update on Captain Jack

[someday]

Captain Jack seems to be getting much stronger..I'm amazed at how fast birds heal. For 2 days he's actually started to have some involuntary movement in his toes like when I set him down in his box after replacing his bedding he'd open and close those toes...this morning, I think he actually had a little voluntary movement...when he hopped in my hand for me to pick him up, I felt a little sqeeze on my finger with those toes...so he may get some function back after all.
Just a question..are they supposed to look this dirty when they're getting feathers? Anything I should be doing to him?

[charmedagain]

Thats great news to hear he making a recovery.

Do not worry about the dirty ugly look as that soon changes when there adult plumage comes through.

He looks in great form and has such a great person to look after him.

Mike

[someday]

Thanks...i'm just really unsure about taking care of him...I think i've owned just about every kind of animal, except birds. So this is all new to me! Another question...I know other caged animals go kinda nutty if they never get out..is it the same with birds? I'm trying not to handle him too much, but I just hate that he has to look at the white walls of his box all the time...so sometimes I set him on a paper plate he can't hop out of and just let him sit and look around and ocassionally let him sit outside so he can get some sunlight...is this good for him or not?

[charmedagain]

The problem with hand rearing a wild bird is that its usually very hard to release them back in the wild successfully most never survive.

The more he is allowed out of the box the happier he will be and him going outside should also help him adjust to the noises outside and hopefully eventually his natural instincts will kick in and realise he is wild and needs to be birds of his own kind, But chances of that are slim since he is so young and dependant on you.

Sounds like your doing everything correct so i would not worry too much as i am sure if he was not happy he would let you know lol

Mike

[someday]

well...i'm not setting my hopes on release very high...there's just no way to not let him bond to me since i have to feed him and be in contact with him quite a bit...and i have no other sparrows to tell him he's a bird.
If he physically is ok though...we'll definetely try to let him be a wild bird, that gets to eat on the back porch, with no cats

[someday]

here's a few pictures of Captain Jack tonight...he's getting so big!

[charmedagain]

Congratulations he is looking great you have done such a great job.

It makes you feel proud when you can save an animals life .

Good job

Mike

[DeLaUK]

I miss baby birds, thats so cute.....I used to hand raise orphaned baby birds, Ive had sparrows, crows, pidgeons, starlings and mocking birds... I was usually a last resort for them after people brought them into the hospital when they'd fallen out of nests (or probably thrown out) or someones cat or dog had brought them in, often uninjured too, kind of surprized me.
People got used to me turning up at work or visiting freinds, complete with my nests of baby birds (with the occasional squirell, bunnies, puppies and kittens ) and a small bucket of mealworms and powdered baby bird food and syringes. It was a little chaotic, my daughter used to call me 'that mad bird lady' and was convinced I would end up as complete eccentric nutcase.... I was lucky though as I had a friend who would do like a 'soft release' on them and they were usually released in 'groups' not induividually.

[someday]

Captain Jack went to the vet yesterday to have his leg rewrapped and check on his progress...the vet was amazed that he already had some function back in his leg. She said another week and the I can take the wrap off myself or bring him on and she'll do it for free because she kinda wants to see the cutie again! We also found out I need a name change, because she thinks now that she sees it with more feathers...it's a female and maybe a wren instead of a sparrow!

[charmedagain]

Thats great news i am glad he/she is doing so well.

keep up the good work and hopefully within the next week the leg should be perfect again.

Mike

[Jamiya]

"Wren" is a good name for a female wren.

Did you want me to contact our wild bird people here and ask them about release issues?

Jack/Wren is terribly cute!

[someday]

if you would Jamiya that would be great! There's just no one around here it seems.. I'd really like it if it could be a wild bird..but i certainly want to assure it has the best life possible, by being a pet or release..

[Jamiya]

Hey, you're in Columbia! That's not that far from here (suburb of Kansas City, on the Kansas side).

I called Operation Wildlife (http://www.owl-online.org). You can call or e-mail to ask more questions if you need to. All the contact info is on their website.

The woman said you need to get your bird used to being outside ASAP. She said to pick a spot, like a tree outside, and put the cage out there for him to get used to it. You need to mist him with water so he learns to preen his feathers. If it's a wren, he should be eating insects, so you need to buy waxworms and meal worms for him to eat. Put them in a dish with high sides. It should be a brightly colored dish so he imprints on the dish as a place to get food. He must be eating independently from this dish before you release him. She said baby birds are likely to fly high up in a tree and then sit there and wait for you to come feed them, so he MUST be used to eating from that dish in that location. You could leave the cage out with the door open after release.

Before then, he needs bath water in his cage so he can take baths. After release, you need to make sure there is food available overnight and first thing in the morning. You may need to supplement his food more often as well.

[Nameless]

Wow, I wish you luck on his further recovery.