the changes.

Definitely get him on some good, augmented with additional nutrients and probiotics, Seeds...

Terry...a question for you...!

What is 'Rescue Remedy Cream'? And where do I get some?


Phil
el ve


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

pdpbison said:


> What is 'Rescue Remedy Cream'? And where do I get some?


Hi Phil,

Here is a link to some information about it and also a place where it can be purchased on-line. Most of the health food/nutrition stores in my area have the liquid .. the cream is a bit more difficult to find. 

Terry


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## sunsettractor (May 28, 2005)

Hello again, Terry, Please accept my apology, you know what happens when you assume. I added a couple more pictures with a close up of the eye and foot, they are at the same link I used in my ealier post. We examined the foot and leg and could not find any traces of string, hair or any other fibers.The bird is able to raise and lower it's leg but the foot just hangs. There was a lot of discomfort when we examined the leg, he tried to push our finger away with his beak when we touched it. The foot looks kind of scaley, but we cant see any real injury. The local Vet in our town does not do "charity" work on wild birds, we are going to call around after the holiday to see if we can find someone affordable to look at him. Our local Vet supply does not have any pro-biotic bird seed available and did not know where to find any, they suggested pet smart. We are feeding him a high quality wild bird seed, he seems to like peas also, will give the olive oil a try. in the past we have had great results with silver water, so we will keep offering that as well.We are concerned though that this poor bird is suffering, I just cant afford to take it to an avian vet and say fix him all up, I wish we could. He has been resting today, he has been off of his foot, all fluffed up and still seems alert. Take care.....Tom......http://www.fototime.com/inv/5024D07B33A7F76


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Hi Tom,

This certainly looks to be a very sweet young Bird...!


Purchase only simple, clean, wholesome Seeds which do not come with anything 'in' or 'on' them otherwise.

The 'pro-biotics' are not something which comes in or on the Seeds, but are something you purchase at a Health Food store, or, possibly at some Animal supply places.

You moisten the Seeds lightly with stirring into them some (fresh Bottle of) Olive Oil or possibly (ditto) Cod Liver Oil in small batches for the day, and, this lets you have 'powders' stick to the Seeds slightly, so the Bird gets them with the Seeds as it pecks.

Also, things of course may be added to their Water.

The Bird may have an injury of the leg or nerves of the leg, which would specifically benifit in it's healing, from the Bird being given a very good diet, and, from time and comfort and possibly remedial excercise which the Bird will elect for itself, or, if a thorough enough diagnosis is possible, which you may assist with in some actual involved way.

For now, if it were me, I would concentrate on the Bird's comfort, and quality of Nutrition, whether or not a handy sympathetic vet is obtained for their opinions on the matter.

A white Towell in lieu of shredded paper will allow you to better note the numbers of poops and their qualities, as they change, and also to gauge how, and how much, the bird is eating...as well as to observe their Crop and habits generally. ( Oh, sorry, I had not looked at the updated images yet!) 

Have you supplied the Bird with the option of being 'on' or 'off' of an electric Heating Pad, under the Towell?

A 'fluffy' Bird is usually an ill or chilled or running out of steam Bird who is not generating enough heat in themselves to stay warm.

If you help them stay warm, they may conserve that energy or aply it to their phase of healing or recovery.


Best wishes,

Phil
el ve


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Thanks for the new photos Tom. The eye does look completely destroyed to me, but the foot looks a lot better than I was expecting to see. It doesn't seem to be mangled as I originally thought. Perhaps there is a fracture above the foot that is causing the limpness of the toes and also causing the pain that the bird exhibited when you were examining it.

Terry


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

The eye does look gone, but perhaps some artificial tears would make it a bit more comfortable?

The foot photo was excellent, it magnifies really well so even the thinnest hair/thread would have shown up if there was one there.

BTW Cindy has a completely blind hen that is settling in very well.

Cynthia


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Hi Tom,

You mentioned silver, is this colloidal silver? If you have that it would definitely not hurt to put a drop of it in his eye for infection, each day. May I suggest even though we don't know what is going on with his foot, I would soak it for 5 minutes or more in a mixture of warm water and squirt a dropper full of the colloidal silver it. This may be benificial or not, but it may draw out anything that shouldn't be there.

