squirrel board I know...but have a tiny baby bird

[squirrely pearly]

I can't post a picture right now..but friend found a tiny bird, some black feathers not many, I know this is the squirrel board, but I know many of you are rehabbers..I have the bird in a make shift nest outside 95 degree weather, where do I go from here? mouth open wanting to eat. mush up worms? have no idea what kind of bird it is. heating pad? will bring it in as soon as I know what it needs as far as warmth etc.

[CritterMom]

Not worms. Earthworms are actually really bad for birds.

Do you have a pet store nearby? Call and ask if they have any handfeeding formula for parrots. Kaytee Exact is a VERY commonly available food. You mix with water and VERY CAREFULLY feed drop by drop to the little one. It will work for the time being for either a seed eating bird or an insectivore.

If you can post a pic, someone may be able to identifyit and more closely approximate a diet.

[squirrely pearly]

I know thats a huge picture it's from my phone but thats the little birdie

[island rehabber]

Send a PM to psychobird -- she'll be able to help I'm sure! :thumbsup

[squirrely pearly]

Send a PM to psychobird -- she'll be able to help I'm sure! :thumbsup

thanks IR I just pm'd her. on my way to the pet store for the" any baby bird feed."

[squirrely pearly]

Not worms. Earthworms are actually really bad for birds.

Do you have a pet store nearby? Call and ask if they have any handfeeding formula for parrots. Kaytee Exact is a VERY commonly available food. You mix with water and VERY CAREFULLY feed drop by drop to the little one. It will work for the time being for either a seed eating bird or an insectivore.

If you can post a pic, someone may be able to identifyit and more closely approximate a diet.

petsmart has it! on my way..thanks very much!:bowdown

[pappy1264]

Just called Jodi and left her a message (in case she doesn't get in here, she will know her help is needed.) It is very hard to tell in the pic, but does it have a grey or bluish colored beak?

[CritterMom]

Mary - if I remember correctly, big yellow beaks and mouths are insectivores, so this is likely a seed eater of some kind...? Is that right?? If so, Exact is a good food.

[psychobird]

oh its a itty bitty, i can't tell by the pic but it may be a cardinal or a house finch, need a pic of him next to something to so i can tell his size.
my first suggestion is to find a rehabber, driving them to someone else is much easier than raising them even if it's hours away, and he is a federally protected species and he shouldn't be raised alone.
but in the mean time
almost all native birds feed their young insects (the exception is mourning doves) so use an insectivore diet, the kaytee is okay in a pinch but he shouldn't raised on that.
pappy do you have a copy of the diet somewhere on your puter? i don't have time to type it all in.
and yes he should be on a a heating pad on low, and should be fed warmed hand feeding formula about every half hour, sun up to sun down.
i would water the formula down a bit for the first 24 hours to get him nice and hydrated, and slip in some bits of blueberry or peeled grapes cut to bit sized pieces, not mashed.
you can go to a pharmacy and ask them for a 1cc syringe without the needle, don't use the huge ones they have at petsmart you will aspirate him.
just put a tiny bit into his mouth and let him swallow after each bite, feed him as much as he wants.
okay time to feed my little monsters, i will check back later

[psychobird]

found it under crickets thread here it is
Here is the formula for baby birds.....

1 cup science diet kitten food
1 to 1 1/2 cups water
1 2.5 oz jar of beechnut chicken baby food
1/2 tsp avi-era bird vitamins
1/4 tsp calcium carbonate powder
1/4 tsp bird bene bac
2 TBS powdered egg white
store in the fridge and serve it to him warm not hot
either freeze some or make a new batch everyday
i slurry the whole batch up in a blender and use a 1cc syringe to give them just a small amount at a time, make sure he swallows with each bite, feed him as much as he wants with each feeding.

[pappy1264]

I was just reading your post asking if I had it, and I was going to mention Cricket's post, but see you got it already (great minds think alike...lol) Thanks Jodi!

