Help baby starlings

[NaturesGift]

Ok *sighs* I finally got me some babies!
I was at work and jsut about ready t leave when I heard the weirdest noise.... it seemed to be comeing from one of the barn cats "Socks" well at first i was like he has a mouse.. then I took a closer look and saw bright yellow! I ran over he took off with one of the babies partially eaten in his mouth. What was left was three. Untouched tankgoodness.. they were begging for food. I tried to locate the nest. I heard some more babies up in a sliding door to the barn. I peeked in an dtheir is no way I can access the nest without the whole nest falling ..its pretty high up.. poor lil babies had a long fall. :( All seems to be well with them though... I would have to say they are the ugliest things i ever saw. :D

I google online to discover what they are.. I have read what to feed them but with all websites I would rather take the word from someone who knows and not risk the lives of these baby bird. I am going to put them under a heat lamp right now. :) Please help me properly care for these wee ones!

They are featherless *with a few pins coming in* Their mouth seems to be the biggest thing on them. :) I have raised Robins b4 but i think these may be diffrent. :) Thanks in advance Mandie

[NaturesGift]

ok They are not dehydrated in anyway. I found them just after they fell. their mouths have saliva so they appear to be good. they really wnat m to feed them. I can barely peer into their box without three lil heads popping up and screaming!

ok I did some more research and this is what I found to feed them.
1 cup soaked dog/cat food
1/4 cup of applesauce
1 hard boiled egg
Avian vitamins (follow dosage on package)
Around 750 mg calcium (I use Tums Smooth Dissolve tablet) ground to powder and dissolved in a little water.
Water

Mix all ingredients together, and add enough water to make it the consistency of cooked oatmeal as seen in the photo at right.

or
. I like to occasionally add small amounts of different foods to the formula, to acquaint them with how different foods taste, such as some mashed sweet potatoes or carrots. You may use any of the jars of baby foods such as peas or beans, the jars of strained chicken, etc. are also appropriate. The food should be fed at room temperature

Is this accurate. This coming from someone who was misslead about what to feed my squirrels by websites run by ppl who had no clue... I jsust want to be sure I am not poisoning them. :thankyou
I will post pics as soon as possible. :)

[Mars]

That's not a formula I would use for baby birds This is the recipe I use.

1cup ZuPreem Ferret soakked in 3/4 cup hot water to soften.
3 calcuim Tablets (in a pinch the tums will work) 750mg sounds about right
2 Tablespoons dried egg white ( from the baking section at the grocery )
1 teaspoon Accidophilus (from health food store - keep in fridge )
2 droppers of avain vitamins

Blend till smooth

add 1 jar beech nut baby chicken and mix

This can be froozen in a ice cube tray. the thaw out just what you need add just enough warm water to smooth ( should be like pudding) add a pinch more accidophilus to replace what may have been killed by freezing ( any more I leave the accidophilus out and only add it just before feeding :) ) Use a small clean paint brush to feed. Feed every 15 to 20 minutes dawn till dusk. (you can take an hours of so break during the heat of the day just afternoon) You can give water with the same brush either as they are gapping or tap off excess first and bring brush along beak toward the tip. Try to kept feathers clean. You can add meal worms to their diet. cut the heads and just pick them up with the formula on the paint brush.

Hope this helps

[NaturesGift]

the silence is killing me!
I have decided to go to the store and buy baby food b/c that is the only thing I can buy b/c today is sunday...

What is Avian vitamins ? can I purchase them at the pet store? should I do canned dog food or soaked dry dog food? Someone HELP ME!

[Mars]

PS babies need to be on a heat source and kept warm. Do not feed until they are warm to the touch. :)

[NaturesGift]

That's not a formula I would use for baby birds This is the recipe I use.

1cup ZuPreem Ferret soakked in 3/4 cup hot water to soften.
3 calcuim Tablets (in a pinch the tums will work) 750mg sounds about right
2 Tablespoons dried egg white ( from the baking section at the grocery )
1 teaspoon Accidophilus (from health food store - keep in fridge )
2 droppers of avain vitamins

Blend till smooth

add 1 jar beech nut baby chicken and mix

This can be froozen in a ice cube tray. the thaw out just what you need add just enough warm water to smooth ( should be like pudding) add a pinch more accidophilus to replace what may have been killed by freezing ( any more I leave the accidophilus out and only add it just before feeding :) ) Use a small clean paint brush to feed. Feed every 15 to 20 minutes dawn till dusk. (you can take an hours of so break during the heat of the day just afternoon) You can give water with the same brush either as they are gapping or tap off excess first and bring brush along beak toward the tip. Try to kept feathers clean. You can add meal worms to their diet. cut the heads and just pick them up with the formula on the paint brush.

