How to feed a chick that has fallen out of a bird's nest. Chick rearing tips

Noticing that the sparrow chick has fallen out of the nest, do not rush to drag it home. Assess the situation. A newborn will have to be monitored a lot: if there is no time, do not take on overwork. It should be fed often, and, most importantly, correctly. There is no possibility - give up the idea. Intervention would be a disservice if the bird accidentally fell from a tree while following its parents. See if they're looking for a baby. If you decide to help the baby, read how to do it right.

Sometimes the chicks fall out of the nests. To understand how to save a sparrow baby, you need to determine the cause. If you find a baby on the ground, look around.

The sparrows themselves will not throw the chick out of the nest. But other birds, swifts, starlings, can win back their homes, getting rid of the "enemy" offspring. In this case, try to drive away the fighters and help the baby.

If the sparrow chick fell out of the nest by accident, return it back. Sometimes babies instinctively reach for their parents, falling from trees. If everything is in order with the "bird house", the parents are in place, then the tragedy will not happen.

Don't worry about whether or not to pick up the baby and carry it to the nest. Sparrows do not smell, so they will not abandon the brood due to human interference.

Natural disasters can also destroy the nest: a hurricane, a thunderstorm. In this case, you can help the birds by restoring the home. Bring the little ones back to the renovated home and watch them. If the parents respond to the call of the cubs, the rescue mission is over. If this does not happen, you will have to feed the young.

Sparrow chicks grow up to an independent age of 2-3 weeks. That's how long it takes for the cubs to come out.

Sparrow classification

Newborn sparrow chicks are newly hatched, not covered with feathers, very small birds. It is hardly possible to provide them with food, since they will have to be fed often: once every 2-3 hours. The best solution is to find an abandoned nest.

Yellowmouths are juvenile chicks that have acquired feathers. Despite the fact that sparrows look mature, they are not capable of self-feeding. At this age, babies often fall out due to negligence. It is possible to leave the bird, but you will have to feed it regularly, and this is the time.

Fledglings are called already quite matured, capable of self-feeding birds. Having found such a bird, do not touch it: let it learn to fly and get food. The only possible help in this situation is to plant them on a hill (to protect them from land-based predators).

This is important: water and food for the new tenant

Having picked up a sparrow, it is important to understand how to water the chick and what to feed. To give the baby a drink, it is better to use a pipette. Fill it with water and bring the tip to the beak. Do not put pressure on the "mouth", trying to open.

Newborn birds cannot drink on their own from a bowl - this must be remembered. If you put a container of water and leave, the sparrows will choke.

If you often pick up birds for treatment, then there will definitely be something in the house to feed the injured sparrow. Another thing is if the case is isolated. Before you rush to the pet store or prepare complex formulas, feed your baby something that is in the refrigerator. Suitable lean meat, minced meat, eggs (boiled), cottage cheese, fish.

First steps in nursing

What needs to be done immediately after picking up a chick is to ensure comfort. Nesting equipment is a top priority. Use a lint-free cloth, rolling it up so that it slopes.

Feeding fledglings from the first day requires a routine. It is important to observe a certain time between meals: 15-20 minutes for newborns and 2-3 hours for yellowmouths.

Below we will tell you how and what to feed a sparrow chick in order to grow it at home. Let's turn to nature. Give them:

• flour worms;
• larvae;
• small insects.

Human food will work too.

• cottage cheese;
• eggs;
• meat;
• fish.

The main thing is to feed the babies in a timely manner so that their own resources are not burned: sparrows have a fast metabolism. Read on to find out how to care for chicks and make the right diet.

Formula formula

What chicks eat with pleasure are insects. But feeding feathered birds and fledglings can be simplified by preparing a special mixture. The recipe is:

• three medium carrots and squeeze the juice;
• chop the egg (pre-cook);
• cut meat (veal / beef / chicken) and split into fibers;
• greens (lettuce / wood lice / dandelion) chop;
• add 10 g of cottage cheese (pre-squeeze);
• 2 tbsp. spoons of boiled millet (avoid salt or oil);
• a teaspoon of fish food (dry mix);
• pour calcium glycerophosphate powder (1 tablet per liter);
• put a teaspoon of crushed eggshells.

Mix the resulting feed until smooth. It shouldn't stick to your hands. Give to kids in portions, rolling up small balls, the size of a cherry stone. When we prepare the mixture for feeding the chick, we get a large supply. Food can be stored frozen.

