I live in downtown Tempe. One evening while walking the dog, I saw a bird on the ground (normal) awkwardly hopping around (not normal). On the return walk home, the bird was still there. Downtown Tempe is no place for an injured bird...this is where I am glad I wear layers and used a shirt to gently lay over Fred, picked him up and took him home for careful inspection. He wasn't injured, but did have baby feathers still in his head. After doing some research I realized what I originally thought might be a dove, was actually about a 17-day old baby pigeon.
At first, I was excited and eager to help Fred. I tried offering up some seeds in a dish. He didn't eat anything. So then I made a gruel of corn, peanuts, oatmeal and apple, put it in the blender and then put in cheese cloth, trying to feed him the way I had read about online. I thought he ate some, but wasn't sure although I did get him to drink some water. Then I made a nice nest in a large box filled with blankets, and he slept quietly through the night. The next morning, I went to the feed store where they sold me a huge bag of chicken feed. I made a gruel of this and tried again, this time with a syringe. Not much luck. This is where my eagerness and confidence as a bird-mom started to fade...
I thought I would take him back out later that afternoon where I found him. Perhaps he'd eat bugs in the grass, or better yet, fly away back home to his family. I put him down on the ground, and he just tried to fly, but without luck. So I scooped him back up again and realized I was too far in over my head. A yelp search helped me find Liberty, and I made the phone call. I didn't get a call back right away, but decided to drive there anyway and was glad I did. The lady at the window looked at Fred, confirmed he was a baby and was too young to feed himself. This was surprising, he looked nearly full grown! She was so kind and tonight I can sleep tonight knowing he's in good hands. Thankfully I read Hugh C.'s review and brought my checkbook with me so I could kindly show my appreciation for the foundation in return.
No bird too small or too big for Liberty. There were hummingbirds being fed where I could see, and there was a couple dropping off a beautiful baby heron with a broken wing as I was leaving. So grateful for places like this, because sometimes you just have to leave it to the experts!