As we welcome summer warmth and new life, let’s remember not to rush to rescue baby birds! 🐦🌸
We’ve had an influx of healthy baby birds brought to our clinic. While we want to help every animal we can, this is beginning to put a strain on our clinic and team resources. We can’t compromise the care of pets that need these resources, but we have limitations on how much care we can provide to wildlife. Please make sure to take care not to overload us with healthy baby birds.
Baby bird on the ground? 🐤 Duckling seemingly alone? 🦆 Don’t intervene just yet! ⏱️
Before “rescuing” a seemingly abandoned baby bird, observe from a safe distance for at least 1 hour. 🕰️ Mother birds often leave their chicks to forage for food, and your intervention might do more harm than good. 🐦💚
Signs the bird needs help:
- Visible injuries 🤕
- No mother returns after 1 hour ⏰
- Chicks are visibly weakened or distressed 😔
What to do instead:
- Observe from afar 🔍
- Keep pets away 🐶
- Provide a safe environment (e.g., a nearby shrub) 🌿
Let’s give mom a chance to return! 💕
BirdCare Aotearoa has created some fantastic infographics that we have supplied to help spread awareness.