Just allowing the bird to soak its foot, may help it feel good, and the colloidal silver will help with any infection on the outside. Also if there are any raised scales, it would drown any scaly mites. Also, the foot may feel better and the bird might allow you to move his foot gently and rub his little feet.

You can buy the probiotics powder at any health food store, the human grade works well, in capsule or powder. 


Treesa


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## ernie (May 3, 2003)

I've had good success with Chamomile, with injuries around the eyes.
Just moisten a Chamomile teabag with warm water and apply like a poultice to the injured area. It will help loosen all the dried up blood and chamomile has antiseptic qualities.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Ernie,

Interesting...I'm going to check that out.

How long do you apply the poultice to the injured area?

Treesa


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## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

Yep, I think that is a good one.
I now remembered that when I did an externship in the middle of nowhere the people there knew about the chamomille tea bag for eye infections and injuries.
You keep it there as long as you can.

Reti


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## sunsettractor (May 28, 2005)

*Some Good News*

Hi again, Things are looking up today for our little friend. He (or she) has been doing well. My wife has been busy trying to find someone who could look at our little friend and was successful today. She took little bird down to San Bernardino and was able to have an examination and an X ray on the injured leg. The Vet said the leg had been broken, but has healed probably about 80%, and that trying to splint the leg at this point would probably be more painful for the bird than good , as the bone is mending, it just needs time to heal and regain strength. We were concerned as we did not know the extent of the damage, we feel better now knowing what we learned today. My Wife spent a lot of time with the bird today, she said he was nervous at the vets office but relaxed some on the drive home. During her time with the bird today she was able to observe him eating and drinking, he preened himself, stretched his wings and even saw some movement in his injured foot. She said for a short time he tried to stand on his bad leg and even limped around on it shortly, a very good sign I think. The Vet prescribed a medication,Doxaxlline I think is what it says, to take for thirty days to help the healing and fight off infection. This little guy is a trooper, he seems to be responding well to the rest and feeding.We will keep you posted with hopefully more good news on our little friend. For anyone in the area who may want to know, We took him to Loma Linda Animal Hospital in San Bernardino Ca, They were glad to help a wild bird and were very reasonable as well, Take Care....Tom


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Excellent news! Thank you for the link on the vet hospital too!

Terry


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Thank you for taking this needy little one to the vet! I'm sure he is going to do just fine thanks to your intervention!

Treesa


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Hi, Tom,

I sure wish that I had read this post several days earlier. It is possible that it could lose some or all of the sight in the remaining eye. It will be difficult to tell how much, if any, you'll just have to watch it to see. If it does lose its sight then I'd like you to consider the following story.

I have a pigeon that lost an eye due to a wound and subsequent infection about two years ago. Eventually, we (the vet and I) came to believe that the necrotic tissue of the wounded eye spread infection to the optic nerve which is very short on a pigeon. Imagine the optic nerve as a "Y" with the eyeballs at the ends of the two upper arms--they're very close to the central stem.

Anyway, she went blind in the other eye. It looks normal, but it does not respond to a light (the pupil neither contracts nor dilates). She only experienced a week or two of sight in her life. 

Today, she's one of our dearest children (we've got 45 now). We taught her to live as a blind bird. She drinks and eats on her own and she LOVES to fly. We take her outside and fly her by making a continuous sound reference for her. On her best flight ever, she flew out as far as 75 feet and then returned and circled me about 10 times. She usually gets between 50 to 100 individual flights per day. 

She also loves to go out in the loft to hear the gossip (you didn't think that all that cooing was just noise, didya'?) and loves walks around the neighborhood (I do the actual walking). She loves listening to the songbirds when we walk. If I get to talking overlong (and I can) to one of the neighbors about her or anything else, she will reach down and peck me to get me to shut up and continue walking. I am NOT kidding.

Many months after she went blind, I was talking to the vet about her various activities and he was so relieved that she had adjusted so well. He confided that he was terrified that she'd end up standing in a corner all of the time "afraid of life."

