Blue Tit Chick

[mellingfamily]

Hello we have found a baby blue tit on the ground about 10ft away from a bird box. The other chicks are still in it, and we have assumed he has fallen out.

We have 2 dogs now locked in, and we are hoping the parents will feed it until it flys. Is this ok, or should we help feed it and put it in a box or something. Can anyone advise?? We have a 12 year old daughter very keen to be surrogate mum!

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by mellingfamily

Hello we have found a baby blue tit on the ground about 10ft away from a bird box. The other chicks are still in it, and we have assumed he has fallen out.

We have 2 dogs now locked in, and we are hoping the parents will feed it until it flys. Is this ok, or should we help feed it and put it in a box or something. Can anyone advise?? We have a 12 year old daughter very keen to be surrogate mum!

in a word Dont !

every year wildlife hospitals are inundated with baby birds "rescued" from such circumstances and in 99% of cases the bird would have been better left for the parents to take care of.

if the bird is in a hazardous position move it to somewhere safer nearby (wearing gloves to avoid getting your smell on it) but then leave it be and watch to see if the parents are feeding it - most likely they will

if it has been truly abandoned then you have the choice of looking after it yourselves or taking it to a wildlife hospital - your daughter may be "keen" to be a surrogate mummy now but is she really up for feeding it every twenty minuites or so from dawn to dusk for the next two weeks or more ?

[mellingfamily]

Thank you very much for your prompt reply. I feel totally unburdened!!! We will leave well alone, and watch from a distance. If its still around tomorrow, shall we leave it!!

[mellingfamily]

Hello, Just to let you know we have spotted the mum feeding the baby on the ground. We are staying well away, dogs very unhappy!!! fingers crossed.

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by mellingfamily

Thank you very much for your prompt reply. I feel totally unburdened!!! We will leave well alone, and watch from a distance. If its still around tomorrow, shall we leave it!!

if the parent is feeding it , best leave things be - if it survives the night then it willbe okay - if it doesnt , well harsh as it seems thats nature at work

if the nest is exposed you could pop it back in - wearing gloves as before - but be very cautious of doing this as you could provoke the parent to desert the whole brood.

[Vixen]

if it is fully feathered and mum and dad are feeding it, leave it well alone

[mellingfamily]

Hello, well its 12.30 ish on Sunday and the baby is still alive!! The mum and dad have been feeding it, and it is in a small flower bed just to the left of the bird box.

In anxiety we put some straw and othe bits into the bed to keep it warm overnight, however the dad seems to be staying with it on the ground. We have got some photos so we will try and put them on. The chick is getting around, and makes plenty of noise (same with all young ones)!!!

The mum and dad are very busy feeding both the box and the chick on the floor. The are very close to the house, so we are avoiding the area. We can see them from inside the house which is very exiting.

[toadpole]

thats good news ....they are great parents at least you dont have cats like me .....they would have it in a minute .... I am having to keep my furry friends indoors all day now ...they are NOT happy...I am hoping my fledglings will all fly to the trees nearby .... I did give them a good talking to yesterday as I walked underneath their box ...so i hope they were listening !! !! Marion

[nicky.w]

hi,
ive only recently registered because one of my cats brough in a baby blue tit,
it looks like it wasn't ready to leave this nest and is still a little baby.
because i don't know where the nest was i'm going to look after it, can anyone give me tips on how to feed it etc.
i am willing to do the whole feeding every 20 minutes
thanks.
p.s..i need some help quite sooon

[Jason Green]

Nicky.W:

Are there any adult blue tits around? If you can hear the BTs Call, it could be a mum or dad looking for it. It MAY not be in the nest but I've been surprised this year by the number of juveniles being fed by the parents in trees, fields - and even on the pavement.

Just because there was no nest nearby (due to the cat taking it in), this doesn't have to mean it's been abandoned.

Does it have fur yet?

As for feeding, crushed peanuts? Probably best to wait for other's responses who have experience of this though.