How to Feed a Baby Pigeon

Co-authored by Hayley Heartfield

Last Updated: February 23, 2022 Approved

If you find a baby pigeon on the ground, it's best to leave it there. Most of the time, it will survive better without your interference, if you think you know better for it you probably don't. If you do think a bird is in trouble, call a local wildlife rehabilitation center, they are a credible service that will take care of them better.^{[1]
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Research source} If you're raising baby pigeons, though, you may need to feed them if a parent is unable to do it. In that case, you'll need to feed them formula with a special technique, as baby pigeons root (dig in their parents' mouths for food) rather than gape (open their mouths to be fed by their parents) although you may think this to be strange it is more efficient for the bird to get their nutrients.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Mixing the Formula

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1
Find a baby bird formula. Some common formulas include Kaytee Exact Hand Rearing Formula for Parrots and Nutribird A21. You can find these at pet food stores or online, but you may want to consider making it homemade. premade bird formulas can be a bit pricey. Look for a food intended for pigeons, doves, parrots or even small hawks.
- If you can't figure out what to by at the pet food store, ask a staff member for help.
- You can also call a local wild bird rescue, who can help you or take the bird off your hands if it's a wild breed.
2
Mix the formula with water, starting with a skim milk consistency. The formula should be very thin at first. Over the next 10 days or so, gradually make it day-by-day until it reaches ketchup consistency. Use warm water to mix the formula, about as warm as you would make it for a human baby.
- For Kaytee formula, use the following ratio:
  - Days 1-2: Mix 1 part formula with 5 parts water.
  - Days 2-5: Add 1 part formula to 2-3 parts water.
  - Days 5 until the bird is weaned: Mix 1 part formula with 1 1/3-2 parts water.
- For Nutribird A21, use these ratios:
  - Days 1-2: Mix 1 part formula with 6 parts water.
  - Days 2-3: Add 1 part formula to 5 parts water.
  - Days 3-4: Mix 1 part formula with 4 parts water.
  - Days 4-5: Add 1 part formula to 3 parts water.
  - Days 5 until the bird is weaned: Use 1 part formula to 2-2.5 parts water.
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3
Use infant cereal without milk solids if you have nothing else. Only use this alternative when you're in a pinch. Blend it with warm water and thin it down to a skim milk consistency. However, you should only feed this to birds that are at least 3 days old, and work on getting better food as soon as possible.
- Another option is puppy biscuits, but you must soak them in warm water until they are soft and fluffy. Many babies should be able to eat these as is, but if the bird is very young, you may need to blend them with warm water.
4
Make MAC milk as an alternative. Add 1 jar (71 grams) of strained chicken baby food, 1 hard-boiled egg yolk, 1 tablespoon (15.3 grams) low-fat yogurt, 1/4 teaspoon (1.13 grams) corn oil, 247.6 milligrams calcium carbonate, 2 drops cod liver oil, 1 drop of diluted vitamin E, a very small pinch of vitamin B, about the size of a sesame seed, and 25 milligrams of vitamin C to a blender. Mix thoroughly together.
- Dilute vitamin E by mixing a drop from a 400 IU capsule with 10 drops of corn oil. Mix it together well. Make a new batch every few days.
- The amount of vitamin B you need is so small, you can't even measure it on a gram scale. Just do a very small pinch, no bigger than a sesame seed.
- Add digestive enzymes in the first 3 days after hatching. You need 1/8 teaspoon of digestive enzymes for the whole recipe, but you must add it to the food 30 minutes before feeding, just to what you're going to feed at that time. So if you use 1/5 of the food recipe, add 1/5 of the digestive enzymes you've measured out.
- Beginning in the second week, you can gradually mix in other seeds and foods intended for pigeons.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Feeding a Bird in Its First Week of Life