The situation begged the question, "what quality of life could a blind pigeon have?" I was trying so hard at the time to figure out what to do with little Unie (that's her name). Now, I think that I have found the answer that I was looking for, or, rather, we MADE the answer together. In some ways, the uncertainty of "tomorrow" can be one of the most wonderful gifts that we have because it compels us to dream. And in dreaming, we may fly. 

Unie did, and continues to do so to this very day.

Pidgey


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

That is the very best blind pigeon anecdote that I have heard to date!

Thank you so much for sharing it with us. It is wonderful to know how much they can enjoy life.

Cynthia


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Hi Pidgie,


Wow! This is wonderful..!  

Unie flying to voice orientations...perfect!

I had a recovered feral Pigeon a while ago who was blind, and a very sweet gently Bird. Seeing as I must move sometime soon, I found a good home for them with a sweet gal who also had a blind Pigeon, so, our thought was that they might become pals.

I am confident mine would be able to fly well, but I had not thought of your method for them to orient themselves in flying excercises and flying fun occasions. This is one of the coolest things I ever heard of..!

Made my day..!

Phil
las vegas


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## sunsettractor (May 28, 2005)

*Getting Better all the time*

Hello again, our little friend has done real well over the last week.As I mentioned in an earlier post, when my wife took pigeon to the vet she observed some use of his bad leg, we see him using his leg and foot more and more lately.I have seem him scratching his head with his bad foot, and we have noticed him on both feet when pecking seed. Looks as if he is putting more pressure on the bad foot as the toes are spread out and look much like the good side alot of the time.We are Very Happy to see this little guy making progress, he was pretty limp when we found him. He has been eating and drinking (and pooping) real well, and is getting stronger as time goes by. We have been putting ointment that the vet recomended, on and around the eye socket, I have to hold him during this, he is getting hard to hold on to as he gets stronger. The injury to his eye must have been recent when we found him, as the socket looks cleaner now ,it has shrunk in somewhat, but looks better than it did before. I added a few pictures today , you can see how the eye socket looks looks after a week, there is also a picture of him preening, if you look at the picture full size you can see that he is standing on his bad leg, it must be feeling better for him to be doing that. The earlier post about the pigeon losing sight in both eyes was both sad, and heartwarming. We hope and pray that this little guy will be spared his sight in his one eye, we are going to hold onto this little guy as long as needed. Seeing the progress he has made in this week has made us feel like he might be able to go back to his pigeon friends someday, I am sure that is where he would be happy. Would it be reasonable to think he could go back to "the wild" with only one eye if the leg and foot healed? Thanks again for your help and concern, we'll keep you posted ,Tom

Link to pictures http://www.fototime.com/inv/5024D07B33A7F76


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Wonderful update Tom! I loved pic #13 .. 

You and your wife have done so well for this little bird .. bless you! Let's see how it continues to go ..

Terry


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## Lin Hansen (Jan 9, 2004)

Hi Tom,

I was away over the Memorial Day weekend with no computer access, so there was about 4 PAGES of new posts to try to read....somehow, I missed your story till this morning!

You and your wife have done a wonderful job here...many thanks. I'm with Terry...pic #13 is great! Thanks for the updates.

Linda


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Tom,

I've been checking back every day waiting for news, so happy it's good!

You don't need to feel sad for Unie--she doesn't KNOW she's blind! The only things she takes for granted in this life is that her food and water are always in the same place. Otherwise, every flight, every walk and the song of every singing bird she hears is treated with wonder and appreciation. Would that we all could "see" as well as she can.

After reading back through all your posts, it is likely that "Little Friend" (seems like a good name if you haven't already picked one) couldn't compete for food very well and fell behind. It's impossible to say whether both wounds occurred at the same time or one precipitated the other. The eye could have been the result of a "peck" that he couldn't dodge from with his leg broken or he might have broken the leg in a bad landing/crash because he couldn't see well enough.

I agree with others here that an aviary would probably be the best place for him. It's just a tough life for a pigeon, plain and simple, with the predators out there. Their birth rate is the only thing that keeps them around. Has he "taken" to you? Sometimes, they don't understand that they need help and they just want to get away as soon as they think they're able. Once in awhile, you see one that somehow understands that you're the best friend it has and then is reluctant to leave.

