Baby Bird (my first) Need Help - PsychoBird you here?

[kcassidy]

Hi All:

I just released two bunnies and no sooner than I walk with a spring in my step to two less babies and my phone rings and I know have a 20gram baby bird.

Here are some photos, anyone have any idea what it is? Folks were at a picnic yesterday and saw it on the ground, tried to put it back in the nest,which they say was a teeny hole in a tree but couldn't do it. Left the bird while they were there hoping Mom would get it, but no such luck. They tracked me down at 7pm and I've had it for 30 minutes.

I just fed it Mazuri and it ate 3cc's it is sleeping now.

I've not had any luck with birds, the few I've accepted were on deaths door and died in a warm place.

Do I need this baby on a heat source? Is Mazuri the way to feed it. I think I've read somewhere that I'm to start feeding at sunrise and continue to do so til sunset. What is the frequency, is that timing correct?

Thanks

Kim

[pappy1264]

Yes, on low heat under half. Mazuri is correct. Go slow, watch for the crop to fill up like a balloon, do not feed again until crop empties. Not great at identifying, but looks like a sparrow to me. Will alert Jodi.

[sdreamcatcher]

Could he be an English House Sparrow? Going by size and beak; I raised a couple quite a few years ago. Excellent eaters, my two got flighty fast and were ready to be wild. Awesome birds; I know they get a bad rap. I also cared for an older boy who flew into our window one year. He returned often after release.

He is cute; course I'm a sucker for the baby birds too :).

[kcassidy]

Is it true that I don't feed them overnight? I am guessing as s/he gets older we can guess species way easier :D :D

Little fella ate like a champ. Do I feed anymore tonight?

[psychobird]

Feed till you go to bed tonight because of all the missed feedings
Put them in a small bowl with tissue and put the bowl into a kritter keeper or aquarium if you have one
Heating pad on low underneath them
If they sleep with their mouths open that mean they are hot and add a towels between until they are just right
These guys should be fed every half hour sun up to sun down
If you don't wake up at the crack of dawn or miss a feeding go later after dark to make up for it
I like mazuri and Fons, can feed parrot handfeeding formula in a pinch
Feed with a 1cc syringe, nothing bigger
Give one little bite, let swallow and repeat until they are full
If they are still red, saliva is stringy and abdomen skin looks wrinkled and dry they are dehydrated
Can feed blueberry bits to hydrate them
Yes they are English sparrows :)
Enjoy!

[pappy1264]

Yes, that is true, but being he went w/o for a while feed him until you go to bed tonight, then start fresh first thing and feed all day. Does look like a sparrow to me. I sent Jodi a message, not sure if she will get it tonight.

[psychobird]

Oh only one guy, thought there were 2 for some reason
They get a bad rap cause they are pretty mean birds when adult
The males in particular, they will wipe out bluebirds in bluebird houses (babies)
Have taken in many bluebirds and waxwing babies that have been scalped by them
They take over nests of smaller birds, kill the babies or just toss them out
They are adorable babies though
Might want to check around n see if a rehabber has room for another
You might end up with a pet raising a single
They are considered an invasive species so its perfectly legal
Good luck!

[kcassidy]

Oh great thats those birds. sigh. I have tons of bluebirds around here :)

No thank you on a new pet!!!

I'll start calling soon.

Thanks for the advice he looks fabulous the morning, I swear he grew already I'm gearing up for my 8th feeding of the morning, WOW this is easier than feeding mammals but no chance of going anywhere for the next few weeks.

How fast are they releaseable?

