My sister found a baby bird on the sidewalk at her house, it was just sitting there. So she picked it up and put it in a box. She came over my house awhile ago and I made a makeshift nest for the bird. I took a bowl and put a little litter in it. My sister went back home with the bird just now.

What should she do with it? How should she feed it? The bird can't fly yet, so she can't let it go. What should we do?:(

Well it depends what kind of bird is it?

Call your local animal conrol and ask them. I don't really know.

find out what kind of bird. How old is it (eyes open? , any feather markings) , was there a tree nearby where it was found ...might be a nest somewhere around there. I don't know if a bird with human smell on it will be rejected by the mother or siblings :(

find some worms, chew em up and spit them into the birds mouth. then when it bird gets a bit older take her to the roof of your house or apt and set it on the edge. Tell it to watch and learn, then jump off and flap your arms, assuming you cant fly this way, you might want to set up some cushions to land on.

majake-:eek:

I'm not sure what kind of bird it is, it kinda looks like one of those small brown birds(I don't know what they are called:D ) Yes, it's eyes were open, and it was also chirping. I'm not sure if there was a tree by where it was found. It was windy last night, so my sister thinks it might have been knocked out of it's nest.:( I also heard that they might be rejected if they have human scent on them.:(

All the animal control does is catch opposums and raccoons and put them too sleep.
I agree with majake, they love meal worms espeacially mokingbirds and I have never tried to give them puppy food and cooked eggs but I have heard from people with baby birds that it's great for them.

You'll probably get more replies in the Companion Animal thread. I know I've seen this topic come up before over there. Several bird people post there regularly.

look online for pics of what kind of bird it may be, or take it to a museum with a bird collection (I have one in town, so I know this works) or animal control, or a local bird watvching club or org.
once you find out what kind it is, then you can see what it eats.
it's probably big enough for worms, I dunno if it needs to eat regurtitated stuff (that would suck! yech) I think babies eat the regurgitated cause it needs it already starting to be digested)
So, yeah, good luck!
PS maybe a bird farm????

We used to feed young magpies and other orphan birds a mixture of egg and oatmeal, mix it up and let it eat it off your finger. Good luck.

I'm not sure where you are, but in Australia you can take any native animal to a vet and they look after it (they don't charge of course). So maybe call your local vet and see what they say. You could even ask a pet store, one that specialises in birds would be good.

Thanks for the ideas everyone.:)

BTW, I'm in the US, and I don't know if they do that, but I could try.

Piglet! What kind of bird is it? Some birds are looked after by their parents on the ground. If it has feathers, and does not seem hurt, put it back! Try to put it under a bush or something more protecting, but most of the time you should leave it alone. If you watch a fledgling on the ground long enuf, the momma bird will check on it and bring it food. The biggest danger is other animals, of course, but this fledgling process is a normal part of nature. We usually will feed the baby birds catfood totally soaked in water till it's spongey, and sometimes mealworms. If the baby is really young and featherless it does not have as good of a chance. Try to call a vet clinic or wildlife rescue to see what to do with it.

I have bad news:( The bird died:cry:

My sister came over my house and told me just awhile ago. :(

I asked her how she was taking care of it, and she said she tried feeding it worms, but I'm not sure if it ate them. She noticed it was acting different, and when she came back from picking her kids up from school, the bird had died.:cry:

I use to take in baby birds when I was a child. I even took in an abandoned litter of rats once. None ever survived. I tried so hard and thought that I was doing what was right. I always ended up heartbroken. Now, if I find anything, it will go to the vet. I'll either leave it there or get detailed instructions on how to raise it.
I'm so sorry piglet.

Sorry piglet. :(

Call your local humane society! Look in the phone book. I've saved lots of birds this way. Depending on your area, sometimes they will come and pick up the bird and rehabilitate it; others, you may have to drop off. If animal control agents/reps come or call you back, make sure they have a "no-kill" policy! Also, try not to touch the bird too much.

