Abandoned Chick

[Herp Lover]

My Pigeon pair have a 3 week old chick and they just laid another egg and seem to have stopped taking care of their other chick. It's crop is empty and it is trying to get me to feed it. Should I pull it and hand feed? If I do need to pull it will it need supplemental heat? It seems to be almost fully feathered and the parents don't sit on it anymore. Also it was on the bottom of the cage today and has a lot of poo on it so should I clean it? If I do need to hand feed it will parrot hand feeding stuff work because I can only find the parrot hand feeding stuff.

 

[appps]

3 weeks I'm sure is too young for them to stop feeding or to be without heat of some sort.

First thing I would do while waiting for others with much more experience to chime in (only ever hand reared a cockatiel) would be to set a heat lamp up near the side of the cage if possible so it can get near it for warmth if needed.

Do you think it may have something wrong with it (whose poop is on it? Own or parents) to cause them to give up on it?

 

[Herp Lover]

Thanks, I have them in the house right now because we just moved and have not got the pen built for them yet and it stays about 80f in the room they are in. The chick got the poo on it when it was on the cage floor. I don't think it has anything wrong with it as it is acting ok but it did get attacked by fire ants last week and has not been as active as it was before that.

 

[Hokum Coco]

What your instincts have told you Herp lover is pretty much bang on and I would continue exactly that if you are right.

I would wash the squab off in warm water ( no soap) dry him off and put him right back to his original nest.

After 2 to three weeks the parents will most times start a new clutch of eggs before the squabs have taken flight. It is perfectly normal.

I think at 3 weeks the little squab needs little incubation it is almost fully fledged. Most likely what happened is the squab fell out of his nest and the parents may have missed a feeding or so.

They also cut back on the amount of times they feed the squabs usually only twice a day( early morning and late after noon or evening).

I also would continue feeding the squab until you know for sure the parents have abandon it .

I would also keep a small dish of seeds and water near the squab. You will be surprised at how quick they can learn to peck at seeds and feed themselves even at that young stage.

 

[Herp Lover]

Thank you, I gave it a bath and he drank a lot of water. I did some reading and have been force feeding it pigeon food. I tried to get it to eat on it's own but it won't. The parents have not fed it any all day so I think they don't want it anymore.

 

[Mike Richey]

Thank you, I gave it a bath and he drank a lot of water. I did some reading and have been force feeding it pigeon food. I tried to get it to eat on it's own but it won't. The parents have not fed it any all day so I think they don't want it anymore.

Get some pellets if not already using them soak them in water to a mush, put in a empty type ketchup or mustard bottle the type with a tip then you can squirt in some mush once a day. I have done this on occasion in the past but if fully feathered under its wings it should be eating on its own.

 

[Hokum Coco]

Get some pellets soak them in water to a mush, Empty type ketchup or mustard bottle with a tip squirt in some mush once a day. If fully feathered under its wings it should be eating on its own.

That is a good suggestion. However do not give up on the squabs parents too quickly. The parents may be just having a senior moment. It is very seldom parents abandon a squab. My experience is if they do they are probably right in their thinking in the long run. The squab usually has some genetic defect.

You Tube also shows methods of feeding squabs that may also help you.

Keep us posted interested to see how things turn out for you.

 

[jak2002003]

Please leave the pigeon with its parents!!!

3 weeks is the normal time then the parents start to wean their chicks, and they start feeding on their own.

The parents will already start laying another clutch of eggs at this time.

The mother pigeon will stop feeding her chicks at 3 - 4 weeks old totally, and leave the farther to finish off rearing the chicks.

They will only feed the chicks 2 times a day - once early morning - and once early evening.

Put the chick back with the parents - then check its crop is full just after dark.

Put a cup of seed and water in the nest box for the chick to eat also. The parents make the chick go hungry in order to make it start eating on its own.

If the crop is still empty after day and its been with the parents all day - then you can feed it yourself. You should not FORCE feed it!!! If its hungry it will eat itself. But a mash of chick starter crumbs, warm water and some seed in a plastic bag, cut off a corner of the bag (big enough for the chick to fit its beak into). Push the chicks beak into the mixture - holding the bag just above the level of the sitting chicks head. It will eat until its crop is full. Just do this 2 times a day.

good luck - don't worry!

 

[Herp Lover]

Thanks for the responses, I am keeping the baby in with the parent birds. The parents have not fed it since the day before yesterday when they laid their new egg. I have been trying to get the chick to eat on it's own but it won't. I watched some videos of people hand feeding chicks by using a tube filled with peas or pigeon food. I am trying that and it seems to be going ok.

 

[Herp Lover]

I was thinking back to when I raised some feral pigeons and think that they were walking around by 3 weeks. So I took a close look at this pigeon's legs and they don't seem right. They seem to stick out in front of it and it can only move them a little. They were normal before the fire ants attacked it.