Jasha's progress

9th July 2012

Tues 3^rd July – Jasha seems well – bright eyed and alert. After another messy and largely unsuccessful attempt with the rubber glove finger feeder, I made the mixture drier and formed it into pellets.

Jasha - rescued squab - photo 6th July '12

These were about 3.5cm long, and were too big, and a smaller, rounder shape, like a medium sized pea worked better.

Too big and wrong shape!

                                                                              
I fed him at 7am and then again put him in the crate in the garden where he could observe the other birds. He has his ‘nest’ of a towel inside the carrying box, and the end of the crate is draped with a plastic sheet and towels against wind/rain. I was well sorted for the 10am feed, with the little ‘peas’ ready made. I dipped each one in tepid water before I put it in his beak. Feeding him means gently prising his beak open with my fingernail and also gently but firmly pushing the feed down his gullet with my finger. He seems to accept it. I’m feeding him 3 hourly to the routine – 7am, 10am, 1pm, 4pm and 7pm. After the 4pm feed I noticed that there was a lot of ‘brown stuff’ on his bedding. First I thought it was poo, then I realised it was probably regurgitated feed. I thought I was maybe feeding him too much, so I only gave him a light supper! It’s trial and error, but I think I am doing quite well considering I have never done this before in my life! I could have taken him to the local wildlife aid, but felt he was old enough for me to give it a try myself – one to one attention can’t be bad! I don’t recommend anyone does this unless they are prepared for the commitment and ongoing feeding schedule. Preparing the food, giving it, and clearing up afterwards takes quite a bit of time.

Wed 4^th July ’12 – The Kaytee Exact mix I had ordered for Jasha came before the 1pm feed, but I decided to use the mix I had already made and experiment before the 4pm feed. I ordered it from ebay from Garden Feathers Poultry Supplies (gardenfeathers is their ebay name) at a cost of (£9.99 + £2.20 postage and was pleased with the quick delivery. I didn’t in the end get round to it by the 4pm feed as I was blogging! And I also had feed I’d made already to use up. I keep it, covered, in the fridge, but warm it before I give it to him, by placing the little dish the pellets are on in a larger dish of just boiled water. After this feed, I opened the Kaytee mix and found it to be a tan coloured substance, finer than the chick crumbs.

Kaytee Hand Rearing Food (left) and chick crumbs

                                                                                  

I made up the following recipe – this was my own idea, and I have no idea how nutritionally right it is, so please bear this in mind if you decide to use it!

1 level scoop of Kaytee Exact (scoop was in the tin and is approx 4 rounded teaspoons)
1 level scoop of chick crumbs (bought from my pet shop)
1 level scoop of tiny grains/seeds –( taken from my usual pigeon feed which is Natural Granen made in Belgium by de Scheemaecker Bros.)
A couple of pinches of crushed bird peanuts – very fine
A couple of pinches of grit (Bob Martin Avia grit)
I sprinkled the top with vitamins (Natural Antwerp Vitamix – a pink powder)

Then I dribbled in cooled boiled water and mixed until I had a medium-hard paste that I could roll into ‘peas’. This made enough for several feeds.

Mixed up squab feed

                                                                         

When I feed the squab, I will dip each ball of mix into water just before I gently prise open his beak with my finger nail, and gently push the food down his gullet. As I was crushing the peanuts in my stone pestle and mortar and stirring the mix, it occurred to me that in times gone by I would’ve been ducked for a witch!! Jasha ate this mix for the 7pm feed so I will see how he is in the morning.

Not my regular readers, but some people might wonder why I am bothering to do all this for a pigeon which may well not live long anyway. Having seen it, and recognised its plight, I wouldn’t have been able to forget about it very easily, so I suppose I am doing it for my own peace of mind, plus the fact that I get pleasure out of all the doves and pigeons in my garden. I like to have pets, and pigeons have helped people survive in the past – read the heartwarming story of Cher Ami - http://www.homeofheroes.com/wings/part1/3b_cherami.html so I’m just returning the favour in my own little way. I know of course that young birds shouldn’t be taken from the wild but this one wouldn’t have survived without human help.

