# Sick african redeyed dove babies.



## eli lang (Feb 18, 2010)

I live in zanzibar tanzania on a small island that is a dove nesting area.in season we get as many as 10,000 doves on the island. every day a few baby bird gets knocked out of a nest and my girlfriend cant help but bring them home. we raised a handful to adulthood. no cage so they go when they get big enough to feed and fend for themselves. over the last few months we have gotten a few of these birds that develop the same problem. as they grow they loose the use of their legs, become weak, stop eating and then die. i though that it was a nutritional issue but have attempted to change there diet and even put vitamin supplements into the food. has anyone seen or heard of this before? I have read about metabolic bone disease could it be this? it seems that it only happens when the babes are very young when we first get them. if we get them once they have started to fledge they are fine, but i would say anything less than 7 days out of the egg has no chance.. we are feeding them a mix of lentils, rice, oats, nuts and seeds, sometimes fortified with fruit, egg yolk and vitamins. the species is African red eyed dove (Streptopelia semitorquata).

any information is appreciated and would save my girlfriend many tears.
thanks
eli lang


----------



## Reti (Jul 20, 2003)

The diet you provide sounds fine and since some make it and some not I would guess there is something else going on. Could be a virus that affects them and if that is going on there is little you can do.
Is there a avian vet on the island you could ask for advice? He might have an idea of what diseases are common in the area.

Thank you for helping those little guys.

Reti


----------



## altgirl35 (Sep 5, 2008)

i could be mbd not a lot of calcium in that diet (unless it's in the vitamins) but it's hard to say, i would add some for sure or change over to a parrot commercial hand feeding formula.
you can also use the whole egg the white has a lot of protein in it and the shell is a natural source of calcium if you can grind it up small enough.
make sure you cook the egg also as it can be a source of salmonella that can kill the babies
if you can't get your hands on a commercial formula like kaytee look up the ingredients and try to mimic it the best you can.
i'm sure someone will come along with more ideas for diet and disease, i will try to see if i can find an old homemade formula for doves


----------



## eli lang (Feb 18, 2010)

*thanks for the info*

I will try calcium from shells, as for store bought food, there is nothing like that available for hundreds of miles. 
thanks for the info
eli
ps- what about sprayed leg? could it be something as simple as the "nest"?


----------



## altgirl35 (Sep 5, 2008)

splayed leg is as simple as the nest, they should be kept in something like a big cup or bowl to help them keep their feet under them with fleece or t-shirt material so it's not slippery.
splay won't cause them to die but it will make it extremely difficult for them to survive in the wild and sending them out with that condition is certain death.
if you suspect they have the beginnings of splay you can tie a soft piece of cotton string around each ankle (not tight) with only enough length between ankle's making them keep their legs in proper natural position for a week or so and redo if needed.
one other thought i had is are you providing supplemental heat to the little ones???
they need that in order to survive even if it's really hot out they still need extra heat when they a featherless or only have pin feathers


----------



## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

I have rescued a number of Eurasian Collared Dove (Streptopelia Decaocto) nestlings with metabolic bone disease caused by a calcium deficiency. As well as affecting their legs it makes their beaks soft and rubbery.

I give them Calcivet and with this they recover pretty quickly. If you PM me your address I can send you a little for your doves.


----------



## plamenh (Aug 11, 2006)

I would use calcium tablets instead of grit as usually babies get supplements from the crop milk, not raw. If you can't get in tablet form, use egg shells, bake them and grind to powder. Vitamins A, B, D, E are also important for growth and calcium absorbtion.
Keep in mind thet it can also be some disease as salmonella or canker.
We do also have redeyed doves here but fortunately I didn't have any sick one so far.


----------



## altgirl35 (Sep 5, 2008)

oh yes plamenh almost forgot!! natural sunlight(vit d) is important for the absorption of calcium.
put them near a sunny window or use a reptile uva light during the day


----------



## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

...but don't leave them in direct sunlight if they are unable to get into the shade if they need it. That can be fatal.


----------



## eli lang (Feb 18, 2010)

*thanks for the help*

thanks for all the info. our babies are doing much better after the introduction of powered egg shell. i was not giving them a source of calcium. they are now at the stage where they fly around a little, crash land and are about ready to start pecking at seeds and lentils.
thanks again from Zanzibar
eli


----------