In any case, I think "Little Friend" needs to work on his flying skills (maneuvering and landing) to get used to his dramatic loss of vision. He should just about be ready for that as he's using his leg more. So, you'll need to take him in the house, or in an enclosed barn, or in an aviary to work on that, I think.

Thanks for helping him,

Pidgey


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Chico is my one-eyed pigeon, the vet thought that he would be okay for release and said that I would find that to compensate for the eye that is missing he would look around more. This hasn't happened. He is a very nervous pigeon despite his period of hand feeding and I cannot get near him if I approach him from his sighted side. But of I approach on the blind side he is completely oblivious of me until he is caught. Given the fact that so many adults and children feel that they cannot walk past a pigeon without aiming a kick at it I don't think that he would survive in the wild and that is even without taking his vulnerability to cats, dogs, hawks and road traffic into account.

Chico will be staying with me.

Cynthia


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Hi Tom, 

I agree with Cynthia here, a one eyed pigeon is at a major disadvantage. With prey birds like pigeons, their eyes don't have a good range of binocular vision since their eyes are at the sides of the head. With one eye blind now, this will be a significant handicap and risk if he were to be released again into the wild. 

You're doing a great job with this pigeon though, you and your wife. Once his leg has improved, I think it's best if you just keep him or give him to someone else that has a large aviary


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## sunsettractor (May 28, 2005)

Hello again all,Thanks for all the kind words and support. I was so touched when I first found little friend, I kind of think it was a miracle that we came together, If I had'nt of walked around to the front yard when I did, Im sure one of our dogs would have found him first, that would have been terrible. He is doing so well now. My Wife and I have become quite attached to little friend, he seems to "tolerate" us, I dont know if that is the same as "taken" to us or not  As I mentioned, he is pretty wiggley when I have to hold him now, as he gets stronger , he's became quite a handful. After a minute though he settles down and seems to relax. He really likes to eat, besides the seed and medicine we have been giving , he also likes to munch on a goody we give our other birds called "soak and cook". You all probably know what that is, Grains and seed that you soak then cook, we got him some cracked corn, he seems to like, and my Wife chops up fresh veggies and fruit, he likes that as well. He even nibbled on some cottage cheese. We have a semi enclosed garden area in our yard, I dont think it would take too much to fully enclose, it is approx. sixteen feet by sixteen feet by about eight feet high, Would that be big enough to be cosidered an aviary? We have spoke to several people who take in injured or problem pigeons, but my Wife and I are leaning more towards making a home for him here with us. Maybe we could find him a bird friend? We'll have to see what happens. Looks like our little friend will be going to the vets office again on friday, My Wife spoke to the vet about the eye socket, so the vet is going to take another look at it since all the muck is gone. He said it may help the bird to sew the socket closed, that it may prevent future infection to do so, We'll see. I m very tired, Just wanted to say Hi, Be back soon.....tom


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Hi Tom, 

Thanks for the update, sounds very positive I would just like to suggest that you don't give him cracked corn, try popcorn kernels instead. Cracked corn can get mouldy easily and cause problems in pigeons, whole corn is best. Also, I'm not sure about your "soak and cook" seeds, generally cooked seeds are not suitable for pigeons. I've never heard of people doing this for birds myself and I could be wrong that it's not ok. Roasted peanuts, and other roasted nuts are harmful and very hard for pigeons to digest, just don't know if other seeds that are cooked would be the same. 

Yes, your 16 X 16 front garden is more than sufficient in size, lol. As long as the pigeon can flap and fly easily to get his exercise is what is important. Maybe down the road you could get him a mate, this sounds good to me

Well, all in all things sound like they are going marvelously. Pigeons are very good at rebounding from illnesses and close calls with death. He should do very well now that he's been taken in and given such great care and love.


