# Help i have a baby pigeon



## Omega489 (Jul 17, 2008)

I am in desperate need of help.

The short story:
My cat bought in a birds egg and gave it to us. My little sister begged my parents to try and hatch it. My parents thought that since it had been sitting in cold room for a few days that it would not hatch. my sister put it in a box by our aga, guess what, it hatched. Not wanting to kill the bird my parents suggest we keep it.

The bird is small and pink (this may be obvious to those who know but we have had the bird forced on us and know nothing of birds.) and has stuff that looks like white hair. it has a black beak. I wanted to keep it warm so I didn't look at it for too long. It has hatched in the last 24 hours and has been in its broken shell until we looked at it.

Questions:

What do I feed it and how often
how do i feed it.
is it OK to pick up.

basically how do we look after it. 


i have some pictures


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## little bird (Aug 11, 2006)

What a darling little fluffball.


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Can you tell us roughly where you are?

In the US you can buy Kaytee Exact which is excellent for handrearing pigeons. In the UK we have Nutribird and chick crumbs.

The baby has to be kept warm, at least 80 degrees.

This is a useful link on hanrearing pigeons from day 1:

http://www.internationaldovesociety.com/Recipes/handfeedinghelp.htm

I will add some more links that will be helpful.

Devorah's advice on caring for baby pigeons:

http://www.duckpolice.org/BirdWeb/PigeonResourceWeb/babypigeoncare.html

Various methods of feeding young squabs:

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=9682&referrerid=560

This is a thread by Izzy, who was handrearing two hatchlings:

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=8070&referrerid=560

Cynthia


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## Omega489 (Jul 17, 2008)

I'm in England. What do you suggest to i do? I have been told to stay up till twelve feeding the bird every hour and then start to feed it again from 6am onwards . we are feeding it crushed up layers pellets and some water from a syringe.


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Baby pigeons are fed pigeon milk by their parents for the first three days of their lives, this is rich in fats and protein and has enzymes in it that enables them to digest the food. I don't know that layer pellets would have the right nutrition, Nutribird and Kaytee Exact are specifically formulated for hand rearing. Ready Brek or porridge oats mixed with warm water to a creamy consistency and fed warm are a good emergency food. So is Heinz chicken infant food. But layer pellets crushed and mixed with warm water they should keep him going. Can you get your hands on some natural yoghurt this late at night?

I think it is generally agreed that they need feeding every two hours initially, but parents don't generally start to feed their young until a few hours after hatching.

I think that could be a wood pigeon or a collared dove, cats are more likely to find them in gardens than feral pigeons. What part of England are you in? Ther might be someone near who can help.

Cynthia


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## Omega489 (Jul 17, 2008)

thanks, i have some oats so simple porridge oats, would that be ok?
i live in Bedford in the south east of England.


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Yes, Oats so Simple should be OK for tonight, but mix it with warm water, not milk. We have a member (Karen) in Northampton, I will telephone her tomorrow to see if she has any Kaytee. Sometimes it is possible to get a pigeon to adopt a hatchling so she might be able to help there I can also get some Nutribird in the post tomorrow if you PM me your address...I can also send you some Panzym which is a digestive enzyme.

Cynthia


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## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

They have to start out with something that is very watery. There's a recipe for replacement crop milk in this thread:

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/f25/macmilk-crop-milk-substitute-15236.html

You either need to get as close to that as possible or buy the prepared formula.

Pidgey


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## Omega489 (Jul 17, 2008)

the chick (is that what you call it?) seems to not want to co-operate and squirm and fidget when i try to feed it, is this normal?


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Yes, they can be squirmy. How are you feeding it? Try easing its beak between the bottom part of two fingers, that usually encourages them to open their beaks. But be careful not to squirt liquid into its mouth.

Cynthia


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## Omega489 (Jul 17, 2008)

i am using a small syringe and easing the liquid down its throat, is that OK? also my parents have told me feed it till twelve, should i? or does it need me to stay up?
theyre fast asleep so i could stay up. and im on my holidays


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## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

Omega489 said:


> i am using a small syringe and easing the liquid down its throat, is that OK? also my parents have told me feed it till twelve, should i? or does it need me to stay up?
> theyre fast asleep so i could stay up. and im on my holidays


When was the last time you fed the baby?