How to feed a sparrow chick, we told. But do not forget that the birds should be watered: a few drops of water per feed ball.

Calcium: dosage calculation and sources

Calcium for sparrow chicks, as for all birds, is necessary to prevent the development of rickets. The mixture above includes the required amount of nutrients. Using it, you can not worry about the health of the kids.

Features of feeding a sparrow at home allow you to monitor the vitamins received. To calculate the need for calcium in a chick, it is enough to determine 2% of its mass. But remember that it is possible to overdo it with the additive, so it is better to play it safe and add more.

A bird can get calcium from chalk, edible clay or boiled egg shells. They are added in powder form. For a standard daily dose, take half a teaspoon - if there is no desire to make calculations.

Primary knowledge: what and how

Let's talk about how to hatch a sparrow chick, and what to use for feeding. Newborn birds are fed from a syringe with a catheter - this is more convenient.

It is forbidden to take a catheter for feeding grown sparrows, because of the danger to life: the birds can swallow the needle. The process of feeding a chick with a brush is less convenient: due to soiling of feathers. But for neat people, the technique is ideal, since a soft pile will not harm.

The sequence of feeding sparrow chicks - important point. Don't give them all at once. Dose food for better absorption. One "dose" is 2/3 of the volume of the head. If the kids keep begging for treats, ignore it. Overfeeding is just as bad as undereating.

The importance of the intermediate stage

When caring for a sparrow, do not miss the moment of stopping feeding and transferring the chick to self-feeding. Remember that a baby's desire for independence does not indicate that it is necessary to reduce feeding.

IN natural environment parents feed the chicks even when the kids learn to fly and get food. Do not miss this crucial moment. Make the sparrow chase you to get the desired food.

You can understand that the chick is ready for independence by weight. The norm is 20-27 g. The sparrow is completely covered with feathers, the tail is long, the beak loses its yellowness. Mature birds bite painfully.

When the sparrow chick grows up, the frequency of feeding is gradually reduced. Some birds switch to self-feeding quickly, for others the process is delayed - this is not scary. If your baby refuses to eat, don't worry. This is a normal process until their weight drops below 21g.

Painless weaning

A man-fed sparrow chick can be released into nature. The main thing to consider is how to properly conduct the process. Remember: if you are not going to leave the selected bird, start preparing for the "weaning" in advance.

If you are going to release a sparrow into nature, do not treat the bird like a pet. Don't spend more time with your baby than necessary. Don't play, don't caress. When feeding, it is better to wear something bright to divert attention "from yourself" and minimize addiction.

When the chick grows up, do not play with him. Do not accustom the baby "to the hands." If you do not give the bird a lot of time, the growing sparrow will quickly learn to be frightened of a person.

It is impossible to release a sparrow without preliminary preparation. Before the bird settles in nature, it is kept in an aviary. The street corral helps to adapt. Teach your chick to "local" food.

Before releasing a sparrow to freedom, make sure that the chick is healthy. Look at the weather forecast. On the day of "absentee" there should be no rain or strong wind. It is better that in the next few days the hydrometeorological center does not report on impending bad weather.

Discuss your concerns in the comments to the article.

In the spring, when all the birds begin to have offspring, sometimes you can see the chicks that have fallen out of the nests. small, not fully fledged, yellow-mouthed babies look so defenseless and abandoned that it is simply impossible to pass by. Therefore, many people rush to take them with them in order to save the poor birds, warm them up and feed them. How to feed a sparrow.

If you found a sparrow chick and brought it home to go out, first you need to find a place for it where it will be. A small box may be suitable for this, at the bottom of which you need to lay a cloth made of soft material. Put a foundling in there and make sure he can't jump out of there. Very young chicks may need additional heating. To do this, it is recommended to use a heating pad or a bottle filled with warm water.

So, you picked up a sparrow chick, brought it to your house, equipped temporary shelter and are going to feed the bird. Most importantly, one should not forget that the chicks of insectivorous birds eat food per day, which in volume is 3/4 of their weight. What do sparrows eat? The basis of their diet in nature is made up of small flies, worms, caterpillars, beetles and various larvae. Of course, it is desirable to feed the baby with these insects, but, unfortunately, it will be quite difficult to get them.

