[boche]

http://www.boche.net/bird/000_0370.jpg




More pictures here:
http://www.boche.net/bird/


Rescued from a busy sidewalk in downtown Minneapolis tonight after work. He doesn't appear to be injured at all, he can walk just fine and he will occassionally fly upwards about 5 feet and then gently fall back down to the ground.

He was frightened and standing still on the sidewalk as people dodged him while they walked. I left him and walked to my vehicle which is a 10 minute walk. I decided to drive back to the scene and see if he was still there. He was still there, but he was now huddled in the corner of a building quite afraid, immobile, and unsure of what to do. I don't think he would have 'made it' if I had left him there so I scooped him up with a large coffee cup I had in my truck and took him home.

On the way home I stopped at the pet store and picked up a cage, food, a few cage accessories. He has friesh finch food and water.

He seems quite young, probably close to flying efficiently - maybe a few days away.

He ate a few pieces of food out of my hand although he doesn't seem to have very good coordination or accuracy when he leans his head down to grab a piece of food. He misses quite a bit.

By the end of this evening he calmed down quite a bit, so much so that he would go to sleep while in my hand. He turns his head back just about 180 degrees and buries his head in his feathers and then falls asleep.

Here is picture of him doing that (sleeping):

http://www.boche.net/bird/000_0376.jpg

[M Cowming]

Hi boche,

I'm not great with North American birds but I'm pretty sure this is some sort of sparrow. Someone will identify it for you soon no doubt so don't worry about that. The bird is definitely a juvenile and not far from being able to look after itself so I would say, with a little loving care, this guy won't have to wait too long before it can have a second chance at the big wide world.

best of luck!

[Jane Turner]

It looks like a Juvenile House Finch to me.

[prairiemerlin]

Yeah, I agree with Jane: House Finch.

[KCFoggin]

Ditto on Jane's confirmation.

[boche]

Thank you for the replies.

Can any of you tell me if you think he is mature enough to eat finch food? That's what I bought for it to eat until it's strong enough to go back out into the wild.

Finch food is a mixture of small seeds. I just want to make sure that he will be able to digest those solid seeds. Or should he be eating something more soft at this point? He hasn't eaten much yet under my supervision. Just a few seeds - like 2 or 3 maybe.

He took a bath this morning in his water dish and he bobbed his beak down a few times in the water so I think he was drinking which is good - I was a little concerned last night that it would get hydration.

It's a beautiful morning and I've set his cage out in the back yard with all the other wild birds in the back yard. He may or may not be able to see the other birds but he should be able to hear them.

I've looked up some names and numbers local in my area of bird rescue people in the event that things don't go so well with this bird. My main concern is that he eats, drinks, and grows stronger over the next week.

[Katy Penland]

Any of the wild finch mixes will be fine (not pet finch food, which has additives). You could also try some mealworms, available at most pet stores. That'll give it some of the necessary proteins it'll need since it doesn't have an adult bird bringing it insects, bugs and small caterpillars. Unless you want to try your hand at nabbing a few on the fly?

Good luck! Keep us posted on how your little guy does, please?

[boche]

Unfortunate news. He went from what seemed like perfect health this morning to poor health just after I had posted the note above. I went out in the back yard where I had put his cage to check up on him and he was lying on his side on the bottom of the cage. He was barely able to chirp. I immediately brought him in the house. I reached in the cage and grabbed him. He fluttered his wings just briefly, then he stretched out his neck and legs in the palm of my hand and died.

I don't understand what happened but I am quite upset about him not making it. I thought that he had a real good chance but as it turns out I don't know anything about birds. I guess I will clean the cage well and see if I can take it back to the store for a refund.

Jason