I have also had success returning baby birds back to the nest from which they fell. If done soon, and you do NOT touch the bird, the chances are good that the mother will not reject it. (sometimes a human touching a baby is sensed by the mother and she will reject the baby and let it die :()

Anyway, if you happen to find this situation again and you think it's a good idea to return it to the nest, pick up the baby gently with a cloth, towel, or pull your shirt sleeve out, use your jacket, etc., and place it back in the nest. If it's a baby it probably fell from the tree it's closest to. You may need a ladder; you may need a friend to help you. One time, I used my fruit picker, lol! It's a very long stick with a fork-like basket at the tip. You use the claw of it to pull round fruit from treetops. Anyway, I placed the baby, wrapped in a towel in the little basket portion of the tree picker and lifted it up to the nest. This way, I didn't have to climb the tree! Then I gently "poured" the baby back into the nest.

If you must bring it home, try to pick it up with a cloth and wrap it loosely to keep it warm but let it breathe. Then place in a box with the blanket and call your local shelter. Depending on the age of the bird, you may want to give it finely minced fruit and veggies (or mashed soft fruit/veggies like bananas for babies) and hope they eat it. Otherwise, the humane society will nurse it back to health. Just call quickly.

Originally posted by Strix
Call your local humane society! Look in the phone book. I've saved lots of birds this way. Depending on your area, sometimes they will come and pick up the bird and rehabilitate it; others, you may have to drop off. If animal control agents/reps come or call you back, make sure they have a "no-kill" policy! Also, try not to touch the bird too much.

I have also had success returning baby birds back to the nest from which they fell. If done soon, and you do NOT touch the bird, the chances are good that the mother will not reject it. (sometimes a human touching a baby is sensed by the mother and she will reject the baby and let it die :()

Anyway, if you happen to find this situation again and you think it's a good idea to return it to the nest, pick up the baby gently with a cloth, towel, or pull your shirt sleeve out, use your jacket, etc., and place it back in the nest. If it's a baby it probably fell from the tree it's closest to. You may need a ladder; you may need a friend to help you. One time, I used my fruit picker, lol! It's a very long stick with a fork-like basket at the tip. You use the claw of it to pull round fruit from treetops. Anyway, I placed the baby, wrapped in a towel in the little basket portion of the tree picker and lifted it up to the nest. This way, I didn't have to climb the tree! Then I gently "poured" the baby back into the nest.

If you must bring it home, try to pick it up with a cloth and wrap it loosely to keep it warm but let it breathe. Then place in a box with the blanket and call your local shelter. Depending on the age of the bird, you may want to give it finely minced fruit and veggies (or mashed soft fruit/veggies like bananas for babies) and hope they eat it. Otherwise, the humane society will nurse it back to health. Just call quickly.

Sorry strix piglet already said the poor little Bird passed away.:(

Hey. I didn't want to start a whole new thread, but now I'm in the same situation. A not-quite baby bird (has the beginnings of some feathers -- not much) hopped its way into my classroom. It has responded well to water, but since it can't fly I'm afraid to put it out in the midsts of all the crazy students during school (it's prep time now). Umm... so should I take it home and try to care for it, or will it be better off if I just let it go after all the students have left? It doesn't appear to be hurt, though it's scared as heck. I just don't want to see it trampled while the kids are running around. :( I've only touched it with gloves on, so if it has a mamma looking for it, it *shouldn't* smell of human, I think.

I'm leaning towards just letting it go after school, but I'll check this before I leave to see if I should do otherwise.

Thanks!

So it can't fly? If it can, I'd let it go, or put it back in a tree. Sometimes, they are learning to fly and just need a rest in between jumps! hehe. I see young ones on the ground sometimes, and I think they're injured, but they're just resting because they're building up their strength. They hop away and eventually take off.

Can you look for its nest? Is there a tree close that it may have fallen from?
Ohh, poor baby! I love birds. I hope he/she is all right.
Yea, wait till after school!

there are often many wildlife rehabilitation experts around who rehab these animals and release them if the animals are capable of surviving on their own. they're professionally trained, and most vets know of them.

your best bet, when finding a bird, is to talk to a vet about a wild life rehabilitator and how to get the bird to that individual. Actually, with any wild animal, this is the best option.

Also, birds outside of the nest are often going to die. the success rate is very small. i used to work in the avian care of a rehab place for a short time. most baby birds die within a day. use an eye dropper to keep them fed and watered (make a rather thin mash witht eh meal worms and use the eye dropper to feed them) until you can get them to the care that they need.

if kept in an incubator and properly treated for disease and injury, they may survive--but most of us do not have these skills.

YOu may also try your phone book for the number of a rehaber so that you have the number near by when you find these animals.