Now when I call him he fights his way through the undergrowth and hops onto my hand. If I don't hear him I call him and he starts chirping to let me know he is still there, it's amazing.
I can't put him back where he came from because one of the cats brought him in the house. I know they visit the neighbouring gardens so he could have come from anywhere.
He is in the hedge now at this moment, the cats are miffed that they can't go outside. I'll pop out later with the cat food as no doubt he will be waiting for me. I put some food on the ground but he hasn't attempted to take any yet. I'll try and encourage him to fly but maybe he can't if his wing is injured. Poor little Chirpy, I'll stick with it and maybe he'll get a bit stronger and will be able to find his own food.
Maybe he'll turn out to be one of those guests who never leaves ha ha, you're making life to comfortable for him.
ReplyDeleteIt's not a Robin as I first thought, from this photo I'm pretty sure it's a blackbird. Maybe you could do a bit of research all call a wildlife rescue place and ask for some advice on how to handle it? It's a bit worrying, I hope it doesn't become too tame.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment yesterday. A Derbyshire walk sounds good, I'll send you an email to the address you have listed on the right here.
love his punky hair-do!
ReplyDeleteLooks like he's imprinted on you Ilona!
ReplyDeleteHello again, I've just been googling and found a link which may be useful. I know you're doing a great job caring for it but this might give you some extra info! I've just read that blackbirds leave the nest and spent time on the ground before they learn to fly. Yours looks very little so I think he'll be with you for a little while.
ReplyDeleteThe link suggests setting up a light near him at night as it will attract flying insects and it will learn to catch them.
http://voices.yahoo.com/caring-fledgling-blackbird-10342581.html
You`re going to have to play mother bird for some time with this little chap. Best of luck!
ReplyDeleteIlona, please leave this bird alone - you are frightening the mother off feeding it. If he becomes tame he will be done for !
ReplyDeleteYou are being selfish ! He is cheeping and his mother will hear him and feed him !
So, trying to help is being selfish is it, lizzie. Well you always thinking you know best and telling me what I should do, is getting on my tits!!!
ReplyDeleteYou tell her girl!
DeleteThank you Louise, that link is most usefull.
ReplyDeleteI could not just let him stay outside. But, I have no idea what to do. Any bird we rescued when we were children always died. But, this one looks healthy. Maybe you need a birdcage for your new pet...just kidding...I think. He certainly seems to want his new mommy. Coming to you is a good sign--he trusts you. Coming to you is a bad sigh--he might trust all humans. But, if you just leave him out, cats will probably kill him. I wonder if there is a wildlife center that can help you.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad the link was useful - I was worried about sounding like an interfering know it all myself but I feel better after seeing that comment from Lizzie. I was just trying to be helpful! If I had a cat that brought in a fledgling, there's no way I could just put it in the garden and let nature take its course... the cat might not have caught it in your garden, so the mother might not be near or might assume the chick is dead... they don't only have one chick so if it was from your garden it's likely the cats would have found other chicks, not yet flying or you would see the parents birds in and out of the nest site or whatever. Chirpy wouldn't have survived this far without help and he's been cheeping out there for long enough for a parent bird to have come to him now.
ReplyDeleteOh no....you don't think I'm getting on your chesticles by offering my 10 cents worth do you?
ReplyDeleteJane x
Ilona, I am rearing a tiny robin at the moment and I get live mealworms from the pet shop, my little birdie just loves them, my pet shop gave me an old small bird cage I have put extra chick wire all around it for extra security . I am surprised at Lizzies comments, we all know that mother birds will come to chicks if they can but cats can carry baby birds from garden to garden. I have over the years rescued seagulls where the mother had been killed on the road, had 2 for 4 years, they sat on my window sill knocking on my window when it was food time, (pilchard in oil) and hedgehogs and squirrels, now they are difficult, got a one eared one at the moment visiting me daily for a few grapes. Keep up your good work Ilona and I do hope birdie gets stronger.