I left Jose out a bit longer tonight as it was reasonable weather and Happy was with her. At about 8pm hubbie called from the kitchen to say there’s a dove tapping at the window – I went in and it was Happy. I thought it was odd, until I went out and saw Jose was the ground – I truly believe he had to come to tell me so I could pick her and put her on her table again! Not long after that though I took her into the conservatory for the night. I noticed that a pigeon that I’ve seen round the garden for the last couple of days with a curled up foot, and bad wing, is roosting near the kitchen door so I put some newspaper down – I am sick of cleaning the patio up after the pidgies! Then of course, the pigeon moved on – but stayed the night on the building round the corner.

Thursday 5.7.12 -  Same thing happened this evening – Happy came and sat on the top bit of the open stable door to the kitchen – wish I’d got a photo! Hubbie again called me, and again Jose was on the ground. Happy seems to realise her disability and comes to get me – or do I just imagine it to be so?  I brought her into the conservatory about 8pm and Happy stayed the night, under the gutter round the corner. Fennie is in his usual place. I took the babies, LizzyII and Pip out of the nestbox when Sky and Summer had left for the night. No particular reason except for my own pleasure. Sooo sweet, white and fluffy, I adore them at this age!

Friday 6.7.12 – Happy brought sticks to the hutch, and a new but so far rather scrappy ‘nest’ has been made. I had to turn out all the sticks he brought before we went away as I had put Elizabeth in the hutch, she had had diarrhoea and I would’ve cleaned it out for Jose after her use even if she hadn’t!

Jane, one of my blog readers, emailed me with suggestions for Jasha’s feed so on her advice I added a scoop of ground almonds to the mix next time I had to make it up, and also fed him a few de-frosted (but not cooked) green peas – petit pois no less! He still seems to be thriving. Like all squabs of his age, he just sits quietly in his nest on the folded towel, watching the other birds in the garden. He is nest trained! - he doesn’t poo on the towel but over the edge onto the paper. I judge that I am feeding him ok by the fact that his poos are a brown firm but not hard dollop with a white top. Sorry if TMI but there you go!

Saturday 7th - I tested Jasha's flying ability in the corridor, with all doors closed off, and just the linen basket in the area. He can flap and fly a little, but is certainly not ready to be released yet - besides the fact that I haven't seen him peck at grains either!

                                                                              

Sunday 8^th – Jasha learnt to drink out of his little shot glass at the 4pm feed today! I have always dipped his beak before and after each feed, but this time, he reached in and slurped! I’ve had him a week today – wow, pleased with myself for managing to rear him – so far I have given him 28 feeds! Today I put his crate on the lawn, rather than the table, so he can observe the other pigeons close up.

Happy has added more sticks and spends a lot of time sitting, cooing, on the ‘polo’ nest he has made (nest with a hole!) but Jose still stands on her brick. She says she has always stood on her brick, and she is still going to stand on her brick, despite being married!!!

The nest Happy has made for Jose

Happy on the nest

                                                                                     

Happy is now tame enough for me to put a dish of grain down on Jose's table without scaring him off.

Fennie is so much better as you can see from the photo below....

Fennie, pretty well recovered

                                                                              

Fennie with injured wing, as he was at the end of May '12

Summer and Sky are continually mating, and Sky has brought a lot of sticks to the new nestbox – this is the front one, most favoured by all doves, past and present. I must make an effort and clean out Lizzy2 and Pip tomorrow evening, before I don’t get the chance again. Mummy Sky might be laying new eggs. I don’t know if Jose ever will – she and Happy do mate, but maybe she is barren. Eggs for Jose would be a big problem for me anyway. Nature will take it’s course, and we will see.

Sky 'driving' Summer - part of the mating ritual

                                                                                     

Mon 9.7.12 – Summer seems to be sitting in the nest box – I may have missed my chance to clear out the babies, if she stays tonight.

