# 40 days old pigeon wont eat on its own. Please help.



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

Hello everyone! I registred today on this forum in hope that someone might have an ideea that could help my approximately 40days old pigeon start eating on its own.
I have had him since he was only a 7 days old orphan baby bird (feeding him with the syringe) and we became very, very attached to it and as it seems, he became attached to us as well.
The problem is that he tries to "chew" his seeds but he doesnt swallow them. I checked his whole mouth and its healty (including his tongue). He likes to nibble his seeds (he chews them and shakes his head al well) but when he does it for a long period of time he begins to have a gag reflex and tries to vomit. 
I am leaving in a couple of days and I havent found anyone to take care of him (handfeeding and such). I tried not to feed him 2 days straight but the starving method didnt work. He didn't eat anything. His poop became lightgreen and was watery towards the end. I will be gone for 2 weeks. I know if I dont do anything now, he will starve to death. i hand feed him exactly what you see in his bowl. I tried almost everything: feeding him defrosted beans, putting his food in a deep bowl, giving him peanuts etc. What should I do? How can I teach him how to eat on its own ? Thank you very, very much for your help! He is otherwise healthy, happy and loving ❤ This is a video of him trying to eat: Watch "Help! My baby pigeon (40 days old) doesnt know how to eat on its own!" on YouTube
https://youtu.be/t_vocVGoRj8 
I filmed him this morning.


----------



## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

Well, at least he's picking up the seed and going for the smaller one's it seems. Try to get him a variety of smaller seeds that's round in shape, like sorghum. Try any wild bird seed, finch seed, budgie seed as well.


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

Thank you very much for your answer! I will try to do so right now.


----------



## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

You can also sit with him and "play" with the seeds using your fingers. This will encourage him. To get him to start drinking water you can gently dip the tip of his beak (not over the nostrils) in a small bowl of water. Let us know when he starts eating, it's always such a relief when they do.


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

He does drink water on it's own 
He dips his beak, but yes, the nostrils also, in the water, he drinks the water and then he shakes his head twice to get the water out of his nostrils, and he's done!


----------



## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

You said you are leaving in a couple of days? For good or will you be returning to him? Will there be somebody that will refill his food and waterdish?


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

She/he said they were leaving for 2 weeks. So will need to leave a lot of food and water, and still have someone to stop by and check on him.
Marina is right. He is eating the smaller seeds, so if you can get a dove mix in a pet shop, or as she suggested, a wild bird seed with smaller seeds, he will eat more. It takes a while for them to eat enough, once they start to eat on their own, so a good idea to still hand feed also.


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

I will return after two weeks. I am still searching for someone who would check on him on daily basis (and maybe hand feed him once a day, if its not possible twice). 
I filmed it this morning trying to eat some millet on an empty crop.

https://youtu.be/IdhCrxm4xdk

I've noticed in the video that he swallowed two very small black seeds. What are those? Could you please tell me? I would buy more if I knew.

I will leave a big bucket full of food. We have a fountain with running water in our terrace so he is used to drink water from there.


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

Good news! We finally found someone that will take care of the pigeon while we are gone. She will come once a day and give him food.

I do have another question. We live on the fourth floor (the last floor of a build of flats) and we have a big terrace that is partially covered (and so it as a protection in case of rain). The temperatures here are around 18 degrees C (64 Degrees F) during the day and at around 8 degrees C (46 F) during the night. 
Is it ok to let the pigeon stay outside during the night or should the one that takes care of the pigeon lock him up in a cage? (We have some sort of a cage made out of wood where its pretty warm during the night and thats were we keep him). There are many, many crows flying around and we worry that they will attack our pigeon. 
The pigeon is very attached to our terrace, he will leave only once every morning for maximum 5 minutes and then return and sit around all day. 
Thank you very, very much for your help!


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

The smallest food for birds I could find in a pet store last week (in my city) was the millet (I think thats their name) (the yellow seeds that you saw in the ceramic bowl in my latest video). Shouldnt the pigeon try to use his tongue to "stick" to the seeds and then swallow? My pigeon doesnt seem to use his tongue at all. Is it a thing that they learn to use over time?


----------



## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

In the video he actually swallowed that small black seed (I think it's safflower seed, not sure). Try to get him more of that. No, they don't stick their tongue out, he's doing it the right way by pecking the seed and then using the tongue to swallow them.