You need to know exactly what you can feed the sparrow. For example, under no circumstances should you feed a bird with bread. It can be given quite a bit, after soaking in milk, no more than once every 2-3 days. You can offer the chick a little boiled meat, which must be finely chopped and added there cereals or grains of some cereals.

Sparrow chick will also eat vegetables- cucumbers, carrots, beets. Before feeding, they must be finely ground and squeezed out excess juice. And you can also feed the baby with a boiled egg and cottage cheese. It is very important to consider that the food for him should be unsalted, since in no case should birds be given salt. You can supplement the diet by adding crushed chalk or coal, the chick will be happy to eat this supplement.

When you try to feed the bird, you need to try to do it so that the baby eats on its own. But if this is not possible, he should be given food, after opening his beak with tweezers. This must be done very carefully so as not to damage the chick. If you are unsure that you can handle this task, it is better to ask someone else.

You need to feed your baby very often, once every 2 hours. Of course, this is very difficult and difficult, but if you wish, you can cope, because you will not allow the newly-made pet you have chosen to die of hunger? And also do not forget that, in addition to food, fresh water should always be near the bird.

Is it worth it to pick up a sparrow chick

sparrow lifestyle

sparrows- small and agile birds, their cheerful chirping can always be heard on the street. Unlike their feathered counterparts, they do not wake up at dawn, but quite late in the morning. Birds love to gather in noisy groups. When spring comes and it's time for breeding, males fight for a long time for best places for nests. When the house for future babies is ready, the female lays 4 to 6 eggs. When chicks are born, parents begin to worry about their food.

Sparrow chick is considered strong if it opens its beak wide when feeding. Very rarely, but there are cases when cubs that do not eat well are considered weak by parents and thrown out of their house. But such an action on the part of these birds - big exception.

In most cases, chicks fall out of the nests and begin to learn to fly. The first attempts may be unsuccessful, but later the kids gain strength, and they succeed.

If you found a chick

Before you take home a little sparrow chick, you should seriously think about it, maybe it’s still worth leaving it where it was? Most likely, a “fledgling” fell out of the nest - a baby who began to learn to fly and makes his first attempts for this. And the parents of the bird are not far away at this moment, control it and will always be able to bring food to their child until he is on the ground and gets stronger.

Caring for such a baby at home is quite problematic, and many chicks can simply die with improper care or feeding. If there are no dogs or cats nearby, it is better to bring and place a feeder with food where the fallen cub is. Also, do not forget that birds that have grown in captivity can quickly die after they are released to live on the street.

If you found a nest, full of small and yellow-mouthed babies, and you are sure that their parents will not fly back, and you really want to help poor orphans, you can try to feed these chicks. If desired, feeding such birds is a completely solvable task, you just need to first learn more about such babies so as not to inadvertently harm them.

Feeding instructions

First of all, you will definitely need:

• pipette;
• tweezers;
• disposable syringes;
• birdseed.

Now you can start feeding. For this you need to do:

You already know that if you happen to see chicks in the spring, it is better not to pick them up. But it may happen that you accidentally find, say, a very small sparrow with a broken leg, or some other injury, and he is completely helpless, then, of course, he will definitely need to be helped and taken care of.

If the chick has not yet fully fledged, it needs to be heated. It is necessary to place the baby in a warm and small bag. To do this, use an old mitten or woolen sock. Make sure he is always warm. After that, you can try to feed the foundling.

Sparrow chick feeding sequence

You will need:

• insects (flies, beetles);
• tweezers.

The next steps will go like this:

1. such a baby needs to be fed every hour with a variety of insects with tweezers, flies, spiders, worms, small beetles are suitable. You can try to buy some at the pet store, for example, mealworm larvae. You will need quite a lot of food, so try also giving a boiled egg, minced meat;
2. when the sparrow opens its beak wide, use tweezers to put an insect into its bird's mouth, which it will subsequently swallow;
3. if the baby is not yet eating on his own, he does not need to be watered, as this is dangerous, and he may choke. Feed him mushy food with a pipette. When he gets a little stronger and starts eating on his own, put water in a drinking bowl next to him so that the sparrow chick can drink at will;
4. don't worry about overfeeding your little pet, as birds have a very fast metabolism and need a lot of food. Babies are recommended to be fed little and often, and if the chick eats a lot of food, but rarely, this will have a very negative effect on his health.

