Ilkeston Wild Bird Rescue

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Ilkeston Wild Bird Rescue

Rescue, rehabilitate and release.
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23/10/2024

Good evening all.

Just wanted to share this absolute sweetheart. Our first Gull of the Year. 😊 He came in to us on Monday evening. Although we're unsure what happened to him, he was showing symptoms of head trauma. He has no obvious injuries, but we do believe he had flown into something, as he was unresponsive and with a head tremor.
We gave fluids and offered food and left him to rest for the night in the warmth. (You have to be very careful warming a bird up if they've suffered head trauma, so a heatpad wasn't an option, but a warm room was).
By morning, he was jumping around that much, that the carrier was moving across the floor. We spent the day emptying out our small aviary that we had used for disabled feral pigeons and set it up for him instead. We tried alsorts of food that we know gulls love, but he wasn't eating.
Then, I offered a mackerel loin, and he pretty much ate it whole. He turned down tuna, liver pate, cat, and dog meat amongst other food, but we finally won him over. 😅
The second part of the video is him 24 hours after coming in. Look at that difference!
Today, he has spent his time running around his pen, bathing, preening, bathing some more, eating all the mackerel he can find, and then biting me and chasing me off when I'm putting more food in for him. 🤣
He's an amazing little character!
He still isn't flying yet, though, so he has a little more time with us before he's recovered enough to fly free again, and going by his attitude, he can't wait. 🤣 💕

17/10/2024

It's been a fairly emotional day today. Starting with this adult woodpigeon who had been attacked and badly hurt, although the attack wasn't seen, the wounds and injuries do sadly match up to that of a cat.
We gave this sweet girl some painkillers and anti-inflammatories to try and ease the pain and swelling in the wing. She was exhausted and just kept falling asleep. (She was very much alive in this photo). She passed away a few hours later. Too much physical and mental trauma to recover from. 😢

The second and third photos are of a young woodpigeon that was brought in earlier. He's got a bad case of Avian Pox and also has canker. The canker is affecting the roof of his mouth but has not yet spread into the throat, so we're able to easily cropfeed and get medication into him.
The pox are on the inside and outside of his mouth and in his nostrils, which is affecting his ability to breathe without his beak open. He's in a very bad way, but we're keeping him as calm and comfortable as possible. There's no specific treatment for Pox, although many people suggest using iodine and Coldsore products.
We've started him on Metronidazole for the canker, metacam for pain management, and have given him 50ml formula via a cropfeed. We're keeping our fingers crossed that he's able to battle through these illnesses and one day be free again. 💕

(I've been asked a few times about paypal, so I'll pop the link down here. 😊 ).

https://www.paypal.me/RiversWBRescue

10/10/2024

I was delightfully surprised to receive this baby pigeon earlier. Travelled all the way from Sheffield. He's now halfway out of the egg, but we're monitoring him in case he does have any difficulties.
It's moments like this that we're glad to always have an incubator set up and ready to go.
We don't know if he'll make it, but this is way too precious not to share. 🥹💕

10/10/2024

Good evening, everyone.

I wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who was able to help with Hope's surgery. Whether it be sharing or donating, she made it through her surgery and was brought home to us today. The vet did an absolutely amazing job. (Thank you, Franc!).
(And thank you, Jay, for the endless help, advice and support, transporting her to and from surgery, and taking care of her for the two nights she was with you. We'd all be lost without you ❤️ )

You can't even tell Hope has been through what she has. She's back to acting how she was before it happened. Always very quick to huff at you for going too close to her, and makes it very clear she still has one good wing. Although tonight she tolerated head strokes. We must be growing on her. 😅

So thank you, everyone who helped save her life. She'll stay with us as a permanent resident now, and when she's recovered, she'll be joining our disabled pigeon, Chance. 😊💕

08/10/2024

Fundraising plea 🙏

This little sweetheart is Hope. She sadly had her wing ripped off by a cat in a horrific attack.
She was on our property when the cat came in and grabbed her. The first picture is when I'd just picked her up.
It is very graphic, but this is the reality of letting cats roam free.

I thought there was no hope for her, that it was a death sentence, and I was so angry that once again, I would be losing a bird to someone's cat.