I asked my husband to take some photos of me feeding Jasha this morning....first he has a little drinkie... then I pop the mixture rolled into 'peas' down his throat.

Hand rearing a pigeon squab

Hand feeding a pigeon squab

Jasha now - a more mature shape

Jasha - when he first came a week ago

To be cont...

LL, new squabs, Happy and Jose....and a new arrival

Sunday 17^th June '12

By the early evening, both young birds, LL  (Elizabeth and Olympia) had put themselves to bed together in the old nestbox. Sky didn’t like these cosy arrangements, and routed Lizzy out. Then he sat on the ledge blocking the entrance. Happy, who had taken a shine to Jose, flew back and forth to her, roof to table. He’d spent the afternoon actually inside her hutch with her, sitting, cooing and generally making himself at home.

Happy (male, red ring) & Jose (female, two rings)

This is quite unusual. Many males try to court Jose, and some she accepts, but they are not usually invited in! Even ‘her’ pigeon, a grey speckled bird that she likes and mates with, doesn’t go inside the hutch. Birds do go in to steal the food, but once they’ve eaten they always come out pretty quickly. That’s how I caught Happy in the first place, robbing food!

Sky and Happy had had a few minor fights in the afternoon. Sky hasn’t appeared that interested in Jose before, but now Happy wanted her, he did too! Even Jose put her oar in here, pecking at Sky! She obviously likes Happy or she wouldn’t tolerate him for long in her space.

Sky (blue ring) fighting for Jose

Lizzy wanted to get in the cote, and was trying different boxes, but Sky kept getting her out. This is not unusual behaviour as it seems to me that soon after young birds have fledged their daddy doesn’t want them around any more. The little ones that they have caressed and fed so attentively only a few days before are suddenly rivals for the cote, and forced to move on. Poor Lizzy didn’t understand, and kept trying to get in – Lympy wisely staying still and dark in the original nestbox! Eventually the kerfuffle forced Summer out from her nest at the back, and this I didn’t like to see, as I had found an eggshell that afternoon and presumed at least one baby had hatched. I went to the cote, Sky flew to the roof, and I managed to block Lizzy in with wire. It was a warm sunny evening, but by 7.30pm both Sky and Happy had flown away, Summer was back with her baby/babies, LL (Lizzy and Lympy) were in the front of the cote, Jose was in the conservatory, and Fennie was in his usual roost under the gutter, and peace reigned in the garden.

Monday 18^th – After a few minor fights, Sky accepted Happy in the general area of the cote. Happy happily got on with courting Jose, and soon I could see that he was more than a boyfriend! Jose has had several boyfriends since she’s been with me – the latest is her grey pigeon, and Flash was a great favourite with her – as he was with all the ladies! Happy is different – he obviously considers himself marriage material! He spent lots of time today with Jose, inside the hutch, kissing and canoodling, but also flew into one of the nestboxes of the cote (when Sky was safely in the other side on babysitting duty) and obviously seemed to be saying to Jose ‘Here’s a lovely home – come and join me!’ Jose fluttered her wings as she always does when she wants to fly, but of course she can’t, and eventually Happy came back to the hutch and was content to stay in it with her.

Then he did something that no other male dove has done for Jose before – he brought a stick back to the hutch and carefully placed it inside. Jose was impressed! A stick to a dove is like a bunch of flowers to a lady! Happy was pleased with himself, and went to get another stick! This was in the early evening, and shortly afterwards I collected Jose to take her into the conservatory for the night. LL both went into the old nestbox, I blocked them in and that was that.

The first two sticks! Small, vertical, either side of centre -
you can hardly see them - sorry!

