For those that have ever rescued a sparrow or starling,

[sked14]

here is some great info on how to feed and raise them.

http://www.starlingtalk.com/babycare.htm

My wife and I now have 4 sparrows, 3 males, 1 female and 1 female starling we rescued appox. 2 years ago, unfortunately, we couldn't release them as the imprinted on us and wouldn't have survived in the wild.
The 4 sparrows have their own room with their cages left open to come and go and the starling is in our room.
These birds really are a joy to keep, especially the sparrows, they are very smart and funny and they give us hours of joy just to be around them.

Pic of male sparrow:


Pic of female sparrow:


Pic of female starling:

[dixiegrrrrl]

1. I hand raised starlings years ago

and at that time the best suggestion was a brand of canned dog food.
worked marvelously.
this was before starlings became a dirty word.

Now we occasionally are called upon by Animal Control to take in orphan birds, the most recent being a mockingbird.
Mr. dixie is very skilled with birds, and has more time than I do for them.

[sked14]

2. I love birds,

there's just something about our feathered friends that clutches my heart, they're beautiful, funny, and very entertaining to watch.

Sparrows, Starlings and Pigeons have really gotten a bad rap, but we'll go out of our way to save and protect them.

[dixiegrrrrl]

3. Ducks do that me.

I had a flock for many years.
now we have chickens, but I do want ducks again.

[sked14]

4. As soon as I figure out how,

I'm going to post pictures of our sparrows and starling.
Our sparrows names are Paige, Cole, Leo, and Victor, our starling's name is Piper.
Wife is a BIG fan of the tv series Charmed, that's where she got the names.

[Aerows]

16. I love birds, too

I've handled a house sparrow or two and was glad to see them fly away

[Curmudgeoness]

5. I used to be a wildlife rehabber specializing in birds.

I have a few problems with this article. First of all, it should be noted that the only wild birds that it is legal for you to have in your possession are European Starlings, House Sparrows, and Pigeons. I realize that this article is only dealing with starlings and sparrows, but that needs to be said....and it is hard to know what kind of baby bird you have in your possession if you are not well trained in baby identification.

Second, it is always best to find a rehabber to take care of the babies if they are orphaned or injured. They will be prepared for release back into the wild, which is where they should be. Wild birds should not be pets. Also, a rehabber will probably feed insects to the babies, since we always had mealworm farms and access to other farmed insects. The birds will also not be imprinted.

I also find that even if passerine birds are used to human contact, they are still easily released and will become wild quickly. There is no need to keep them in cages for the rest of their lives. Not that I would expect them to survive if they were released in the weather we are having now, but they would do fine being released in summer.

The cat food diet does work, and we often did use a McDonald's stir for feeding. I am opposed to giving any baby birds water at all, even if it is just put on the beak. They should first be warmed up before anything at all is done, even if they are dehydrated. Then they should be willing to eat, and get all the liquid they need from the food. It is easy for a baby bird to get pneumonia from aspirating liquids.

I do hope that anyone thinking of raising baby birds would instead contact a rehabber.....and if they are still interested, they should work with the rehabber while being trained.

[sked14]

6. We tried to find a rehabber but were told that most likely,

they would be destroyed because they're considered pests.
Our intention was to release them to the wild, but they quickly imprinted on us and we fell in love with them, they're not confined to cages, our sparrows have the run of the room, their cage doors are left open to come and go as they please, as with our starling, we spend lots of quality time with them, we consider them family and they return the favor.

I know that sparrows, starlings and pigeons are legal to keep as pets because they're not native to the U.S.


What's your take on the intelligence level of sparrows? I find that ours are highly intelligent and resourseful and are quite the jokesters.

[Curmudgeoness]

13. I understand that.

I know that a lot of the people who I worked with did not believe in saving invasive species, which is what they called sparrows, starlings, and pigeons. There are so many different opinions that rehabbers have, and if they said that they would be destroyed, that is probably true. Not all rehabbers would do that though. Most of the ones that I worked with would not have destroyed any animal if it could be saved, but that was just us.

I specified the legality of keeping these bird species and no others in case another DUer is reading this and might have ideas of raising orphaned birds. I had the feeling that you already knew.

I realize how intelligent all birds are, sparrows included, although I don't have much personal experience with them. As soon as they are flying, they would go into a flight cage before release. And sparrows certainly do fly once it is time. I still laugh about the first time I had sparrows that were ready to fly, and they just took off when I went to feed them one time---shot out of the bin! I thought I would never catch them to put back in the bin. One of my favorite birds is actually starlings. Smart as a whip, and they have so much character. I know why you like him so much. But really, they lose that tameness quickly once they are released. I don't know that the ones you have are would now be able to be released or not. If you do find any other birds, try not to let them get imprinted. It is a wonderful thing to see them fly free and be able to go find a mate. Often, they will stay close to your home anyways, but they are not tame.

[uppityperson]

7. Beautiful birds. What type of sparrows are they, do you know? Great shots.

[sked14]

8. The sparrows are House Sparrows, or English Sparrows as they were introduced

into the U.S. from England, and the starling is a North American Spotted Starling.

[uppityperson]

9. Thanks. I've been IDing sparrows recently, they are very interesting. Thought House sparrow.

Our fox sparrow kept its back to me for ages, finally turned so I could see its pretty chest. I hadn't looked at sparrows much before this last yr but they are very interesting. thanks.

[sked14]

10. There's also the, what I call the Red Breasted Sparrow,

but they're called Field Finches.



Saw one of these in our rose bushes about 4 months ago,



It's a Western Tanager, a truly beautiful bird, I think it's part of the Sparrow family.

[uppityperson]

11. Western tanager. First time I saw one my mouth dropped open. they are gorgeous.

[sked14]

12. I guess what grabs me the most about birds is

how beautiful and colorful they are and how they are survivors and can adapt to the changing environment.
A truly remarkable species.

[Curmudgeoness]

14. The first picture is a House Finch

and the Western Tanager is in the cardinal family.

[sked14]

15. Thanks for that info,

wasn't quite sure about the Western Tanager.