I knew there was a reason not to buy cats and I found that out this morning.  My kittens (aged 8 months old) caught their first mouse a few weeks ago which didnt bother me I live in the country its to be expected.  This morning I got up to a dead sparrow in my spare bedroom :( tonight as ive sat here Tarquin (my male) has brought in two live baby birds one after the other and then I found him playing with a dead one in the spare room.  I think they are baby black birds, ive settled them in a box by the radiator in the study and they seem ok.  Tomorrow morning ill try feeding them, the thing is the only thing ive got which they might eat is freeflow chicken pet food, and the wildlife place I used to work at they fed tinned cat food does anyone know if the freeflow stuff will be ok ??  Ill go out tomorrow and get them some meal worms or something.  They are nearly fully feathered so does anyone know how often they should be fed ?? im assuming im going to have to take them to work with me   I have raised black birds and pigeons before but it was such a long time ago I cant remember how often I fed them.

Any advice would be great.

Claire (who isnt talking to Tarquin the cat )

sorry I can't advise on the baby birds, but why do cats do this? Ok I know why, but like you I get annoyed. One of mine will bring us prezzies at least once every couple of weeks  :( mice usually but she sometimes steals eggs (yep eggs!) & brings them back sometimes cracked but sometimes whole! I've got another cat who I'm sure wouldn't kill anything ~even if her life depended on it. I've also got a kitty who's nearly 5 months old & is obsessed with catching fly's, so I reckon she'll be a hunter too.  :(

Hope your baby birds will be ok.  :)

Claire,

If they'll feed from you, they'll tell you when they're full!  And it isn't just cats.  Norman ate three baby Yellowhammers whole last year.  He's kept on a lead at this time of year now :(

"If they'll feed from you, they'll tell you when they're full!" -- what will they say Joe?  :-D

They are blackbirds Joe not parrots :D :D :D

I have ways and means of getting them to eat, but it isnt he amount to feed them, its how often I mean will I have to take them to work with me ...... I can just see everyones faces in the office when I walk in armed with two baby birds tweezers and wriggly meal worms :D :D :D

I keep jumping now everytime the cat flap goes in case he brings in something else -- horrid cat

His sister is so angelic all she has done today is sleep on top of the snakes vivarium - oh and throw up all over the kitchen :rolleyes:

They will not talk, I don't think.  They'll shut their beaks and stop tweeting.  They also do that when they die so check for signs of breathing.

Knowing my crazy house they will start talking :D :D  Ill try them with food in the morning, im leaving them be at the moment in case they die of shock :(

Aaaaaaw poor little things, probably just like another baby, maybe every 3 hrs during the day and 4 hrs at night I would think. Or every 4 hrs during the day and a late night feeding to hold through the night thats what I would do. Could you not call a bird breeder and see what they think? Send them over here I'll help you :D if only it was that easy :(

Good luck and I'm sure you will do fine :)

Got a neighbours cat who keeps trying to catch the birds I feed, I'm pretty upset about it cause the darn cat scares them off. Funny they don't mind us or my dogs and they stay at the feeder and tweet, i just love watching them. Wish the cat would go away though would it be mean of me to set a live cat trap so they get a warning? Not to mention all the cat poo in my garden it stinks :(

Try spraying the cat with a hose, that usually gives them the message that they arent wanted.  Tarquin came home the other day soaking wet so I assume he had got on the wrong side of one of my neighbours :D  (well I would rather they soaked him than kicked him :rolleyes: )

I have sprayed it with a water gun same one we use on the dogs :D But I will try the garden hose, maybe if the neighbours see me do it they will keep the little one inside. I also don't think she is spayed :(

Oscar my mums cat,  who is slightly mad.  Used to go into peoples houses and steal toys and underwear. His latest was stealing fish and presenting them live on the work top counter. I have many embaraasing moments of going round the neighbours and asking are these pants yours,  what about this fish?

You can feed baby blackbirds earthworms. You wil have to cut them up if big ones. Iwould leave the birds for a few hours in a dark box as they will be shocked or have internal injuries. If they are still ok after a few hours try feeding them the earthworms.

The birds are doing good, I kept them warm and dark the first night and the following morning fed them some minced chicken mixed with water (its all I had).  They are now being fed on maggots and wax worms which they are gobbling by the kilo ..... ive told Tarquin its coming out of his pocket money :D  I havent got round to digging up any earthworms yet the weather has been too rotten (perfect for worm hunting though ;)  ) It was quite sad today because I put them in their cage on the window sill so they could look out at the other birds, when I went back in the living room the mummy black bird was perched on the outside sill with a beak full of worms trying to get in to feed her babies.  I feel so bad because there is no where outside I can put them where the cats wont get them, he caught another one today, I found it outside dead :(  there is just nothing I can do, he goes mad if I shut him in

my sister found a baby blackbird, years ago & reared it & when she let it go, it was so tame it lived in their garden. He used to sit on the patio waiting for her to peg the washing out & then sometimes he'd perch on her head! :)

I am really trying not to make these tame, as it is im going to release them at my mums house because im scared my cats will get them again :( 

I cant wait until they are ready to go, they just dont stop singing and cheeping really loud from 5am - 8pm im soooo tired !!

It is actually illegal to have wildbred native birds in your possession, the parrot society no longer allow British birds into any of their show's as they can't prove they are captive bred as opposed to wild caught.

I would suggest you contact a local wildlife sanctuary/RSPB who can take the birds from you and finish rearing them as you could find yourself in some difficulties with the legal side of this, despite your good intentions.

I have been rearing young birds such as blackbirds and pigeons for years, I have also successfully re-habilitated injured crows and pigeons.  In fact the vets and the local wildlife place have my number in case they need somewhere to place a bird or other animal (last year I had about 6 hedghogs because the wildlife place was overflowing) all I can say is let them arrest me for trying to do the right thing.

(that wasnt a dig at you Schip, I appreciate the info, its just some of these rules annoy me, but then on the same note they are there for a reason I suppose some people would want to keep the birds as pets - personally im looking forward to some peace and quiet ;)  )

When  I was a child we had a black tom cat called Barney who started off by bringing the usual dead mice etc.He then stopped killing them and just brought his 'trophy' home alive....mice,wild birds etc..then progressed to frogs and toads,pet birds(budgies and canaries) baby rabbits and guinea pigs...we were always apologising to the neighbours..but at least they got there pets back!!
Archer

Well Tarquin is growing at such a rapid rate I think he will be trying to drag next doors dog through the cat flap soon :D :D  I dont honestly think he means to kill things though, he just plays with them a bit too rough :rolleyes:

The rule is there to prevent breeders within the fancy taking wild birds from the nest and is enforced rigirously in some areas. I know one guy who was arrested and all his birds were taken and DNA tested to prove parentage they then sent him the bill and half his birds were not returned. 

It's for that reason I always say no when asked to rear British wild birds it may seem harsh but having been on the receiving end of a police investigation because a pair of my parrots grew hemp in their aviary it's not an experience I wouldn't want to repeat.  Puppies - handrearing birds --------- hmm what a choice lol.