Tuesday 19^th – Delightful sunny June day. Happy spent the whole morning bringing sticks into the hutch. My heart sank a little – although I’d love Jose to lay eggs, and raise some babies, with her disability it wouldn’t be easy. But it was the worst possible timing, as we were going away for 8 days on the Friday, and though I was having someone to come in to feed the doves, Jose was going to my youngest daughter’s house for the week! These dilemmas always happen to me when I am going away – if you remember I had Cloud injured just before I went to Skye, and a baby starling just before I went to Spain. I decided to let Happy and Jose get on with it for the next day or so, and see what happens. Jose seemed quite content with the new arrangements, but when Happy left sticks in the entrance doorway, she picked one up and removed it, like a proud housewife who squeaks ‘Don’t put it there!’ when someone puts their kit down on the nearest available flat surface. I removed a few myself.

Proud Happy with a lovely stick for Jose

How the 'nest' looked by the end of the morning

                                                                                     

The nest building stopped in the afternoon as my husband decided to cut the hedge and do some strimming. This all took about two hours, and the noise kept all the doves away. Summer stayed in the cote, with the new babies (hopefully two of them!) and I shut Jose in the hutch, but the rest of them flew to further, quieter roofs.

Doves and pigeons hate change – even the hedges being cut unsettles them. They were nervous about coming back, and I didn’t see Happy again that day. Lympy, alone, put herself to bed in the old nestbox – presumably Lizzy had gone off with the flock back to wherever they roost. They have to grow up sometime! There was no need to block Lympy in – I was only doing it to stop Sky, and other adult doves routing the babies out.

Wed 20.6.12 - It looks like Lizzy is roosting with the flock now, but Lympy still stayed the night. He (or she) but  instinct tells me he is a he! He's a big strong distinctive bird now. I can easily pick him out on the roof.

Olympia on the roof

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 Jose's pigeon turned up for a bit of the other...

Grey pigeon and Happy fight, while Jose stands on the brick, watching
and below, Jose and pigeon tussle and Happy removes himself to the wire box

In the end Jose went inside the hutch, and stood on her little branch; the pigeon looked in

but didn't follow, and I went out with a tea-towel and flapped him away!

                                                            

                                                                                        

Thurs 21.6.12 – Had to take Jose to my daughter’s to be looked after while we are on hols. I could leave her in the hutch, but it leaves her vulnerable to foxes at night. I hated splitting Jose and Happy up - the doves are wringing my heart all the time as I try to make the best decisions for them. One good thing was that I noticed Summer AND Sky with the early morning flock for the feed, so grabbed the opportunity to look in the nest with my camera – TWO lovely babies, both ‘blonde’ this time and about four days old. If all goes well they will be about 12 days old when we return and quite big.

White dove babies (squabs) about 3/4 days old -
baby siblings for Elizabeth and Olympia

                                                                                

Friday 22^nd June ‘12 – I have not seen Lizzy for the last couple of days, but hope she’s around when I get back. Happy was still on the hutch today, waiting for Jose. God bless my doves while I’m away!

                                                                                     

Two pigeons, plus Lampie (left, purple ring) and Lesa, yellow ring

                                                                             

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We came home from holiday at 3am on Sunday 1^st July '12 extremely tired – Fennie was in his place under the gutter on the roof -  thankfully one bird ticked off my list! I didn’t look at the cote – I didn’t want to know if it was bad news. I set my alarm for the 7am feeding time and crashed into bed!

At 7am I got up reluctantly and fed the doves/pigeons. I didn’t really notice who was around, but there was a dove wandering & poorly on the patio – oh no, green ring, slightly fan tail – it was my young one, Elizabeth who had been missing before we went away. I caught her easily, tried to give her a drink by dipping her beak in water a few times, and locked her in Jose’s empty hutch with food and water and went back to bed.

