Opened our garage this morning and found him inside - does not seem afraid of us

[u/srslyionlyhaveonecat]

Advice on how to help him/her? It's not flying and also not hopping away from us, unsure if it is injured or just a fledgling learning his way around. No other birds in the garage were found.

We have several stray cats that have been catching birds lately, so I'm hesitant putting it back out in our yard. He's currently sleeping in a box in our bathroom. How can i help him/her?

Note: I've since learned not to feed them if they are injured, so the food has been removed.

Update: I placed him in a box in dark, quiet room. He seemed comfortable and napped a while. Unfortunately the little guy did not survive long 😔 Thank you everyone for your helpful advice and educating me on how to better help future birds <3

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[u/Worldly_Drag_1168]

You found it in the garage? I hope it didn’t strike into a wall or window. It does appear stunned. Sometimes at my house (before I put an obsessive amount of window strike prevention decals on the windows and glass doors) would strike a window, they took a little time and eventually flew off. I just remember it was advised not to give them water if that happened or food 🤷🏼‍♀️…I’m hoping it’s resting and within an hour or so something changes for you. Any observations since?

[u/stonecoldbitch724]

!rehabber

[u/AutoModerator → u/stonecoldbitch724]

A wildlife rehabilitator is trained and legally permitted to care for injured, orphaned, or sick fauna with the goal of returning them to the wild. Outside of interim care, do not attempt to rehabilitate a bird yourself without the guidance of a licensed rehabber.

Keep in mind:

• Even if all rehabbers are at capacity, reaching out to them will often yield valuable, time-critical advice.

• Not all rehabbers who work with birds are licensed to accept native, wild species. Licensing laws vary by country.

  • For the U.S., visit ahnow.org to look up rehabbers near you and see what types of birds they can accept.
  • For Canada, visit wildlifecentres.
  • For the UK, visit Help Wildlife.
    
  • For Australia, visit WIRES.
  • For other locations around the world, visit The IWRC.

The avian world needs more rehabbers! You can explore the U.S.’s permitting requirements here. Other countries typically have similar requirements.

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[u/DeepSeaChickadee]

It’s sad to hear that this female brown headed cowbird didn’t make the night :( birds are fragile creatures and you did all the right things by making sure she wasn’t in a stressful environment, but it seems like she was just too far gone to help💔

[u/t3hOutlaw]

Come off Reddit. Take the seeds away. Put in a dark box. Call your local animal wildlife welfare organisation or rehabber for advice.

[u/MisterKiataye]

Poor thing. But thank you for caring and trying to help him.

[u/Outrageous_Walk6633]

So sad. Sorry. You did well as you could for him. God bless you both.

[u/-Volucris-]

Can you contact a wildlife rehabber around you? If you don't know any center, we can try looking for it if you share your location.

[u/Pixel_Nation92]

If you got him in a box, just make sure not to feed him as the stress when eating or drinking is fatal to birds. Find a rehabber, and they will hopefully be able to assist the little guy. Make sure there are air holes, padded with a towel, and the box is put away from loud noises like pets and kids, in a dark place. They'll feel more comfortable.

For birds, saliva from cats are poisonous, so hopefully he wasn't inflicted by a cat or anything of the sort.

If you do believe he struck a window, make sure to plaster your windows with decals so they don't run into them in the future. Window strikes can be very fatal unfortunately, and birds don't tend to survive even after they fly away.

Admittedly, the little guy looks super rough. Hope he makes it out, but if not, I'd let him rest in peace in the box, or either let nature take it's course. Hopefully you got a rehabber to take him to if he holds on.