How To Nurse Baby Blue Jays???? (1 Viewer)

[ClovisB]

FWIW...

Two bluejay chicks were in my front yard yesterday. Both have feathers but aren't flying yet. One is much smaller than the other, and I noticed it had a bad eye (maybe it got hurt when it fell from the nest). There are several cats in this area so I took them in for the night and research the net about what to do.

I believe almost everyone would agree that it is best for wild animals to be left alone in most circumnstances. There was no way to return these chicks to the nest (it is about 15 feet up in a tree that cannot be climbed). I found out some very good information about bluejays (including in this forum) and decided to try something out. I put the birds in a bush about 10 feet away from the tree where the bluejays are nesting (no way to tell if they are the parents or another pair, of course). Within ten minutes of the chicks beginning to call, one of the adults was down in the bushes. I saw them visiting those bushes several times during the day.

I have just now gone over there and took the chicks in for the night - will be putting them back in the same spot early in the morning. The larger chick appears to be doing well, but the same can't be said about the smaller one. I really don't think it will make it.

Odds are not great for the bigger one either, as they would be easy prey for the cats in that bush. However, there is some hope. Keeping it away from a possible cat attack would seem to be a small interference with the ways of the wild - that is, before one considers that domestic cats wouldn't be here at all if it weren't for "us".

There are wild animals that respond well to human intervention, and others that do not. Youtube has several examples of bluejays being fed/helped by people. This is not a black-and-white issue. There have been several instances where similar situations with bluejays, for instance, had a good outcome. Although I am not very optimistic about these two chicks, I am certainly not ashamed of giving a little "helping hand" in order to raise their chance of survival a few percentage points. They would most probably not have made it through the night and it looks like the parents are still interested in feeding at least one of them.

IMHO, there is nothing wrong with that.

Clovis

 

[birking]

Baby Blue Jay

We found a baby blue jay in the driveway and can't find the nest. We hear the mom blue jay, but aren't sure what to do. We were told to put the baby in a bucket with grass in it and hoist it up to the tree branch level. If the mom doesn't come, what should we do? We fed the baby water, but it's really hot here in Virginia. Any suggestions? We are pretty clueless!

 

[Dave B Smith]

Hello birking,
On behalf of the staff, welcome to the Birdforum. As to your baby birds, the best thing to do, assuming it is a fledgling, is put it back in the tree it fell out of.

Please see the following link on What to do if you find a baby bird for more info.

Thanks for trying to help,

 

[Eagle2009]

I have a slight problem

Yikes, go back and re-read what *I* wrote 4 years ago. I didn't bring up the meth lab, someone else did. If you want to start name-calling, at least know who said what and properly cut-n-paste quotes so you're making correct attributions.

And by the way, all I did and still do is quote our federal laws to people who came to BF for advice because -- and this is important so read carefully this time -- they didn't know what to do with the wildlife they found. This is exactly why people need to find professionals and stop trying to play doctor with animals they don't know how to treat, feed or rehabilitate.

We have laws for a reason. Just because you or anyone else thinks they're above the law because they have a soft heart has another body part that's even softer -- your head.

I agree. Wild birds are wild for a reason... my sister saved a bluejay from our cat but I want to return it to its proper home. Can anyone help me? Where do bluejays normally nest?

 

[kimmie]

Have two blue jay fleglings that have bird pox i have managed to keep them happy and all complications so far to a minimum except on of them was blind in one eye when i found them or he found me, but now his left foot is not working properly is this also due to the bird pox and will it come back after the pox virus has run its course? it has a bump on its ankle and it got pretty big but it seems to be going down he was holding it up alot i figured it was sore and i got some medicines for it to keep the pox down as much as i can i had got some antibiotics for its eye when i first got them and after it was able to hold its eye open i could see that it will never be able to see. today is the first day it hasnt been able to control the foot open and closing and also cant lift it at the knee to put it on a perch wondering what kind of meds i should get for that? pleas anyone know anything about bird pox other than what i have read?

desperate to keep these guys happy kimmie

 

[peacepupppy]

Advice

I just wanted to add my 2 cents here. I have personally called them in baby bird situations and they wouldn't take the bird. Most of us here are kind and sensititive spirits. I cannot leave a baby on the ground to die. In alot of ways I understand that advise, but some of us just can't do it. There have been posts where the person stated that they contacted rehab and vet and didn't get help, and then the reply harshly stated that they needed to do just that. It's like some of you aren't paying attention to the whole post. When I have found babies I always move them to a nearby safe place and watch to see if they mama or papa comes to feed them. If they do, I'm very happy and enjoy watching that. I would surely rather that then to put so much time into raising a baby, let's face it, that's ALOT of work. Speaking of that, today I was out on my porch and saw a blue jay furiously attacking something. I was hoping he was just pecking for food but then I saw it moving. I ran over quickly to see what was going on and it was a baby blue jay. I know there was a nest just above that. I never heard of that happening before. What reason would the adult do that? Needless to say I brought the baby back with me. AND, YESSSS......I'm going to call a rehab center tomorrow, but if they won't help i'm surely not going to just put it back in the yard and leave it. You can yell at me if you want, that's fine.

