# Left Behind? What Gives??



## budgie14 (Sep 6, 2011)

Hello There..

Tonight I had to rescue another baby Pigeon, this is the 3RD one in about 5 Months. Now, We have a mix of Doves & Pigeons here at my apartment building, not sure if that helps your thinking or not..The first 2 babies were grounded, one day after each other which I still have one of them, the other is now apart of the local flock which I see everyday  I actually feed them on top of the roof each day always around the same time of about 5PM. So tonight while I was feeding, (and we have Hurricane Sandy) I noticed a small baby which was totally soaked!!! all others were a little wet, but this guy looked like he was in the ocean. So, I went closer to him and he ran a bit, no flight at all which raised a flag for me.

After I was done feeding them, I wanted to see if he could fly and nothing! So, long story short, I have him with me and will keep him until he can go on his own. All that said, what is going on??? This bothers me!! One, how did he get on the roof! and what about the other 2?? Whats the deal with the parents? Did they maybe push out the other 2 so they could work on another clutch? At that time, they were about 2-3 weeks of age just so you know..This new baby is about the same, but is a bit bigger, may be 1 Month old and should be able to fly..So, whats the story with him?? Overall, I have a lot of issues for a while now with my flock of Budgies which I truly believe are because of the Pigeons/Doves..

Why? Some I see they have conjunctivitis, a few before had Chlamydia and etc....Now, I'm a total animal lover and a former Vet Tech, so to help protect my Budgies, I have medicated these birds on the norm..I usually will use Metronidazole, Baytril, and Oxytetracycline, just depends what I think they have. So, if I see one that has a red eye for example, I actually will dip a few pieces of bread into some Oxitet and in 2-3 days its gone..I must say, Oxytetracycline is a very good medication, broad spectrum and it covers so so many illnesses!! Almost the same as Doxy, part of the same med family, a must have if you stock any meds..Anyways, can some of you experts give me your thoughts on why I'm finding these babies...I could understand if they were fledge and ready to go on their own, but all 3 that I have found would have died no doubt about it! 

Thanks a bunch!!

Anthony


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## BHenderson (Sep 8, 2011)

I notice you are in the Dominican Republic, I am in London, UK. Its funny the way you talk about the babies you keep finding because at this time of year I have exactly the same problem. I had the same problem this time last year as well. I always assumed that the later the babies were born in the year the colder and rougher the weather they were exposed to, and also there is probably less food around. I have picked up 3 baby pigeons in as many weeks, and they all seem underfed and underdeveloped. Its like the parents have given up on them because they are finding it hard to find food, and like you I feed my local flock as well. I don't really have an answer as to why it happens, but I thought it might be interesting to you to know that the same thing happens in other parts of the world. It was certainly interesting to me to hear that you are having the same problem in the Dominican Republic.

Brian.


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## Miss-Sassypants (Sep 25, 2010)

I'm no expert but just wanted to say thank you both Anthony & Brian for caring for these pigeons.


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