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The Bird Lady

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The Bird Lady

My name is Sussie and I'm a vet nurse at Town and Country Vet and have a special interest in birds. Make sure you don't put the bird directly on a heat source.
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I studied Exotic Animal Care for 4 years in Slovakia, my home country, and completed a Diploma in Veterinary Nursing including Wild Bird Rescue courses here in New Zealand. All the birds brought to us are vet checked and provided with antibiotics and pain relief if required. Baby birds are fed a special formula from the start and when they're older I start introducing natural food for the species.

I also have my own meal worm farm which is always handy to have when you're rescuing birds. Once they're eating on their own I release them back to wild at my place or where they were found. I make sure there is always food outside so they can come back while they are getting used to the outside world and also like to monitor their progress. I have created this page so I can share the photos and a success stories of my rescues. HERE ARE SOME TIPS ON WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU FIND A BABY BIRD:

If you find a naked baby bird (hatchling/nestling) it most likely fell out the nest or been kicked out by the parents - sometimes they do that when the baby bird is sick. The first thing to do is to look for the nest where it was found and if you can reach, put it back. If you can't find the nest the most important thing is to keep the bird warm as they can't regulate temperature when they don't have any feathers. You can put them in a box and create a little nest from cloth or something similar. The box can be placed in a hot water cupboard plus you can use other heat sources such as a hot water bottle or heat pad. You can cover the hot water bottle with a towel. Don't try to feed the chick straight away as it won't eat when it's cold. Once you warm the bird up you can feed it cat biscuits soaked in water or jelly meat. Pet shops also sell a special hand-rearing formula for birds. Many people try to give a baby bird water when found, please don't do that as they can easily aspirate and die. They will get water from your soaked cat biscuits or jelly meat. If you find a feathered baby bird (fledgling) that is able to walk but can't fly properly yet you shouldn't take them. Most people think they fell out of nest and try to save them not knowing the parents are around and still feed them while they are learning to fly and feed for themselves. You can watch them for a bit to see if the parents are coming back or not. If they are not or the baby bird is injured then take them. The birds can get really stressed when handling which can also cause death so best thing again is to place them in a box in a dark place and let them settle down before trying to feed them. Every injured bird, especially with cat wound injuries, has to be treated with antibiotics otherwise they will most likely die. It is best to seek veterinary help when you find an injured bird.

22/08/2022

HERE ARE SOME TIPS ON WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU FIND A BABY BIRD:

If you find a naked baby bird (hatchling/nestling) it most likely fell out the nest or been kicked out by the parents - sometimes they do that when the baby bird is sick. The first thing to do is to look for the nest where it was found and if you can reach, put it back. If you can't find the nest the most important thing is to keep the bird warm as they can't regulate temperature when they don't have any feathers. You can put them in a box and create a little nest from cloth or something similar. The box can be placed in a hot water cupboard plus you can use other heat sources such as a hot water bottle or heat pad. Make sure you don't put the bird directly on a heat source. You can cover the hot water bottle with a towel.
Don't try to feed the chick straight away as it won't eat when it's cold. Once you warm the bird up you can feed it cat biscuits soaked in water or jelly meat. Pet shops also sell a special hand-rearing formula for birds.
Many people try to give a baby bird water when found, please don't do that as they can easily aspirate and die. They will get water from your soaked cat biscuits or jelly meat.

If you find a feathered baby bird (fledgling) that is able to walk but can't fly properly yet you shouldn't take them. Most people think they fell out of nest and try to save them not knowing the parents are around and still feed them while they are learning to fly and feed for themselves. You can watch them for a bit to see if the parents are coming back or not. If they are not or the baby bird is injured then take them.
The birds can get really stressed when handling which can also cause death so best thing again is to place them in a box in a dark place and let them settle down before trying to feed them.

Every injured bird, especially with cat wound injuries, has to be treated with antibiotics otherwise they will most likely die. It is best to seek veterinary help when you find an injured bird.

31/07/2022

🐣

31/07/2022

🐦MATERNITY LEAVE 🐦

Hi everyone,
I will soon have a "hatchling"🐣on my own and I will be on maternity leave till April 2023. Unfortunately, this means I will be unable to take any birds at this time.
If you find an injured or orphan bird please take it to your nearest vet clinic.
You can also refer to my post on "What to do if you found a baby bird" on this page.
I will be happy to answer any questions so you can still message me, but I might not be able to reply straight away.

Thank you all for your ongoing support.