We immediately gave her Metacam for pain relief and some antibiotics while we worked out what we could do.
My amazing friend and fellow rehabber Jay, got her booked straight in with a vet to have the remains of the wing amputated so she still has a chance at life.
Jay drove all the way down from Sheffield to collect Hope and get her to an amazing vet who is always happy to help wildlife.
She's booked in for surgery tomorrow morning. The surgery is going to cost a total of £150, and we're trying hard to raise funds to help towards it, as well as medication for while she's recovering.
Thank you in advance to anyone who can help. Even £1 helps towards surgery. 🙏

The second picture is of our little Hope before she left for her journey to sheffield and surgery. We're very worried about her, but we have hope that she's going to be okay. She will then remain with us permanently and join others who aren't able to be released. 🤞💕

https://www.paypal.me/RiversWBRescue

06/10/2024

We're very happy to say that we've had 32 releases so far in the last few weeks. (We've had to work between the awful weather we've had, but we've watched 32 fly free). Including pigeons, Doves, Jackdaws, and magpies.
Some of these we raised from newly hatched. Some we got as fledgelings that needed raising a little more before venturing into the world. Some have been juveniles that just needed a safe space for a few months before release. The others were some of our poorly pigeons who came in needing treatment. All of our Nottingham pigeons that the lovely Colleen saved too. Every single one of the Nottingam 15 got better and are now free. 😊
We also have 18 in the release aviary, who aren't quite ready to go yet, but will be soon. 😊

We've dealt with canker, pox, paratyphoid, fly strike, coccidiosis, Ornithosis, adenovirus, Circovirus, Sour Crop and many more illnesses.
We've had missing wings, missing legs, missing eyes, scalped birds, and those attacked by predators.
(May I add for those worried about getting sick from birds, primarily pigeons, neither myself nor my family have caught anything or become ill due to the birds since we first started). If you do find one that needs help, please don't be afraid of touching them. As long as you wash your hands afterwards (which is suggested even for touching dogs and cats), you will be absolutely fine.

We have, too, had some heartbreaking moments, severely injured birds, birds with awful flystrike in their ears and nostrils. I couldn't tell you how many times this year I had to cradle and soothe a dying bird because there was nothing I could do to save them. It's been emotional for sure and there have been so many moments that I've said I can't keep doing it, but I can't imagine life without birds, we just have to push through all the pain and tears and keep going. We've lost lots, but we've also saved and released hundreds, and that's what we have to focus on to keep moving forward. 💕

It's that time of year when we have to start weather-proofing our aviaries, runs, and outdoor enclosures.
Starting with our releasable pigeon aviary. For the inside, we've installed rods and curtains that we can close over at night or when the weather is really bad. We're also looking at panels for the outside.
We've just purchased more snugglesafe heatpads for our hospital wing residents, so we can help them stay warm as it gets colder.
If anyone would like to donate anything from our wishlist towards our birdies care, that would be amazing and really appreciated. I've redone the amazon wishlist with items we use on a daily basis.
Thank you in advance. ☺️

https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/1SV67RV1A5U3U?ref_=wl_share

03/10/2024

Following on from my post about canker, this little gem is a perfect example of how the right medication and care can get them better, even in the most severe cases.
When little Woody came in a week ago, his entire mouth and throat were full of canker. He was already having difficulty breathing due to how advanced the canker was.
I was told by multiple people to have him put to sleep because it was too bad for him to recover, and there was no point in trying.
While we knew as long as we could get a tiny feeding tube down his throat and passed the canker, there was a chance for him. He's been having meds every day and is being cropfed formula twice a day. The difference is amazing. He's no longer struggling to breathe and is getting back to being a normal woody. He still has a long way to go before he's ready for release, but he's proof that they always deserve a chance at recovery. 💕

01/10/2024

Today has been so busy due to the rain that doesn't seem to have stopped since yesterday. We've quite literally had a bird come in every hour since 9:30 this morning.

The first absolutely stunning pigeon is Betty. Thank you to Steve for bringing her to us. She's such a friendly, gentle girl.
She does unfortunately have the start of avian pox, and a small injury to the tip of one wing.
She will be quarantined now until the pox have cleared up, and then will most likely be staying with us in the aviary, as she isn't a wild bird.