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## sunsettractor (May 28, 2005)

*Big Day for our Little Friend*

Hello
Thanks for the tip on the cracked corn, I was not sure about giving the bird such large hard seed as the corn kernels are. We decided to name our little friend Charlie. I mentioned in a previous post about taking Charlie to the vet on friday, My Wife had spoke to a holistic veternarian over the phone about Charlies eye, they mentioned to her it may be necessary to remove the empty eye socket and sew the area shut to prevent infection. So, my Wife took Charlie to the Doctor who had seen him earlier for a checkup and some advice. He examined Charlies leg and eye, and said Charlie is healing very well, and would most likely be fine just the way he is. He said there is no sign at this time of any infection, that the socket is clean and healthy. What was really cool was that he reminded my Wife that he had taken an oath to be humane to animals,and do what he felt was right for each and every patient he dealt with. He feels Charlie is doing very well and if a problem comes up, to deal with it, otherwise we would probably be putting Charlie through a lot of unnecessary pain and stress, the poor bird has already been through way more than he ever should have. This doctor has been a Joy to deal with, For anyone who wants to know, his name is Leonard A Sigdestad, at the Loma Linda Animal Hospital in San Bernardino, Ca. I have no relation to this man, He has just been so kind, genuine and helpful to our little friend Charlie. Saturday night I spent a lot of time with Charlie. The time seemed right, I took his house into my den and set it on a small bed we have and opened the door, and sat back to see what he would do. It did not take long for him to come out of the little house he has been in for the last couple of weeks and stretched his wings wide open. He seemed very interested in the new surroundings and took a short little walk accross the bed, he took kind of short steps, but barely limped at all, I was so proud of him. I told him what a pretty bird he is and how proud I am of him, and that he is so brave to go through all this and not be scared to death of me and hide in the corner, he just looked at me like everything was ok and then he decided to fly up and try to land on top of the window blind. He could'nt get a grip of the blind, so he flew around in a small circle and landed on the floor right in front of me, His first flight since we had met I rased the blind high enough for him to set on the window sill and after a few minutes he flew up to the window sill and looked out the window, standing on his own two feet, I was very proud of Charlie.He walked back and forth, bobbing his head back and forth, then sat at the end of the window closest to me. I took a few pictures of him, he seemed all proud of himself as well standing there on two feet, he seemed very comfortable being near me. He let me pick him up, I cupped my hands together and scooped him up, he put his wings out to get his balance and he stood there in my hands, after a minute or two he waddled up my arm almost to my shoulder, did a big ol poop, and just sat there like he belonged there, after awhile he even preened himself, we just kicked backed and enjoyed each others company. My Wife came in a little later and was tickled when she saw Charlie sitting on my arm, she took a picture so we could share it with you .I could probably end this thread as Charlie is doing very well now, Is there a forum for adjusting to life with a new pigeon friend ? .
I added a few more pictures of Charlie and our time together saturday, you can get there at the link below if you'd like. Looks like Charlie is going to be with us for a long time, my Wife kind of thinks we may have bonded .
http://www.fototime.com/inv/5024D07B33A7F76
Tom


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Thank you for the update and the pictures.

I'm so happy to hear this brave little pigeon has a home. Thank you so much for coming to his rescue and offering him a wonderful home that he desperately needs and deserves. 

Feel free to ask any questions or concerns you may have now, and in the future.

I love a happy ending...

Treesa


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## Lin Hansen (Jan 9, 2004)

Tom,

Thanks so much for sharing such great news....by the pictures, it sure looks like you have a new best friend!

Linda


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Tom,

Big sigh of contentment!

Pidgey


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

Hi Tom,


Excellent! He has found a fine loving home..!

Yes, good quality, well seasoned 'dry' raw Seeds...

White Safflower, Dried Peas, 'Pigeon-Seeds' in essence...and a good quality Grit.

No 'cottage-cheese' please...they do not have the enzymes to process dairy.

See some of the other threads also for more details on veggies and greens..maybe there will be a 'sticky' soon ( or already is? ) ...

Nice going!

Phil
Las Vegas


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

What a wonderful update and pictures! Thank you Tom! Guess we'll be seeing you and Charlie in the Pet Pigeons forum from here on out (that's under the Pigeons and People heading)!

Terry


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## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

Thank you for the wonderful update and the great pics.
He seems happy and content, he couldn't have found a better home.

Reti


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Reti said:


> He seems happy and content
> Reti


Reti,

Are you referring to Tom or the pigeon? I can't tell which one is the more happy and content!

Pidgey


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## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

LOL, Pidgey, you're right. Both.
They are made for each other.

Reti


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