birds on my balcony
Last spring, a family of birds decided to make their nest in the pull down blinds on our balcony. They lived there for a while, and every time I would come outside, the bird watching the nest would fly away, then return only after I left. The eggs were so vulnerable! One day they hatched, and I could see the fluffy little things all inside the nest.
While there were babies in there, our friend Anna picked one up. I was concerned that it was bad to touch the baby bird - that maybe the mama bird would reject it - but it seemed to be fine, as all the birds flew into the tree next door while they learned the ways of the world. The whole process was sweet to watch.
I suppose ideally, you leave them alone. What do you think about touching baby birds? What wildlife do you see often?
49 comments
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I grew up being told that it was dangerous for baby birds to be touched by human hands, and that they would be rejected by the mother. I recently found a fallen bird, and took it to a sanctuary where they told me that birds can't smell, so it was ok as long as the baby was found by the mother. Defintely call your local wildlife rescue though and get their opinion, but usually it's best to leave them alone. I only took the bird, because the heat index was high and the bird seemed injured. I was right too. The rescue said that the baby would have died, if I hadn't reached them in time.
Learn how to create a refuge in your own back yard by visiting the National Wildlife Federation.
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Oh my gosh! Sooooo cute! My brother and his family bought 4 baby chicks when they were just 3 days old from Mill Valley Farms. These are pets for my 2 nieces and nephew. My brother has been building a chicken coupe in the backyard, because they are growing sooo fast! It's been a beautiful experience holding the baby chicks in the palm of our hands and watching them grow so fast. It is perfectly fine to hold a baby chick. They love it, because your hand is soft and warm. Baby chicks need a lot of warmth. They'll cuddle with each other too! It's soooo cute to see! Those eggs that your neighbor laid are soooo pretty! :)
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I would love to play with the baby animals but I don't think it's right. There is a chance of rejection which would mean possible death just because I wanted to pet a baby animal. There was a fawn born in my backyard and left (which is natural) by the mother while it slept in the multch. My mom and sister pet it which didn't cause a problem but I think it's just as rewarding to smile at a distance. =]
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That baby bird is so sweet! I too have heard that you shouldn't touch them because their mum will reject them, and have seen that happen once. So I think it is best to leave them alone, unless they do need help. :)
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Just for some more info after reading other posts: NEVER feed wildlife babies! Try to put the babies back and see if the parents are feeding it. If not, get it to a rehabber as soon as possible. Feeding the baby can do more damage than good causing something as simple as diarrhea (which can be fatal in some animals) or something as awful as rickets and deformities (prolonged feeding of incorrect nutrition). Lots of people think all birds eat worms . . . not true! There are insectivores, frugivores, seed eaters, etc. The wrong diet can be very bad! Baby mammals are especially sensitive. Do not just feed them cows milk, kittens milk, puppy milk, or goat milk. Rehabbers have developed formulas based closely to the mother's milk and this is best for them. Also, do not believe what you read on the internet when it comes to feeding babies, as it is usually wrong.
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I have a bush outside of my window that finches routinely lay eggs in. I also have a birdhouse. I don't touch them. I'm happy to just let them be and watch the process, which I've seen numerous times. It never gets old.
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We have a jungle in our front yard (the bottom end of our street's storm drain system -- it looks nicer than it sounds -- we put a black horse fence around it, mostly to keep the kids from falling into it as they rode bikes, skates, scooters, down our long driveway). In the jungle, I have seen: foxes, coyotes, deer, racoons, opposums, snakes (a five foot long cottonmouth was our catalyst for erecting the fence), rabbits, lizards, squirrels, chipmunks, eagles, hawks, lots of birds, spiders, scorpions and more. The funniest thing my neighbors and I have seen, walking back from the bus stop with our kids, was a snake leaping(!) from a bush and slithering across the road, pursued by an angry rabbit! My neighbor's jaw dropped, and she said, "I feel like I'm in Narnia!"
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Oh, this is even true for mammals because the maternal instinct is usually a lot stronger than their fear of us. It is always better to get the babies back with the mommies. While we do our best and work our butts off to raise them no one will do a better job than the true parents!