Later in the day I was able to see that most of my regular flock seemed to be around – Sky, Summer + the babies in the cote, Happy, Rosie, Fennie – much improved and nearly healed, Lampie, Lesa, Bianca2, Bobbie3, Cloud - only the slightest limp now, Charlie and many others that I recognise by sight. Olympia was missing, and hasn’t been seen since. Moonshadow hasn’t been seen for quite a while. Elizabeth, in the hutch, seemed thin and very poorly indeed. I wondered if she had managed to get back here but hadn’t been able to find enough to eat on the way. It’s such a shame I was away as I might have been able to do more for her if I’d been at home. I dipped her beak again in water, but she wasn’t drinking or eating and I didn’t hold out much hope. Also, according to my book pigeons aged 6-10 weeks are more susceptible to disease than at any other time.

I had a special party to go to that afternoon, and had arranged to pick up Jose from my daughter on the way home. Driving there I went underneath a modern railway bridge – mainly smooth concrete, but I noticed some pigeons had found a perch. I’ve never ever seen any there before, and it’s somewhere I pass through occasionally. As I drove through, I saw a pigeon on the ground. I realised from the shape of it that it was a young one, so at the first convenient place, I turned round and drove through again. The pigeon was still sitting still near the road, so I drove out of the tunnel, parked, leaving my hazards on, and went back to it. I always have plenty of junk in my car (mobile skip my hubbie calls it) so had a towel to hand which I took with me. I could see that there were some nests, or at least some pigeons sitting, way high up. There was absolutely no way I could ever have got this bird back to the nest, and it was much too young to have fledged. It must have tumbled out of the nest, and was doomed to die if I did nothing. Although it’s possible the parent pigeons might have fed it on the ground, it is more likely that they would not, as pigeons go back to the place (nest) where their babies are and don’t look much beyond the immediate area. I read this somewhere in my book I’m sure, but couldn’t find the reference (Feral Pigeons by Richard F, Johnston and Marian Janiga). Therefore, this squab would die from starvation, or more likely would be run over, or eaten by a fox/cat. I didn’t really think twice, but dropped the towel lightly over it, and cuddled it up in a nest shape in my car. I named him Jasha (combo of my great-nieces names for whom the party I had just been at was for). At home, I briefly examined Jasha – he (or she of course) was warm, had a full crop and seemed healthy. Perhaps in the excitement of being fed, flapping and reaching, he had leaned too far out of the nest, and fallen down. I’m surprised he wasn’t killed when he hit the ground. I judged his age from my own experience, and used this site http://www.speedpigeon.com/baby_racing_pigeon.htm and reckoned he was about 20 days old, and therefore approx 8-10 days or more from properly fledging, and several days longer before he will be able to fully feed himself.

First photo of Jasha - squab rescued from under railway bridge

                                                                                 

Mon am 2^nd July '12   When I opened the hutch this morning I found Elizabeth dead. Poor thing, she was only about 7 weeks old. I laid her gently on the ground underneath the hutch, awaiting her watery grave, and cleaned it out thoroughly so that I could get Jose out to start her day. Faithful Happy was there within seconds of Jose being put on the table. This was literally seconds, no exaggeration. ‘ Hiya mate, I’m glad you’re back! And they mated!

White doves mating

                                                                             

They stayed together throughout the day, with Happy only flying off if I came right up to the table. Jose’s pigeon arrived again, had a short scuffle with husband Happy and departed.

Of course it had dawned on me properly that Jasha was used to being fed and needed to be fed. I looked on my saved favourites on the pc and found the following - http://britishwildlifehelpline.com/Pigeons.html (no need to read unless you are interested!)  They recommend porridge oats so no problem there and I mixed some of the smaller grains into it, with water to make quite a sloppy mix. Feeding a squab proved to be much harder than spoon feeding my 7 month old granddaughter. Food ended up on the towel I’d wrapped Jasha in, my top (mental note to wear a pinny next time) and the floor. I don’t know how much he ate. I felt his crop, but I still couldn’t tell if he’d had enough. Afterwards, I wiped him up a bit, especially round the eyes, and dipped his beak in water – partly to clean it and also to give him the idea of drinking on his own.

Jasha, pigeon squab, after first hand feed!