The second little pidge was brought in due to neurological issues, which is causing her to have a head tremor, and is struggling to eat by herself.
She will also need to be quarantined for a minimum of 6 weeks, and may need supportive care such as probiotics and cropfeeds while she recovers.

Our third pigeon is called Hale and was actually one of our releases in August. He was caught in the rain and luckily landed in the garden of someone who cared. They took Hale in overnight, kept him warm, safe, fed and watered, and posted him online this morning. They were only two streets away from us, so we walked around and collected him.
Most of our releases come back everyday for food, water and shelter, but we hadn't seen Hale since the week after he was released. Beyond pleased that he's okay, and greatful to the family who showed him nothing but kindness. ❤️

Our 4th birdy isn't a pigeon. He's a young magpie. He was brought in today after being found in an awful state. He's missing one leg, which is already completely healed where it was severed, and so is an old injury. He's going through a bad moult and has been attacked by something. Poor little guy has been through it all. He'll be with me for a while so he can recover, put some weight on, and become stronger, and then I'm hoping to secure him a place in a disabled aviary with others. (Sue, Bird rescue an rehabilitation chesterfield 🙏😅)

We've had other pigeons in that I don't have photos of, simply because they were in an awful way, or were stressing out too much to try. (Mainly older woodpigeons).

We're expecting tomorrow to be just as busy as today, so please be patient if we take a little while to respond. Also, please note that we aren't able to collect unless in walking distance. We used to take taxis or busses everywhere to collect, but had to stop due to the financial issues it caused.

Thank You everyone for the neverending support. 💕

30/09/2024

This poor adult woodpigeon was due to be brought to us tomorrow morning, but was picked up and brought to us tonight by Laurian instead, and we're so glad and thankful he was.
He somehow escaped a SparrowHawk. He's had his back plucked, feathers ripped out on both wings, and has some nasty lacerations to his sides.
We've started him on pain relief, and he's settled warm and safe for the night.
We're hoping he will recover well enough to be released again but aren't yet sure if there is any permanent damage. Although he still seemed to be in shock when he got here, it's extremely important to keep adult woodpigeons calm, as they easily stress themselves to death.
We're keeping everything crossed for this sweet woody. 🤞💕

30/09/2024

These two beautiful little babies joined us today. The first is a healthy (bitey, wingslappy, beakclicking) fledgeling woodpigeon. He is so brave and fierce and has made it clear that he's in charge. 😅
Thankyou to my lovely friend Lyly (Lyly's Parrot Care Services ) for going out and catching him and transporting him to us.
I appreciate it as always, even though he clearly does not. 😅

The second baby has swelling to one eye and blood around his nostrils. It was thought that he may have been hit by a car, but he has no serious injuries.
He is a lot calmer and much more accepting of being touched and cropfed, and there's already an improvement in his poorly eye since being started on anti-inflammatories.
These babies will be handreared, weaned, and go into one of the aviaries to prepare for release into the big wide world. 💕

I also wanted to add that due to the current rain and wind, it's likely there will be lots of these little guys and girls that have been blown out of their nests.
I've been sitting here watching the rain for a while, worrying about all those poor babies that have been blown down and are sitting in puddles cold and scared. 😢
Please keep an extra lookout over the next few days for these babies. They need our help more than ever at times like this. 🙏

30/09/2024

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28/09/2024

I feel this is a very important subject to raise awareness about right now, as 9/10 pigeons we're getting have this.

Trichomonas. Aka Canker. Protozoan parasite.

Symptoms of canker include:

Yellow cheese-like lesions in the mouth, throat, or crop. If advanced, you can see swelling around the lower beak. (As seen in the first 2 pictures).

Difficulty swallowing, later moving on to difficultly breathing as the canker covers the airway.

Lethargy followed by weight loss, as everything eaten gets stuck in the canker and blocks the throat up. (As seen in picture 3 and 4).

Vomiting

Drooling saliva

Fluffed up plumage

Regurgitating food

Moisture/gunk around the beak and sometimes nostrils.