Anywayz, I was just annoyed at the responses about that when the persons post clearly stated that they did that.

Colleen

 

[dolphingirl]

Baby Blue Jay

Found a baby blue jay, fell into our chicken pen, so i let the chickens out so the bird isn't pecked to death, its been a day 1/2 and still no parnets, can see from my porch to the other end of the yard were the bird is at. What do i do the bird can't stay in there my chickens need in to lay egss and if i shoo him out my cats will get him. So any help wiould be great as we have no local vet to call. Also heard that to touch him he will never be welcome back in the wild , so am stuck on what to do. Help/ advice?? :cat:

 

[dolphingirl]

UPDATE: decided to get a old bowl that was outside, place some hay in it scoop up baby bird (with out touching it) and put it on top of the chicken hutch (there are alot of low tree branches there also) to my surprise it wasn't long before both mom & dad bird showed up to feed him. Thought you all might like to know he stayed in his nature home and seems happy any changes i will let you all know.

 

[dolphingirl]

Note: was able to take a few pictures of this cute baby blue jay...were can i post one of them??

 

[birdblues]

I found a young fully feathered blue jay that was being attacked by the wild cats that live on my street. I snached it away and put it in a box with a small bag in the box. The bird had been bitten and some blood was on the box. The next day my mom called a wildlife sanctuary.

I feel that the wildlife sanctuary tricked me, perhaps not on purpose. The guy said i should bring in the bird and i say why and he said we will take care of it. Then i asked him how they treat it and he was evasive, so i asked you do give it antibiotics and he say of course. He said if it was bitten then i must bring it in right away because the cat mouth water will infect the bird and it would die. (I have since found out this is the bacteria pasteurella multocida that can be treated with antibotics if done quickly)

He said "Do you want to save the bird's life? Bring it here right away". I took the long trip there right away.

But when I get there i find the bird has a badly injured wing, they say. So I leave with a number. But I go back and ask more. And find out that they will probably kill the bird because it won't be able to fly again and it is illegal for them to give it to me. It is illegal for people to take care of injured wildlife without a license and you can't get a license without spending months of work studying and working. So since it can't take care of itself and no one can take care of it, they will kill it. The bird would have been better off if i tried to treat it myself. At least it would have a chance.

I feel it is absurd to think it is better to kill hundreds of birds (as this place will) if they can't fly, rather than allow people to keep them and take care of them. But they say that is the law.

This law should be changed to allow people to care to take care of injured wild animals that can no longer live in the wild. To say it is better to kill the animals is insensitive and nonsensical.

 

[renee42101]

A week ago today our 3 dogs were messing with a fledgling on the ground and nearly killed it. I rescued it and put it in a box and put it on the deck where the dogs could not reach it. It had an hurt leg and a sore on its side but I wanted to give it a chance. It's sibling didn't make it. It was found that evening dead on the downstairs patio. The mother and father have been feeding and taking care of this little blue jay daily. Today I looked outside onto the deck and it was out of the box sitting on the deck chair. The parents are still taking care of it.

 

[renee42101]

The little fledgling that has been living on my deck has now flown away after a week of healing and it was so touching. The parent came and next thing I knew was it was flying away.

 

[kimberlykeizur]

I don't understand what all the 'discussion' is about. Yes, some birds will be lost during the fledgling process, so what is the use in telling people not to pick up a bird they KNOW will not survive if they don't?
I have had experience raising many baby birds, all of which have survived, and I'm not a licensed expert. I was concerned enough to get advice from people who knew what they were talking about and gained experience that way.
I'm just sayin, a bird who's chance at survival is zero vs. a well-meaning person to bump that chance up to say 50%......I'll always choose the well-meaning person.
I don't think it is good to be so wrapped up in rules and regulations, but spend more time being helpful to not only the animals which surround us but each other as well.

