# Fledgling Mourning Dove



## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

Hello! I'm new here and ask that you please pardon me if I am breaking any rules in this first post. I have an emergency with a dove and I have to go to work and I promise to read the rules later and introduce myself in the proper thread.
Charlie

I'm in Hollywood, CA. I found a young Dove at my friends house on Friday when it was raining. I put it in a cat carrier and took it home as they live in coyote central, also raccoon, possum, skunk, dog, cat, hawk, crow... land. 

She or he (for some reason I think it's a female) was very easy to catch. She pooped several times, like a pigeon poop looking liquid.

She looks almost adult, but that's in size. I don't know what to look for, but she doesn't have fuzziness. 

I set out bird seed and water in the bathroom where she is safe from my cats. The doves in my yard love that bird seed but she didn't touch it as far as I know and she had stopped pooping. 

I was unable to return her to the yard on Saturday as they had dogs out there all day, and a cat lives out there during the day but he's pretty lazy. 

BUT, my friend said on Saturday, the day after I took her home, that a dove had been hanging out on the trellis above where I found her. Must have been a parent.

So, Sunday I took her back and put her on that trellis hoping they'd find her. She fluttered down to the ground and hung out to the side in a shady area. It was sunny out. 

I took my friends dogs on a hike for a couple of hours and when we returned it was close to sundown and she was still there. Don't know if a parent had shown up with food but I don't think so as she didn't poop later. 

It was easy to catch her again and I took her back home in a carrier. I stopped and got an Easter basket and paper grass. I put a wash cloth over it and that's her nest, hanging from shower head. 

I found a recipe online of unsweetened soy milk, an egg, and cooked oatmeal, all together at room temp. 

She is becoming very trusting of me and last night and today she slurped her food off of a spoon. She may have gone almost 48 hours without food. 

She seemed to eat VERY little, as the volume in the spoon didn't seem to diminish much, but she was eating and she pooped a little, but not as much as when she first got here.

I don't know what to do! 

The last time this happened, the bird flew up to the shower head on his own and when I took him back the next day, he flew right away! That didn't happen yesterday. 

What should I do???

Too many predators over there and I'm worried that the parents have given up.

She's eating, so if she stays can she learn to fly in my bathroom? Will she be accepted back into her family?

I know a guy who rescues pigeons and doves, but he will want to keep her in his aviary and she would have a very good life in my friends' beautiful yard with her family. 

Thank you for reading and helping if you can! 

I have to go to work and will check back on my phone. 

THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME HERE!
Charlie


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

PS - She seems otherwise entirely healthy and uninjured.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Is this an actual dove, or a pigeon? If a dove, they are out of the nest early, and not cared for by the parents for as long as a pigeon.
Posting a picture would give us more of an idea of her age. If a fledgling, she would be fed for a short while by her parents. There are usually 2 babies and they normally hang out together. If she isn't flying at all, then she may have fallen from the nest a bit early. Or maybe just learning to fly and that other dove may have been its sibling. No way your friend could keep the dogs away from that area for a couple of days if the birds were there? Could be left there, maybe in a nest like you have made until flying. Can your friend feed the baby if need be? You could keep the dove and finish raising it, but they do so much better if raised by parents along with the other baby. Would be too bad if kept in an aviary when it should be free.
If keeping it where you found it is not an option, then you can teach her to wean by giving her seed and encouraging her to eat the seed. You can supplement the amount the dove is eating with frozen peas which have been defrosted and warmed under warm running water. Teach him to drink by gently dipping her beak into a small crock of water, but not over the nostrils. Encourage her to eat on her own, and soon she should be eating and drinking. Once flying, she could be returned back to where you found her, although by that time, she will have lost the companionship of her sibling, which is too bad as she would be on her own. I watch them here all the time after they fledge, and it's so cute to see the siblings together and supporting each other. Eventually they will go their own way, but they do seem to stay together for quite some time. Did you look around for a nest? There should have been one nearby. They don't generally make very good ones, could be just some sticks thrown together with a few pine needles or leaves.

