Help! - Injured Pigeon

moondancer · #1 (**permalink**) 10-08-2009, 08:38 AM

A young Woodpigeon bumped into my window. It was stunned and I put it in a box in the shed expecting it to be dead by the morning. It lived and since has been living and feeding in my garden. It is getting stronger and has begun exercising and fluttering it's wings. Nothing seems broken and yet it still hasn't flown away in 5 days. What can I do to help it ? By the way it is roosting on a log in the corner of my garden and has been there since I let it out of the shed. I have put wild bird seed and water out, a larger Woodpigeon comes to visit (its mother perhaps?) but it isn't flying. Shall I put it back in the shed at night ? it has been out at night for the past three nights. When it bumped into the glass it lost 2 large (flight?) feathers- could that be the reason it does not fly?

Picidae · #2 (**permalink**) 10-08-2009, 10:41 AM

Sounds like you're doing the right thing - is there a bush you can put the bird in to get it off the ground? Its not unusual for young birds to be grounded for a while before they can fly and parents seem to be around by what you say. Birds invariably recover from concussion after window strikes or die very quickly so it also doesn't appear to be suffering from the injury. It should be able to fly even without a few primaries (as birds do when they moult!), it may have slowed it down somewhat though. Personally I'd just keep an eye on it's general health (ie. feather condition, that it's eating, eyes are bright etc) and get it into a safer place in the garden at night if there are cats around, otherwise leave alone and let nature take it's course.

Once pigeons have found a food source, they tend to hang around rather faithfully, so that wouldn't be a major concern to me at the moment.

valleyforge · #3 (**permalink**) 10-08-2009, 12:19 PM

Hi there moondancer and welcome to the forum.

I'm with everything that Picadae has advised, except perhaps I'd be a little more concerned if you thought the pigeon could be easily caught again.

Birds usually recover fairly quickly from a concussion and if it appears to be feeding OK and it's able to get itself off the ground to a higher roost, then hopefully all will be well with it.

Just sometimes following a head trauma though, the vision in one or both eyes may be impaired, perhaps through the rupture of small blood vessels in the retina.

As sustained flight and accurate landings really need good 3-D perception, any bird with (hopefully temporarily) restricted vision will naturally be very reluctant to take to the air.

Wood pigeons never really settle well in containment though, so if it appears to be coping alright meantime, it's probably best to leave it as is.

moondancer · #4 (**permalink**) 12-08-2009, 10:39 AM

Thank you both for your help and advice.
Just to let you know that the pigeon flew to the top of the fence
on Monday and then into a tree. He came back again last night for a some seed and a long drink of water and then after 2 attempts flew off again.
I am so glad he seems to be OK. I think I shall leave him some food and water just in case he needs it.

valleyforge · #5 (**permalink**) 12-08-2009, 11:00 AM

That's great ... thanks for letting us know.

Picidae · #6 (**permalink**) 12-08-2009, 04:55 PM

Phew! That's a relief moondancer - always worrying to leave birds be rather than interfere too much - you may well have saved it's life initially though so well done. And as Valleyforge says, thank you for letting us know the outcome.

(as for leaving food and water, not known a healthy pigeon yet who refused such an offer - you may have a regular visitor in the making

)