I won't leave him out at this stage. He can get spooked by anything and fly away and you might never see him again. He won't survive at this stage. 
Rather keep him confined in a cage and locked up while you are away. When you come back, you can either do a soft release or build him a nice aviary on the terrace. It will just be horrible for you to come back and he's disappeared. They do recognize people, and if you are not around who knows what might happen.


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Safflower seed is white. That seed is really too small. He would need a ton of that to fill him. He should be getting a mix with different size seeds. That seed isn't nutritious enough if that is all he is getting. He will eat larger seeds than that if you give him a mix. If you don't mix in other seeds, then he will get used to just the tiny seed, and not want the other seeds that he needs to be healthy. Get some milo (sorghum), and wheat, and some other seeds to mix in. That isn't a good diet for a pigeon. If you don't give them to him, he will never get used to them. He will eventually try them if offered. Many babies start on safflower sized seeds which are medium in size. I had one baby who picked out the large white peas and ate them first. Just because he is learning doesn't mean that he needs tiny seeds.

Also he shouldn't be allowed outside free when he isn't ready for release. If he gets lost he will starve to death out there. I have no idea why you are allowing him so much freedom. Why would you take the chance of losing him when he cannot yet survive on his own? All it would take is a hawk or crow scaring him, which would make him fly fast and far. That is how many birds get lost. If he gets lost he will die. He should always be confined to a cage when out on the balcony, or when the balcony door is even open.


----------



## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Glad you found someone to check on him. Agree strongly he should be safely caged for his protection.


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

Thank you very much, everybody, for your help! It means very much to me and even more to my pigeon. 

Jay3, i see your point, and you are right. This is my first (ever) baby pigeon that I take care of and I hope I wont make big mistakes in the process. I saw many ferral pigeons way more younger than mine that were leaving the nest (at around 26 days old) and thought they were okay, so I thought my pigeon (which is ferral as well) could also have some freedom. The terrace is big but very well protected with Thuja trees and maple trees all around and I thought it was a safe place for my pigeon to be in. 
For the next couple of weeks I will keep the pigeon in a solarium-room (i think that's how it's called in English). The weather isnt sunny so it wont be too hot (although I will leave a door open that has a mosquito net installed). 
I will post some pictures in the morning, with a better lighting. (Actually I will be coming to the States and I'm minimizing my future jet lag so I am trying to stay awake.It's 02:00 AM right now where I live).

About the safflower seeds, he has those in it's bowl, and will have them during my absence too. He "chews" them also, but doesnt swallow them. 

At this particular age, and considering he is not eating on its own, what should I (and the lady that will take care of him while I am gone) hand-feed him? What should I put in his bowl?


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

Jay3, I think you didnt saw my first video I made. It's in my very first post. My pigeon has all the seeds you mentioned in his bowl and more. He has many bowls that contain different kind of seeds, separately and mixed as well. He prefers to nibble beans, wheat and lathyrus seeds (I dont know the exact name but they are small black seeds).


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

Marina B, thank you. I will keep him in our solarium. We already moved out the carpet and (somehow) protected our furniture







. He sleeps there right now. I will post some photos tomorrow. We really love this pigeon and couldnt imagine something bad happening to him


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

silfaen said:


> Thank you very much, everybody, for your help! It means very much to me and even more to my pigeon.
> 
> Jay3, i see your point, and you are right. This is my first (ever) baby pigeon that I take care of and I hope I wont make big mistakes in the process. I saw many ferral pigeons way more younger than mine that were leaving the nest (at around 26 days old) and thought they were okay, so I thought my pigeon (which is ferral as well) could also have some freedom. The terrace is big but very well protected with Thuja trees and maple trees all around and I thought it was a safe place for my pigeon to be in.
> 
> ...


Give him a mix. A dove mix, or wild bird seed. That would at least have a mix. Whether he gets hand fed or not would depend on how much he is eating on his own. Normally you would watch to see how much he eats on his own and go from there. You won't be there, so kind of hard to say.


----------



## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

Maybe you can ask the person that will be looking after him to send you photo's of the droppings. That will be an indication if he's eating enough. A perfect dropping will be brown with a white dot on top. If not eating enough, the droppings will turn green like it did when you stopped feeding him.


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Marina B said:


> Maybe you can ask the person that will be looking after him to send you photo's of the droppings. That will be an indication if he's eating enough. A perfect dropping will be brown with a white dot on top. If not eating enough, the droppings will turn green like it did when you stopped feeding him.


Marina, that's a great idea! I would have the other person do this.


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

And these are the mixes I am giving him. The second mix is a mix of basic food for budgerigars (what I found in a petstore. It says it contains eggs) mixed with packages of vitamins for budgerigars and grit. I do serve grit separately also.


