Expert: Julia Booth - 7/30/2009

Question
Hello, I found a mourning dove sitting in my yard.  It sat for quite some time before I went out.  My cats were bothering it so I thought maybe it is just scared and that it would fly away, it didn't so I put on some gloves and tried to get it to fly but it can only go short distances. I was wondering what type of food it should be given because I don't want it starving to death.  It looks like a young adult.  Slightly smaller than a normal adult and with a very small amount of baby feathers left.  Please answer as quickly as possible.

Answer
Sad as it sounds, doves are not very bright. That's why they get eaten. If it does starve to death or get mauled by cats, it will not be your fault. That is just the law of nature.

But their dietary needs are rather simple. You can use commercial dove feed from the pet store. I can't tell you for sure how old it is from your description. But it should be old enough to drink water on its own, should you provide it.

I recommend contacting your local wildlife authorities. I don't have access to my regular links at the moment, since my computer died and I am at the library. But usually I would have that information available. Google "wildlife rehab directory" and it should come up. This is NOT animal control. They are not motivated to preserve wildlife.


Julia