Help Needed with Wild Fledgling House Sparrow (1 Viewer)

[vianca]

Hi, all!

Firstly, I am so relieved to have found this forum - Google has been of little help thus far and I would appreciate some expert advice here.

Let me also preface this by saying that I live rurally in the Portuguese mountains, and am currently unable to travel the far distance to the wildlife rehabilitation center in the country, and I do need to know what to do right now.

Alright, so our neighbor's dog got ahold of what I think is a wild fledgling house sparrow earlier today, and luckily they were able to act quickly and it seems the bird has sustained very little injury. Nothing is broken from what I can see, no major wounds apart from a small surface wound underneath its wing.

We couldn't find a nest anywhere in the surrounds, so she might have already been on her own, but she still looks quite young.

I have cleaned the wound with luke-warm water and betadine mixture (an antiseptic that I know can be used on animals when diluted), and I currently have her in a towel-padded shoebox with ventilation and her under my AC unit set to 20C.

I'm wondering what I need to do here. I would like her to go back into the wild, but I don't want her to have to go out there with a wound under her wing either in case she cannot get away from predators.

She drinks the drops of water that I place on her beak, and I have also been feeding her mushed-up and pasty dog biscuits through a syringe - which apparently is okay to do in emergencies.

I have no idea what I'm doing ya'll, but I am trying my best and just want her to survive and thrive.

Any and all help is appreciated - thank you!

If anyone has any advice or if I am doing something seriously wrong, please let me know how to proceed to ensure her health and safety.

I also read that they imprint? I don't want that as I have a cat and dogs who won't take kindly to a little bird flittering about the house. And, I like seeing wild animals where they belong - in the wild.

 

[Alexander Stöhr]

Hello Vianca,

thanks for joining us to help this little Sparrow.

Your comment shows that you certainly know what to do better than I can. Thanks! So only in brackets: (Sparrows regular nest in holes where no nest is sticking out. Mage you can locate this by the chirping youngs and the adults? And the adults sometimes even feed older youngs in the vicinity of their nest.)

Ther are some general guidelines that you might well find useful? https://www.birdforum.net/threads/baby-injured-wild-birds-please-read.36564/

 

[Kits]

Welcome to Birdforum.

You could try feeding wet cat food. Could you contact your vet for help?

 

[delia todd]

Hi Vianca and a warm welcome to you from all the Staff and Moderators. It looks to me as if he's just about ready to go on his own. He still has a bit of a gape but it does appear to be fading.

They are seed and insect eaters, so perhaps you could try and get some mixed wild bird seed and some mealworms. As soon as that injury looks healed, try moving the box outside and encourage him out. They forage on the ground so just sprinkle some seed and mealworms about. He'll soon get the message. Then make sure there is some water nearby for him to bathe or drink. Please let us know how you get on.

I'm sure you will enjoy it here and I look forward to hearing your news.

 

[vianca]

Hello Vianca,

thanks for joining us to help this little Sparrow.

Your comment shows that you certainly know what to do better than I can. Thanks! So only in brackets: (Sparrows regular nest in holes where no nest is sticking out. Mage you can locate this by the chirping youngs and the adults? And the adults sometimes even feed older youngs in the vicinity of their nest.)

Ther are some general guidelines that you might well find useful? https://www.birdforum.net/threads/baby-injured-wild-birds-please-read.36564/

Thank you, Alexander!

The only reason I know (or think I know) is from the advice from my vet - however, she isn't specialized in birds - and from a friend who raised two little sparrows when they were abandoned and then ended up domesticating them. Again, not the path I want to go down, but she was able to offer some advice.

See, we didn't even hear parents chipping for her or anything like that, but I will try again tomorrow as it is not nighttime here. This is good to know.

Unfortunately, the link you shared isn't working for me and has come up with a 'page not found' error. Any way you could send it again, please?

 

[vianca]

Welcome to Birdforum.

You could try feeding wet cat food. Could you contact your vet for help?

I have done, but unfortunately, she was only able to offer limited advice. She said to feed him some seeds, but she hasn't taken to those at all.

The only way I have been able to get her to eat is with a small syringe and the dog biscuit paste I made, she also said to warm up a little before feeding. She also mentioned many of the things I am currently doing (the towel-lined box, drops of water on the beak, keeping her warm, etc.)

Do you think wet cat food is better? From my understanding, these little sparrows are more happy to eat grains. I worry the cat food might be too high in protein. Or am I mistaken?

 

[vianca]

Hi Vianca and a warm welcome to you from all the Staff and Moderators. It looks to me as if he's just about ready to go on his own. He still has a bit of a gape but it does appear to be fading.

They are seed and insect eaters, so perhaps you could try and get some mixed wild bird seed and some mealworms. As soon as that injury looks healed, try moving the box outside and encourage him out. They forage on the ground so just sprinkle some seed and mealworms about. He'll soon get the message. Then make sure there is some water nearby for him to bathe or drink. Please let us know how you get on.

I'm sure you will enjoy it here and I look forward to hearing your news.

This is great advice, thank you for that and the warm welcome!

Alright, so for the mealworms, would I be able to get this from a pet store? Or where does one typically get these from?

I really think his/her wound should be all cleared up in a few days, and I will for sure have them go on their merry way. I just hope I don't do any damage to the little thing until then! This must be what parents with newborns feel like!

Should I be giving him a place to bathe and drink now?

Thanks so much again, and I'm happy to be here!

 

[delia todd]

Unfortunately, the link you shared isn't working for me and has come up with a 'page not found' error. Any way you could send it again, please?

Here is another link, which should work: here for the care of injured and baby birds.

 

[vianca]

Here is another link, which should work: here for the care of injured and baby birds.

This one works, thank you so much!

 

[delia todd]

This is great advice, thank you for that and the warm welcome!

Alright, so for the mealworms, would I be able to get this from a pet store? Or where does one typically get these from?

I really think his/her wound should be all cleared up in a few days, and I will for sure have them go on their merry way. I just hope I don't do any damage to the little thing until then! This must be what parents with newborns feel like!

Should I be giving him a place to bathe and drink now?

Thanks so much again, and I'm happy to be here!

You should be able to get mealworms in a pet food store. He's likely to upset a dish of water in the box. Tinned cat food (not dog food) is really the best thing to provide while in a "nest" situation; the adults would feed caterpillars as they can't get water in any other way.

 

[vianca]

Just a small update, the little bird has a ton of energy now, so I think I might be able to attempt a release in the morning. It's chirping and hopping around and, I wouldn't say flying, but hop-flying, if that makes sense.

I think we may be in the clear yet

 

[vianca]

Hi everyone,

I'm happy to announce that when I opened the pet carrier we kept the birdy in overnight, the birdy came flying out of there like a bat out of hell.

I promptly caught her, so no further injuries were sustained, but I did take this as my sign to that she was ready to go on her way.

I released her on the ground with some food and water nearby, in our fenced parking area's garden, out of reach from preditors and our pets, and she has since flown off.

Thank you once again for everyone's advice here, it helped so much and I will definitely be visiting again soon!

 

[delia todd]

Oh excellent news!!! Very well done on the care you gave to this wee guy.

Thanks so much for letting us know of his safe release.