Hope this helps


Thank you so much!
ok I dont think I can buy ferret but I will try!
I do not have the accidophilus and will not be able to obtain it till monday b/c nothing is open on sundays but wally world.

I do have tablets somewhere... they are strawberry flavored. :) I will get the vitamins monday also....
I am going to do my best with my limited options. :)

[NaturesGift]

PS babies need to be on a heat source and kept warm. Do not feed until they are warm to the touch. :)

Thanks I had them under my heat lamp but they started to act hot... must find my heating pad!

[Mars]

You can make it work. If you can't find the ferrit food replace it with a high quality kitten chow such as eubanba (sp) or Ians.

[NaturesGift]

ok my first feeding completed. ahhh a messy task. I was making it up in the kitchen and my sister was like your not going to eat that right? The ppl at the store were like so your changing to baby food are you? It used to be bags and bags of nuts lol. Thanks Mars. Sorry i sounded distant on the phone. I am in mid crisis .. My 6 week old turkey was having convulsions and she died a few minutes b4 I called. I am rying to figure out what is going on. I have lost two turkeys and a chicken to this its nerve racking. How much should I feed at each feeding?

[Mars]

Three paint brushes full perhaps. They will tell you when they are full and hungery. You can also see the crop on the side of the neck in many nestlings. If empty fill it up. The crop should be empting every 15 minutes or so.

[NaturesGift]

Ok I cant over feed them can I? i have been feeding them till they stoped screaming. :thankyou

[Mars]

Watch the crop. Like a baby squirrel, full but not burst the balloon tight. Feeding till they stop is fine as long as it matches the other the above thought.

[NaturesGift]

ok thank you sooooo much!

[TexanSquirrel]

Good luck! Hang in there, babies!

[NaturesGift]

ok all is well with my new babies! I have named them Seth Shawn and Shasta :) I am now needing to make a new batch of food...which baby food should I put in this time? the chickan and veggie? the baby peas or the green beans? or maybe applesauce? Let me know. I am still working on those pics. :D

[Buddy'sMom]

:rotfl I vote for applesauce! Good luck with them! :grouphug

Sorry to hear about your turkey. The only thing I know about (live) turkeys is that they are very hard to keep that way -- and that's for the healthy ones!

[halo]

If they are starlings. That means they have a huge yellow mouth. Sounds like they are. Then our bird rehabber here said that you can simply feed them a quality dry cat food soaked in water. Feed til they stop. She told me that you cant kill them. They are very hardy. And as for the constant begging. ACK.. I know what u mean! I had 5 of them to keep all day for the birdie rehabber til I transported. In the meantime I fed them. They drove me NUTS with the constant begging. Felt like I had 5 newborns with colick... lol Good luck, better YOU THEN ME! LOL!

PS.. be sure and use a rounded tip tweezer to feed.


Halo

[Kathy56]

Good Luck.:grouphug

[NaturesGift]

If they are starlings. That means they have a huge yellow mouth. Sounds like they are. Then our bird rehabber here said that you can simply feed them a quality dry cat food soaked in water. Feed til they stop. She told me that you cant kill them. They are very hardy. And as for the constant begging. ACK.. I know what u mean! I had 5 of them to keep all day for the birdie rehabber til I transported. In the meantime I fed them. They drove me NUTS with the constant begging. Felt like I had 5 newborns with colick... lol Good luck, better YOU THEN ME! LOL!

PS.. be sure and use a rounded tip tweezer to feed.


Halo

LOL I actually have been enjoying all the begging it adds color to my day. they are keeping me busy. something I love to be! They are all doing great today. I am learning the diffrence between the babies crys. Shawn ahs a real loud obnoxious yell were as Shasta has a soft almost singing cry. Seth is kinda in the middle. when they all go it hillarious.... My Two year old sister now has competion!:D

[squirrelsrule&bunniestoo]

Glad to hear they are doing good. Great work with them. I take baby sparrows from the wildlife center where I volunteer because they put them to sleep since they are not native. I have tried starlings too since they told me you can't kill them, they are so hardy. Well three starling deaths later, I have decided to let the other people take the starlings and stick with my sparrows. I killed all three within 3 days of having them (they all three came in separately). I don't know what happened but they would beg (never nonstop though) the first day and then not want to eat the second day and be dead either the second or third day. Oh well, everyone seems to like the starlings and want to take them and then they say no to the sparrows, so I get my fill.