ReplyDeleteDanneke
Chirpy still depends on you to feed it until it is old enough to fend for it'self.By the looks of it it has fledged from the nest,but like most fledged birds will still depend on the mum to feed it until it is properly old enough to feed and survive on it's own.Please find him again if you can and get him back into his cage so that you can look after him for a bit longer before he ends up as a cats meal.
ReplyDeleteYou are a kind and caring lady and little chripy is so lucky that you have found him and feels at home in your company and I would have done everything that you have done.Keep up the good work...
Wendy
Is there a wildlife centre within travelling distance for you? They would take it in and they'll know how to deal with it. We've had lots of experience with this, unfortunately by hand rearing the bird will have no fear of things it should be wary of.
ReplyDeleteIf you still want to hand rear it yourself please ask for advice from someone experienced, a call to a wildlife centre or bird sanctuary. One of your commenters suggested live mealworms, they're certainly a better idea than cat food - cat food is intended for cats not birds!
Also bear in mind hand rearing is a full time job, not just the occasional tit bit here and there. I'm sure you'll know how hard the adult birds work feeding their young.
One important thing - please don't leave the bird out overnight, I can't imagine what your thoughts were for doing this, the bird will be extremely vulnerable to predators, rats, owls, cats, etc. If you were leaving it out in the hope that the parent bird would come to it this won't happen during the hours of darkness as they'll be roosting.
Richard
You seem to have done very well by him. He's so sweet, sitting on your hand. You will look at the advice and do what you think is right for the little chap.
ReplyDeleteChirpy is in good hands for now...you're doing a great job Ilona. Until you get some further advice on how to proceed, just love him and keep on keeping on.
ReplyDeleteI was also thinking of a wildlife rescue centre as well. Isn't he a sweetie♥
ReplyDeleteYes Ilona, a few of your followers have suggested that you keep baby blackbird safe overnight. I think that this would be the best course till he is a bit bigger. You are doing so well with him, he looks a credit to your care and attention regarding the food and the cage you made to protect him. Good luck.
ReplyDeleteWendy (Wales)
You are doing a great job Ilona.
ReplyDeleteThank you for all your well meaning advice. I have tried to find a rescue nearby but no luck yet, will keep looking. Chirpy was safe in his des res last night. This morning he is out in the hedgerow. I will have to get him in soon as the cats want to go out. He seems capable of getting quite high up now, I have to reach up to him, but I still don't trust the cats to leave him alone.
ReplyDeleteHe's doing a lot better with you than he did on his own (nearly cat food!). Definitely get some wildlife advice, but keep up the good work! :)
ReplyDeleteBless you Ilona, I had a situation with a little fledgling black bird who fell out of our hedge. I wrapped him in a blanket and left him in the shed to calm himself and warm up. I think placed him in a box in the tree and we watched daddy bird trying to get to him to feed him. Sadly my little fledgling didn't survive. But I would repeat the procedure again, this is the wildlife advice that I was given when we first picked him up from the ground after his fall.
ReplyDeleteIt is always best to try to leave them alone as much as is possible, it does seem cruel but nature is nature. If you allow him to become too tame he will depend on you and he won't survive out on his own in the wild and you can't keep him as it is illegal to do so without a proper wild life licence.
If he's climbing higher into the hedgerow I'd be inclined to leave him to it, take out some live mealworms as has been suggested and place them in the hedgerow for him to come and collect but you need to distance yourself from him now as hard as that is. I know you wish to help him but you do need to let nature do her thing. With love Rachel
Love your replies, keep it up! Ha ha ha.
ReplyDeleteChirpy has had a good day, I have changed his cat food for a nice bit of lean mince. He has been flying tonight, can make about ten feet in one go. A bit more practice and he'll be ready.
ReplyDeleteYou certainly are doing a good job with him, the cat food is obviously just what he needs. You may have him for a while longer as he looks a lot younger than the two I had in my back garden last year and the year before, fortunately their parents managed to find and feed them without help from me, (besides rescuing last years one from my cat). He was able to flutter out of reach, though, once rescued and put on the fence (about 6ft) he went to next doors garden for a few days. You will quite likely find he nests nearby next summer and introduces his youngsters to you. Thats what my boys have done. Keep up the good work.
ReplyDelete