Help baby birds keep falling out the nest

[Takeylla]

So I’ve been keeping an eye on these baby cardinals since they were eggs. When I had to pull weeds in the yard and I accidentally spooked the mom off the nest and that’s how I found it over spring break. But I last checked on them on Saturday and they were still eggs and didn’t check on them on Sunday, but I did on Monday and I saw those adorable babies. I didn’t check them on Tuesday but my boyfriend checked on them yesterday and they were on the ground and the nest wasn’t straight like it was. So we carefully strengthen the nest and picked them up with leaves and put them back in the nest.
Then I checked on them a few hours later and one was on the ground and I picked it up with leaves and put it back in the nest. Then went to my boyfriends house and when we walked back they were all on the ground. Also we do have a mockingbird the hangs close to the nesting area of the cardinal pair and I don’t know if that’s who’s nocking the chicks out or not. But we checked on them before we went to school and they were on the edge of their nest but in it, and I saw the mom feed it, she came back and sat on them least night to. But if they keep falling I think I’ll need to take them in, I have a box ready Incase I need to and we put dog food in water in the fridge for if I need to care for them, my teachers are ok with me taking them to school with me so I could keep them fed(I asked them.) I was wondering about y’alls options on this ( the picture is of them on Monday.)

 

[Takeylla]

Anyone have any advice on what to do

 

[BjaJra826]

With this type of bird it is best tobtry and let the mother do her thing. Inlike chickens, ducks, turkey, quail, and other ground foul they are not born self-sufficient in any way. They require feeding every hour or more 24 hrs a day. Keep putting them back in the nest. If the mother abandons them entirely then try hand-rearing but keep in mind even the best bird handlers can have trouble with birds this frail.

 

[Takeylla]

With this type of bird it is best tobtry and let the mother do her thing. Inlike chickens, ducks, turkey, quail, and other ground foul they are not born self-sufficient in any way. They require feeding every hour or more 24 hrs a day. Keep putting them back in the nest. If the mother abandons them entirely then try hand-rearing but keep in mind even the best bird handlers can have trouble with birds this frail.

Yeah, I know I was reading about it any they have to be fed every 20-30 minutes of whenever they lift they’re head up and open they’re mouth so I’m prepared for taking care of them if I have to

 

[Kessel23]

Keep putting them back in the nest. If you saw the mom feeding them then that's good. Is the dad still alive? Last year I saw a single father cardinal pretty much kill his chick because the mother died and he could not find enough food and keep them warm at the same time. It was extremely skinny and underfed and then he forced it to fledge extremely early. It definitely died. I picked it up to examine it and it was dehydrated and very weak. I thought it fell out of the nest so I put it back and watched the male come lure him out again with food. The male lead him out into the woods and I did not follow or interfere.

Song bird chicks are very annoying to care for. You might think you are ready but you most likely are not. It is a massive change to your scheduled to stop and feed baby birds every 30 minutes and most people will struggle doing it unless their schedule is basically being at home all day. Also, what are you planning to feed them?

Another thing to think about is the Migratory Bird Treaty act. That act makes it illegal to hold protected birds for over 24 hours. After 24 hours you need to bring them to a wildlife rehabilitation center. You would only get in trouble if you got caught but there is a pretty good chance you will be caught if you are bringing them to school and all over the place. If their chirping is messing with other student's focus and attention then they could get sick of it and report it to someone.

 

[Takeylla]

Keep putting them back in the nest. If you saw the mom feeding them then that's good. Is the dad still alive? Last year I saw a single father cardinal pretty much kill his chick because the mother died and he could not find enough food and keep them warm at the same time. It was extremely skinny and underfed and then he forced it to fledge extremely early. It definitely died. I picked it up to examine it and it was dehydrated and very weak. I thought it fell out of the nest so I put it back and watched the male come lure him out again with food. The male lead him out into the woods and I did not follow or interfere.

Song bird chicks are very annoying to care for. You might think you are ready but you most likely are not. It is a massive change to your scheduled to stop and feed baby birds every 30 minutes and most people will struggle doing it unless their schedule is basically being at home all day. Also, what are you planning to feed them?

Another thing to think about is the Migratory Bird Treaty act. That act makes it illegal to hold protected birds for over 24 hours. After 24 hours you need to bring them to a wildlife rehabilitation center. You would only get in trouble if you got caught but there is a pretty good chance you will be caught if you are bringing them to school and all over the place. If their chirping is messing with other student's focus and attention then they could get sick of it and report it to someone.

Both parents are alive and the chicks are really quiet, they make little to no noise, even when we carefully picked them up, and we’ll keep putting them back in the nest

 

[nightowl223]

Well, aside from not knowing why they keep ending up outside the nest, my *guess* would be that, if they are not making noise, they are either nearly dead, already, or they are happy and find no need to peep. One extreme to the other, I know, but those are the only 2 reasons I can think of why a songbird chick would not make any noise.

It's possible this is the pair's first attempt at raising babies, and they just might not know exactly what to do yet. If that's the case, they will learn from their mistakes this year, and do better next time.

Other than what you've already been told here, you might want to get hold of a wildlife rehabilitation place, and ask questions. They will certainly be happy to answer your questions. And though you might not like their answers, they will be honest with you.