Blue Jay chick advice (wildlife & long, not pet or stock),

[Dipsy Doodle Doo]

Hi! I surprised a cat coming down the lane a couple of days ago with what I thought was one of my chicks in her mouth. Combination of me hollering like a banshee and throwing rocks (stray from down the road that has kittens again) caused cat to drop *it* in the bushes.
It wasn't one of my chicks, but a Blue Jay chick. Didn't see any visable wounds and didn't know exactly where the cat grabbed the chick, so took it a way back down the lane and left it to see if the parents were going to answer it's calling.
We have lots of Jays that nest here and Crows that delight in raiding Blue Jay nests and stealing the chicks. I think this chick might have been knocked down / abandoned the nest when it was raided and the cat was just being opportunistic. No sign of parents answering it and it was at risk of being nabbed (again) by a predator or on the ground, the ants.

I didn't expect it to make it through the first night...
But this child is voracious! I was afraid of over-feeding it because it will eat every time I walk by --- a cricket, worm, or a piece of scrambled egg.
It's thriving and sprouting feathers all over.
Funny thing is Darby has adopted it and it is one of 'her babies'.
Any advice for later?
Blue Jays are native here and I don't see any reason as soon as it is older and able to eat on it's own, I can't just turn it loose here. We keep feeders full year-round for the wild birds so finding food isn't an issue and it would be fun to have a buddy Blue Jay (Hubby talks ugly about them cause they tend to monopolize the feeders).
Can you tell from a pic how old it is and how often it needs feeding? Or when it is ready to feed itself? I see Blue Jay parents bringing their children to our feeders and the parents STILL feed seeds from the feeder to fledglings.

Lisa

 

[KellyHM]

I would say feed it and care for it until it's big enough to fly, then let it go and see how it does.

Not to hijack your thread, but the first 2 cuckoo olive eggers hatched under my broody this morning!! One looks blue barred and the other looks splash....adorable!! What's their daddy?

 

[Dipsy Doodle Doo]

Hi! That's my thought. It's been eating large quantities of crickets, scrambled eggs, and just introduced worms (it don't like worms so much).
It's hard to see on the head-spot on splash. The Cuckoo splash I've hatched here have been pretty. The 'barred / cuckoo markings only show up in the 'splash markings'.
Mom was (Am x BR) and Dad was [Am x (Am x BR)].

Lisa

 

[babylady4]

Hate to say this but it will probably die since the cat bit it. They have such massive amounts of bacteria in their mouths animals they bite usually die from infection.

Also, since it is a blue jay I would just cull it anyway to spare all the other birds it will kill in it's lifetime...... but good luck anyway.

 

[artsyrobin]

I have a one winged one eyed blue jay, unreleasable- if you can, i'd get ahold of a wild life rehabber, so he can be prepared for release- its not just feeding them, but preparing them to survive. They live in family groups, so he may need other jays to socialize with - as far is feeding, cat or dog food is a good choice, as they need high protein. just a few thoughts

 

[Dipsy Doodle Doo]

Hi Melissa! I looked it over well at first for wounds and didn't find any (lucky little bird).
Thanks for your help.

Lisa

 

[Dipsy Doodle Doo]

Hi Robin!
Thanks!
Is it the thought that if he/she is a people-raised Jay, then he/she might not ever mesh with any of the wild birds?
I'm rather-more-concerned with 'getting the Jay' to fledging age, than anything else.

Lisa

 

[babylady4]

I apologize for coming off as cold and harsh about the baby Jay; I was kept awake most mornings of my childhood by Blue Jays so I have a strong dislike of them..... and since they are nasty to other birds I just can't see much reson to keep them around other than they are pretty.......

How is the little guy doing? I do hope you are successful raising him, do you have pictures to post? People might be able to judge how old he is by how fledged out he has gotten so far.

Have you tried feeding berries? I see many Jays eating mullberries this time of year.....

 

[artsyrobin]

technically it is illegal to keep native birds, so a rehabber would be his best chance- ours was unreleasable, they are incredibly smart birds, noisy yes- have heard the wild ones, one of them rings like a bell, another immitates a hawk. The fist ones of the season help the parents raise the second group and stay within their family. might check this site http://www.wildliferehabber.org/ or call the local vets, usually they know of a local one. would love to see pics

here is a comparison of our jay when we first got him

http://www.wildliferehabber.org/

 

[Dipsy Doodle Doo]

Hi! Thanks for the link.
It looks so bedraggled in the first pic --- poor thing.
How did it lose a wing?

I haven't fed it anything but crickets, egg, and worms --- would dog food be better?
It's been eating every 20 minutes or so since I found it and it does the 'wing-shake-open-mouth-thing' and calls --- from daylight til dark.
I'm beginning feel sorry for 'mama birds' that have to go catch bugs to feed their chicks.
I don't know if this is normal or not, but it doesn't want to eat the same thing more than twice in a row. Cricket, cricket, egg, egg, worm, worm, cricket, cricket, and on and on...

The little guy is SMART! It's already figured out I feed it and Hubby doesn't and only calls and postures when it sees me.

Lisa