If you need to feed peas to a pigeon, hold the bird on your lap and against your body. This gives you more control. Reach from behind his head with one hand and grasp his beak on either side. Now use your free hand to open the beak, and put a pea in, then push it to the back of his throat and over his tongue. Let him close his beak and swallow. Then do another. It gets easier with practice, and the bird also gets more used to it, and won't fight as much. If you can't handle the bird, then use the sleeve cut off a t-shirt, slip it over his head and onto his body, with his head sticking out. This will stop him from being able to fight you so much. Just don't make it tight around his crop area. It helps if you have him facing your right side if you are right handed.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

Jay! Thank you so much for your response. I've been caring for the dove and my computer is acting crazy. I'm trying to figure out how to post a pic of her. I have lots of great pics. It's late and tech difs and feeding the dove have me very tired. I read your post hours ago and did what you said. I looked around for a nest and couldn't see one. But like I said, this is a very heavily trafficked area for predators and so maybe the nest is a bit more hidden than it might be in other regions of the planet. I got a great video too of a couple of doves hanging out loving on a wire just over this yard. I need to figure out how to post the pics and videos. Anyway, the dove is doing great as far as being in my bathroom. She really seems to love me now, which makes me feel all the more need to free her back to her family. She sits on my shoulder and I feed her. She seems to want to eat the seed but can't figure out how. I wish I could let her out of the bathroom but too many cats and dogs around here! Thank you again and I'll answer the rest of your questions tomorrow and give an update if you care to read it. I have a bit more juice left to try to see how to post pics so we'll see. thanks again and good night!


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Those 2 doves may be the parents. I wonder where the sibling would be. Hope it wasn't gotten by something. After a short while they won't recognize this as their baby, so she will be on her own. That's too bad, but you can't put her back where it isn't safe. Have you been able to get food into her? What have you fed her? Keep trying to get her to eat the seed, and drink on her own. She will learn in a short while.

To copy a pic to your post:

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/faq.php?faq=vb3_board_faq#faq_threadnew


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

Thank you so much for the link. I'm on it!

She is eating! She ate a lot this morning. I'm going to feed her again if she wants, before I leave for work.

I found a dove recipe on another site: Unsweetened organic soy milk, equal part cooked, mushy oatmeal, one raw egg, mixed and served room temp. I put it on an espresso spoon and she slurped it and now she just sticks her beak into the little carry-out condiment container it's in. She was REALLY hungry this morning and waiting for me when I got up. I picked her up and she was pecking at my fingers. I tried to feed her little bird seeds, but we couldn't figure out how to do it and so I took the room temp food and she slurped and slurped. She got all sticky and she let me wipe off her feathers on her breast. 

The dogs where she lives are really not the main concern. It's the neighborhood cats during the day, and all the wildlife at night. 

My main question at this point is: Am I stunting her chances of learning to fly by keeping her at home in a little room? Do the parents teach them to fly, or does it just happen? You seem to have indicated that she can learn to fly at my place, but I want to be sure. 

I couldn't ask my friends to feed her. They are dealing with too much right now. I have to decide if I should take here there tomorrow morning. I got her on Friday, so 4 days ago at the moment. Is it too late for her to reunite with her family at this point??

Maybe those birds on the wire recognized me from when I put their kid on the trellis. 

I just want to do the right thing! Will she still find a mate if her family forgets her?

Thanks again and I'll try to post the pics!


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

*Dove pics*

I'm trying to post them. They are loaded into additional options but when i submit reply nothing happens.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

OMG up close and personal! haha! hilarious!


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Feeding the peas would be better, as it is a step toward solid food. They wean soon to eat seed, so that is the direction I would go in at this point. I wouldn't bring her back after 4 days. I'm pretty sure the parent birds are not looking for her by now and are starting a new nest. She needs to be eating, drinking, and flying well before you release her now.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

Ok I’ll try the peas. Did you see the pics? Agents have tried to eat seed today. She fluttered down to it when I wasn’t there and it was knocked over. Thank you!


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

Not agents: I think *


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Cute bird. Looks about the age they come out of the nest, or very close to it. Thanks for the pics.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

She is really sweet. I feel bad for her in that bathroom all day long.

She was pecking at my fingers and seemed hungry. Her little dish of seed was knocked over again. Don't know if she ate any or just walked into it. 