Foul odour from the mouth. Can be smelled even with the beak closed.

It is treatable, there are various treatments of different strengths that we can use to try and help the bird recover. The sooner it's caught, the sooner we can start treatment and the better chance they have at recovery.

If you find a grounded pigeon, especially a young fledgling/juvenile pigeon and you're not sure if you should just leave it alone or if it needs help, the first thing you can do is gently open the beak and check to see if there is any canker visible.
Then when you do contact a rescue for advice, you can let them know that yes they are a fledgling, but they have canker so do need rescuing, and not just leaving alone. Without treatment, the canker will end up killing them.

The two woodies pictures are still with us and slowly getting better.
Upon arrival we cleaned all of the food out of their mouths. (This has to be done very gently as knocking the canker can cause them to bleed badly which they end up inhaling, and then aspirate on their own blood).
Once the mouth is as clear as it can safely be, we find a way through the canker into the crop. They're given medication and a cropfeed (a tube down the throat and straight into the crop) of formula to help keep them going while their little bodies start battling the canker.
They don't always survive it, and I didn't think these two would, but we gave them a chance and they're both slowly getting better. 😊💕

11/09/2024

Good evening, guys.
It has been a chaotic week. We've had 36 poorly or injured pigeons in alone. All with a variety of different symptoms and illnesses. (As well as a couple of cat attacked racers whose 'owners' don't want back). We currently have 24 on antibiotics that have come in really poorly. Over 30 of them also have canker, some more advanced than others. Some are recovering well, whereas others are needing to be cropfed as the canker is that bad, they can't eat. There are many different treatments for canker, some can be bought on places like amazon, and others have to be vet prescribed. (We had two vet appointments yesterday). We will always try all we can to save these sweet birds, and there are some good vets out there that will treat wildlife.

14 of these beautiful poorly pigeons have come from the old fountains in Nottingham. All displaying the same symptoms. Most of them, with their eyes sealed shut, some with canker lesions, alot of them emaciated and too weak to eat alone. All are now receiving treatment, and we hope we can help all of them recover and finally be released again.
All 14 were picked up and saved by a lovely lady called Colleen that I recently met.
For those who go to Nottingham and feed the pigeons, (or just go to Nottingham, you can't really miss them), you will know there are hundreds of pigeons that live there. Day by day, they're all slowly getting poorly, and there are more and more needing help, but not enough rescues or rehabbers for them to go to.
We try to take every bird we're asked to, especially pigeons, as we know most rescues are currently full. But we're almost at our limit on how many we can house, treat, and care for, as well as financially support.
We had some amazing, kind donations over summer, and we were able to cover vet trips, aviary changes, food, and medication, but we've slowly run out of funds.
I always hate asking, but if anyone is able to help with donations, whether it be paypal, bank transfer, or even dropping off food and other supplies, that would be amazing and so greatly appreciated and helpful.
(Thankyou to the ladies who stopped by today with donations. Your help and kindness means so much to us ☺️).

I am behind on some messages, and I really do apologise if I haven't been able to help you, we are stretched to the limit, but still trying to help with all we can.
(Please note that we don't have transport to do collections. It isn't that we don't care. This isn't a paid job, we do it voluntarily because we have the knowledge and experience to make a difference, and because we need to be a voice for the voiceless 😊). 💕

https://www.paypal.me/RiversWBRescue

09/09/2024

This beautiful young woodpigeon was posted on a pigeon rescue group this morning after being seen in Nottingham, just laying on the floor outside of some shops. His finder wasn't able to take him into work with her, but did what she could to find some help for him.
An amazing lady that I've recently met got her children ready and got straight onto public transport to find him.
She found him and took him home, and then a lady who transports for another lovely rehabber I know, went and collected him and brought him to us.
(You are both angels, Thank You❤️)

Although we were originally told that his eyes had been pecked out, they are both intact and uninjured.
He had dried blood around his nostrils, and blood at the back of his throat.
He's showing signs of head trauma, and I shouldn't really speculate on how that may have happened, but I do have an idea. 😔

We gave him some pain relief and anti-inflammatories, cropfed him, and settled him down with a heatpad.
He has since opened his eyes, stood up, and started walking around. We think he's going to be okay. 😊

Thank you for the fast actions of everyone involved in saving this sweet babies life. 💕

08/09/2024

These two sweeties came in last night.
The first is a very young feral pigeon who had been badly attacked by what we believe was a crow. (They always go straight for the eyes and head) Both his eyes were injured, and he had been scalped. We're currently unsure whether he's lost his eyes. He's on medication, but he's critical. We're using heatpads as he's not able to keep himself warm, and he's being cropfed to try and keep his energy up and give his body what it needs to help him recover.