God Bless,
Kim Keizur


Some people

 

[fugl]

I hear what Katy is saying - it has nothing to do with negativity, there is wisdom here

Couldn't disagree more. Where you hear wisdom, I hear rigidity & slavish adherence to the letter of the law. The welfare of the bird comes first & common sense should rule. If in particular cases it's necessary to break the law in order to save a bird that is what responsible people should do. That's certainly been my practice when occasion demanded. The law was never intended to stop small-scale compassionate interventions of this sort & I can't imagine anyone's ever been prosecuted for such.

 

[sarahbuckley323]

A pair of blue jay hatchlings?!?!?!?!

Hi there,
A friend dropped off two hatching blue jays yesterday afternoon. I've raised baby birds before (well... baby EVERYTHING! Lol), but never any this young. When she brought them over, one was still wet from hatching. They are VERY tiny! I work under licensed rehabilitator Jerry Leonard, but he is currently MIA. I would normally call him with this kind of a situation. I bought baby bird formula from Petsmart for the little guys, bu I've been reading this thread and it says that regular bird formula isn't good for softbills? The formula is for domesticated softbills (Finches, doves, etc.), but is there a difference between domestic and wild softbills?
Also, I can't bring these babies to my local vets because of two reasons; none of the vets in my city "deal with wild creatures" and think that "they're better off as food." They are no help whatsoever, obviously. Any advice? I've heard not to give them water this young, and not not give them a lot of food at a time because they don't know when to stop. Anything else about these little guys?

 

[stonechat1]

Hi Sarah,
I´ve no experience with that species but maybe you can start with mealworms? I guess that the next step would be baby mice ,nice trenched.
Just a question: Since when are finches considered as softbills?

 

[stonechat1]

I just wonder, why do people ask question here and don´t answer responses?
Not longer interested?
Chick already dead?
Not amused about questions?
Just a troll?

 

[jzmtl]

Apparently some people really don't know it's common courtesy to get back to your own thread, seen it happen on many forums.

 

[Darla C]

Yesterday (Friday afternoon6/7) I found a baby Jay that had fallen out of its nest (which it's parents built just a while back, beneath the hanging dead fronds of one of our palm trees.) the poor thing was flailing about in the dirt with his mouth open. Not a fledgling, just a baby. Barely any feathers on his pink little body and his eyes weren't open. And mind you, it was 108 degrees here yesterday. To be 112 today. So I picked him up and wrapped him in a clean hand towel and he was still moving about. I got him comfortable in a bowl and he calmed down and went to sleep. After finding this forum, I immediately did as Cathy said to do in post #2. Since I could not see or reach the orig nest, but I know its up there we watched them building it a while back, I got a butter bowl and neatly circled grass within it, make a comfy little nest, and went and got the ladder. I nailed the bowl to the tree as high up as I could reach with the ladder. But it is barley beneath the ends of the last fronds and hopefully not too exposed. This tree just happens to be right outside my bedroom window, so I haven't gotten anything done at home. I have been camped out in the chair by the window just listening and watching. He has been active, I see the bowl shake, and then open the window to hear his cries. And while I have seen them come back and forth to their orig nest, they have not yet come to his aid. They were back n forth 3 times between 8-9:30 this morning. I've seen or heard nothing in the past half hour. This morning, the babies cries seemed a little weaker. I feel like I need to climb the ladder and give him some food/water. But not remove him. Is this feasible? Or should I try to contact a rescue place? And although its supposed to be 98 degrees, we are supposed to have thunderstorms in a couple of days. I'm worried the baby will not be protected. And Im a dummy, I was in such a hurry(and it's so hot outside, I wasn't even for seeing rain), I did not put drainage holes in the bottom of the bowl! ��
Advice is appreciated!!!!
Right now it's Sat 6/8, at 10am

Both parents came back right after I posted and of course the siblings started making noise, so the baby started wiggling and making noise. I sat and waited...and nothing. They are not acknowledging or tending to that poor baby.��

 

[Darla C]

Well, I brought him back in on Sat. and kept him over night. Then late this morning (Sun), I took him to the Shasta Wildlife Rescue. I sure hope he makes it, but he may have brain damage or the P virus. He was showing signs of neurological damage as he kept twisting his head upside down. Might be why mom n dad weren't tending to him. He's definitely a fighter. Was pretty weak when I got him back out if the tree, and straining his whole body to get out a peep. After I got some formula in him,he did a little better. Really responded to the sound of my voice. I hope they can raise him up the rest of the way and return him to the skies!