Birds should only be admitted in absolutely exceptional cases. Even if the animals seem abandoned and in need of help, human intervention is not always necessary. Observe the situation carefully before intervening.
How do I raise a baby bird?
To raise a baby bird successfully, you should only take it in in exceptional cases, check for injuries, choose a safe place, seek expert help and provide it with suitable food and tools such as homemade feeding tweezers.
What to do with young birds found?
If you spot a feathered young bird exposed to cat danger in an open area, you should take it in. If they find themselves in a stressful situation, they often fall into an almost motionless state of shock.
Check the animal for injuries and place it in a safe green area close to where it was found. Watch to see if the bird is found by its parents. Young animals that are still featherless cannot defend themselves and are not afraid of humans. Slightly older animals lose their fearfulness when they are sick or injured.
Help for featherless birds:
- put naked baby birds back in the nest if they are unharmed
- observe whether the parents feed their brood again
- Replace birds in nests of the same species if parents no longer come
Feeding aids
Raising unfeathered baby birds is not uncomplicated and should be carried out by competent people. Older young birds that receive uncrushed insects from their parents are fed with tweezers. Make sure the tips are rounded and blunt. How to avoid injuries to the bird's throat. If you still have concerns, you can make a tool with just a few resources.
Build your own feeding tool
Take a 20 centimeter long piece of tinned steel wire or insulated bell wire and double it. A steel nail about two millimeters thick serves as an aid for twisting. Wrap the wire once around the nail shaft in the middle to create an eyelet. Hold the ends of the wire and twist the nail to form a twisted rod. For a better grip, you can put a shrink tube on the bottom end.
Tip
Dip the food stick first in water and then in the respective food. In this way, insects, plant parts and grains stick to the eyelet in bird-friendly bites.