The second is an older collared dove who had also been attacked. His left eye has been injured. He was cold and lethargic last night, but after some rest and food, he made a break for it earlier by flying out of his enclosure.
We can't yet tell if his eye had been permanently damaged, so are unsure as to whether or not he will be able to be released once healed, but we're doing all we can to give him the best chance at rehabilitation. 💕

Although breeding season is finally coming to a close, (Minus pigeons and doves who breed all year around), we're still receiving over 30 messages a day for injured or poorly pigeons, so please be patient if your message isn't seen, and please feel free to send us another message if you are still needing help. We really are doing our best. ❤️

Just over a week ago, we had over 22 releases, which is fantastic. However, we've taken more than that back in, in the last 4 days alone. We've managed to fill every carrier for 3 days straight, but we are finding space for more as we go.

A big thankyou to those of you who find and rescue these poorly and injured birds. Thank you for picking them up and giving them a chance. You guys are also such an important part of rescue and their journey's. 💕

07/09/2024

This little guy is Dino-Nugget.
He was taken home by a cat the day he hatched and was brought to us.
He was absolutely tiny, and to start with was only taking 0.2ml of formula at a time.
His eyes were sealed. He had the quietest little 'squeak', and he absolutely stole my heart from day one.
He is now 9 days old. His eyes are open, he's taking 3ml of formula at a time now. When he see's me, he runs out of his little nest in the incubator and flaps and Squeaks at the door until I feed him.
He still has a long way to go, but we're confident he's going to grow up into a very happy, healthy pigeon. 🥹💕

07/09/2024

We haven't posted in a while, but we've still been working hard every day.
This beautiful little Dove was brought into us a couple of weeks ago, after being found grounded and covered in ticks.
Her finders removed all they could find before bringing her to us.
She could barely stand up. She couldn't hold her head up, and her eyes were swollen shut. We found more ticks that we safely removed.
She was on a heatpad constantly and was cropfed with formula and critical care 3 times a day.
She slowly started to get better and began feeding herself again.
When I first saw her, I didn't think she would make it, but we will always try.
Here she is now. On the highest perch in the aviary. She is completely healthy again, is taking care of herself, and is always flying around the aviary every time I go out to check on them all.
She's ready to be released back into the world. 😊💕

12/08/2024

Morning, guys.

I am so sorry for the lack of posts and updates. We're coming to the end of the breeding season, and we're all exhausted. (Rehabbers everywhere).
There are no holidays and no days off. We knew this year was going to be busy, but we underestimated how busy.
(The next time I say, "I can't wait for breeding season to start".. 😆

We've had over 50 birds come in since our last post. With 95% of them being injured/orphaned woodpigeons.
We have lots we're still handrearing, we have an aviary full that we've raised which are preparing for release.
We also have 19, who are from other rehabbers whom we offer soft-release aviary space to.
We have 3 jackdaws and 2 Jay's, who will all be released next month, and 2 magpies that we've raised that will be released at the end of next month/early October.

The baby songbirds are slowing down, but the ducklings and pigeons are still coming.

I also want to say a huge thank you to the person who donated us a large shed to use as a new hospital wing. It's double the size of our old one, so our capacity has double.