He spent the day in Jose’s crate, outside in the garden, with the small box inside, padded with a towel, positioned so he could see the other pigeons.

                                                                                 

I fed him approx every two to three hours. I wasn’t happy with the porridge mix, so I ordered some Kaytee Exact from ebay - never used it before, but I've heard of it - and then went to the pet shop who advised me to buy some ‘chick crumbs’ which I hadn't though of.

Chick crumbs

                                                                                 

There are various suggestions for getting food into squabs on the internet. None that I attempted were terribly easy or successful.I tried just using my fingers, then using a syringe with the nozzle cut off. I then thought that the finger of a rubber glove with the tip cut off might be good. It wasn’t bad, but not much better than the other ways. The chick crumbs I felt were more nutritious than porridge, but I mixed some of the smaller seeds in with it too, and of course mixed up with water. The mix was still sloppy at this stage.

Chick crumbs mixed with water, and small grains

Jasha went into a box in the conservatory,, where he could see Jose in the crate, in the evening. I fed him last at 7pm and hope he will be ok til the morning. Of course I left a shallow dish of water in his box, and some small loose seeds, and unsoaked chick crumbs.

Sky and Summer’s new squabs are now approx 12 days old and when we came home from holiday I realised they were being left at night. They looked healthy but the nestbox was disgusting, so I decided to clean them out. Sky and Summer were again playing mummies and daddies in the front (first) nest box again, exactly the same stage Elizabeth and Olympia were when they started these new ones.

So after feeding Jasha and doing our own supper, I scooped both squabs out into a padded box. At this age they can make little resistance so it wasn’t too hard, and I put the box into Jose’s hutch, shutting the door to keep them safe. As when I cleaned out the nestbox at the same stage for Elizabeth and Olympia, there was an abundance of m*ggot infested poo., probably even worse as I had been away so not 'pooper-scooping'. I loathe those wriggly things, they make me feel sick. I can’t even write the word! When I’d pulled all the old nesting material out, and cleaned up, I lined the nestbox with newspaper and made a nest using some of the contents from our paper shredder! I ringed the babies and named them – Elizabeth II (in memory of the first Elizabeth dove) and Philip (what else? – but Pip for short). Elizabeth has one green ring, like the first Elizabeth, and Philip was given two rings in princely purple. I couldn’t give him just one ring, as all the colours have been used for current doves/pigoens, and Lampie has one purple ring. After examining and ringing them, I replaced them in the nestbox, and checked them after 10 mins to make sure they had settled down away from the opening. They had had very full crops which made me worried about Jasha. Hopefully I can feed him up a bit more tomorrow – if he survives.

Elizabeth II and Philip baby white doves after ringing -
approx 12/13 days old

White dove squab wing (12/13 days) - very delicate, like lace!

                                                                                    

Squab 12/13 days old and still not totally feathered up

Jasha, and Lizzy2 & Pip's story will continue asap - your comments are always welcomed.  Please scroll down for the comments box if there is a big gap., thanks.