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

silfaen said:


> This is our room where we will keep the baby pigeon. I will cover the table too. He slept here for the first time and looks it's safe. There's no way out for him or in for predators.


He is not sleeping in that box (that's where I keep his food) he likes to sleep on the edge of it sometimes, but now I saw him sleeping on the couch


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

What would you suggest?
How much food should the person that's taking care of the pigeon feed him in case only once a day she can check on him and feed him? 

Would this be enough? 

----25-30 pieces of corn and beans

or

----20ml of smaller seeds with grit included (7 or 8 syringes of aproximately 2,5 ml each)? 


Unfortunately, the bigger syringes are too big for the pigeon's beak, so I feed him with the smaller one.

I attached two photos so you can see what I thought would be best to choose from.


----------



## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

The room looks fine, although maybe you can put a ladder in the middle of it with lots of newspaper around the bottom on the floor. Pigeons love to sleep high from the ground (makes them feel safe) and I bet that's where he will be sleeping. The person that will be looking after him can just remove a layer of newspaper every morning with his droppings on. They also like to perch on something, a brick on the table will help and then he won't need to perch on the plastic container.

The plastic container looks small, doesn't he have trouble getting in there? What about putting his food in a big box on the ground? 

How much are you handfeeding right now?


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Nice room. The second mix looks better. I think he will eventually try the different seeds in that. You can even put news paper on the table and put the food dishes on the table. If you are using the box so he can't throw the feed around, which they like to do, then maybe you can use a low box to put it in. The person stopping by doesn't have to measure it, just fill his dish so he has enough. And refill again when they come back. Leave him with about 1/3 of a cup to poke through. He should be able to eat enough on his own. He is capable of eating, so don't think he will let himself starve.

Are those larger peas and things what you were trying to hand feed him, that he didn't like?


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

I left home this early morning, I am in Munich right now but I installed two live cameras so I can keep a watch on him. He's sitting around now . I left him 5 different bowls of food and 3 bowls of water that will be cleaned and replaced everyday. Yes, i've put the bowls in plastic boxes so he wouldnt spread his food around the room.

Marina B, I was feeding him 16 ml of moist seeds (the mix seen in the latest pictures) (in a little bit of water) three times a day with the syringe and in the evening I would hand feed him 25 to 30 seeds (beans and corn) (seen in my latest pictures attached). 

Unfortunatelly, as I said, the person that will take care of him can handfeed him only once a day.


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

Jay3, he nibbles on every seed possible, he jyst doesnt swallow any. I havent noticed he had any prefferences or dislikes. Yesterday evening he was sitting on my husband's lap and I saw our pigeon eating (swallowing) a very small thread (of material). He is a goofy one...


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

silfaen said:


> I left home this early morning, I am in Munich right now but I installed two live cameras so I can keep a watch on him. He's sitting around now . I left him 5 different bowls of food and 3 bowls of water that will be cleaned and replaced everyday. Yes, i've put the bowls in plastic boxes so he wouldnt spread his food around the room.
> 
> Marina B, I was feeding him 16 ml of moist seeds (the mix seen in the latest pictures) (in a little bit of water) three times a day with the syringe and in the evening I would hand feed him 25 to 30 seeds (beans and corn) (seen in my latest pictures attached).
> 
> Unfortunatelly, as I said, the person that will take care of him can handfeed him only once a day.


Those are not the peas I had talked about feeding him. I said frozen peas. You defrost and warm them under warm running water, and feed them to him when they have cooled to just warm. They are soft and easy to digest, and they don't usually mind them. They are a lot easier to digest. You were not giving the right peas, so not so easy for him to digest. No wonder he didn't like them. Is it possible for the person who will be checking on him to get frozen peas?


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

Thanks for telling me. He eats defrosted peas when I hand feed him piece by piece. He doesnt eats them by himself. I havent noticed he likes defrosted peas in particular. The person thats taking care of him doesnt have enough time to take care of him (so theres no drefrosting and waiting time possible) so she feeds the pigeon with the syringe once a day with the smaller mixed of seeds. It was the best solution I could find.


----------



## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

I'm sure he will be fine. He's got plenty of time now to learn how to eat all kinds of seeds and might surprise you when you return. It's a good thing you have camera's in there, let us know how he's doing.


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

He's doing great now. He started to bond really well with the person thats taking care of him. He gets fed every afternoon with the syringe but eats alone too. He drinks water all by himself. He is safe and seems to be fine until we get home. Thank you everyone for your help!