[psychobird]

Everyone is different
All depends on how quickly he weans
Once he start hopping out if the nest and standing on the edge
You can set him up in a little cage
Hang millet next to where he prefers to perch that seems to he the first thing they try
Give him a little bowl of water, small seed, and calcium dusted mealworms
Fresh daily food include scrambled egg, soaked dog or cat food, frozen corn n peas, and blueberries
If you can find grasses that have seeds hang them in there
Sparrows are all different, some like the egg some like mealworms some like seed
Just never know
One thing they all seem to like is that quicko egg food, honey or the bug one
Once he is completely self feeding can release a week or two after that
Make sure he gets a little flying time out of cage once a day
Mbe in a bathroom where its safe
If you have a hard time catching him, do it in the evening
When its time to go back in te cage, shut off light to grab him
You can see better in the dark than he can

[psychobird]

As he starts eating on his own you start extending the time inbetween feeding
Get a pair of tweezers hand feed him solid foods along with formula to get him to try things
If tweezers are sharp sand down with sandpaper

[kcassidy]

Oh wow, okay.

I have a great fledgling cage I can put him when he is ready. Do I have to have different sized perches to prevent bumblefoot or is that only raptors?

I have tons of grass that have seeded, more than likely still will when he is ready.

What is quicko egg?

I have reptile calcium and also a big bad of calcium powder, either will do ??

So when I go to get him for feeding he starts cheeping away, after eating about a CC he turns his back and burrows back into his nest (I'm not holding him if at all possible). Lots of pooping going on though and it is watery, what am I doing wrong?

Thanks you guys I have always NOT wanted to do birds but maybe this isn't so bad :)

[psychobird]

Probably not doing anything wrong
Mazuri goes bad if left out to long, I make a big batch enough for a day or two at the most
And only take out enough to last no more than an 1 1/2 hrs
Feeding room temp is fine for him
Once he is feathered and flying I feed cold
Keep everything nice and clean
I wipe the syringe off when I fill it before feeding to keep his face clean
Don't want food drying on their faces where bacteria can grow
If the bag of calcium is calcium carbonate, that's what I use

[pappy1264]

Jodi, don't forget she will have to spray down when he is feathered, to make sure he builds up his waterproofing before being released!

[Unikorngrrl]

I'm baby wild bird clueless, but the little alien is precious!!! GOOD LUCK with it!!! I'm sorry I can't be of more help...I need to learn so I can be!! XO

[psychobird]

Right pappy, if he doesn't bathe himself
Will need to mist him once in a while to see if he has some waterproofing
Water should sort of bead up on his back and wing feathers
Most usually bathe
Another thing sparrows like to do is dust themselves
I will usually give them a dish of sand or fine gravel and grit
Of course this is all when he is older
Betcha he will fledge sometime this weekend mbe earlier

[kcassidy]

Thanks all, baby bird is doing well and gaining grams ;)

I don't know how you all do this and have a life? I work from home and am in VMWare training all week. So I can sit here and feed every 20 - 30 minutes. But how do I go anywhere?

LOL

Anyway, thanks for the tips on food as he grows, water training and gravel bathing.

Here he is on day 2.5.

[pappy1264]

They grow fast, thankfully (couple years ago, I had bunnies, squirrels and baby birds at the same time...wanna talk insane!!!! lol) Looks great!

[kcassidy]

They grow fast, thankfully (couple years ago, I had bunnies, squirrels and baby birds at the same time...wanna talk insane!!!! lol) Looks great!

Oh my god NO!!!! ;) :)

Gawd this creature never shuts up, I'm feeding him every 30 minutes but he starts caterwauling within 15 minutes of the last feeding.

Thanks Mary.

[psychobird]

I don't have a life!!!!
Oh and quicko egg food is a food you can usually find at petco or petsmart
I put in a dish dry for them
Let me see if I can find a link for it

[psychobird]

https://www.petdiscounters.com/mobile/product.asp?itemid=14467

Petco usually doesn't carry the goldy ones with the bugs in it
But they like the honey one too

[pappy1264]

How is little birdy doing today?

[kcassidy]

Stanley is great ;)

He is eating 2cc's at a time and I'm amazed at the changes that happen every day.

What do you guys keep your birds on, bedding I mean.

When do I add the sand/gravel, other food options?

