what to do with my rescued baby Wood Pigeon,

Hi everyone,
I rescued a fledgling Woody from my garden about 10 days ago, lm a total novice so please bear with me, l spotted him on Aug 2nd, he was nestled at the bottom of my conifers, he looked in good health so l "ignorantly" thought his mum would take care of him, lv got 3 pairs in my garden and 2 pairs of Wild Doves, so many people say dont interfear with wildlife, so l thought l was acting responsibly by leaving well alone, (big mistake)!!
The following morning l went into the garden to find him balancing at the edge of my pond, he/she (we refer to him as he) was shivering, bleeding and had flys buzzing round him, l put him into a box and brought him inside, not knowing a thing to do, l searched this site and another for information, I hydrated him with warm water and honey, he drank all of it, l then sat him on warm towels and left him to rest, he was well feathered with a small amount of yellow down here and there, well over the following days he ate everything he was offered, porridge to start with some vitimin seeds added, we used a syringe at first then went on to hand feeding which was much easier and he loved it!!
He's now nearly double his original size and looking more pigeon like, he wasnt a pretty sight at all to begin with, bless him, his appetite seems to know know bounds, he's now on 120 peas a day with grain aswell, he's started to pick from the floor but gets frustrated when he drops them, he then squeeks and wingflaps at my husband to hand feed,, he likes to bath then sit in the sun preening, he is becoming realy beautiful,
Now the dilema, lv looked into finding him a sanctury for a soft release but realy want him to stay with us and his relatives in our garden, he knows his parents, he's out with us in the garden nearly all day he can pick they'r sound from other pairs but they ignore him completely, when he hears them he frantically wing flaps and sqeeks but to no avail, he's just started to flutter from one place to another all his wounds have healed and he has new feather growth on his damaged right wing, So, what do we do for the best? my main fear is that we release him into our garden and he flys off not knowing how to return, my husband wants to think he can mix and learn from the others, lm not so sure, Iwould realy appreciate some advice and opinions regarding the best thing to do,
Many thanks for this site its a god send,

Hi Dollyanna,

Thanks for looking after the baby, he sure wouldn't have made it without your help!

In terms of sanctuaries, here's a link to a google map that is constantly being updated with the location of the pigeon-friendly sanctuaries in the UK. However, I recommend that you contact them first about their policies and what they are able to do for the woodie before signing him over.

https://pij-n-angels.forumotion.net/t2997-google-location-map-to-uk-pigeon-friendly-resources

On the other hand, it would be good for him to stay within his own community (and near his human friends, lol!), but he probably needs care a little longer until he can fend for himself well enough.
I'm wondering about his wounds when you found him near your pond... he was already on the ground, so he wouldn't have fallen, so he must have been attacked -- either by a predator, or by an older, rival bird. What do you think? Are there cats, hawks, any other dangers in your area?

If you have the time and the opportunity, you could effect a soft release yourself, simply by keeping him safe a little longer until he's big enough and strong enough to look after himself (and woodies grow very fast, so that wouldn't take long), and at the same time letting him see/hear the other woodies from the safety of a cage or similar placed in the garden or on a window sill for a few hours each day. Sunshine would be good for him too, but not very hot sunshine without shade. He would also need to spend a couple of hours a day in a room where he could exercise his wings and learn to fly.

I've done that before, and by the time the youngsters are able to eat and drink for themselves and fly well I place them on the window sill, so they can fly outside if they want to. Generally they go out and then come back, staying outside longer each day, until they stay outside for good, but usually turn up at mealtimes for a treat! This goes on until they find a partner and establish a nest. After that they visit less often but they never forget who you are!

Good luck, and keep us posted!

Hi there.
Thanks for taking care of this little Woodie, it would have surely perished if you hadn't taken it in.

I've read through your post and to be honest I feel he'll be able to be released under your care in your garden as you obviously keep an eye out for the birds as you know the parents and the other pairs in your area.
It's sad the parents don't respond to his calls. I expect he's at the age where they would back off normally so he'd have to fend for himself soon anyway.
The nice thing is if he does go from there he will know the area and also have a food supply to fall back on if you feed him in the garden while he's getting more independent.

Often we suggest taking them to a pigeon friendly rescue centre where they maybe able to mix with others before release. This is best when the bird in question hasn't got a place where other Woodies are around. Sadly often adult Woodies will chase off a youngster when they try to get close but they do have to learn to fend for themselves and find their own mates and I'm sure your youngster will find his place in the flock if he has time to watch and learn from the safety of your house or garden shed possibly.
If you have a large cage or pet carrier, you could put him out for a period of time every day where he can see others, as long as he's safe from preditors and you can keep an eye on things. He can watch others foraging around which will give him the ideas on what to do.
If they are startled and fly off, hopefully he'll get the idea that he has to do the same if he feels in danger.
So if you think you can hang onto him while giving him a bit more freedom gradually he'll integrate into the wild.
Let us know how it's going.