[squirrely pearly]

had the 1 cc syringes already from Pearly and bought some just in case I ever needed them again for another sweet squirrely. mixed the kaytee like you said a small amount of extra water, made it texture of not so runny pudding. he/she ate good, and then 20 minutes later mouth open for more!!

ok now to find a rehabber because there is no way I can possibly feed him every half hour lol. how does a rehabber do that?!! I have a business and a farm and baby ducks hatching as we speak!! I am overwhelmed to say the least. every 4 hours is much differnet that every half hour!!

I am in woodstock ga, if yall know of any rehabber pllease let me know..I have had a terrible experience with taking baby squirrels to one close by already and would never go back there again!

[squirrely pearly]

really sorry these pics are so big! they come off my phone and not the time to figure out how to resize them now..this is the baby bird by a regular length pen, though it's one of those fat pens.

[pappy1264]

It isn't easy (got two on the half hour, four on the hour....and that is nothing compared to what Jodi has!!! lol) I hope you can find a reliable bird rehabber near you! Good work!! Hey, and at least you don't have to 'potty' them! lol

[squirrely pearly]

It isn't easy (got two on the half hour, four on the hour....and that is nothing compared to what Jodi has!!! lol) I hope you can find a reliable bird rehabber near you! Good work!! Hey, and at least you don't have to 'potty' them! lol

oh my gosh! I have a new found respect for momma birds thats for sure. and for the bird rehabbers! I raised a red headed woodpecker a long long time ago but it must have been half raised by the time I found it, (in my dogs mouth.) because it was NOT this hard lol! I don't remember that much about it, I was young and I think we fed it flies and other sorts of bugs. I remember teaching it to fly..and I remember it taking off, but staying around for a while. bittersweet.

at least it's going to be dark soon until I can figure out what to do! I have looked through the list of rehabbers and they are so picky! (no offense anyone) but 1 says they only do rabbits, 1 only baby deer, I found 1 that does birds but no answer so far. 2 hours away from me too. I'd have to take it at night because I can't feed it every 1/2 hour and drive too haha. I ran out to feed my horses and critters, and when I got back it was waiting mouth open :crazy

I only hope I'm doing it right..I dont' want it to die before I get it somewhere where they know what they are doing! thanks everyone..any suggestions on atlanta rehabbers let me know!!

[pappy1264]

Just go slow, very small amounts and make sure they swallow before putting more in! Hey, could be worse, you could be having to force feed it!! Don't know anyone in the area, hopefully someone on here does!

[psychobird]

now i don't know what it is, that looks like a cedar waxwing mouth, it would be too early for them up here but i don't know down there, neeeed better pics, lol
rehabbers aren't necessarily picky we just can't handle do a million different species, it will kill us!
only federally permitted rehabbers can do native birds

[squirrely pearly]

lol I can see why rehabbers couldn't do all the species..I thought about it after I was here and they'd have to have alot of help it seems just to do the birds!! raising Pearly squirrely was hard on me, mostly because she was alone and I wanted to be there with her more. I couldn't imagine doing birds and squirrels but I am sure some do! my hats off to all of the rehabbers..sorry for the "picky" statement..i was frustrated at the time! still am kinda because I've called 4 and none have returned my call. its friday night..do rehabbers actually have lives??!!:sanp3

this 1 little bird has exhausted me mentally. lol mostly because I don't know what I'm doing.I get real tied up in these critters and get sooo worried I am doing it wrong and they will suffer.

so they can go all night without eating? this ones belly looks like it might explode!

I will try for better pictures in the meanwhile instead of the "posters" I've put in here.:nono

thanks PychoBird!

[squirrely pearly]

now i don't know what it is, that looks like a cedar waxwing mouth, it would be too early for them up here but i don't know down there, neeeed better pics, lol
rehabbers aren't necessarily picky we just can't handle do a million different species, it will kill us!
only federally permitted rehabbers can do native birds

I tried cropping these new pics I hope it worked

[Chickenlegs]

Try the Starling Talk site. They may have a list of rehabbers in your area.

