Did you find a bird in distress?

Provide the first aid described in this article

For a Raptor:

First, did you observe the bird before approaching it?
How old is it? Is it old enough to fly? Is it in real danger? Is it hurt?

If it is a young “feathered”, it may have just missed its flight, put it at height to be safe, its parents will come back to feed it and protect it.
Put on gloves, it could hurt you!

If it is a nestlings of less than 4 weeks, first try to locate the nest, and if you have access put it back inside, the parents will continue to take care of it; That’s what’s going to be best for him!
If not, pick it up and put it in a warm, quiet and dark place.

Call a special care center!
Click here and here to know the number to call depending on your area (french center).

Because feeding it yourself, if you do not have the skills and knowledge for, it will be difficult for you to accomplish this task: you have to give it beef’s hearts in pieces about 1.5 cm by 0.5 cm wide and 0.3 cm thick, wild or bought mice N Pet Store (dark colored in this case) and empty them from their bowels and remove their bladder and kidneys (parents do). Then cut them into pieces: legs, head, and body in five or six. But watch out! Depending on the age of the chick, it is also necessary to remove the skin, the bones etc…
Moreover, it will not have learned hunting from the parents, it will not be able to spot its prey and kill them and therefore will not survive once free. In the specialized centers, they can teach it all that…

On the other hand, if it is an adult, if it is on the ground, it must have a problem. Who says problem, also very often means shock. It should not be fed or watered for the first 24 hours, it would aggravate his condition and risk killing it. Calm, warmth, darkness is what’s needed.
Feeding after 24 hours, by small amounts of beef’s heart several times in the day (3 times the first day, 6 the following).
But you also have to bring him back to a care center! For, the state of shock is the equivalent of a concussion in humans: if there has been a shock, or big psychological shock provoked by extreme fear, the bird can die within ten nights after. So even if it seems to get better you have to bring it back to the center.

If there is no care centre near you, or if you have any other questions, send me an email via the contact form.

For a bird:

In the form of a drawing, this site shows you how to take care of a chick who has fallen from the nest.