A sparrow cannot be called an exotic bird

Sparrows are not exotic birds at all. They can often be found in parks, squares, playgrounds, their flocks fly in to sit on a balcony or windowsill. However, what should you do if you find a sparrow chick during a walk?

Our site already had a general article on how to behave in such cases (look for it). But, judging by how many comments and questions about how to get out the found chick of a pigeon, crow, swift, not everyone is still aware that it is not worth interfering in the processes of nature.

But, if, nevertheless, you picked up a sparrow chick (because you thought that he would die without you), learn to give him the right help. AND how to feed a sparrow chick, how to care for him- we will tell you in our today's article ...

Why did the sparrow end up on the ground

The sparrow could fall out of the nest. After all, the parents of this species of birds themselves rarely throw away their children. Other birds could "help" him to leave the nest. Among swifts, starlings, crows and, of course, sparrows, quite often there is a feud over the best nests. And getting rid of its permanent residents, the invaders are ready to throw away their offspring.

If the sparrow is lucky, and he did not crash, falling to the ground, then he really will need your help. Especially if you see other birds (not sparrows) circling above it. Even if you drive them away, they may return, or the chick may become a victim of other animals.

Therefore, if there is no way to return it to its parents (by the way, sparrows do not smell human smell, therefore, you don’t have to worry that they won’t take the chick back), you will have to take care of it. And most importantly, do it right.

How to determine the age of a sparrow

In order to properly care for a chick, you need to determine its age at least by eye. And our tips will help you with this. So,

• if the sparrow was recently born, then its body is not yet covered with feathers, its eyes may be closed, and the dimensions are very miniature. Just want to note that he is very helpless and needs protection. That's just, you need to feed him every 2-3 hours. It is unlikely that you, a busy person, will have such an opportunity day and night. Therefore, as an option, in order not to leave the bird to its fate, you can throw the sparrow into another sparrow's nest.
• Yellowmouths - the body of the chicks is already covered with fluff and feathers, but the beak is decorated with a yellow stripe, indicating that they are still very young. Therefore, they still cannot get their own food. They need to be fed.
• Fledglings are teenage birds ready for independent life and learning to fly. In principle, if there are no predators nearby, and bad weather is not approaching, they do not need your help.

What to feed a sparrow chick

A sparrow chick, like any other, needs special food and water. It would be better to feed him with a pipette or with a syringe without a needle. This must be done very carefully so as not to injure the beak, and so that the bird does not choke. By the way,

young birds do not know how to drink on their own. They will either choke or die of thirst near water. Therefore, they need to be forced to drink several times a day.

Sparrows are omnivores. And it pleases. Therefore, as soon as you bring the bird home, make sure to feed it lean meat, minced meat, boiled egg, cottage cheese or fish. In the future, you will need to take care to find flour worms, larvae, small insects. From human food, you can give cottage cheese, eggs, meat, fish.

It is very important to feed the passerine chicks on time. Otherwise, due to the rapid metabolism, they begin to burn their own resources of the body. Therefore, get ready to feed newborn birds every 15-20 minutes, and after 2-3 hours feed yellowmouths.

How to prepare feed mixture for a sparrow chick

It is quite clear that you may not succeed in giving fresh insects to the chick every day. But so that you do not worry about feeding the feathered guest poorly, try to make the following mixture for him:

• squeeze juice from grated raw carrots,
• boil an egg and grind it into a puree,
• chop finely boiled meat (beef, chicken or veal),
• take the greens and grind it,
• add some cottage cheese (10 grams is enough),
• add 2 tablespoons of wheat groats boiled in water (without oil and salt and sugar),
• add a teaspoon of fish food,
• add 1 tablet of calcium glycerophosphate to an eggshell (it must first be ground).
• Thoroughly mix the resulting mixture of individual ingredients until smooth, roll small balls out of it, the size of a cherry seed. Feed these balls to a sparrow chick during the day. This is quite a complete diet for him. By the way, such balls, so that they do not deteriorate, can be stored in the freezer.
• Before feeding, they will need to be thawed, and a few drops of water should be dropped on them - so the sparrow will eat and drink immediately.

