Crop too full? Baby cant walk

Question
QUESTION: We rescued 2 pigeons that were displaced when our contractors evicted a group of pigeons that were nesting in the rafters of our vacant city home.  We have been hand feeding them, we think they are 2-3 wks old (a lot of feathers but still yellow down on their heads and chests).  One of them is bigger than the other, and he is very uncoordinated and has a large puffy crop that does seem to go down a little between feedings (3-4 x/day - Lefeber's baby bird formula)but seems to prevent him from getting up on his feet and walking.  The other baby, who looked worse at first, is much better at walking.  They both seem healthy, but I have noticed that the bigger one, who uses his wings and kind of scoots along the ground with his feet splaying out from each other, has some scrapes now on the underside of his wings at the large joints.  He doesn't appear to be otherwise injured or in pain, and he eats very well.  Can you offer any advice?

ANSWER: Hi, Tina,

You talk about a baby scooting along the ground with his feet splaying out...is this baby splay legged (do the legs splay out sideways from the body all the time)?  If this baby is splay legged, you need to hobble him.  Find "splay leg" on the internet by doing a Google search.  This will tell you how to try and help this baby by hobbling the legs if this baby is splay legged.  If this baby is scooting along the ground using his wings, this most likely explains the scrapes on the underside of his wings at the joints.  The joints are becoming raw from the bird pulling itself along.  You need to care for these areas by keeping them clean and using some antibiotic ointment on them.  

A baby with a full crop usually likes to sleep right after eating because its tummy is full, but also because he crop will be too heavy for the bird to "carry" around when it walks.  When some of the food has digested, the baby should be able to get around a bit better.  The babies will be better able to move around with full crops when they are bigger and their bodies are better balanced out.  

You should allow the crop to empty nearly completely before handfeeding the bird(s) again.  If there is still food in the crop when its time for the next feeding, don't handfeed!  Allow the crop to empty.  If the crop is hard with food, give the baby some warm water and gently massage the crop to help soften up the hard food.  Make sure you are mixing the food properly (not too thick) and feed the formula to the babies at 102 degrees F.  Formula has to be the same temperature as the baby's internal temperature when it is fed or it can result in crop problems.  

Sometimes an older pigeon baby seems to be a lot more advanced than the younger baby.  A day or 2 difference in age at the ages these babies are can make a lot of difference in their ability to do things and get around.  Often times the older baby is healthier than the younger bird, too.  Keep an eye on the young one and help it through the rough spots.

Come back if what I've stated above doesn't help or is off the mark with your situation.

Chrys

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks, Chrys.  The crop is not hard, but puffy and almost seems filled with air.  The baby acts hungry though I have been trying not to feed him today.  We found out how to make a "crop bra" on the internet, and have fashioned one for him.  They say the crop can get overstretched and needs support.  Have you heard of this?  I have also taped his legs and feet closer together but will check further to make sure I am doing it correctly. How old do you think these pigeons are?  When should we start offering water and seed? Right now they just knock over the water bowl, so I give it to them when they are out being fed.

Answer
Hi again, Tina.

The crop could be filled with air.  This happens a lot when babies are handfed.  "Burp" the crop by gently pushing out the air through the baby's mouth.  This won't hurt the baby as long as you don't push food out, too (you don't want to aspirate the baby).  Yes, it's possible to stretch the crop too far, but what I usually find is that if you've overfed, food will start coming back out of the baby's mouth and/or the baby will refuse any more food.  You should fill the crop up only to where it reaches the top of the crop.  If you see food in the neck, you've overfed.  It's better to underfeed and feed more often than to overfeed.  Overfeeding can result in aspiration.

You shouldn't apply tape directly to the bird's legs/feet.  The tape will pull the skin and feathers off when you change it.  You have to use a "buffer" between the tape the the bird's skin/feathers.  Hopefully, you've followed directions on the internet.  My website has instructions also:
www.angelfire.com/falcon/birdinfo/index.html
My website is for parrots, but the hobbling part applies to pigeons as well.

I would have to see a picture in order to estimate their ages.  Start offering grain when the babies start pecking at things on the ground/floor.  When the babies start eating grain, they will need to learn how to drink water.  I wouldn't put a water bowl with them until they start eating grain.  You should be giving them water the same way you handfeed them (with a handfeeding syringe or eyedropper, etc.).

Chrys