[NaturesGift]

Glad to hear they are doing good. Great work with them. I take baby sparrows from the wildlife center where I volunteer because they put them to sleep since they are not native. I have tried starlings too since they told me you can't kill them, they are so hardy. Well three starling deaths later, I have decided to let the other people take the starlings and stick with my sparrows. I killed all three within 3 days of having them (they all three came in separately). I don't know what happened but they would beg (never nonstop though) the first day and then not want to eat the second day and be dead either the second or third day. Oh well, everyone seems to like the starlings and want to take them and then they say no to the sparrows, so I get my fill.

Thanks. I always wonder when I hear of lone baby birds being brought for care... and they always seem to die.. I wonder if they were thrown from he nest b/c they wont make it? But at least they die in the hands of a caring human like you. It must give them peace. :)

Oh I love sparrows.. we raise Zebra finches.(just a hobby) I love lil birds! I love watching the parents feed the babies. When I was young I took in a few hurt older sparrows but they always died within the hour of finding them. (I was like really young back then it was mom can you help her?)

O I ahve a book on a starling... its called "Arnie the Darling Starling" It is about a woman who rescues a baby starling and ends up keeping him and he learns to talk and its a truly inspiring story. I ha the second part but i like this book better. Dont worry i have no desire to make pets out of these babies. I cannot wait to watch them fly!

[squirrelsrule&bunniestoo]

The sparrows always come in as singles too. They seem to do fine. They take sooooooooooooooooooooo long to grow up when they are raised alone though. It takes them such a long time to catch on how to be a regular bird.

[NaturesGift]

Day three and still holding firm *the lil monsters* here are some pics
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c35/canadian_Mandy/Simg0072.jpg
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c35/canadian_Mandy/Simg0075.jpg

my only thing to say for this pic is man do they ever look like old grumpy men*snickers*
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c35/canadian_Mandy/Simg0076.jpg


paint brush feeding!
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c35/canadian_Mandy/Simg0078.jpg
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c35/canadian_Mandy/Simg0079.jpg

o btw I thought they would be more comfy if I put them in a nest so I put them in a nest we found along time ago thet had come out of tree in a wind storm ... it helps keep them out of their poop.. they fire all the poop out of the nest....

[squirrelsrule&bunniestoo]

They are looking good! They are cute little guys.

[Kathy56]

:thumbsup :thumbsup :thumbsup :thumbsup

[BabyBella]

Hello,

Cute abies!!!! I am a NY state licensed rehabber and my specialty is songbirds. What are you feeding the guys? Birds are very sensitive to stressful situations which is why many of them die but if you keep the level to a minimu (keep them away from sights & sounds that will cause stress) in a carrier or box that is covered but with a heat source like a heating pad underneath and feed them a proper diet they should be fine. You should not use a nest that was found because it could contain parasites that can harm the babies. The best thing to use is a round plastic dish that is shallow enough so tehy can liftt their rears over to poop. I use the plastic containers from take-out or fruit at the store. Then put lots of tissue inside place them in and put tissue around them like crumpled so they feel secure. They will mess it up quickly, I clean everytime I feed. They need to eat every 45 minutes until feathered the every 1 to 1 1/2 hours. If you need a recipe for food email me:
Michelle@vwjewelry.com
They need a very specific diet to keep them healthy long term.

Also check out:
http://www.starlingtalk.com

-Michelle

[NaturesGift]

Hello,

Cute abies!!!! I am a NY state licensed rehabber and my specialty is songbirds. What are you feeding the guys? Birds are very sensitive to stressful situations which is why many of them die but if you keep the level to a minimu (keep them away from sights & sounds that will cause stress) in a carrier or box that is covered but with a heat source like a heating pad underneath and feed them a proper diet they should be fine. You should not use a nest that was found because it could contain parasites that can harm the babies. The best thing to use is a round plastic dish that is shallow enough so tehy can liftt their rears over to poop. I use the plastic containers from take-out or fruit at the store. Then put lots of tissue inside place them in and put tissue around them like crumpled so they feel secure. They will mess it up quickly, I clean everytime I feed. They need to eat every 45 minutes until feathered the every 1 to 1 1/2 hours. If you need a recipe for food email me:
Michelle@vwjewelry.com
They need a very specific diet to keep them healthy long term.

Also check out:
http://www.starlingtalk.com

-Michelle

Thanks so much for your input. I have already been told all this :) This is there forth day and I know that the advice I was given is what helped me keep them alive. Thanks again
~`*Mandie*`~

[NaturesGift]

oh oh I love this! My starlings are getting feathers! I just love watching hem grow. I will have to take pics.. the feathering out happens sooo fast!

[Mars]

:jump They really do grow up fast. glad to hear all is going well! :)