Page 455 - Hand rearing birds second

Pigeons and Doves 449

Figure 27.2 Tube-feeding a Rock Pigeon. Keep the neck extended during feeding. Wrapping snugly in a
towel restrains fractious birds but is not necessary for habituated chicks.

Another method used by some caregivers simulates the natural feeding action of young doves,
whereby they insert their heads into the parent’s mouth and throat and eat as the parent regurgi-
tates food from the crop. Load a syringe with formula and secure a cohesive bandage (e.g. Vetrap™,
3M) over the wide opening and cut a slit to accommodate the bird’s beak. While the container is
held, allow the bird to feed from the syringe. While in some ways a more natural feeding method,
this can be very messy and time‐consuming, poses an aspiration risk, and it is difficult to tell how
much formula was consumed. Formula on feathers must be cleaned off immediately with a wet
washcloth or paper towel and warm water. Formula allowed to dry on feathers quickly becomes
hard and crusty, can lead to skin infections and feather damage, and is very hard to remove.
Perform any treatments and give medications before feeding to avoid squeezing a full crop and
causing aspiration. Young columbids will beg frantically when they are hungry, and often when
they are not. To avoid crop problems, do not feed again until the crop has emptied. If there is a
delay in emptying, gavage a small amount of warm saline. If that is not effective, excess fluid can
potentially be removed by “lavage,” which is drawing fluid out in a procedure reversing the steps
of gavage. An overstretched crop can sometimes be supported with a “crop bra,” a piece of Vetrap
wrapped around the bird’s chest so the crop does not overhang the sternum. Chronically overfilled
crops are susceptible to poor motility plus prone to yeast and bacterial infections, which can be
diagnosed via microscopic examination of lavaged crop fluid and treated accordingly. Crop capac-
ity of most columbids is 10% of body weight (100 ml/kg).
Another feeding technique involves putting seed in a small container, like a baby food jar, cover-
ing the opening with cohesive bandage, and cutting a small, beak‐sized hole in it. Juvenile birds
can quickly learn to swallow seeds when the jar is partially inverted and their beaks inserted in the
hole. The young birds can get very excited feeding in this manner and it is likewise a fun way for
caregivers to provide nourishment. However, many individuals seem to become “addicted” to this
feeding style and become resistant to weaning. These birds need to have the jar held gradually
closer and closer to the ground to get them to focus downward toward the flooring rather than
upwards to the jar. Fledglings that are especially resistant to weaning from seed jars should be