# young pigeon wont fly, tail feathers seem under developed and he makes no sound?



## katehough (Sep 21, 2010)

hello all, im in the uk and very new to this, not sure how to use this site? but was hoping for some help and advice?

i have found a baby pigeon in the street, it was just sat on the floor all puffed up. i bent down to stroke it and it let me then i tried to shoo it away so the cats wouldnt get him but he didnt make much effort to fly and just kind of waddled! i picked him up and tried to get him to fly off but he couldnt and there were no flapping parent around, so i took him into work with the intention of letting him go the next day when he had rested (just incase he was a bit dazed from flying into a window or something)

fed and watered him and put him in a box with a towel for the night. he wasnt scared he seemed to love being petted. on closer inspection it seemed his tail feathers were a bit scratty and were lobbed sided. they were sparse to say the least and the bottom half of them were still in the hard case bit (not sure what they are called)

i tried several times to get him to fly he flutters but he just falls (do it over my bed so he has a soft landing) his wings seem fine though. iv had him for nearly a week now and he shows no interest in wanting to fly or no improvement when he flutters about.

im not sure how old he is but he has all his grey feathers and his eyes lids are grey and his beak is a pinky grey. he is eating and drinking.
iv put a stick through the middle of the box just off the bottom but if i put him on it the next time i check on him he's on the floor. i have changed his bedding once a day.

tonight i picked him up and looked underneath him and was shocked, he must of been sat in his poo because his bum area was covered in thick poo and it seemed red and a bit bald,, but i had noticed if it was bald or not before this? 

so i put him in warm water and just held him in there for a while, he seemed to like it and was very calm. after he had soaked for a few mins i tried to wipe off the poo i got most of it off but he semed to b getting a little distressed so i wrapped him in a towel coverd up on my lap for a while. 

i say seemed distressed because he was opening his mouth like he was churping but no sound was coming out? i had noticed that he was very quiet before but thought it might be because he's young or scared i left him in the window with half the lid on and the window open during the daytimes so he could hear other birds,

i dont know anything about pigeons so not sure if he should b making sounds? iv put some sudacream on the red bit of his bum i hope i did the right thing but its all i could think of doing and he has a hot water bottle under his box (its not too hot though) 

he seems ok now but im concerned about his bum. in the box is newspaper then a small towel on top then the stick. i leave food in and a small amount of water that he couldnt fall into. what should i do now? shall i not use sudacream (its a very good baby nappy rash cream) should i just use newspaper? what if he never flys or churps? would the parents of abandoned him because of any of these?

i dont mind keeping him if he dosnt fly he's so lovely. but what kind of home would i get for him? im not going to put him in a cage but i havnt any other ideas as far as pigeon homes go? i did ring the rspca when i first found him but although they gave me adivce they didnt seem interested in doing anything. i hope iv done the right stuff id be very upset if he didnt make it especially if it was due to me doing the wrong things!!

thanks for yr help
kate in the uk x

ps i could work out how to put a pic on i went on the add image bit but it was asking for ULR or something??


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## katehough (Sep 21, 2010)

there's a pic of him on my profile but not his rear end! i will post one soon x


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## Dobato (Jul 3, 2008)

Kate, glad you got things sorted out. As I mentioned our UK members will be along before too long to help you out with some possible resources in your area. That he is eating and drinking is good news. Much easier to read you post now and don't forget to delete you posts from the other thread, as I did mine, pertaining to you.

Good luck,

Karyn


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## John_D (Jan 24, 2002)

Hi Kate

Thanks for helping the little one. 

You can post a pic by using the "upload file from your computer" box, rather than the URL box. Just use "browse" to find the pic wherever you have it on your PC, then "upload". It will tell you when it has uploaded and you can then close that window. The pic should then appear in your post underneath whatever text you type in. The pic needs to be .JPG and no more than 100kb in size. If you have difficulty, you can send me the pic as an atachment ( [email protected] ).

We need to establish approx age of this baby amd if it is a wood pigeon or a feral pigeon. So, pic will help.

The opening of beak could be distress, particulalry if he's a wood pigeon which are much more 'highly strung' than feral pigeons.

For now, here is a link to a list of wildlife rescue places which accept pigeons. On the site there is also a section about caring for a baby pigeon, and some references to help with identifying the kind of bird you have.

http://www.pigeonrescue.co.uk/rescuecentres.htm

John

(PS thanks for picking this up, Karyn)


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Although your description suggestst wood pigeon Parker looks like a fledgeling *collared dove *to me. Collared doves can leave the nest unable to fly and with "pipey feathers", the feathers don't come out of their sheaths when they should.. The link above has photos of an extreme case of pipey feathers and discusses the condition. I usually treat this syndrome with calcium supplements and can send you some if you PM me your address

As it could have been it by a car, or could have been injured by a cat, you should check carefully under the wings for injuries and also in the mouth for trichomoniaisis which would show as a yellow growth as these are also possibilities. Bothof thses possibilities would need treatment with antibiotics.

Like wood pigeons, doves can become very agitated and start breathing with an open mouth. If this happens stop whatever you are doing immediately and put it somewhere quiet as they can die of a heart attack.

Can you let us know your nearest town or city? That way perhaps we can try to find someone that will help, but you need to be wary of the dove being put down which would be unnecessary.

This is forget-me-not. for comparison:


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