To the lady that dropped by last week with a box of biscuits for us, thank you so much. We enjoyed them after a long day working on the aviaries. 💕

Apologies for any messages gone unanswered. If you're still needing help, please drop us another message. 😊

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Good evening all. Just wanted to share this absolute sweetheart. Our first Gull of the Year. 😊 He came in to us on Monday evening. Although we're unsure what happened to him, he was showing symptoms of head trauma. He has no obvious injuries, but we do believe he had flown into something, as he was unresponsive and with a head tremor. We gave fluids and offered food and left him to rest for the night in the warmth. (You have to be very careful warming a bird up if they've suffered head trauma, so a heatpad wasn't an option, but a warm room was). By morning, he was jumping around that much, that the carrier was moving across the floor. We spent the day emptying out our small aviary that we had used for disabled feral pigeons and set it up for him instead. We tried alsorts of food that we know gulls love, but he wasn't eating. Then, I offered a mackerel loin, and he pretty much ate it whole. He turned down tuna, liver pate, cat, and dog meat amongst other food, but we finally won him over. 😅 The second part of the video is him 24 hours after coming in. Look at that difference! Today, he has spent his time running around his pen, bathing, preening, bathing some more, eating all the mackerel he can find, and then biting me and chasing me off when I'm putting more food in for him. 🤣 He's an amazing little character! He still isn't flying yet, though, so he has a little more time with us before he's recovered enough to fly free again, and going by his attitude, he can't wait. 🤣 💕

I was delightfully surprised to receive this baby pigeon earlier. Travelled all the way from Sheffield. He's now halfway out of the egg, but we're monitoring him in case he does have any difficulties. It's moments like this that we're glad to always have an incubator set up and ready to go. We don't know if he'll make it, but this is way too precious not to share. 🥹💕

This absolutely precious baby called Knuckles was rescued by a lovely little lad called Oscar. He fell from the roof of a house onto a bin, along with his sibling, who was sadly already deceased. His rescuers got him nice and comfy with a heatpad and put him in the airing cupboard to keep him warm while they found help. He came in last night, ate lots, had a good first night in the incubator, and was ready to start eating as soon as it started getting light. He is the tiniest little bird I think I've ever seen, and we believe him to be a finch of some sort, but aren't 100%. We'll know for sure as he gets older. 🤞 for this little baby, we're so full of hope that he'll make it, and look forward to seeing him grow and change. 💕

UPDATE: A lot of people have been asking about our little pigeon that was deliberately kicked by a 'person'. He came in with his head swollen, his eyes swollen bigger than I've ever seen, a beak injury. He was starving, cold, and wet. Absolutely petrified of us. I didn't think he'd pull through. Not with what he had done to him. But two days of love and nursing. Two days of tubefeeds, pain relief, heatpads, reassurance, and gentleness, two amazing days of loving this little guy, and look at him now. He runs to my hand now instead of cowering away, he's preening himself, and he's attempting to eat again. I didn't think he'd ever recover, but just look at him. I named him 'Journey' in the hope he would recover and still have a journey through life to make, and I'm hopeful that we'll stay a part of each others journey for a long time. 💕

Congratulations Mandy on number 26! (Will send you the money now. Please comment when you've recieved it. =)). Thankyou Zoe 💕 Edit: We're full now. Just working out the last 10 numbers, and will add an updated picture. Morning guys. We're still waiting on this card filling up so it can be drawn. These are the numbers left, if you'd like to play 😊 Please comment the number/s you want on here, and then send the stake to paypal, and your name will be added to your chosen number. https://www.paypal.me/RiversWBRescue (Please send as family and friends, as paypal takes a % if sent as business). Number 6 re-available due to no payment/communication.

The 4 little babies that came in to us. All feeding and growing beautifully. Sweetest little birds. We were unsure what they were originally, but now they have some colour, we believe they're Goldfinches. It's a privilege to be getting to raise these little guys, and I'm going to be so lost without feeding them every few hours, once they're weaned and released. 🥹 💕 (Will post picture of colours in comments)

A pair of Ferals we released last week. They came in separately with different Injuries, but bonded and were released together. It was both a happy and sad day. We've loved having them and will miss them. But seeing them fly free together made me realise why we started doing this. ❤

Our permanent resident Precious playing 'got your beak'. Alot of people don't realise that even pigeons enjoy love and enjoy playing. We've done this with him since he was a baby, and he'll fly over to you to play. Pigeons are amazing birds and worth the same as any other species. They deserve alot more love and respect than they get. 💕

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