# Young Pigeon attacked by Gull...need help for care.



## Aerolias (Jun 16, 2012)

Location: Golfe-Juan Vallauris in southern France Cotes-Alpes D'azur, nearest cities are Nice, Antibes, Cannes and Grasse.​

Last night in the late evening hours I watched a young pigeon climbing up a wall using it's beak and the rubbery protection secreting from between the stones of the wall. Clearly, it could not fly properly. At first I though that it was stuck but a moment of observation proved that theory wrong. When again it attempted to climb and fell onto the pavement, it had scarcely a chance to regain balance before a Gull attacked it. 

I can't say if the small wound to the pigeons wing that it suffered was before or after the Gull attack but I assume after.

Luckily, I suppose, I had my dog with me and he scared away the Gull. Unfortunately for the pigeon my dog is just a year old and wonderfully large as a growing Labrador... He is a lover not a biter so no harm came top the pigeon at all but it was no doubt frightened. 

For the remainder of the night I kept him with me, tucked to the warmth of my chest or cozied up in my shirt after I pulled it off...it might have pooped on it before it's removal thus the removal v.v''

It's morning now and since I have no cage I removed the mattress off of my top bunk and secured the open sides in case it might try to squeeze through. Since I was unsure of it's total flight capabilities I though that the best course of action. There is a mesh wiring on the bottom of the bunk and I've laid a towel both under and over it with some pillows and it's little nest of my shirt from the night before.

I have tried to introduce it to some water and the most I can do for food, due to the sudden nature of it's appearance, is some moist dog food as I once did when nursing hatchling Mocking Birds...though I'm sure it's not the same.

I can't say exactly how old this pigeon is but it's large enough to just spill over my two cupped hands with it's neck and tail feathers. It appears rather mature though certainly not an adult by the lack of feathering under the wings on either side of the body and the still few baby feathers poking out here and there atop it's head and neck.

I don't have anything like a syringe to feed it as might be proper and I don't know of anyways to get it to drink water. Also, the bird is capable of flight so long as it's gliding downwards, it can't yet get too far up. He is rightfully a little edgy but he doesn't nick or make noises when being pet gently and with some light encouragement by pressing under it's belly it can be coaxed to climb onto my hand to perch.

I can add some pictures when I am able to but I don't have anything like a camera, so a poor quality webcam will have to do.

On a side note, I do have a steady job with a good income so I can pay for it's((I'm not sure how to check gender by the way)) necessities and gradually create a better and more suitable environment for it. Though I don't have any money at the moment as I've been off for a week do to circumstances.

I guess what I'm asking is the following:

How do I coax it to eat. I have some rice grains and can possibly get a hold of some peas as I've read is a good idea. That's no problem, getting the little sweetling to eat is a whole 'nother deal.

How can I get it to drink water? I've read through the forums properly and have done my research before asking for help. I have tried gently dipping it's beak into the water to let it know it's there((I lifted the bowl to it's beak not forced it's head down...)), I've tried dripping water into the small bowl so it can hear the sound...I've even tried letting a water faucet drip to see if that might work but to no avail. 

Can I tell if it's healthy by the shape and contents of it's droppings? Should I know about the warnings of colors of the dropping and about it's liquidity or solidity? If so please include some information on how to discern which is more preferable.

Lastly, how can I help it to learn to fly again? Currently it can jump up off of my top bunk and fall((controlled by fervently flapping it's wings)) to the shelf that's across the room and scarcely 3 feet from the ground. It can fly upwards about 2 feet so far that I've seen.

If you can help, it's greatly, immensely, gigantuously appreciated.


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## nycpigeonlady (Jan 22, 2012)

Hi, welcome to PT and thanks for saving this little one.

Since your guest isn't feathered under the wings yet, he probably doesn't know how to eat on his own. Peas are great and very easy yo feed, but if you don't have peas, and have a dog - you probably have some dog kibble on hand. The dry dog food is actually grain based and therefore suitable for a pigeon, unlike the wet food which contains meat - something pigeons unlike some other birds do not eat. 

