I found a baby Blue Jay 5 days ago attacked by crows in the road. Can't believe it survived but it is doing really well. The place I found him is dangerous; road, cats, crows. Can I leave the baby near where I found him in a cage??? I am hoping to get mom and dad back so I can release him with more confidence he will survive. He is NOT flying yet. He hops and jumps all over the place. His left wing is missing feathers that are growing back. Likely the crow. I see Blue Jays around, not sure if it is the parents. Any help is appreciated.
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Introducing Baby Blue Jay Back to Mom and Dad (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter CarolM
- Start date
Kits
Picture Picker
Welcome to Birdforum.
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No, you can't leave the bird in a cage.
You may find this helpful.
Baby & Injured Wild Birds - PLEASE READ!
If You Find A BABY Bird (see below about ADULT birds) Is the bird injured (bleeding, broken bones, puncture wounds, been in a cat’s mouth, open wounds, etc.)?If YES, take the bird to your nearest wildlife veterinarian or rehabilitator.If NO, see below. Is the bird fully...
www.birdforum.net
No, you can't leave the bird in a cage.
Thanks so much. I have 3 messages into my local wildlife rehabilitater. I have used them before for baby skunks and an injured bird but no response this time. Fish and game and dog officer no help. I seem to be on my own. I have the baby outside near the nest everyday hoping for parents. There are BlueJays around. They come to my feeder but they are not paying any attention to him and I know they see him. Not even sure they are the parents. Will other adults feed him?Welcome to Birdforum.
You may find this helpful.
Baby & Injured Wild Birds - PLEASE READ!
If You Find A BABY Bird (see below about ADULT birds) Is the bird injured (bleeding, broken bones, puncture wounds, been in a cat’s mouth, open wounds, etc.)?If YES, take the bird to your nearest wildlife veterinarian or rehabilitator.If NO, see below. Is the bird fully...
No, you can't leave the bird in a cage.
Hello Carol and welcome to the forum, enjoy and all the best.
Does anyone have any advice on how to acclimate this baby to the wild while I continue to make sure he survives???? Really need help please
Thank you Lisa. I will keep trying. Would another adult feed him or only his parents? I was told that if I put him near the nest in a cage, so he is protected, and keep watch from afar the parent might feed him through the cage. This would help assure me if I let him go there he will be cared for. Without rehab getting back to me I am on my own. Will you give me some pointers on how to prepare him for release? And know that no matter how I approach this I will never leave him unsupervised during this critical time. Sorry, so many questions.
Kits
Picture Picker
As I said before, do not leave the bird in a cage. No, the parents, if still around, will not feed through a cage. If you aren’t going to leave him unsupervised, you are interfering with nature. I know it’s not what you want to know, but you need to leave him alone and let nature take its course. It is not a pet, it’s a wild animal and must be treated as such.
I really don’t know. If you can’t find a rehabber and it does look like you have tried, you could try and rehab it yourself. Then when it is able to fly, leave it in the cage with the door open, outside, both day and night and see if he will fly and leave. I don’t know what else to suggest.
He can't feed himself yet. Never mind fly. He would die and I won't do that. I know it is not a pet but it DOES deserve a chance. Anything I do will give him a better chance than what he would have if I had done nothing. The crows would have pecked and ate him alive. As humans we save a lot of defenseless animals. Birds included when needed.
Thank you so much Lisa.
This baby Blue Jay I saved from a crow attack is missing a lot of feathers from his left wing. Hope it is not permanent damage from the crows. His right wing is full but the left has only 6 primary feathers and the remaining are the secondary feathers. I can stretch the little wing out and observe all the missing feathers but still trying to look under the wing to get a better look. It is inhibiting his ability to fly. Can't get any height to get off the ground. He tries really hard but a foot and a half is about it. Otherwise he is doing awesome. Any thoughts? Could it be a molt? I finally did get ahold of local wildlife rehab and will be seeing her this weekend along with a Avian vet. Just thought I would pick your brain in the mean time.
LynneEllan
Member
Hi. I am responding to all these questions with the same answer because I think the best thing to do is a bird sanctuary. They have the right equipment and experience to cope with all these situations. Blessings to you and the feather babies. Your efforts are applaudable. 🩷