Janet

Thankyou Teresa and janet,

We believe he was pecked at by a very feisty blackbird that rules the roost in our Laural bushes, he was in such a sorry state when l brought him in, he's a beautiful 5'6 week old now,

We did exactly as you advised, he was out in the sun most of the day, he perched on a low shady tree branch watching the world go by, hoping off now and again looking for his ever ready supply of peas, sweetcorn and grain, he had even started bathing in a bath we'd put out for him, but he looked lonely we just didnt know what to do for the best, my husband realy wanted to release him from our garden using your approach, then Friday evening last week a juevenile Woody landed to eat some food off our Woody's Tray, all of a sudden all hell broke loose!! from nowhere an adult flew down and alot of wing flapping ensued, we watched quietly as the younger Woody was "seen off" he flew to a nearby conifer looking very sorry for himself, bless him, there and then l thought, our Woody wont stand a chance in a situation like that as he'd grown so gentle and trusting.
So reluctantly l called our local animal and wildlife sanctuary and asked they'r opinion, a young girl called Rosie explained that they had two other woddies a week younger than ours that were found together, and they would place our Woody with them so that they could learn to be wild with other older birds already there, So Monday afternoon we took him down, we were so upset but hadnt read your posts in time, lm going to call her tomorrow to check how he is, do you think if he's not doing as well as expected they would allow us to have him back? we got so used to the little fella and him to us, we miss him, (or her)we just wanted to do the right thing, l hope we have, thanks again for your support ll let you both know what they say, xxxx

Hi again, I just wanted to say, please don't feel you did the wrong thing in taking him to the rescue centre. They certainly sound very caring if they were already caring for other Woodies and knew he needed to integrate with others to toughen up!
The option to keep him in your garden was there as he had you looking out for him and obviously lots of Woodies around that hopefully he might mix with eventually.
It's not unusal for an adult to see off a youngster. Maybe the one that came down was your Woodie's parent and he was watching out for him but as you say, if not and that had happened to him, then maybe he wouldn't have known what to do in that situation.
One way or another he will be fine I'm sure and as he'll be mixing with others, when released he'll already have some friends to follow.
I had two stunning youngsters come to my garden over the past two days and sadly they were chased off yesterday by an adult. Such a shame as I haven't seen them today.
You never know, if yours had stayed but then had the same experience, he might not have come back into your garden again and then you wouldn't have known what had happened. So by all means call them to see how he is but I'm sure he'll be doing fine. If not then you can always ask them if he can return. I'd leave him there though if they can honestly say he's settled with the others now as he will learn how to cope and it will be better if he has company that he's happy with.
Let us know what they say and thanks again for taking so much trouble to help him.

Janet

Janet, thank you so much for your advice! It really makes all the difference to hear it from someone with a lot of experience with woodies!

Dollyanna, I agree with Janet that you shouldn't blame yourself at all for handing the youngster to the wildlife sanctuary, especially if they are so caring and experienced, and can provide him with the company of other young woodies and also of adults who will teach them all the skills they need to survive in the wild.
Is that sanctuary one of those in our map? Because if not, we would be very grateful for the contact, so we can add them to our list!

I hope you've had some very good news in the meanwhile! Thanks again for caring for him, you're a very special person and I wish you every happiness!

Hi Janet and Teresa,
l tried to respond the other day and my post just dissapeared??
Anyway, l called Rosie last Friday and she said he was doing realy well and would be capable of flying this week, he's eating well on his own and is settled in the same cage as the two younger Woodys, lm realy pleased but still missing him dreadfully, my one wish for a happy ending would be to see him back in our garden one day, the sanctuary is just over a mile away from us and lv been told pigeons fly miles in a day so it might be a possibility, l live in hope, l might call her just one last time to see how he's got on with his flying, ll keep you posted, xxxx

Ps, Teresa, he went to The Nuneaton Animal and Wildlife sanctuary, Attlebourugh, Nuneaton. Warwickshire, UK xxx

Thank you so much for the brilliant feedback, Dollyanna, and also for the contact of the sanctuary.
Sorry about the late reply, I spent almost 2 weeks without the computer until it finally got sorted!
I hope you get your heart's wish of seeing the youngster flying in your garden! As you said, the sanctuary is very close, so there's a very good chance! It's amazing how very young birds can remember and return to the place where they were born! If that happens, be sure to grab the camera and share the happy news!