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1
Warm the bird before feeding it. Place the baby in a box near an angled desk lamp with a 40-watt bulb or a 40-watt dark reptile bulb. You can also use a heating pad set on low, a pet-safe heating pad, or a hot water bottle, though wrap whatever you use in a towel.
- A baby pigeon is unable to digest when it's too cold. In fact, it needs to be kept warm at all times during its first 2 weeks; typically during this period, babies are brooded by their parents.
2
Prepare a feeding syringe. Use the feeding syringe (a syringe without a needle) to pull up food. Take the plunger out, and pull a piece of vet wrap (a type of self-adhering bandage) or rubber dam (dental) over the wide end. Wrap a rubber band around it to hold it in place. Poke a hole in the rubber large enough for the bird to fit its beak into.
- The baby will drink out of the hole, as pigeons drink out of their parents' mouths, which is called rooting.
- Wipe up spillage on the bird with a cotton ear swab that you dipped in warm water.
3
Let the bird eat enough to fill its crop. The crop is the pouch that sits just over the bird's breastbone, where the bird keeps food to be digested. Watch it fill with food as the bird eats, and aim for it to be about 3/4 full.
- If you gently press on the crop, it will feel like a water bottle when it's 3/4 full. If the bird regurgitates any food when you press on it, then you've fed it too much.
4
Feed the bird 4 times a day in its first week of life.^{[2]
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Expert Source

Hayley Heartfield
Bird Specialist

Expert Interview. 16 August 2021.} Pigeons and doves have larger crops than gaping birds (ones that aren't able to root). Therefore, they only need to be fed 4 times a day, when their crop has emptied completely.
- Check on the bird every 2-3 hours during the day when it is very young. If the crop is empty, feed it.
- You don't need to feed the bird at night.
5
Reduce feeding times gradually. Always check to make sure the crop has emptied. Typically, you can reduce to 3 times a day after a week, and then 2 times a day after a few weeks.
- The bird will likely get restless when it's hungry.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Using Alternative Techniques

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1
Place food in an egg cup or another small cup. Hold the baby over the egg cup, and tilt both at an angle. Allow the pigeon to dip its head into the cup and pull up food. Pull it back every once and a while to check how full its crop is and to let it get some air.^{[3]
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Research source}
- This process may not work for newborns, but it will work for most baby pigeons.
2
Try a 3-milliliter disposable pipette with tubing. Draw food up into the pipette, and put a matching piece of plastic tubing on the end. Cut the tube long enough to reach from the beak down to the bird's neck. Run the end over a flame to polish it. Let it cool, then insert it in the baby's mouth. Use your finger on the outside of the bird to feel when you reach where the neck meets the body. Slowly squeeze the pipette to release food. When the crop is full, pull out the tubing, leaving a tiny bit of food in the bird's mouth.
- It's best to have someone show you how to do this technique first before you try it yourself.
- Use flexible, medical-grade plastic tubing. You can buy some at medical supply stores or pharmacies. You can use catheter tubing, for instance.
3
Feed older babies defrosted peas or corn. After 2 weeks, lightly warm corn and peas. Pop the balls into their beaks individually to slowly fill up their crop. When you're done, the crop should feel like a bean bag.
- You can also mix food and form it into balls. For instance, you can soak a soup mix of lentils, dried peas, and barley in water until soft, then form it into balls to feed to the bird.

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How often do baby pigeons need to eat?

Hayley Heartfield
Bird Specialist
Hayley Heartfield is a Bird Specialist and the Owner of About Birds, a Pet Bird Shop in Montgomery County, Texas. Hayley specializes in pet bird care, behavior, training, and breeding. Hayley studied Animal Science at Texas A&M. About Birds carries many species of birds and offers grooming and boarding services as well as bird care products.

Hayley Heartfield

Bird Specialist

Expert Answer

Baby birds tend to need to be fed anywhere from 2 to 5 times daily, sometimes more depending on how young the baby is and how much food it will take per feeding.

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Question

Can we feed a laughing dove baby bread soaked in water or milk?

Community Answer

Dry bread would probably be better.

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