Found a injured pigeon?

Craterloads

Craterloads

Craterloads

Soldato
Joined
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I found a injured pigeon outside our house, it’s mate was circling it trying to protect it which made me feel even more sorry for it.

anyhow I’ve brought it in, looks like it’s got a injured wing. It moved when I went to grab it but was unable to fly.

just looking for some advice what to do with it, I’m on hold with rspca but I’m doubting if they will really care for such a bird.
 
Forget RSPCA, Just Google for any animal rescue place near you.

That's what I did when I found an injured pigeon just outside my work. I called them and they came to pick it up within an hour.
 
I just had a letter from the government saying there's bird flu in my area.

said it's low risk to humans but they had a form for me to fill in if I owned chickens, ducks, pigeons etc

I see your in the north too, maybe that bird you took in has the infection

the letter had a link to here
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/avian-influenza-bird-flu

interactive map showing outbreaks
https://defra.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=8cb1883eda5547c6b91b5d5e6aeba90d
Symptoms
Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) is the more serious type. It is often fatal in birds. The main clinical signs of HPAI in birds (which can include any or a combination of the following) are:
  • sudden and rapid increase in the number of birds found dead
  • several birds affected in the same shed or air space
  • swollen head
  • closed and excessively watery eyes
  • lethargy and depression
  • recumbency and unresponsiveness
  • incoordination and loss of balance
  • head and body tremoring
  • drooping of the wings and/or dragging of legs
  • twisting of the head and neck
  • swelling and blue discolouration of comb and wattles
  • haemorrhages on shanks of the legs and under the skin of the neck
  • loss of appetite or marked decrease in feed consumption
  • sudden increase or decrease in water consumption
  • respiratory distress such as gaping (mouth breathing), nasal snicking (coughing sound), sneezing, gurgling or rattling
  • fever or noticeable increase in body temperature
  • discoloured or loose watery droppings
  • cessation or marked reduction in egg production
Click to expand...
Did you just infect your household bro.
 
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Wild birds are very hard to treat, often the stress of being handled and taken into unusual places is enough to kill them. A vet could, if willing, anaesthetise and x-ray it, at considerable cost, and suggest if treatment was viable, at yet more considerable cost. A2Z is probably right that a good wild life sanctuary would be a place to call. Brutal as it sounds putting it =down humanely may be a more practical answer, although I did rescue an injured wild pheasant some years ago, gave it food, water and solitude to recover, and it lived in the main aviary with Guinea fowl, peafowl and white doves for at least five years before dying of seemingly natural causes. It became quite tame. DO NOT let it near domestic birds or commercial flocks, avian flu is rife in many parts and it would be madness to put it near them at this time.
 
Is it a feral pigeon or woodpigeon? Post some pictures of it if possible.

Don’t bother taking it to the RSPCA as they’ll probably put it down but there’s quite a few sanctuaries who might take it in.

Pigeons are much easier to treat than most other birds and surprisingly hardy. I have a loft with 8 of them and they’re great pets, despite what people might tell you.
 
You'd be better off phoning around a few local places there will probably be a sanctuary near you, give them a ring ask them what to do.

Likely they will ask you to just bring it around.
 
As mentioned above regarding Avian Influenza I'd be surprised if the RSPCA takes it in because of this, I'm happy for them to prove me wrong on this occasion though. Part of my job means I speak to people on occasion about found/injured animals and in the last few weeks I've had a few people tell me the RSPCA don't want to take birds in because of Avian Influenza - outright refusal to deal with them for the most part - I'm sure they'd be more than happy to take a bird of prey in regardless of the current circumstances though...

If it is able to move the wing, but not take flight at the moment, it may suggest it might be able to move itself on in a few days once it has had a bit of time to recover. They like to hit telegraph wires and windows for a laugh so hopefully it has done no serious damage to itself. I've also known pigeons droop their wings for no other reason than relaxation of muscles for example. If you want to feed it to get its strength up then cornflakes, peanuts, porridge oats or just ordinary wild bird food (obviously) is fine as a temporary thing. Bread or rice may cause bloating and keep the bird grounded for longer. A tiny sprinkling of sugar in a bowl of water would help, too. If you go down the route of looking after it for a while, but have it for more than 48 hours I'd suggest removing its access to food after 48 hours otherwise it may hang around a lot longer than you want, even once it can fly again. The sugared water will keep its energy up, but won't encourage it to hang around.

The list of symptoms from DEFRA is somewhat interesting because there are other avian diseases that can result in at least half of the same symptoms, but obviously it is just general guidance.
 
Craterloads said:
I went to grab it
Click to expand...

QJwoK3S.png
 
A woman has called me back, I believe from being contacted from rspca, and she is going to take it in.

she’s in Huddersfield and seems like a farm, about an hours drive but no issue.

yes the rspca mentioned avian flu and just said to wash hands after handling it which I did.

I think a cat probably got to it as the wing was a little bloodied up and feather ruffled in that area.

Anyhow hopefully all ends well for the little fella.
 
Very commendable of you to take it, I wish you, (and the pigeon), the best of luck, please let us know how you get on. Probably best to box it and cover the box with a towel to keep it in the dark, don't forget a bit of ventilation and don't let it get too hot. For God's sake don't tell it it's going to Huddersfield, it'll be stressed enough... ;)
 
If youve got it in a box or whatever I'd just give it water and wild bird seed and leave it alone for a while.

If you can't get someone to take care of it.

Probably get better by itself then let it go.
 
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