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I am a wildlife rehabber and while it is not a big deal to touch the babies, only do it if they are in trouble. While most birds have little sense of smell and won't notice if you have touched the baby, it is always best to have as little disturbance as possible. Watch from a distance. If the baby falls out of the nest you can touch it to put it into a basket and hang it on the tree. Lots of times the parents will return to feed the baby. Just watch for a few hours. If not, take that baby to a rehabber in your area!
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We had some crazy weather including tornadoes in NC this April and lost a few trees in the backyard fortunately for us it was only trees although a birds nest with eggs landed perfectly on the ground in tact. We picked it up and moved it to higher ground and I now listen to chirping babies when I am drinking coffee on my deck. We even picked up a baby that fell out thinking we were going to cause the mother to reject it but too many predators to leave it so we placed it back and all seems fine. Oh yeah, and after the tornado my dog Angel brought us a baby bunny! We took it to a wildlife preservation group. She's my gentle giant dog but squirrels watch out!
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Growing up in australia as a kid, I had neighbours that were hunters, I always used to rescue the baby kangaroos and baby wild pigs, my yard was always abit crazy! but it was worth it.. I rescued a baby quail that was no bigger then the baby bird in the pic, but it had a large cut on its head, I fixed it with surgical strips.. cut really really tiny.. managed to get to a bird vet the next day, and they commented that I did a good job, I raised it, but it lived next to the chickens... so it thought it was one! too cute..
I rescued a huge red tailed black cockatoo (endangered) it was shot by some farmer near by, its wing was badly damaged, poor thing, it was amazing to get closed to such a huge bird, they are like nearly 2ft tall, amazing.. I covered it with a quilt and got it to the bird vet, they had to remove his wing, but he is living in a sanctuary and has quite a few 'girlfriends'.
I have 2 small children now (30months and 17months) I hope that I can instill the same want to care and help our native wildlife..
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Be carefull! I thought it was lovely that a bird built a nest under my bedroom window, I came home from the hospital after giving birth to my daughter the week the eggs hatched I loved hearing the birds cherp in the morning, my husband and I would sneak a peak every once in a while, but then the chirping stopped...and in came bird mites!! When the birds leave the nest sometimes the mites that live on the birds will try to find a new place to live, after entering our bedroom we had to exterminate because millions apon millions of little biting bugs came in my window, they were the size of a speck of black pepper! Luckily we are now bug free but me being pretty paranoid had to replace all of our bedding and lost quite a bit of baby items (who really wants to take a chance when it comes to your children). So as it does seem enjoyable to watch them, watch from a distance! I really didn't enjoy having to have chemicals used in my home, and not being able to sleep in my own bedroom for weeks. Sorry to sound so negative but this literally just happened to me!
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In the house I used to rent back home there was a crew of cats in the neighborhood. All of them were skinny striped cats, except one, which was a fat black cat. Naturally, I assumed he was fearless their leader. He only had one eye, so I named him Cap'n Kitty.
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i had just read (from David Suzuki) that it's best to leave the baby birds, and most of the time you will find the momma bird close by watching over them, but if the bird is indanger...cars, street etc. it is ok to pick up the bird and move it to a safer area, and the mother will not reject it. larger animal like baby foxes..etc should not be touched, their parents will reject them!!!
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We recently moved out of state, & are renting my friend's basement. It's a walk-out basement with french doors that open onto a full deck. This Spring, we had barn swallows build their nest right above our front door (the french doors)! A few weeks after their nest was complete, the babies hatched. I was surprised that the swallows built their nest right above our front door, since we walk in & out of it all day, every day. And we have 2 children (5 & 7 y.o.) who run in & out of that same door, & play on the deck in front of the nest. I was even more surprised at how diligently BOTH parents kept vigile over the nest, eggs, and chicks. Within 2 weeks of hatching, they all had left the nest. I did have to chase my friend's cat away several times as she tried to catch the parents flying overhead trying to chase her away. The cat caught & killed many baby bunnies in our yard, but luckily no birds.
