You are here:
- Home
- Recreation/Outdoors
- Birding/Wild Birds
- Birding
- Mourning Dove
Birding/Mourning Dove
Advertisement
Question
My cat caught a mourning Dove and brought into house, most all tail feathers are gone. The Bird doesn't seem injured in any other way. Will the feathers grow back ? pls advs. thank-you
The best thing to do is release the bird. It will do fine without tail feathers and they will grow back quickly. If they get used to humans they will not survive in the wild and it is also illegal to keep a wild bird in captivity. Really, nature knows best. Thanks for your concern.
Related Articles
- Caring for Wild Baby Birds - Rescuing Orphaned Wild Baby Birds
- Assessing a Body Condition in Pet Birds
- Alabama Wildlife Center - Reader Stories: Our Homeschool Field Trip - Alabama
- What to Do if Your Bird Flies Away - Recovering Lost Birds - Catching Fly Away Birds
- Photo Opportunity - Birds of Prey Shows
Answers by Expert:
Roger Lederer
Expertise
Any and all about WILD birds - the science of ornithology. Information about birdwatching, ecology, conservation, migration, behavior, banding, rehabilitation, feeding, songs, binoculars, identification, and careers in ornithology. No questions about pet or caged birds, please.
Experience
Have a PhD and over forty years as a professional ornithologist - research, teaching, author, speaker, webmaster of Ornithology.com . Have written thirty scientific papers, three bird field guides, a textbook in ecology and two recent books entitled "Amazing Birds" and "Birds of New England". Have traveled to over 90 countries watching birds.
Education/Credentials
PhD in Zoology/Ornithology; Emeritus Professor of Biological Sciences; former Dean of the College of Natural Sciences at California State University, Chico
©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.