Rescued Pigeon in Oil

26th January 2012 - This is Lesa dove, posing for her portrait on Jose's table, and below with Jose, her flightless friend. Lesa, is one of the first doves in the garden in the mornings, and she flies straight to be with Jose- and eat her food!
Sat 21st Jan. 12 - I came home about 3.30pm in the afternoon, and a few doves were still around. There was one white dove, desperately trying to pick up grain and obviously with paramyxo. I caught her, and put her in the hospital run for nursing care. I hope she'll be like Flash and totally recover. I've named her Lola and will ring her, before I release her, if she recovers.
I forgot to say in the previous blog about Flash, that the very next day after he died there was another sparrowhawk attack. I was coming out of my kitchen door into the garden and there on the lawn was the hawk covering a white dove! I dropped what I was holding and ran out, while the hawk flew off either with the dove in it's talons or chasing the dove, I can't remember it was too quick. I ran out of the garden gate into the yard, where the hawk had the dove down again on the gravel. I ran up, and both flew off, the dove escaping this time, but leaving ruby drops on gravel. I did wonder if it survived but didn't see any doves with injuries until about a week later when a white dove turned up in the garden with feathers missing from it's back - maybe it was that dove, maybe not, but I haven't seen the hawk around here again, thank goodness. I was glad I'd saved that dove, but still so sad I couldn't save Flash. I forgot to say I did cry for him, and kissed his poor little dead head. He still smelled sweet, like all the doves do - it's because they are grain eaters.
Mon 23rd January 2012 - Some of you will remember Hugo, the jackdaw my husband brought home from the farm last year. Well, today, he brought home another bird who had suffered the same fate, in the same place. I couldn’t recognise what kind of bird it was at first it was so covered in oil. My husband has now asked the guy who has the car repair workshop there to not leave pans of oil uncovered in the evenings and weekends, and he has agreed to be more careful. This bird could possibly have been there, in the oil, since Friday night.It's a pigeon - probably a fairly young one. It was smothered in oil, and also has bare sore patches on its back. I have given it several washes over the course of the afternoon, but feel I can't keep washing it! I will have to do it over the next few days - if it survives. It was brought to me at 12.30 lunchtime and its now past 4pm, so I'm hoping it will.

Pigeon after his first few washes, very weak and feeble

I am calling him Olly – can’t call him Oily, and I hope he won’t be oily for ever! He has been warmed up, and when I felt he was thoroughly warm I held him and dipped his beak in water, and he had a little drink.It’s important not to give rescue birds water or food until they are warmed up – apparently if they eat when cold it can kill them. I allowed Olly to walk around on the kitchen floor and he started pecking at a tiny piece of hard pasta he discovered so I offered food – normal dove food plus peanuts, whole and chopped – and he ate a little.

Poor oily bedraggled Olly

Olly day 2 – I got up early and thank heavens he was still alive, I’d had a bad night worrying about him. I held him and gave him a drink, then three ‘baths’ – one after the other – the used water is still very brown and oily. After his baths, I dried him off a little with a hairdryer on a low setting then put him back in the carrying box near the aga to dry off, with food and water.

I was in a dilemma as I was due to go to my daughter’s to look after the baby while she took my grandson swimming. I decided to take Olly with me as he had not taken a drink without me holding him and dipping his beak in water. I found a big shallow flat bottomed cardboard box and lined it with newspaper. He came with me in the car in the carrying box, with a covered hot water bottle (I use the hard round microwave discs that I had from my little dog – they are excellent) and after my daughter had left, I smuggled Olly into the house! If you know my daughter, as some of my blog readers do, then please don’t tell her I was looking after a scruffy oily pigeon at the same time as I was looking after her lovely pink clean baby! While the baby slept, Olly had 5 more washes, then he went in the big box. Part of it was draped with a towel, and he crept under it and slept for a while – then the baby woke up! I had my hands full with one or the other! Olly was taken out to the car again before my daughter and grandson came back, and she was none the wiser!

Olly at my daughter's house - still oily



Back at home, I gave Olly 2 more washes – that’s 10 in all today (and approx 16 so far!) and more than enough for him, and me! It is stressful for him but he bears it well, scrambling about in the water trying to escape. He has a fighting spirit which is good! The last couple of washes the water seemed cleaner, but Olly still smells of oil and looks oily! I don’t really know what to do. Websites about the cleaning of oily birds recommend Dawn, but that is a product from the USA and I doubt if I’ll be able to get any. There is a big American community around here, and a couple of shops stock products from the USA so I will try them tomorrow. At the moment I am using Fairy Liquid. He tries to preen, and that is worrying as he will be ingesting oil.

Back home, near the aga

Still oily after 16 baths!

