Oh dear, I didn't see this earlier either, I hope it's not too late.
Baby pigeons and doves are different from other chicks in that their parents feed them a special substance known as 'pigeon milk'. They don't eat worms, they are seed eaters. In order to rear baby pigeons, you will have to make a suitable mixture. I'm about to give you two mixtures below, but you might have to do a do small amount of translating here, because I live in Australia, so the brand names for some things may be different there.
Pentavite is a vitamin supplement for infants, and is often used in veterinary care because it's easily available. If you don't have a product called Pentavite, ask for an infants' multivitamin supplement. Calcium Sandoz is a calcium supplement in liquid form; if you can't get it, ask your pharmacist what alternatives they can offer. Calcium is absolutely vital, their bones will be fragile without it. Ornithon is a vitamin supplement specifically for birds, but if you can't get it or a similar brand, just use an infant one.
You'll need to feed them with a soft tube...ask your pharmacist if they have, or can rig up, something suitable. Soft plastic tubes may also be available at hardware shops, or handcraft shops. You will also need a large syringe. Attach the plastic tube to the syringe, and warm it gently, because you are going to need to slip it down the bird's throat a little way. Try to find a diagram of the inside of a bird's beak...they have a breathing tube on the floor of the mouth, and it is this that you must avoid, or you will get food in their lungs. That's why you need a tube. Baby birds can be very difficut at first, but once they learn that you are now their source of food, they usually become quite easy to feed. If all this sounds too much, phone the RSPB and see if they can help. So, the formula recipes:
Formula 1
4 tspn high protein baby cereal
1tspn wholemeal breadcrumbs
1 tspn milk arrowroot biscuits
2 drops sunflower oil
1/2 tspn wheatgerm
1/4 tspn skim milk powder, or 1 drop Calcium Sandoz
sprinkle of chopped boiled egg yolk
drop of infant-strength Pantavite every five days
add warm water to mix to a creamy consistency that will flow through a tube
Formula 2
4 tblspn high protein baby cereal
1 tblspn wheat germ
small amount of glucose syrup
pinch calcium carbonate or i drop Calcium Sandoz
pinch of Ornithon
Mix first two ingredients together to form a base mix and store in an airtight container. Mix the wet ingredients into a small amount for each feed.
Fill the crop at each feed by very gently releasing the food through the tube. About five times a day usually. Wean to small seeds that have been soaked for 24 hours, then progress to dry seed poured into the beak.