Tips for those in whose hands the chick fell

This text is addressed to those in whose hands the chick somehow fell into wild bird. Of course, we assume that none of you would purposely take a chick out of the nest. But, despite numerous publications on the topic in popular sources, every year people come here with the same, in principle, questions: “We picked up a chick, and now what to do with it”? Ninety-eight times out of a hundred, the best thing you could do when you see a chick on the road is to move away and not touch it in any way.
If the chick is small and screams loudly, this does not mean that his parents abandoned him. They must be around somewhere. In passerines, for example, chicks leave the nest when they are only two weeks old. They do not yet know how to fly and are unable to fly long distances. The same nightingale builds a nest on the ground, and therefore the chicks, having left the nest, for at least two weeks run quite quickly on the grass “on foot”. You can help the chick, which sits dangerously close to people, cats, dogs and cars, by gently moving it to the branches of trees or shrubs nearby. His parents will definitely find him. You can try to return the chick of a swallow or a swift to the roof, closer to the nest of the intended parents.
However, there are situations from which there is no way out, except to take the chick into your care. Let's say a well-wisher picked it up a long time ago and now asks you for help, because he can't cope on his own. Or the parents of the chicks, who now have no one to feed, died. Or you, with all your desire, cannot return the chick within the reach of its parents (swifts, swallows).
So, you have a problem. You brought a chick home, but do not know where to keep it and what to feed it. Perhaps the chick is chirping loudly and not taking food from your hands. When you, having suffered, get tired and want to return the chick to nature, then you will doom the chick to certain death. A human-fed bird will not survive in the wild. Therefore, be prepared for the fact that, with very few exceptions, you must provide food and shelter for the bird for its entire bird life. All daylight hours, you will have to regularly not only give the chick food, but feed it until it is full. Determining that the chick is full is very simple - it stops opening its mouth, begging for food.
Attention! Birds are very high level metabolism. A starving chick literally burns internal resources. It is enough to leave him without food for 3-6 hours (during daylight hours), the chick will die in a day or two due to metabolic disorders. Having eaten, the chick begins to back away, puts its tail over the edge of the nest and defecates. In nature, one of the parents picks up the excremental "capsule" and takes it away from the nest so as not to unmask it. The quality of the "capsule" can be an indicator of the correct interval between feedings. If you feed the chick too often, the "capsule" does not form a protein shell, and the droppings spread.
How and what to feed.
Most songbirds (this is a generally accepted ornithological term, this includes almost all small birds, with the exception of predators, plankton-eating birds and waterfowl. Accordingly, sparrows, nightingales, tits, and larks and even corvids get here) feeds chicks with insects. This means that the food should be the same as for an adult insectivorous bird. It should include: ant cocoons (usually called eggs), flour worms, fly larvae, egg, cottage cheese and carrots, as well as vitamin and mineral supplements. Chicks can be raised only on live ant cocoons, but it will not work on just one chicken egg or any other substitute.
For feeding fledglings of passerine birds, a nutrient mixture is used. Boiled chicken egg rubbed on a grater. Boiled chicken or beef meat is minced with a knife. Greens are also chopped, for example, lettuce, wood lice, dandelion leaves (but by no means spicy herbs!). Carrots are rubbed on a fine grater and the juice is slightly squeezed out of it (“wet” carrots can cause diarrhea in the chick). Instead of an egg, you can add cottage cheese, but low-fat and non-acidic. If the cottage cheese is sour, it must be scalded with boiling water. All ingredients are mixed. Minerals are added to the mixture (calcium glycerophosphate, phytin), multivitamins (a little, an overdose is dangerous!) And grated white crackers. The mixture is made for one day and stored in the refrigerator, but not in freezer. From the mixture, balls are made that are convenient for feeding - the size of a match head.