The worst sore place on Olly’s back doesn’t seem to be infected or getting any worse which is one good thing. Another good thing is that he has been eating this afternoon. He likes peanuts and can eat them if they are not too big. I tried peanuts in skins (brown) and peanuts without (white) and he seems to prefer the white ones. Peanuts are highly nutritious so I am pleased he likes them! He still won’t drink unless I hold him, and dip his beak in water – so I offer him a drink once every hour, and of course there is water in his box playpen. He’ll stay in there all evening, and go in the carrying box to keep him confined for the night.
It’s difficult to say exactly how old Olly is – between 30-40 days, I reckon. He can fly a bit – he flew from the draining board to the floor, but doesn’t fly around. This may be due to the effects of the oil. He doesn’t seem to have ingested the oil, or much oil, thankfully. His first poops were very green – possibly due to what he may have eaten before he fell in the oil or more likely due to starvation. I read a very interesting thread on a pigeon forum about pigeon poop, and Olly’s first poops were exactly like the bright green ‘artist’s paint’ described by one or two knowledgeable pigeon keepers. Olly probably was starving, as he may have spent the whole weekend in the oil pan – I can’t bear to think about it. Thank God he was rescued in time! His poops now are getting more normal looking – brown with a white dollop on top. Sorry if all this is TMI for you! But here’s a link to the thread if you’d like to know more http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/f5/poops-what-do-they-really-mean-11637-4.html I also found a thread on how to clean pigeons covered in oil on the same forum – http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/f6/pigeon-covered-in-oil-or-something-how-to-clean-42395.html You have to scroll down past the ads on these forum threads to read the posts. I hope they won't mind me putting the links here - I wouldn't have thought so, as anything that might help someone else save a bird's life is always worthwhile, I think.

Olly struggles to get out of the towel



Day 3, Olly is looking cleaner, fluffier and admires his reflection in the aga

Wed – Day 3 – I got up early again but Olly was fine, so I don’t think I will need to get up specially early for him again. I held him and he had a drink of water. About an hour after that, he drank on his own for the first time! I was quite elated! He ate a few peanuts too. Later in the morning I washed him again – that's 18 washes in total! – and the water was virtually clean, so I probably won’t be washing him again. His feathers still look a little oily and he smells of oil, but washing him stresses him, and if nothing is coming off, then it seems pointless. I couldn’t get hold of the Dawn detergent, unfortunately. If I had, I would’ve been tempted to try it to see if it removed any more oil.
I bought some Skin-eze cream for his sore places from the petshop – it says it is suitable for birds and is a known brand (Johnsons) so I will try it – if he will stay still long enough to be anointed.
Olly is timid and doesn’t come out of his box much, unless I take him out. I have to do this as he only seems to eat when I bring him out. Then he eats a peanut or two, and goes back in. I put the cream on his back and he tolerated me doing that.
This evening he was a little more adventurous and jumped to the top of the carrying box, and later to the seat of the chair, where he was hidden by the tablecloth. I put him back in the box at 8.15pm so he was confined for the night, which I felt would be safer. I didn’t want something happening in the night, and him walking or flying into the aga.
Day 4 – I had to be out all day and so did hubbie, so bit of a dilemma. I decided the best thing to do was to keep Jose shut in the hutch all day, and take away her wire cage, which gives her a safe ‘outdoor’ but when I am out, for Olly’s use. While I was sorting things out before I left, Olly flew into the sitting room, off the kitchen, and onto the curtain rail – so he CAN fly! I caught him and I left him in the kitchen, in the cage, on the floor, pushed up against the wall with the carrying box inside it (without the grille of course) and of course with plenty of choice of food, and two little dishes of water. I don’t know what he did all day, but there was a poop on the top of the carrying box so he must’ve jumped up there at some point. It was a boring day for him but I couldn’t leave him loose.
I’ve been reading up on ‘soft release’ of pigeons and how I get on with this will all be in the next blog. I intend to ring Olly tomorrow, and I’ve had an email saying the collapsible dog crate I bought him will be delivered (cost £28.99 total from ebay – Peteurope). He has, of course, totally dried out now, and is a very dark colour pigeon, but not yet fully feathered.
To be cont.