Here is a photo and as always disregard my dirty farm fingernails :flash3

[psychobird]

I keep nestlings in a small cozy bowl/ramekin lines with Kleenex
In a kritter keeper lined with paper towels
You want the bowl shallow enough so he can back up and poop out of the nest
And small enough so he is nice and cozy
Had some knitted nests donated and I love them too
When he starts hopping out of the nest and won't stay in
Can set him up in a cage with his nest
He will start exploring, will take him a 2-3 days to be able to perch
Then you can hang some millet and have a small dish of water
Will take some time for him to start picking at food

[farrelli]

They grow so amazingly fast! I can't wait to see his progress!

[Unikorngrrl]

I'm looking forward to seeing his progress too kcas!! Cute Little ALIEN!!! Good Luck!!! :thumbsup:thumbsup

[kcassidy]

I took some more photos and will keep doing so and sharing via my photostream, you should all be able to access it.

https:// www.icloud.com/photostream/#A4532ODWvA7bz (just remove the spaces that I put in between the // and www

I love this new photo stream feature from my iPhone.

The changes that occur overnight are astounding.

I didn't think about a bowl, thats a great idea. I have him in a box and I made a raised nest out of cotton and he does put over the side in my kritter keeper which is lined with pee pee pads.

off to find the right bowl :D

[psychobird]

How's bb birdie?

[kcassidy]

Stanley is doing well. I will get photos tomorrow. He has moved into the bigger cage so he can work on flying. He flaps his wings at high speed when he calls for food, so dang cute.

I have finally perfected my feeding technique, 1cc syringe shove it down his throat and pipe it in ;)

In the beginning I coated him in formula but have it all cleaned up, silly me. Tomorrow I'm making him a water bath and a gravel bath, I hung grass with seed heads in his cage.

He is so damn cute and the growth every night is mind boggling.

I find it very time consuming to feed them but I guess its not really much different than the mammals and I can sleep thru the night. Wish I could get a crow!

Thanks for the help and updates tomorrow, were you able to view the iCloud photostream?

Ciao

Kim

[psychobird]

They are def time consuming but grow up blessedly fast!
Go from practically an embryo to a full feathered bird in a couple of weeks

[psychobird]

Crows on the other hand take a long time to grow up!

[kcassidy]

I know they do, but I still want one :)

[psychobird]

They the best, but not easy to rehab, need loads of room and oh so messy n stinky
Clumsy with incredibly sharp nails! I worry and worry and worry over the crows, I sometimes think I shouldn't do them because I stress so much about them when I release them, I love them too much
I actually spent 140 bucks vaccinating my 2 guys this year for West Nile virus and EEE was a bad year here last year and its suppose to be a bad one this year again
What's the point of raising them if they are just going to get sick and die a month after release
And you gotta wish for 2 so you don't screw em up too much with him an love!

[kcassidy]

Ha,

Okay so I'll continue to wish for a Crow and hope it is two :) I have wanted a Crow since I was little, right along with horses. Last fall I had a Crow in my pasture and I could tell right away he was injured. I picked him up easily and went right to the vet, some asshat had shot him. The vet splinted the wing and gave me meds and home I went. I had no idea how loud a Caw can be when your ear is right next to the beak, almost peed my pants that first time :)

Sadly he didn't make it, I knew by day two the wing was not healing, took him back to the vet and it was necrotic and he was PTS. What is crazy is I have a photo of my dogs in the woods, I was walking with a friend and I told her the Crow is going to die, I just knew it. I snapped the photo about the same time, when I got home and loaded it on the computer you can see "something" flying past the dogs. I'm convinced it was the Crow leaving. Let me know if you want to see the photo, I'll put it up, still gives me the goose bumps.

If I get a Crow I'll definitely vaccinate him/her. Your reasoning is why I don't do Fawns anymore. I feel like I'm raising them to be killed by a car or hunter. Although my Little Deer that I raised last year is still around the farm, I think. I see this one Doe that always pauses when I call out her name and she doesn't run from my dog like the others do. Always makes me smile :)

Anyway, little Stanley is squawking for food, so time to feed. He is in the bigger cage now and sitting on a branch now, fluttering those wings like mad when he wants his food.