I'll start with the peas tomorrow. 

So when I release her, will she find a mate? I'm going to look it up, used you are very knowledgable and so I figured you'd know.

Thanks again for all of your help!


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

It would be much easier to monitor her, and what she eats in a cage. Also to monitor her droppings. She should find a mate eventually.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

She's eating seeds!

That's good about the mate. I looked online and found a bunch of stuff about how they mate but not how they find each other.

I was actually thinking about calling the aviary guy. Supposedly he lets them come and go and he says they all want to stay and rarely leave. I rescued a pigeon with splayed legs and he took it in. Obviously my preference is to take her back to her home, but

I'm just very concerned that she won't be able to take care of herself and she'll be an outcast. The aviary guy would take care of her and she would have a family and he would find her a mate. What do you think about it? Am I being a worry wort?

So I went to feed her this morning and this time she focused on the little flecks of oatmeal and she was getting them in and down. So after she had some of that I put the little tiny cup of seeds in front of her and she went for it! She ate a bunch and after eating a few she would stop and move her wings back and forth a little. Is that her swallowing them? 

It's easy to monitor the droppings as she really doesn't leave the bathtub unless I move her. Yesterday when I came home she was in the tub. She had come down from the basket hanging from the shower head. I guess she's trying to fly. 

I'm really going to miss her when she leaves.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

She shouldn't be put in an aviary with pigeons. Even the splayed leg pigeon should not be in there. Pigeons and hurt doves. Can you not keep her till she is ready to be released?


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

I will absolutely keep her until for whatever she needs.

I have some news. Today I was at my friends house and I saw one lone dove on that same wire. 

What do you think?

I'll post the pic asap.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

But why should the splayed leg pigeon not be in that guys care?


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

Do you think this is the sibling??


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

I was there for a good 45 minutes playing in the yard with the dogs. That bird was there the entire time, hanging out on that wire.

Maybe that's a family member of the dove and they know I have her. 

I did take her back and release her early on. Maybe they saw that.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Charlie2018 said:


> But why should the splayed leg pigeon not be in that guys care?


A splayed leg pigeon can't walk. They can't really get around well, and the others normally pick on them. They become floor birds and can't get around. Pigeons will often pick on sick or injured birds that can not defend themselves. An aviary isn't the place for a bird who can't walk. They need soft material under them if they scoot around with their wings or they get soars on their legs and bottom. Putting them in with others is not usually a good idea.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

He told me that the bird would have his own bed and be separate. I think he even said he would find it a mate. Trust me when I tell you that this guy loves his birds. He hates people though, lol, so he wasn’t always pleasant. And if not for him, I don’t know what would have happened to that pigeon.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

I took her back today but she still can’t fly. ?


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Charlie2018 said:


> He told me that the bird would have his own bed and be separate. I think he even said he would find it a mate. Trust me when I tell you that this guy loves his birds. He hates people though, lol, so he wasn’t always pleasant. And if not for him, I don’t know what would have happened to that pigeon.


Well then that is different isn't it? I had said that a splayed leg bird shouldn't be in an aviary with other pigeons. She is kept separated.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

She cannot be released till she is flying well.


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Agree strongly...bird is in danger from predators if not flying well.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

The aviary has separate places. 

I know she can't be released until flying well. Thank you so much!

She's still with me and she's well fed and comfortable. She seems happy and she's very affectionate.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Do you let her practice flying inside? She should be flying soon.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

She doesn't really try to fly. She is getting more independent though. When she first started eating the seeds, she would only eat if I held her and the dish in my hands. Today I put the dish down and she sat on the rim and ate the seeds. I put a little dish of water next to it and she drank. 

Yesterday I had her with me all day after I tried to release her. She was in a cat carrier and she seemed very happy. We brought her to bed in the carrier and covered it so she wouldn't feel so lonely. 

We're just trying our best for her and we appreciate all of the guidance.
I could try and release her again today but it might rain. It's been one week today. When I found her it was raining and windy. Maybe she blew out of the nest too early.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Why do you keep trying to release her? She should be flying well _before_ you do that. She needs to be flying inside_ before_ you release her. If you bring her back to where you got her, and she is able to fly to a tree where you can't get her, that doesn't mean she is flying well. She will just be learning. Only, unlike her sibling, she now doesn't have the help of her parents feeding her. She will more than likely be eaten by something. It will be harder on her without the support of the parents and sibling. She needs to practice flying for a while before being released.


