Help with baby sparrows please

[Shezbug]

Just caged some baby sparrows I have been watching since yesterday, they are absolutely exhausted and their mum is not answering them.
I moved them out of the direct sun yesterday and gave them a drink but today they are still hanging about under my veranda and begging me for food. They really are so hungry and tired and all I have on hand that I can think of to feed asap is dog biscuits which I am soaking and will go feed to them once softened.

My mum did not know they were still hanging about and the poor things got blown from one side of the veranda to the other with her new power blower till I realised where she was with it and stopped her and rescued the poor little terrified buggers :/

Any help with easy food to make (nothing open- it is Christmas day here) would be great as I would hate to only feed them one type of food and miss a nutrient that would help them get their strength back.

I feel awful right now as I decided against feeding them anything yesterday when they begged me for food then, I was tempted to make them something yesterday afternoon but had faith their mum would come for them.

 

[AussieBird]

This might help?

Baby Starling Care: precise information on caring for wild baby birds

Care of baby starlings including info on how to keep a nestling warm, what type of formula to feed it, how to handfeed it and how often to do so.

www.starlingtalk.com

 

[Greylady1966]

Thank you for helping them. I soften dry dog food for them until I found a women who was licensed to take in wildlife. I had them 4 days, and I couldn't believe how fast they grew! Good luck with the little ones. Let us know how they do.

 

[Shezbug]

One pepped right up after some fluids and a good feed- he has taken off and come back and taken off and come back again lol I think the younger one may not make it but I will keep my fingers crossed.

 

[Xoetix]

I would think feeding them anything as opposed to not feeding them would work for the time being - I wouldn’t worry too much about missing nutrients right off the bat. If you have dog kibble, you can soak that to soften it and it’s actually pretty decent for most wildlife (better than cat food, as cats being obligate carnivores don’t have the veg content in their food)

 

[iamwhoiam]

The Starling Talk information is the way to go. I used cat food, tums, applesauce but didn't add the egg. You can use a wooden coffee stirrer to pick up the food with, tap the baby's beak lightly and, hopefully, you will get a feeding response. If it's too cold for them it would be good to bring them indoors, place them in a tupperware bowl or something similar lined with paper towels and put part of the bowl on top of a heating pad.
Thanks for helping them and good luck. You don't need to feed them through the night.

 

[Shezbug]

The smaller younger one has not made it.
I did not think he was doing too well yesterday and I suspected they both might have been a tad dehydrated so I filled a shallow dish with water for them but I am not sure they both drank yesterday as I only saw one there, the smaller one was doing the drunk wobbling about late yesterday- could have benefitted from another day or two in the nest I think given how fresh his feathers were- some had not even opened up properly. I am now wishing I interfered a tiny bit earlier than I did but at the same time it is a very fine line between helping and hindering when it comes to nature.

The other one is low flying all over the yard and has followed me to the back door a few times and then to Birdies cage and it even introduced itself to the dog (crash landed underneath her) who has been told to leave it be so the poor scared huge hound is moving away from it like it will eat her lol.

 

[Shezbug]

The Starling Talk information is the way to go. I used cat food, tums, applesauce but didn't add the egg. You can use a wooden coffee stirrer to pick up the food with, tap the baby's beak lightly and, hopefully, you will get a feeding response. If it's too cold for them it would be good to bring them indoors, place them in a tupperware bowl or something similar lined with paper towels and put part of the bowl on top of a heating pad.
Thanks for helping them and good luck. You don't need to feed them through the night.

It is actually quite warm here (about 35C outside), we are finally getting some very missed summer weather! 1 survived and is having a wow of a time learning how to control its wings, the other one did not make it.
I would not normally interfere but I felt awful when I saw they had been blown about the veranda.

 

[iamwhoiam]

Sorry about the little one not making it. If the other baby is feathered and flying and if you think he can eat on his own then offer some finch seed in addition to the handfeeding. I don't remember how old Spee was when he started to eat seed. When he was weaned his diet consisted of finch seed mix, mixed veggies (mainly cooked corn and carrots), and Mazuri Insectivore. Every now and then he got very small cashew pieces and very small pieces of oatmeal cookies.