[squirrely pearly]

I put up some better pics last night , anyone have any idea what kinda baby bird this is?? I am out of luck with a rehabber to take this bird..so I guess I am in it for the long haul. I have read so many conflicting stories about a single bird being releasable. and that they imprint worse than if there were a few. ugh. Where the bird was found a storm knocked the ONLY tree down in these peoplles yard so there was no PUtting it back in the nest or even close by. they said it was impossible because this neighborhood has no trees!!

I researched until midnight last night and could not figure out what kind it is. If anyone has any idea please let me know!! I'm sure thats a major important part of knowing for sure what to feed it.:thankyou

[squirrely pearly]

Try the Starling Talk site. They may have a list of rehabbers in your area.


well I went to the Starling site, signed up right after reading your post here, and so far I have not been allowed in. apparently they check for new members "often"..bah..getting so frustrated. I have never been a bird watcher myself, wish I had of now though. So even after looking for pictures of baby birds all over the internet I can't figure out what kind of baby this is. right now the baby is eating, and pooping good.

bird poop makes me miss squirrely poop!:rotfl

[psychobird]

well i guess your stuck with him, lol
i feed all the babies the formula i posted except for doves and pigeons, i guess we are going to have to wait until he starts getting in more feathers to identify the species.
the pics you posted are so fuzzy it's hard to tell what he is, keep posting, i know they change day to day.
i get mystery birds all the time (or ufo's, unidentified flying species) and sometimes it can take a week or two until i know what they are, last years mystery bird what a great crested flycatcher, and this years was a white breasted nuthatch.
if i haven't raised something before it can take me a while to figure it out.
yes raising a single can be tough, but it's not hopeless, i do it all the time and still release.
i just keep things business like, feed and get out of sight.
just make sure he can't see you except when you feed and clean, and absolutely cannot see any of your pets.. ever..., he will view them as safe and could get him killed when released.
more better pics please!!

[psychobird]

any idea what he is yet??? more pics pleeeeze!

[Gina]

Glad Psychobird found you and I wish you the best of luck with the little bird.

[Chickenlegs]

If you PM a pix of your baby I'll ask a rehabber friend what he is--and post it on Starling Talk. Sorry they aren't being more helpful. There IS a Starling Diet that's pretty good for most babies--that aren't pigeons or doves--or raptors (like Psycho bird said) but if Pb gave you a diet, it's good. That little bird knows what he is and sooner or later you will too. Enjoy him while you got him cause they grow fast.

[Davidv]

I'm in California, you need to get a heat lamp to help keep your baby warm. I have rescued lots of baby birds and also parrots, along with the critters we all love.. Some parrot breeders turned me onto this great product called monkey chow. It is made by ZooPrem. They are quarter to half dollar sized biscuts that I put in a small bowl with water and put in the microwave for @ 75 seconds. MAKE SURE THE LIQUID/BISCUT IS NOT TOO HOT!!! You want it warm, but not too hot.You may need to let it sit awhile. If your baby gets her crop(bird equivalent of a stomach) burned, your baby won't make it. Anyway, this is a great product, you can really dilute it and feed through a syringe/bottle and as they get older, you can use less water and it becomes like a wet zwyback biscut. This stuff is so full of nutrients/protiens, etc. that it has brought back more birds, squrriels, critters from the brink of death than I can count. Humans could survive on it. I feed it to my parrots every night and they are VERY healty and their feathers are noticablly more vibrant after their first molt after starting the monkey chow. When your baby grows you can start introducing other foods. Monkey Chow will get your baby healthy and strong. And best of all it is very easy to use, nothing to mix or measure. Lots of squrriel rehabers use it for weaned babies, dry, so they can chew and use their ever growing teeth. Like I said it is a primate food, but it works miracles! Write me if you need any help. dtvmail@nctv.com Good Luck!