15/05/2022

This past season had been very busy with 71 baby birds handed in, but unfortunately not all could be saved. We had to humanly euthanize 9 due to their injuries, and sadly 20 chicks died. I'm pleased to say that this bird season I have successfully released 42 baby birds.

I want to say thank you to all who brought in baby or injured birds.
Also, a huge thank you to everyone who donated food or money to go towards birds rescue this season, it helped a lot and is very much appreciated! Lastly, thank you Rachel who crocheted and donated different sizes of nests, which are amazing and super cute.

01/05/2022

01/05/2022

05/03/2022

"Where is my breakfast?"

14/12/2021

See ya Timmy and friend.

26/11/2021

This summer has been off to a busy start; which has meant we have received a lot of birds so far....

Unfortunately, the majority have been caught by cats. Baby birds or fledglings can't escape cats even if they have a collar with a bell on. On top of the trauma caused by cats, their saliva is toxic to birds, so unfortunately without antibiotics the majority of birds will die.

All the birds that are brought in to us are checked by a vet and put on antibiotics and pain relief as required.

One way to reduce this is to keep cats inside over night during spring and summer. This is when the majority of birds, native and non, have their fledgling chicks leave the nest learning how to fly and find food.

As you can imagine all these little birds have a big appetite, and they have to be fed up to every 20 minutes depending on their age. They are fed a good diet to help them grow and provide all the nutrients they need, but the food will disappear pretty fast. Currently I fund the food myself, and Town and Country Vet kindly provide veterinary care and the required medicine. The food I use is neocare, insectivore mix and dried and live meal worms. This food cost does add up, so I would like to ask if anyone would be able to provide donations of the mentioned foods. They can be found in any pet shop, and can be dropped off at Town and Country Vet in Richmond. Donated would be a massive help in providing care for all injured wild native and non native birds in Nelson.

23/11/2021

Moritz was too fast (or I was too slow) for me to capture his big moment, but I managed to record Nugget flying away.

31/10/2021

My first bird of this season is a thrush fledgling.
Fledglings are fully feathered baby birds that already left the nest and are learning how to be a bird.
Thrush and Black birds fledglings can be found on the ground; they are learning how to fly and feed by themselves but the parents are still near by and feed them for another two weeks or so.

These birds should not be “rescued” unless they are injured, looking sick or are in immediate danger. If you are concerned they are not getting fed you can observe them from a distance, the parents should come back every half hour or so (if you're too close parents won't come). If you think they are in danger you can place them in a bush or tree.

This thrush is in an aviary learning all the things he is supposed to learn before release. He still needs to be fed and recently figured out what his wings are for.

23/04/2021

This feisty little Kotare was brought to us a few days ago after he was caught by a cat. Luckily he didn't suffer any injuries and was in really good condition.
Some food and fluids made him feel better in no time but we decided to keep him over night and assess him again in the morning.
He was given the all clear the next day and was released back where he was found.

19/02/2021

Blob and Fiona foraging for food.

19/02/2021

Fiona is learning how to eat mealworms.

18/02/2021

Blob's story is one of my favourites. Blob is a blackbird and when he came to us he was still pretty naked but his eyes were already opened. He already had a couple of challenges in his life. Blob and his sibling were brought into someones house by a cat. Unfortunately the sibling has passed away and Blob had a big opened wound on his back, one of his wings and leg. His prognosis was very poor but he was a little fighter. Blob was prescribed antibiotics and pain relief and his wounds healed in no time. As he grew he developed curled toes which can be caused from genetics, improper flooring or a vitamin deficiency. I don't have a photo of his curled toes but his toes on right foot were curled inwards and his back toe was facing forward so Blob couldn't stand or perch properly. He would not be able to be released back into the wild with a foot like that. I bandaged his foot into the correct position which was left on for 3 days to correct his curled toes. Once the bandage was removed Blob and I couldn't be happier. He was able to perch and use his foot! While I was rehabilitating Blob, Fiona, another blackbird was brought in who was about the same age, perhaps a few days younger. They learnt together how to look for food and use their wings properly. They were released back into the wild last weekend and are doing well.

05/02/2021

The Three Musketeers having bath before flying off to explore the world

05/02/2021

The Three Musketeers the starlings were brought in a few months ago. They were feeding well and growing really fast. Once they learnt to fly and look for food our head nurse released them at her property as they have a few starlings hanging around. On the day of release The Three Musketeers chose her daughter as a resting place before taking off together😊

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