I had asked my friend's husband about the swallows, and he said that last Spring, a pair of them had built a nest just like the one we have out there now. Those birds had 3 eggs, but sadly, one of the chicks fell out of the nest & died. This year, when I noticed 3 little fuzzy chick heads poking out of the nest, I waited a few days, then climbed a ladder several feet away from the nest. I had waited until the parents had gone out looking for food, because I was concerned that they might abandon the nest if I got too close to their babies. I counted FIVE little chicks all cuddled up & crowded into this small mud nest built up against the wall above our door!! Truly amazing! One week later, they had all flown the nest. Occasionally, I see a group of them flying overhead. The parents still come back to the nest too. And tonight, I watched 4 fawns running & chasing each other in our backyard! I love nature and wildlife!!
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I caused a whole nest full of babies to fall out of their 'spot' in a vine last year while I was doing some trimming. I packed the nest back up and situated it near where it was before and momma didn't skip a beat!
I raise lovebirds and get to handle baby lovebirds all the time, I think baby lovebirds are the best in the world, but I ahve no doubt it's amazing to hold any baby birds...wildlife rocks!
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Last year the parent robin whose nest had been robbed came calling constantly for days. It was heart wrenching to hear her (his?) cries. This year I prayed they wouldn't nest in our yard because I learned firsthand that nature is very cruel! Beth, your dog was only going by instinct, he's not a ruthless killer. However, I would strongly suggest you keep him away from the babies as best you can. It's only for a short time and the reward of seeing those babies grow and become independent little beings is so worth it. In future, if you see an injured animal, immediately take it to a wildlife rescue organization. The parent can't necessarily help it but wildlife rescue will either nurse it back to health or humanely end its pain. I hope you don't have to deal with this heartbreak again anytime soon, I feel so bad for you.
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It was just two days ago when I notice my dog ( Brittany spaniel) is digging something at near by our backyard fence. I found five tiny baby rabbits who picked up from their home by my dog. Three were fine but two of them were wonded. I just didn't know what to do. I put three baby rabbits back to their hole but leave two near by whole. I wasn't sure I can put them together or not. They do not even have any fur and could not open their eyes. It was just so sad to leave them there. i just wished mom comesback and helped rest of three babies still doing okay. I tried to stop my dog whenever he approached the rabbit hole. I probably should let him go to backyard until babies are left likes someone did in the below.
This morning I start to scream and cried when my dog brought to deck another little baby rabbit again. It is still try to get out of my dog. It was wounded. I ran to the hole and see there is another baby who wonded again by my dog. There is only one baby in the hole. I picked one from hole and the other who brought onto deck by my dog. I was not sure what to do again but I do not want to let them die. because the two babies who left near by hole two days ago were dead. I found them exactly where I left them. I called to animal hospital and they give me the Wild animal center number. When I called and ask them about baby bunnies , they said they can take care of them. I dorve to the place and leave the baby bunnies. During the two days, the babies are getting have fur and getting bigger.
Still I am not sure I did right thing to do. It probably make mother rabbits so desperate. But I just could not leave baby there. I am still don't know. What did I had done for the babies. Anyone have better idea so that I can do better next?
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i live in southern Arizona and last night we were at my aunts house we came across a family of javelina on their front porch!! they were huge and walked right up to us like they thought we were going to feed them. i was scared because they can be very dangerous if they charge at you! the neighbors must have been feeding them, which i think is wrong. we need to leave wildlife alone unless they are injured and need help-this prevents them from coming around people and getting hurt or hurting us!!!
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@ G ... afraid not! I have watched the cats lounge in our yard pre-bird nests and I would almost think they do it for spite ;) Unfortunately I can't risk the dogs in the yard right now ... they are bird dogs after all (yuck!)
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On the second part of your question, we have groundhogs (ADORABLE) and deer on a daily basis. We had a mama with two little twin fawns who was trying to wrangle them during a storm--they kept panicking and running all over the place whenever it thundered, and you could almost hear her exasperated sighs as she tried to round them back up!
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So sweet! I'd definitely leave them alone too, but obviously your friend didn't cause any harm. I have house finches that eagerly await my ferns on the porch every spring (don't know if they're the same birds...surely not? but they seem to know the ferns are coming). I have to be careful and water them at the base so I don't send a shower cascading down on the little nest.
Hope you don't need those blinds to give you shade...you're clearly outta luck if that's the case!
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