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## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Agree with Jay3. Would not release her yet.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

OK jeez, why didn’t you tell us that before?? We’re doing our best here. We can’t find much info online that specifies what we should do in this particular situation and we appreciate and rely on your advice. 

The sanctuary’s are all like: dude, we’re rescuing whales over here.. and I know the aviary guy will just want to take her and we want her to go back to her family in the beautiful, residential yard she cane from. 

FYI she is fine. Eating and drinking and she is with me almost 24/7.


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## JimmyLee (Mar 16, 2018)

Correct me if I'm wrong, but it sounds like you're better off releasing in your own yard than your friend's. The parents will soon be working on the next brood, if they haven't already, and any sibling will be starting to leave the area. There's also the predators you talked about. You can keep an eye on things in your yard, you said there are doves in your yard she can learn from, and she'll be bonded to you anyway.

FWIW, I'd go with the aviary guy. I live in suburban socal, and my general feeling is that it's a sink (death rate > birth rate), not a source. It's hard enough to get through a year when raised by proper parents. Human parents? Does anyone know what the one year survival stats are on that? No way it's over 25%, right?

If you're going to bother with all this, I would spend some time teaching her some dove basics. Put an indoor plant in the bathroom and try to get her to hide under it when not eating. When she's not picking at herself or eating, she should be still. Buy a winged hawk decoy online and play freeze games. Drink some water at the dawn's early light, before the hawks are out in force. Eat lunch between noon and 2pm when predators are on siesta. Fly to your roost for the night after sunset, when it's darker, so nobody knows where you're sleeping. Buy a six-pack of purple martin decoys and a dove decoy. Don't let her eat until the others are already "eating." When the martins take off, freeze and get ready to hustle. When you see a picture of a soaring bird above you, freeze and get ready to hustle. When the other dove leaves, you leave too. Don't face the same direction as the other dove. When she's nearing graduation, start showing her youtube. See cat video. See cat stalk bird. See cat jump 10 feet in the air. See cat dismember bird. See cats' obsession with walking along fence lines and building perimeters. See hawk. See hawk dismember bird. Fledglings actually learn a lot by hiding under a bush and just watching and listening. If you don't have coyotes or bobcats, get a 1/4" cage, something strong enough to stop a cat, put her with some water outside under a bush when not eating, weigh it down. Maybe not all day, but give her some exposure. I'm no expert, and I wouldn't do all of these things, but I would pick the easiest and most important ones and do those.

Obviously, I'm not the most experienced person here, so what do other people think? Aviary, right? Although I'm wondering if maybe there's a general assumption that once the OP stops posting, that means it's done, and probably not in a good way?

PS: It said my first post should be a new thread, but I'm not posting about my problems, just responding to someone else.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Charlie2018 said:


> *OK jeez, why didn’t you tell us that before??* We’re doing our best here. We can’t find much info online that specifies what we should do in this particular situation and we appreciate and rely on your advice.
> 
> We did tell you that she shouldn't be released until she could fly well. What is it that we didn't tell you?
> 
> ...


........................................


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Putting a dove in with pigeons isn't a good idea. Pigeons will most likely pick on a dove and can hurt him.
If your yard is safer and you do have doves, then yes, your yard may be safer.


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## Charlie2018 (Mar 5, 2018)

Hi there,

I just saw these responses as I thought the thread was done. I didn't see them on my mobile.

Anyway, I still have the dove. It's been 4 weeks today. She is doing fine but doesn't look like she's growing much and she still can hardly fly. Of course she doesn't get much room to try either. 

I think she must have fallen out of the nest too soon. She was still eating fluid but we switched to seed pretty quickly.

There are some doves around here but it's much more urban and to my taste, not as nice. That said, there are no hawks or coyotes, dogs on leashes only, and very few cats. 

I don't know what to do. I just want what's best for her. Thanks for the suggestions Jimmy. I'll look into it.


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