# Injured baby pigeon. Need advice



## gothicangel69 (May 13, 2011)

Hey everyone!
I picked up a baby pigeon from work yesterday. It appears to have fallen from quite a height, and as it was not safe to leave it as is, I took it home.
It can't put much weight on one of its legs, but there doesn't appear to be any obvious injury- most likely just a sprain.
I have been feeding it parrot pellets soaked in water, as it is not able to eat by itself yet. I put the pellets in its mouth,and it swallows them itself. I was a little worried about using the formula as I know how easy it is to aspirate them. It tries to peck, but just isn't quite there yet.
Yesterday it was quite lethargic, but today it is peeping up a storm. It was quite a handful to feed last time.

My main question is how do I know that I'm feeding it enough and that its getting enough water? I have a dish in there, but it doesn't seem to want to drink out of it, which is why I have been soaking the pellets in water, but I'm not sure if that alone will be enough??
I will try to get some pictures in a few minutes to post, but any advice is appreciated.


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## jeff houghton (Jul 17, 2010)

if its not old enough it wont readily drink from a container.show it the water by dipping its beak in.it can get its water content now from its food via the formula or as ive used ready brek or fine oats mixed with water , not milk. you will know if its had enough food when his crop is all squishy but try not to completly fill it ,the crop will also visibly look bigger after its had its fill.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Thanks for helping this baby.

Looking forward to pictures, that will help determine its age and what the baby should be eating and how much, and how soon you can expect them to self-feed.


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## gothicangel69 (May 13, 2011)

Here are a few pictures. As you can see in the last one, he is favoring one of its legs. He has put a little weight on it, but uses its wings for help.
How often should I be feeding it?


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## Jaye (Mar 13, 2008)

Great job so far ! Thanks for saving her/him !

What sized Parrot Pellets are they ? Like...for Macaws/Amazons/Greys etc., or Conures/Poicephalus...or Budgies ?

If they are about the size of peas or corn...start slowly and feed maybe a half-dozen. As Trees said, we dunno her age...you can estimate it by cross referencing here:

http://www.speedpigeon.com/baby_racing_pigeon.htm

The soaked pellets WILL keep baby hydrated sufficiently. I would start with maybe 6 or 7 per feeding and then feed around 3-4 times/day. As she acclimates to the feedings, and grows, you can ramp up the amounts to 10, 12,15, 20 per feeding.

Now...that leg. Does he grip with it ? Is there any motion in it ? Does it have resistance when you gently move it ? or does it just sorta hang there, limp ?


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## Jaye (Mar 13, 2008)

You beat me to my reply.

Looks to be _almost_ 3 weeks old ! Not quite...maybe 17-19 days.

I would go with a dozen pellets/feeding. 3-4 feedings/day, leaving 4 hours between feedings. You can buy some peas or corn, frozen, and thaw it under hot water, let cool to room temperature, and pop those as well (for nothing more than variety...the Pellets are more nutritious).

She should be showing interest in pecking for food in the next week or so.

The leg IS a concern, though....Is there an avian vet anywhere near you ? Where are you located ?


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## jeff houghton (Jul 17, 2010)

that bird is only a week or so off weening and will be drinking soon on its own.You said it was already scratching about with its food keep on encouraging it to pick up small seed in the meantime another week should see it feeding itself imo.
i would of said very nearly 4 weeks old.


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## goga82 (Aug 17, 2009)

coffee grinder..
get that.
get sunflover seeds, get some unsalted peanuts.. bird seed they sell in the stores. and grind it all together..
add water .. make formula liquidy but not too liguidy.
give him 30 to 40 ml of that and you'll be happy as well as your baby,,
that coffee grider do mirracles.
forget about that baby bird formula that is not made for pigeons.. if u only feed them with formula babies tend to grown up skinny and malnurished 
u want your aby to stay nice healthy and chubby  like baby pigeons should look like.. i just gave you the receipt 
or before you get all that cherioss cerials would be fine for a minute. 
get yourself a surringe . they sell them in every petstore.. 
thanks for taking that poor baby in your care 
he is quite handsome


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## goga82 (Aug 17, 2009)

and as far as his leg.. just let him rest.. less moving around better chance of leg recovering quickly.
i had dozens of babies with bad legs after they have fallen out of the nest. all the legs turned out to be perfect legs.
so i wouldnt worry about it. give it week or two and you'll notice the difference


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## gothicangel69 (May 13, 2011)

He wont eat this mornig! Something seems wrong. I took him out of the cage this morning, but he wasn't peeping and searching for food like usual. I tried putting food in his mouth, but he kept spitting it out.
Im reluctant to take him to a vet, as they will usual seize them and bring them to the rehab. I would be fine doing that with another type of bird, but pigeons here are considered pests, and I am worried that the would just put it down.
What should I do?


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## Dobato (Jul 3, 2008)

gothicangel69 said:


> He wont eat this mornig! Something seems wrong. I took him out of the cage this morning, but he wasn't peeping and searching for food like usual. I tried putting food in his mouth, but he kept spitting it out.
> Im reluctant to take him to a vet, as they will usual seize them and bring them to the rehab. I would be fine doing that with another type of bird, but pigeons here are considered pests, and I am worried that the would just put it down.
> What should I do?


First thing to do is change out whatever you are using for the floor of his cage, clean this all out and use a plain terry cloth toweling or even news paper, do not force feed him right now. Feel his crop and see if you feel anything in it if he has not eaten it should feel empty and flat and let us know what you feel. Please post up photos of his freshest droppings, this is another thing the bedding won't let you do, monitor his droppings correctly.

Karyn


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## gothicangel69 (May 13, 2011)

I decided to take him to the vet. By the time we got there, he was having trouble breathing and had a seizure. The vet said there was nothing they could do, so we had to put him to sleep.
He was doing so great up until this morning. I'm so sad.


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## Dobato (Jul 3, 2008)

gothicangel69 said:


> I decided to take him to the vet. By the time we got there, he was having trouble breathing and had a seizure. The vet said there was nothing they could do, so we had to put him to sleep.
> He was doing so great up until this morning. I'm so sad.


Did they check to see if he had any of this bedding blocking, or in his trachea?

Karyn


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## gothicangel69 (May 13, 2011)

No, the vet I took him to was the only one open and while they had some experience with birds, were in no way experts.
By the time they saw him, he was barely breathing and almost gone. It was amazing how quickly he went down hill.
They said there was really nothing they could do, and every bird they saw that was this far gone never made it.


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## Dobato (Jul 3, 2008)

Sorry for your loss of this little one. Although there is no way to tell for certain just what happened here, if you do happen to resource another youngster in the future, the best, and safest cage lining for them is a folded over terry cloth towel, then after that newspaper. Loose bedding and wood chips can pose a danger to them as they are so inquisitive at this age that sometimes start pecking at things they shouldn't.

Karyn


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## gothicangel69 (May 13, 2011)

Thank you for all your wonderful advice. I will certainly keep this in mind if I come across another one.
I know the pigeon was born in an area with lots of welding/ grinding fumes and paint vapors, so that may have contributed as well.


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