I found a wild cardinal that can't fly. there are dogs that have injured it i'm not sure how to take care of

Question

I have the bird in a basket with food. we don't know how to get the bird to drink water because she can't walk to reach the dish.

Answer 1

This bird needs immediate medical attention.

Do not contact a vet, pet store or animal control - unless they are the designated wildlife contact in your area.  All of those are for pets - not wildlife.

Please contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator.  Check this link for worldwide listings:

http://www.tc.umn.edu/~devo0028/contact....

In the US, rehabilitation is regulated by the Federal government and State DNR (Dept of Natural Resources), or Dept of Fish and Game. Services are free to the public, as all native wild birds are protected by federal law.

There are several sites with listing of rehabbers, although the easiest way to find one is to search Yahoo! or Google for "wildlife rehabilitation" + your state (try both full and abbreviated). Also search on DNR or DFG + rehabilitation + your state.

You may be able to find a contact for a nearby rehabber through your local humane society, animal shelter, or police department.

Links are also available on these sites:

http://www.tc.umn.edu/~devo0028/

http://www.greenpeople.org/sanctuary.htm

http://www.iwrc-online.org/

http://wrcmn.org/public/default.asp

http://www.wildliferehabilitators.com/li...

Best of luck to you!

Answer 2

Yep, AR is right.  The only variation on my recommendation is to call your vet for a reference first, that way you are taking the bird to the person who can help it directly.  This is less travel in the car for the bird, therefore less stress for it and it is more likely to live.

Answer 3

Dogs and cats carry a disease in their saliva that is fatal for birds.  Please keep the bird warm and away from any stress, keep it covered and in a dark, quiet area.  If it cannot eat you may need to spoon feed it, do not place liquids in a birds mouth you can cause aspiration pneumonia and it will die.  A cardinal is a native species so you will need to immediately find a wildlife rehabber in you area to take the bird and treat it.  http://www.starlingtalk.com/emergencycar...

http://www.wildliferehabber.com/

Answer 4

Take it to a local pet store or vet or humane society. Call first, they have contacts with people who are trained to care for wild animals.

Answer 5

I would def do some research on the animals eating habit and other facts on wild cardinals so you know everything you need to know to held nurse the animal the right way back to health. now about thw water dish... i would get a dish not too high and move it over to the bird so the it does have to move much in order to eat/drink.  thats only if you can take care of it.  if you cant give it alot of time to heal then i would consider to call a vet or humane society.  they can call i wildlife expert to come and take the bird so he can do it.

Answer 6

If you take it to the vet, they will just put it down, which would probably be best for a wild bird. Being free all your life then imobile in a cage is a big hit for a little bird and it might end up killing itself from depression. You can try nursing it back to health, but there are always the risks of infections. It's better for the both of you if you just put the poor thing down,...

Now if this is a baby bird, then contact your vet and get whatever is broken fixed, then speak to them about wildlife rehabilitation and get this little one on it's way to adulthood.