# Feral Pigeon Squeaker sleeping a lot



## Margarida (Jun 5, 2017)

Hello all!

I found a young pigeon three days ago. He (or she) seems to be a fledgling, maybe about a month old, I'm not sure, he still squeaks and doesn't seem to have grown all his adult feathers yet.

He was on the sidewalk, I brought him home because I didn't see the parents nearby and there was the risk of him going to the road and getting run over. Only when I got home did I notice he had wounds on his back, as if he had been caught by a dog or cat. These woulds are already scabbed over, I washed them with hydrogen peroxide then and yesterday.

He has quite an appetite, eats the dove mix I bought him rather greedily, I also gave him toasted whole wheat bread and some sunflower seeds because he's really skinny - I can feel his breastbone sticking out a lot. He drinks a lot of water too, and his poops are normal, brownish with white urates, not runny. The inside of his mouth is pink and there's no discharge coming from his beak or nostrils - which makes me think he's not suffering from any disease.

However, he's not very active, he flutters his wings sometimes but he also sleeps a great deal. He's quite tame, when we hold him he stays still, doesn't seem scared and doesn't try to free himself. He even sleeps on our lap. My question is, is this normal? Does he do this because he's still young, or might it mean that he's ill? Could it be because he's malnourished?

Thank you in advance for your help. I don't want this wee one to die on me, I'm thinking about keeping him because I don't think he'd do well on his own if I were to release him, since he's so tame and doesn't seem to be scared of my two dogs, meaning he probably wouldn't know when to recognise danger.

Thanks again,

Margarida


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Did you look way down his throat with a flashlight? He sounds as though he is kind of quiet for a healthy youngster.


----------



## Jass SamOplay (May 29, 2012)

Hi Margarida.. welcome to PT so cute he is...
Thanks for bringing him in and saving his life.
He's dehydrated and starved. It will take atleast 15-20 days for him to put some weight back on.
He probably has infection set in inside his body because of the wounds you found on his back. That is why he is sleeping a lot. He needs antibiotics ASAP. Do you have amoxicillin or cotrimazole with you??? Also open his mouth wide open and see deeper with a flashlight if you find any growth there!!


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Clotrimazole is an anti fungal. That won't do any good. He will need an antibiotic if there is an infection, as Jass has mentioned. And Metronidazole or similar if canker.


----------



## Jass SamOplay (May 29, 2012)

Oh... thanks...
I meant cotrimoxazole.. combination of antibiotic, sulpha drug and trimethoprim


----------



## Margarida (Jun 5, 2017)

Hello!

Thank you to all who answered.

Jay3, I did look inside his mouth, although not with a flashlight. The inside was pink and there didn't seem to be any yellow growth, and he eats without difficulty, so I think it isn't likely that it's canker. I find him a little too quiet though, falling asleep like that on our lap...

Jass, yes, that might be it. He's skinny and it'll probably take a while for him to feel better, the fact that he's so malnourished might be making him sleep a lot too.
You mensioned amoxicillin, do you know how and how much I should give him? In the water, for example?
I'm sorry, but there's no vet that will see him near me... I can try going to a pet store and buy some large spectrum antibiotics, but I have no idea of the dosage.

Once again, thank you so much for your help, I have no experience with this kind of thing whatsoever, so all the hints are absolutely precious


----------



## Jass SamOplay (May 29, 2012)

Margarida if you can get baytril/enrofloxacin then its better but amoxicillin is great too. Over the years I have found that amoxicillin works best if given twice daily. A normal weighing pigeon needs 50 mg of it per day. Give 25mg twice daily 20-30 mins after feeding him. Treat with amoxi for 8-10 days regularly. Don't break the course. Pls start the course as soon as possible.


----------



## Margarida (Jun 5, 2017)

Thank you!

He looks better today, he hasn't slept at all since he woke up, keeps drinking and eating, poops still normal.

Do you really think I should start antibiotics? I was given some pigeon vitamines by someone I know, should I give him those? They're water soluble. Can I give them at the same time?

Thanks.


----------



## Jass SamOplay (May 29, 2012)

I have saved hundreds of pigeons over the years who have been wounded by predators and almost all needed antibiotics. Saliva of predators contain many harmful bacteria like pasturella which cause nasty/fatal infections. There was a time when I saved almost 100 falcon struck birds in matter of weeks in racing/competition season, they all needed antibiotics. I have lost few birds in the beginning who looked okay so I didnt think they need antibiotics but they went down later. So why take risk? I would advice you to give antibiotics...
You can give vitamins 2 hours after giving med. But make sure the vitamins/minerals supplement you have with you dont have calcium in it. If it has calcium in it then give it after antibiotics course is over.


----------



## Margarida (Jun 5, 2017)

Ok, I'll do that. Thank you for the info!


----------

