# Found baby dove, i need help!



## Ari1996 (Jul 11, 2013)

I was walking home when I saw what looked to be a baby dove on my lawn, and I took it in, in hopes of saving it's life. I later went to search for it's parents but to no avail. I kept searching for another hour or so but it got dark and I decided to just bring him in. He seems to be about 2 days old and I have been caring for him for another 2 days now. He has been eating dog food mixed with water through a feeding syringe. I feed him every couple hours when his crop gets smaller, but I just want to make sure I am doing everything alright because I do care about him. Any help/suggestions would be much appreciated! thank you!


----------



## The Pigeon Girl (Jul 3, 2010)

You could probably liquidize good brand of dog food, IE purina, or any high protien dog food as babies need nutrition. and feed it through a syringe. I have baby racing pigeons i feed wet dog food,.works incredibly well. Also, only fill their crops, (where the food goes) where it is puffed out so maybe 3 syringe fulls are enough. Every time the crop empties. keep them warm, and safe. thank you for taking the bird in.


----------



## Ari1996 (Jul 11, 2013)

*thanks a bunch!*

I'm still not sure how often i should be feeding him though


----------



## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

dog food is ok when there is nothing else, but it is high in protein. at petsmart or petco they sell a hand feeding formula called kaytee exact. get that and feed the baby with it. I make the formula a bit thinner than they say let it sit as it thickens. make sure the baby is warm before feeding and make sure the food is not too hot. feed again when the crop just about emptys some times it emptys faster and sometimes slower but don't be tempted to feed on top of a fuller crop. where is your location there may be a rehabber to take it too.


----------



## Ari1996 (Jul 11, 2013)

I live in california. If there are rehabbers around it would definitely be good to know about them. However, the baby bird is very well now and is eating quite a bit. I'm making sure his crop is always full, and I have gotten attached to him over these past few days. Would it be possible to keep him as a companion? I would definitely be willing to care for him properly.


----------



## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

Ari1996 said:


> I live in california. If there are rehabbers around it would definitely be good to know about them. However, the baby bird is very well now and is eating quite a bit. I'm making sure his crop is always full, and I have gotten attached to him over these past few days. Would it be possible to keep him as a companion? I would definitely be willing to care for him properly.


not if you ask the wildlife dept. these birds are protected and they do not want people to make pets out of them if they are releaseable. If non releasable then only a licensed rehabber can keep the bird for education purposes only. there are fines as well. if you wanted to find a rehabber where the dove can be reared with minimum handling because it will be released at some point then you would have to state your location in California. wild doves do not make very good pets when mature. Iam trusting your knowing this is a dove and not a pigeon.

If it was a pigeon then those are non native birds and considerd feral, there are no wild pigeons from the USA only brought here from domestics, so you would beable to keep that bird and it would be tamer, a picture can make sure you have a dove there and not a pigeon, but Im sure you know what it is.

you really do not need to keep the crop full all the time, just feed when it is empty. the dog food is high in protein which can tax the kidneys so the kaytee exact hand feeding formula is what you need if you want to follow the advice given.


----------



## Ari1996 (Jul 11, 2013)

Ah, ok. If it is a dove then I will contact my local wildlife department.


----------



## Dima (Jan 15, 2011)

Ari, buy Kaytee Exact as SpiritWing said. It's the best. Feed when crop empties


----------



## Ari1996 (Jul 11, 2013)

I couldn't seem to get a hold of the wildlife department, as they were busy. But I did get in touch with the veterinarian and I was told basically the same things you guys are telling me about how to care for him. But I also read that it is perfectly okay to hunt and kill these birds. Also he is now being fed Kaytee exact! (thanks for the recommendation). As far as the legal stuff goes, if he's a wild dove then I wouldn't be "permitted" to keep him, but I have some feelings about the law. I read that it is perfectly legal to hunt and kill these birds, but not to save one's life and give it a second chance. I personally find this very wrong and terrible. Also, who goes around checking people's birds to see if they are an illegal species? Anywho, he's getting older and i've figured out he is in fact some form of dove. But either way i'm going to keep him I guess, because at this point he is used to humans and would probably die if set free. I'm planning on having a cage set up for him soon, and I will take him out daily for a couple hours to hang out with me as he will be living in my room. I want to grant my newfound friend a better life. I actually have big plans for the little guy I want to train him to fly around and come back to me and other such things. Also, I really appreciate all of the help you guys have given me so far!


----------



## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

Ari1996 said:


> I couldn't seem to get a hold of the wildlife department, as they were busy. But I did get in touch with the veterinarian and I was told basically the same things you guys are telling me about how to care for him. But I also read that it is perfectly okay to hunt and kill these birds. Also he is now being fed Kaytee exact! (thanks for the recommendation). As far as the legal stuff goes, if he's a wild dove then I wouldn't be "permitted" to keep him, but I have some feelings about the law. I read that it is perfectly legal to hunt and kill these birds, but not to save one's life and give it a second chance. I personally find this very wrong and terrible. Also, who goes around checking people's birds to see if they are an illegal species? Anywho, he's getting older and i've figured out he is in fact some form of dove. But either way i'm going to keep him I guess, because at this point he is used to humans and would probably die if set free. I'm planning on having a cage set up for him soon, and I will take him out daily for a couple hours to hang out with me as he will be living in my room. I want to grant my newfound friend a better life. I actually have big plans for the little guy I want to train him to fly around and come back to me and other such things. Also, I really appreciate all of the help you guys have given me so far!


It sounds like you are doing good with him as far as the feeding goes. I can see your point in raising then release only to be hunted. But the other side is to ask yourself would a mature wild morning dove be happy living in a cage in a bedroom? Doves find mates and mate for life, they migrate as a flock certain times of the year. Most times you see them in pairs, so what you would be taking away from him is the life he was meant to live, also just knowing now what the law is you would be making a choice to break it, even if no one knew it is still against the law. Licensed rehabbers raise these guys with little handling and usually have more than one to release together, they do the opposite of what your plans are in making him do tricks and be a sort of pet. Imo i think when mature he will probably fly off anyway to find a mate as that is what they do. With your success with this youngster perhaps you can become a licensed rehabber yourself and get knowledge on how important it is to return our wildlife back where they belong, even if some do harvest by law, there are limits and it is usually done for the good of over population for the flocks of that state.


----------



## Ari1996 (Jul 11, 2013)

For now, i'm going to care for him until I can get in touch with a rehabber and then talk to them to see what I can do. Perhaps I could get a license of some kind to care for this one bird? Otherwise it would be best to do what is good for the bird, even if that means letting him free at one point.


----------



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

You can locate the wildlife rehabilitators near you here: http://www.dfg.ca.gov/wildlife/WIL/rehab/facilities.html

Terry


----------



## Ari1996 (Jul 11, 2013)

Okay! Thanks a bunch TAwhatley


----------