----------



## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

Glad to hear he's well, now you can enjoy your trip.


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Great news. I knew he would be fine.


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

Hello everyone! I returned from the States today. It was a great trip but I am very glad I am back home now. I have good news and bad news about my pigeon. The good news is that he is alive, the bad news is the person that took care of him did not do a very good job and now the pigeon is almost bald (his feathers had fallen of his head and many other part of his body), he is bitting our hands everytime and he runs from us when we want to catch him and feed him.  But he still likes to sit on our lap, shoulders and head and follow us around in the house. He didnt eat at all alone (I know because he doest eat on its own yet even now), and the person taking care of him came just once every two days to feed him.
I attached a photo of him so you can see the state that he's in. I read that the feathers on its head are eaten by a virus and that I should give him something for that. In my country, the vet recommends for this kind of problem ENDECTOCID sollution (two drops on the back of his neck and a mild massage). I did just this after I gave him a bath.
He now is safe with us in the house. He is free to walk around as he likes.

What should we do next? 

I am very sad that this happen to him. It really breaks my heart to see him like this.

Thank you everyone for everything. Your help means a lot!


----------



## Marina B (May 5, 2011)

It's normal for young pigeons when they get older to start biting your fingers and hands. They don't view your hands as part of you. Don't chase him around the room and try to catch him when it comes to feeding time, rather let him come to you. They love unsalted raw chopped up peanuts. You can add this to his food and when he starts eating them, offer it to him from your hand.

Can't give advice regarding the loss of feathers, hopefully the product you used will help.


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Don't be so quick to blame the person who came to feed him. He looks like he is going through a molt right now, as many are. He does look awful, but sometimes they can go through a bad molt. It's normal for them to molt also at about this age. He will look fine once the feathers grow back in, which it looks like they are. He may or may not also have a problem with mites.

He may also be upset with you from leaving him for a while, and they do often go through a stage, but I think he will settle down. You need to get him weaned so he eats on his own. I would think maybe he would have started to do that when he was being fed less with you away.


----------



## silfaen (Sep 11, 2017)

Thank you for your response!
He isnt bitting us that much anymore. I feel like he isnt afraid of us that much either. When I put my palm in front of him, he climbs in my hand and doesnt bite, so we're very happy about his accomodations.
I searched pictures of other pigeons molting and it looks like he probably is molting too. 
He gets a drop of a Giamectine every 5 weeks so he doesnt have any mites, and he doesnt get in contact with anything infestated so I dont think he has any. 
Tomorrow or monday I will call my veterinarian and would like to request a testing of the pigeon's droppings. For what should I get him tested? I will ask the veterinarian too, but I would be really thankful if you could give me some pointers. One thing I know for sure, I will defenitely test him for salmonella (he's poop is dark-green and dry and kind of separated from the liquid). I am feeding him green beans too everyday but only like 8-10 pieces or so, but is it possible for him to get too much grit/sand (the box with the grit says it contains seashells) for his digestions and that could cause the weird consistency of the droppings?


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

silfaen said:


> Thank you for your response!
> He isnt bitting us that much anymore. I feel like he isnt afraid of us that much either. When I put my palm in front of him, he climbs in my hand and doesnt bite, so we're very happy about his accomodations.
> I searched pictures of other pigeons molting and it looks like he probably is molting too.
> *He gets a drop of a Giamectine every 5 weeks so he doesnt have any mites, and he doesnt get in contact with anything infestated so I dont think he has any. *
> ...


I don't tell the vet what to check for.They take a dropping and look to see what is in it. They should be able to identify different things, like bacteria or whatever. Then they can do a culture to find out what it is sensitive to, and what drug will kill that bacteria. Then you know what to treat him with. 

You could give him ACV and probiotics. That would help his system. Get some yogurt with the live bacteria in it, and put a little bit in his beak, and then let him swallow it, for a few days. Then give it to him a couple times a week. This will help his gut, and may even help to firm up his droppings.
Maybe the green beans are causing the problem. Birds don't generally eat green beans. Parrots or something like that like to open them up and extract the seeds, and discard the rest. Green beans are high in fiber which pigeons don't need. He can't digest that, and it could possibly be the beans that is throwing off his droppings. If you want to give some veggies, then give the green soft defrosted peas, or chopped to bite size Kale or Romaine lettuce or something like that. They also like minced carrots, to bite size.


----------



## cwebster (Dec 11, 2010)

Really cute bird! Glad he is friendlier now.


----------