It is convenient to give food with tweezers. It should be ensured that from the very first feeding the chick itself opens its mouth. To do this, bringing the tweezers, slightly shake the "nest", simulating the arrival of the parent-breadwinner. Or they touch with tweezers the plumage of the head, the edges of the beak. Sometimes a light click on the beak helps. The younger the chick, the easier it is to develop a begging reaction to the approaching tweezers, since with age, a hiding reaction occurs to unfamiliar objects, and then flight. If it is not possible to force the chick to open its beak by any means, then the first feeding is done by force, opening the beak with your fingers (it is better to do this for a woman who has semi-long nails - you can carefully pick up the upper half of the chick's beak with the edge of the nail. Then you need to take a crumb of food directly on your finger, and how to “wipe” it on the lower half of the chick’s beak from the inside - author). However, you should continue to try to accustom the chick to tweezing. Then, at the age of 15 - 17 days, you need to start accustoming the chick to independent food intake. To do this, a little food is scattered on the floor of the cage. After the chick begins to peck off the floor, the food is placed in the feeder. However, feeding with tweezers is continued until the chick learns to eat its fill itself. From now on, he is placed in a larger cage in which he can run and fly.
Don't forget to water the chick. The easiest way to do this is with a pipette. After each ball of food - 1-2 drops from a pipette. It is enough to put a pipette to the tip of the beak without opening it. You should drink only water, you can boil it.
Since the chick needs to be fed very often, you need to either constantly be with him, or carry him with you. As long as he is small and does not run away, you can put him in a small box.
When the chick grows up, it is necessary, based on whether it is a granivorous bird or an insectivorous one, to adjust its diet.
It is impossible to feed a granivorous bird with only one type of seed. When kept in captivity, the basis of the nutrition of domestic granivorous birds is a grain mixture consisting of canary seeds (“canary seed“), flaxseed and millet (it is better to use light) - approximately in equal proportions.
Oat groats - whole, unflattened - are readily eaten by most granivorous.
Lettuce seeds - preferably light, perfectly eaten by all birds. Good, harmless food.
Spruce and pine seeds are one of the best food for all forest birds of our fauna. Especially desirable for schurs, crossbills, siskins. Unlike sunflower seeds, they do not cause obesity and metabolic disorders.
Hemp is a common and favorite food for birds, but it can "spoil" the bird. She will stop eating other food, and her metabolism may be disturbed.
Sunflower is a high-calorie oily food. It can be given to birds without harmful effects in larger quantities than cannabis. Crushed sunflower along with the shell is an excellent addition to the surrogate mixture for insectivorous birds.
Dandelion seeds are loved by all granivorous birds.
Plantain seeds are eaten by all granivorous, larks and some insectivorous birds. Collection is manual.
Seeds of meadow grasses, mainly cereals, are perfectly eaten by all granivorous.
Green fodder is a source of vitamins and minerals. As green fodder, give young shoots of spruce, larch, hardwood, greens of cereals, leguminous plants, woodlice, yarrow, dandelion, lettuce, spinach and even tradescantia.
Their root crops use mostly carrots. Pieces and grated carrots are readily eaten by almost all birds.
Berry food and fruits are nutritious, contain many vitamins and microelements.
For insectivorous birds, as for all nestlings, the mixture already described should form the basis of nutrition. In addition to it, meat, chicken, cottage cheese and even cheese are given, as well as live food and gammarus.
Home furnishing.
If you had to bring up a fledgling chick at the age of 4 - 5 days, then for the first two - three days it will need to be heated. It can be arranged from a heating pad or filled warm water flat bottle. Starting from 8 - 12 days of age, the chicks have a desire to leave the "nest", and from that time it will have to be placed in a small cell. No matter where your chick lives, he needs warm, dry bedding. For this purpose, you can take dry soft grass or moss. (You can use torn into quarters paper napkins- ed.) Cotton can not be used - the chick can get entangled in it or swallow.
Songbirds are extremely voracious creatures for their size, so a feeder with food should always be in their room. It should be remembered that free-born birds require much more spacious “apartments” than those accustomed to cages for many generations. A fairly universal principle for determining a sufficient cage size is that the distance between perches located at opposite ends of the room should be such that the bird cannot jump from one to another without using its wings.

