I haven't had time to write anything for so long but something magical is happening right now that I had to share.
On Valentines Day I found a young Dove in my graden and have since become its adoptive parent. It is worth pointing out that a wild bird should not be picked up immediately if found as very often the parent bird will return and care for it. That said I have so many cats coming into my garden that I really couldn't leave the bird there in safety. This was later proven by that fact that a black moggie was spotted in the garden half an hour after I picked up the dove.
This poor bird was too young to be out of the nest and the quills on the tail feathers had not yet broken. It made no attempt to get away when I picked it up leaving me very worried.
I put the bird in a cardboard box and left it alone for a while. Birds can easily go into shock and die of stress so best left alone for a while if there is no obvious sign of injury.
I had to rush to the shops to get some egg food to feed it on. Sure enough egg food and baby porridge are readily accepted. Sadly the dove is not old enough to feed itself so I am having to handle it a lot and syringe feed it. The little thimg is suprisingly calm for a wild animal which is great becuase it isn't stressed while feeding. This is not going to make returning it to the wild any easier though.
At the moment the bird is starting to peck at everythng on the cage floor so hopefully will start feeding on solids soon. Today it took its first small flight and while the landing was less than fantastic the flight itself was pretty good.
It is not possible to tell by looking if the dove is male or female so it still doesn't have a name. Suggestions for a good unisex dove name are welcome.
I'm going to keep reporting on the progress of the dove over the time it remains with me in the hope it will be a good reference point for others who find themselves in my position of caring for an orphaned bird or just for anyone who loves reading about animals and their exploits. I am also updating regularly on my twitter page @FallenAngel_483 and generally complaining about all th early mornings but I don't really mean it. looking after this bird is a really great privillege for me and I am taking it very seriously.
