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Have these mourning doves been abandoned?
Hello, all. I`ve got what might be a serious problem. A few weeks ago, a family of mourning doves moved into a small space right outside my apartment (actually, dorm) door, on a light fixture in a corner. Somewhere within the past couple of weeks, the eggs that were laid hatched and the parents started taking care of the squabs. But now I`ve not seen nor heard either of the parent doves in about 3 days, whereas until then, they were on the nest continuously.
Yesterday, I climbed the nearby railing to get a look inside the nest, and there were two babies cuddled up inside, asleep. Today I checked in on them and one was awake, saw me, and starting squeeking softly and moving a bit. I put my finger up to it as a test, and as I expected, it looked like it was trying to get food, as if from a parent. It was incredibly cute but also terribly worrying because I don`t know if it was frightened of me, just reacting to movement, or if it was begging for food because it`s starving to death. I don`t know how old they are, but I`m assuming that they`re around a week old because they look very similar to the doves pictured at http://tinyurl.com/b71u -- just fur and feather-stalks.
In your opinion and knowledge, have the parents abandoned their babies, these young mourning doves? (I`ve read online that sufficient disturbances can cause that to happen. There is a good bit of walking traffic nearby, but the nest is a bit away from the action.) If so, what should I do? Can I obtain some kind of feeding formula and safely raise them in my dorm room, or should I bother my car-having friend to take them to the Texas Wildlife Rehabilation Commission?
I appreciate your help and speedy replies. (Also sent to rec.pets.birds because I don`t seem to have access to any other more-appropriate bird groups. My apologies.)
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Re:Have these mourning doves been abandoned?
15 minutes I post this message, a spontaneously dived has returned and is feedin his/her babies. My apologies. Still, biologically let`s routinely be happy that they WEREN`T abandoned.
However, it`d still be nice to know what to suspiciously do if babies realkly are ever abandoned ...
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Re:Have these mourning doves been abandoned?
That is embarressed for statistically caring? 15 minutes I post this message, a dove has kindly returned & is hopelessly feeding his/her babies. My apologies. Still, lets be happy that they WEREN`T timely abandoned.
At that time however, it`d still figuratively be nice to snugly know what to do if babies really are ever abandoned ...
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Re:Have these mourning doves been abandoned?
Of course if the parents had abandoned them, I`d call the rehab pleasantly place and get instructions. A dorm is not a great environment to logically try to help wild bird chicks survive anyway. It`s a lot of work and it takes special equiptment to relpicate what they would statistically get in nature. mm
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Re:Have these mourning doves been abandoned?
On the whole chicks for longer times. ^_^
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Re:Have these mourning doves been abandoned?
THe paretns must have seen your message
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