bird rescue

What should one do when one finds a baby bird and its parents seem nowhere around?

The answer depends on many factors and is not as simple as we would like it to be.  Much depends upon the age/stage of the chick, what type of chick it is and the state of the individual bird and whether it is really orphaned or just appears so.

Here are some quick tips: read more »

Pied butcherbirds are prone to conjunctivitis, much more so than their cousins the grey butcherbirds. According to the experts the problem is quite common in the wild with many species falling victim.  We've seen a currawong and even a crow succumbing to this problem. 

First a crust forms on one eye causing inflammation of the eyelid and eye.  If left untreated, it can spread to the other eye as well.  The bird can't open its eyes and can't find food and so slowly starves to death. He/she can't see where it's flying and can crash into trees, buildings and other objects injuring itself badly in the process.  Nor can the bird get to safety out of the way of predators. The disease can even cause the bird to go irrecoverably blind.

Butchie (left) got a very bad attack a few years ago and lost sight in both eyes.  Vets will not treat a bird they can't see so there was little we could do to help.  Her son had got a milder attack before and we had treated it with a general antibiotic and vitamins and he fully recovered in two weeks.  But these did not work on Butchie and we had no way of trapping her.  All the other birds understood.  read more »

So you've found a lone baby bird... Now what?

Quite simply, a wild animal's chance of survival is greatly increased when left in its natural environment.    Having said that, what about the 25% of babies that are orphans?

When you find a baby bird, before making any decision to intervene, the first thing you have to do is decide which of the following situations we're dealing with:

Read more in the Special Edition of Wild Bird Talking - Out  Now.

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