Below are some good hand feeding instructions from one of our members, and you can use the same method for feeding it dog kibble that has been soaked in water. Both the peas and the soaked dog food will take care of his hydration needs. But before you start feeding, you can make sure his hydrated by dripping water on the side of his beak with an eyedropper. 

"You can hand feed defrosted peas. Run some hot water over them until they are defrosted and slightly warmed. Put the bird on your lap and hold it next to your body. If it helps because you are having a hard time handling the pigeon, you can wrap a towel around it or put it in the sleeve of a tee shirt, with the head out the wrist. This method confines the pigeon without hurting him and makes it easier to handle. Gently open the beak and pop a pea at the back of the mouth and over the throat. It gets easier and faster, with practice, for both you and the bird.
You will need to feed 30-50 per feeding [depending on the size of the pigeon] and every time the crop empties."

Pigeons learn to fly instinctively, so you don't need to teach it that. 

Can you post a pic of the bird, it's poop and the injury on the wing.


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## Aerolias (Jun 16, 2012)

When I mentioned wet food I meant that it was solid grain-based dog food that I had moistened with water. So, I'm glad I've dona as much correctly and thank you for reaffirming that for me.

As for the peas I might be able to coerce my father into buying some but quite frankly he doesn't know I have the pigeon....He's not as much the animal lover that I am nor has he been around the his entire life.

I've just taken some pictures using my iPod...since that's all it's good for lately. I'm unsure how to upload them onto a post...if you'd be so kind as to give me some directions, that'd be great!

I'm glad he will be able to train himself, I was a tad worried since I wouldn't know how to go about something like that.

I can't thank you enough for replying so quickly. I didn't think I could handle waiting another day for the pigeon would suffer for it.


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## nycpigeonlady (Jan 22, 2012)

Oh great, when you said wet dog food, I thought you meant the canned food. Just make sure it's well soaked all the way through. You could keep the pigeon in a cardboard box with a screen on top to let light in until you get something more suitable. 

Here are some instructions from PT on attaching images:


How do I attach a file to a post?

To attach a file to your post, you need to be using the main 'New Post' or 'New Thread' page and not 'Quick Reply'. To use the main 'New Post' page, click the 'Post Reply' button in the relevant thread.

On this page, below the message box, you will find a button labelled 'Manage Attachments'. Clicking this button will open a new window for uploading attachments. You can upload an attachment either from your computer or from another URL by using the appropriate box on this page. Alternatively you can click the Attachment Icon to open this page.

To upload a file from your computer, click the 'Browse' button and locate the file. To upload a file from another URL, enter the full URL for the file in the second box on this page. Once you have completed one of the boxes, click 'Upload'.

Once the upload is completed the file name will appear below the input boxes in this window. You can then close the window to return to the new post screen.

What files types can I use? How large can attachments be?

In the attachment window you will find a list of the allowed file types and their maximum sizes. Files that are larger than these sizes will be rejected. There may also be an overall quota limit to the number of attachments you can post to the board.

How do I add an image to a post?

If you have uploaded an image as an attachment, you can click the arrow next to the 'Attachment Icon' and select it from the list. This will be inserted into your post and can be located where you want it displayed.

To include an image that is not uploaded as an attachment and is located on another website, you can do so by copying the full URL to the image, (not the page on which the image is located), and either pressing the 'Insert Image' icon or by typing







after it, ensuring that you do not have any spaces before or after the URL of the image. You can insert pictures from your albums (?) in this way too.

The pigeon may need antibiotics for the injury.
Sorry, I have to run out and won't be able to respond for a while, but hang in there - I'm sure others will jump in soon.


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## Aerolias (Jun 16, 2012)

Thanks so much! Those instructions are head-on and I figured it out easily! I'll post some pics just as soon as I get one of the pigeon. ((used an already existing photo for testing))

I've been spraying biseptine on the wound regularly. It's proven effective in a short time. I used the same on my dog when he got bitten by another dog and the wound healed within just a week tops. I hope for similar results with the pigeon. Thank you for your help thus far, you've been an invaluable support for me and have helped me get things started both with the feeding and the healing process.


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