 

[Shezbug]

Sorry about the little one not making it. If the other baby is feathered and flying and if you think he can eat on his own then offer some finch seed in addition to the handfeeding. I don't remember how old Spee was when he started to eat seed. When he was weaned his diet consisted of finch seed mix, mixed veggies (mainly cooked corn and carrots), and Mazuri Insectivore. Every now and then he got very small cashew pieces and very small pieces of oatmeal cookies.

I put some budgie seed and dried veg and some really finely chopped fresh veg and cooked grains (chopped up some of Burt and Birdies breakfast foods) outside and he came to see what I had and he has been eating that along with a heap of further developed young sparrows that all came to check out what I put down on the grass for them.

I was so tempted to keep the little cutie caged for selfish reasons- can't believe how ok he was with me nor how quickly he started to trust me and come to me. I wont encourage it as it is best for it to stay away from humans.

 

[iamwhoiam]

If he imprints on you then it would be best to keep him. Wait and see. It's great that he is eating on his own.

 

[Shezbug]

If he imprints on you then it would be best to keep him. Wait and see. It's great that he is eating on his own.

I think he just saw me as safety and an easy meal ticket for a bit.
He has been to the door again and checked in on me, picked up some dog biscuit crumbs and then went off to forage with the other babies. I definitely wont encourage a relationship but if he is still hanging about struggling he wont go hungry or thirsty.

 

[Shezbug]

Birdie seems to have a new friend and he’s feeding it by throwing food down to it lol
I have evicted it a few times but as soon as I open the door he’s back in. He’s eating and drinking fine and when I make him leave the aviary he just goes to the other empty side and sits there watching Birdie.

 

[AussieBird]

Birdie seems to have a new friend and he’s feeding it by throwing food down to it lol View attachment 419991
I have evicted it a few times but as soon as I open the door he’s back in. He’s eating and drinking fine and when I make him leave the aviary he just goes to the other empty side and sits there watching Birdie.

Utterly precious

 

[April]

Birdie seems to have a new friend and he’s feeding it by throwing food down to it lol View attachment 419991
I have evicted it a few times but as soon as I open the door he’s back in. He’s eating and drinking fine and when I make him leave the aviary he just goes to the other empty side and sits there watching Birdie.

Oh my gosh that's so cute! Birdie wants to adopt him it seems .

 

[iamwhoiam]

Super cute. I love sparrows!

 

[Dartman]

He probably already imprinted on you so watch him and do what you have to do if he doesn't adapt to being a wild bird. We rescued a baby house finch from a crow on our roof and we hand fed her till she started eating on her own. She thrived and was a little flying flea who chased us everywhere, took a bath in any bowl we would hold, stole our food and drink, and sang the song of her people. She was Beeper and got a year and a hlf she wouldn't have and we really miss her but Nerd was so much happier when she left us. She also loved her little toys and bells and was quite opinionated.

 

[Emma&pico]

So sorry little one didn’t make it but also happy you saved one I wonder if he/she will just be by your house forever now ?

my mum recused a baby blue tit from a kestrel it fell out of nest and kestrel was just about to take off with it her dog bark and scared kestrel off she kept it in a shoe box feed it for about three weeks then let it back outside she 100% admit it come back every day same time for seeds mealworms she put out for it on pub’s balcony only blue tit that would come down eat sit on wall singing to her for a good year until it just didn’t come anymore

 

[Shezbug]

He probably already imprinted on you so watch him and do what you have to do if he doesn't adapt to being a wild bird. We rescued a baby house finch from a crow on our roof and we hand fed her till she started eating on her own. She thrived and was a little flying flea who chased us everywhere, took a bath in any bowl we would hold, stole our food and drink, and sang the song of her people. She was Beeper and got a year and a hlf she wouldn't have and we really miss her but Nerd was so much happier when she left us. She also loved her little toys and bells and was quite opinionated.

He has not imprinted- he was feeding himself when I found him but it was very very hot and he wasn’t yet flying so he ended up dehydrated and weak. He’s done well today and spent most of the day out of sight with the other baby sparrows. He is interested in us though so I’m definitely not going to encourage that- they’re a pest here and many hate them as they drive natives away.

 

[Dartman]

It is what they do here too but like the house finch we raised they can imprint and just think you are a funny looking bird and mom. If he's doing good and being a bird he should be fine and maybe just hang out a while because he knows you have food and he trusts you Good on ya for helping him out