With the onset warm days the air is filled with birdsong (find out). It makes me want to spend more time outdoors. It is not surprising that in parks, squares and forest areas rest a lot of people. Often on vacation they find fallen chicks from the nest. Looking at a defenseless creature, there is a desire to help him. However, with your wrong actions, you can fail the rescue operation, and only harm the bird.

Today we will tell you about is it worth saving the chicks that have fallen out of the nest, how to help them correctly, and how to care for the bird if you still brought it home.

Why did the chick end up on the ground

When we look at a fledgling chick in the grass, we think that it fell out of the nest, got lost, or its parents simply forgot about it ... There really may seem to be no one around. The chick screams, and you are at a loss and, of course, your hands reach out to pick it up from the ground and take it home. But don't be in a hurry to do so. In 95%!!! In these cases, you will only kill the bird. Why?

In many birds, especially from the order of small passerines, the chicks leave the nests when they are not yet fully fledged. They cannot fly, but they can climb branches without problems and can fly over short distances. As a rule, you see such semi-fledged fledglings. The chicks are quite large, active, open their mouths and ask for food. And the longer you are with them, the longer it takes for their parents to fly over to feed them. Moreover, parents may be frightened by such close human attention and, indeed, in order to save their lives, abandon the fledgling.

And some species of chicks even spend time in nests in the grass. And while you are looking at your fully fledgling find, you are being carefully watched and. They will definitely "visit" the chick and kill it when you move away. So, you should not save the first chicks on the ground, stay close to them for a long time, attracting the attention of other birds.

If you find a chick, it has dry plumage, it is warm to the touch, active, it has the beginnings of plumage - it does not need your help.

When, if the chick you found does not fit this description, and you are sure that without you it will die - once again weigh the burden of responsibility that you place on your shoulders and save the baby. I want to say right away that it will not be easy to leave the chick you found and raise it.

First aid for a chick that has fallen out of the nest

A chick that has fallen out of the nest is threatened by hypothermia, hunger and predators. From all this you will have to protect him. Take the chick carefully in your arms and try not to hurt him - the bones of the chicks are very fragile. It would be better to wrap him in a scarf or scarf so that he can keep warm. Now you will need to find food and a home for him.

If the state of the chick causes you concern, it has blood from the nostrils, its paws do not move, or one part of the body is paralyzed - the bird has a contusion from hitting the ground. In this case, you will need to visit the veterinarian, and the sooner the better, since in this state the chick is not as in dire need of food as in drug treatment and support. Good specialist can help him.

If there is no opportunity to contact the veterinarian, bring the bird home and hope that she will be able to get out.

What to feed a chick that has fallen out of the nest

Many people mistakenly think that in order to feed the chick, it will be enough to crumble bread and the bird will peck it herself. If everything were so simple... In fact, little chicks do not eat crackers, bread, porridge, seeds and cereals. They need protein food and soft food. The exception is pigeons - they feed their chicks with bird's milk, semi-digested grains. If you find a small pigeon, you can feed it unsalted porridge, gradually boiling it less and less. All other foundling chicks need to be fed mealworms, cockroaches, larvae, zoophobus - fortunately, it is sold in pet stores, earthworms, grasshoppers, butterflies, flies, mosquitoes ... The more varied the diet of the bird, the healthier and stronger it will grow.

If the chick is very weak, for the first few days, instead of solid food, it is necessary to give water with glucose, but in no case sugar syrup.

What not to give to baby birds

• dead insects,
• Colorado beetles,
• ladybugs,
• hairy caterpillars,
• Bedbugs of bright color.

How to properly feed a foundling chick

Well, with what to feed the chicks figured out. Now the equally difficult question is how to feed them. Let's start with the most important thing. The metabolic processes in the body of the chicks proceed very quickly, which means that they almost instantly digest the food and want to eat again. You won't believe it, but in Nature, a mother bird feeds her chick up to 250-300 times a day. Every 15-20 minutes you need to throw something into his beak. A few hours of hunger is enough, as the chick will weaken and may die. You have to become caring mother for him and feed him after 15-20 minutes, and when he gets older, slightly increase the intervals between feedings to 30 minutes. At night, you can feed the chick less often, but it is important that the last evening feeding is not earlier than 22:00, and the first - not later than 6:00 in the morning.

You need to feed the chick with tweezers.

If you are feeding large insects to a small chick, they can be cut apart with tweezers and fed in portions. Hard elytra are best removed, as are the long legs of locusts and grasshoppers.

Sometimes chicks refuse to eat with tweezers voluntarily. In this case, you will have to force-feed them. The feed is pushed and filled with a syringe without a needle. To make the mixture a convenient consistency for feeding, it can be slightly diluted with water. The chick is taken in hands, its beak is gently parted and right hand you carefully insert a syringe into his throat and squeeze out a little of the mixture. It is important not to overdo it, because if you do not calculate the forces and break the beak of the chick, he will die. For greater convenience, you can put a small flexible tube on the end of the syringe.

Should I give my chick water?

In nature, birds do not need additional water, since all the necessary moisture is taken from soft food. If you have provided the chick with a varied and proper diet, you do not need to additionally water it. But, if you feed him dry food - flies, cockroaches or crickets, you will additionally need to give water from a pipette, not every time you feed the bird, but after 2-3 times. By the way,

if you picked up a shell-shocked chick, it is strictly forbidden to give him water for the first days.