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## Omega489 (Jul 17, 2008)

just finished. its getting easier every time i feed it. the chick is tossing its head though after the feed until it settles down


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## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

Well, you have to get some sleep sometime........can't stay up for 4 days straight. LOL..........get some sleep but get up early in the AM, say by 5:00 and feed him good and then keep him fed all day tomorrow.


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## Omega489 (Jul 17, 2008)

ok, but i might stay up a bit longer


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## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

He is very sweet. No, you don't have to stay up until 12:00 but try to feed him just before you go to bed each night. Usually you don't even need to feed them during the night unless they are particularly frail and yours looks pretty healthy. 

Try to feed only enough to make a soft cushion of his crop which is in his chest area. Like Cynthia (Cyro51) mentioned, plain yogurt is ideal to add to the mixture you're feeding to help his digestion - about 1/4 tsp. At your baby's age, I would feed no more than about 5 cc of the food/yogurt mixture every two hours and make sure the food goes in past the air hole at the back of his throat.

The key thing in raising newborns is warmth. Keep him snug in soft cloths on a heating pad. You can lay a single tissue on top of him to help keep him warm but it will not smother him.

I hope you enjoy raising this sweet baby. Thank you for caring for him.


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## Omega489 (Jul 17, 2008)

Ok, Im going to bed now


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## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

Omega489 said:


> Ok, Im going to bed now


Sleep good, but not too long......LOL


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## Omega489 (Jul 17, 2008)

good news: The chick survived overnight. bad news: i am totally exhausted.


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## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

Omega489 said:


> good news: The chick survived overnight.


 





Omega489 said:


> bad news: i am totally exhausted.



Sorry. It happens to all "new moms"..........but it's worth it.


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## Omega489 (Jul 17, 2008)

i have some questions, 

the chick has started to open its eyes for a few seconds, is that normal at this age?
How big should the chicks crop be?
After feeding the chick seems to be uncomfortable and kicks with its legs and rolls onto its back, it then settles down. is that normal?


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

The kicking of its legs and rolling on its back is not normal...I don't know what it indicates.

Difficult to say how big the crop shuld be, it varies from pigeon to pigeon, but they have air bubbles on their shoulders which start to inflate once the crop is full (because the air is squeezed out of the crop (I will edit and add a link to a good thread on feeding hatchlings which includes a picture).Added: this is the thread, scroll down to post 44 for the picture. http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showthread.php?t=23065&referrerid=560

This explains how it helps determine whether the crop is full:

_HOW DO I TELL MY CHICK IS FULL AFTER A FEED?

The crop should be nice and rounded it should be quite noticeable that there is food in the crop it should feel spongy. Small bubbles should appear each side of the neck once you see these the chick has had enough to eat. These get harder to see as the chick gets older but by then you should have it under control. If you have feed too much the crop will feel hard. The crop is the buldge that forms in front of the chick after a feed.



WHAT ARE THOSE STRANGE BUBBLES ON THE BACK OF THE NECK AFTER A FEED?

The expanded (full) crop can be seen from the upper back of the lory and any air in the crop (normal) can show as air pockets protruding from the upper back. These only appear when the chick is full. _

I am still concerned about whether the food it is getting is enough to sustain it, it needs enzymes to digest and they can starve even while receiving food.

This is the link to Bedfordshire Wildlife Rescue. They are a small charity but they deal with pigeons and might be able to help with formula and advice:

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/samantha.bedford/contactus.htm

Cynthia


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## Omega489 (Jul 17, 2008)

ok, you asked if i could get natural yogurt, that contains enzymes yes?
I have got some low fat tesco natural yogurt, will this do if i mix with the oat feed until there is something more sustainable to use?
also the chick is peeing does this means it is hydrated and at least the water is getting through?


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

The yoghurt doesn't have enzymes: it acts as a probiotic, encouraging the "good bacteria" in the gut.

There is still time for me to pop some enzymes in the post with the hope that they will reach you tomorrow if you let me have your address.

The ideal foods are handrearing formulas or chick starter crumbs, soaked in hot, but not boiling (because it destroys the enzymes) water for half an hour, then liquidised and sieved three times...the consistency at this age would be very watery.

Pigeons don't usually "pee", they are built to conserve water so they excrete uric acid and other waste from the kidneys in a white pasty form, which coats or caps their faeces.

Please give the wildlife rescue place a ring...they might be able to advise you about where to find the right food.

Cynthia


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## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Another person near you who could help is Jacqui Meads of Safewings in Isham : (0) 1536 726113.

Cynthia


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