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Original poster

I have a baby crow in my utility room

221 replies

SarahStratton · 13/06/2011 23:47

Next door's cat got it. It has an injured (not broken) wing. It's going to the vets in the morning.

It needs a name. Ideas please.

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JonahB · 17/06/2011 22:38

I am loving this thread!! Mortimor is one very well fed raven!! Hasn't Fusscat or Littledog tried to pounce on him yet?

Original poster
SarahStratton · 17/06/2011 22:53

I'm keeping them well separated until he is old enough to beat them up defend himself. He has a dog crate in the utility room with lots of parrot toys and things to do. And the washing machine to watch. FussCat and LittleDog are banned from the utility room now. When he goes outside I am with him all the time as he is so vulnerable at the moment. He will have a big aviary to live in when he is bigger and fitter.

I can't believe he has only been with us since Monday evening.

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hellymelly · 17/06/2011 23:09

Chicken lives in the house,with Esther (the writer of Corvus) and her family.She is about 20 now.She has her own cage type thing but wonders about freely,she isn't confined. I have lots of connections with bird rescue people as we lived on a boat for years and used to have to catch injured geese and swans etc,so if you need any advice on anything I may be able to give you the details of someone to talk to.Just pm me if nec. Although I do think getting in touch with Bran man would probably be the most helpful as he clearly knows his ravens! The crow we had seemed to have some nerve damage,he had fallen backwards out of the nest and landed very heavily from a height,the vet thought possibly he had some problems anyway and had maybe fallen because of them,as he couldn't use his beak properly. Put some more pics on your profile if you can,would be so lovely to see them. He sounds amazing.

Original poster
SarahStratton · 17/06/2011 23:11

That would be great helly. The vets have been good, but they are obviously more small animal/farm type vets and not really au fait with crows!

Bran was amazing. I am definitely going to contact his owner.

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hellymelly · 17/06/2011 23:29

Bran was completely amazing I agree.If you do read "corvus" there is a section where she goes to look at raven's nests, and lots of interesting stuff about corvid intelligence and behaviour and the differences between different species of corvid.(she has a crow too,and has also had a magpie). It is a wonderful book,even if you are not into birds,her writing is so beautiful-I read it and loved it so much that I bought it for about half a dozen friends and everyone has loved it.
My cousin had a jackdaw when he was a teenager.He was a fantastic bird, he very sadly drowned one day while they were out,because someone had forgotten to empty the bath water,my cousin was totally heartbroken.

EssentialFattyAcid · 18/06/2011 11:47

We used to let our crows go outdoors - eventually they left home when they were old enough to look for a mate. It was sad but lovely when they went.

Usually for fair while afterwards we could call them down from the sky which impressed our visitors a lot.

Original poster
SarahStratton · 18/06/2011 18:00

My Dad has made him a lovely aviary with a little shed at the end. All his toys are in it, he has a little rubber trug to bathe in and perch on as he likes my gardening one, and lots more perches and things to do. He seems impressed.

He is currently bouncing up and down, hurling abuse at a blackbird. Apparently it has got to close to his precious house. I think he may have Tourettes Confused

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hellymelly · 18/06/2011 22:41

The big thing with crows/ravens etc is that they are highly intelligent but also highly sociable and they need company,preferably others like them but human will do.I would think keeping him in an aviary long term would not be great for him,even if you spend time with him everyday,as if he is alone for any length of time he will be miserable.Although Ravens are possibly slightly less social than rooks and crows, maybe Bran-man will have the best view on this? As I am not a raven expert. I am away tomorrow at my Dad's, but I will root out any numbers I think might be helpful for you. Hope he is thriving.

Original poster
SarahStratton · 18/06/2011 22:43

He's doing very well. He is literally only in the aviary at night now. He is spending the vast majority of the day with me, and the DDs when they are at home.

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Original poster
SarahStratton · 18/06/2011 22:45

Sorry, pressed post by accident, I meant to add thank you for the numbers, all help and information is gratefully received. I'm not entirely convinced he is a raven, he seems too small compared to Bran. But then he is only a fledgling and I don't know how big they are in comparison to the adults.

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hellymelly · 18/06/2011 22:55

I did wonder when I saw the pic,as he looks quite small.Ravens are huge. a fledgling crow would be jackdaw sized,roughly. Slightly smaller than an adult crow.A fledgling raven would be at least as big as an adult crow I would have thought,but it depends on age obv.Does he have all his new plumage,or does he have any chick-like down still? Ravens have a more pointed tail,although that would be more noticable when flying,and their feathers are more pointed at the tips.They can look as though they have a bit of a ruff around the neck. I don't want to sound like a bossy boots about the aviary,you sound as though you are doing a brilliant job with him,I just wasn't sure how much you know/don't know about how sociable they are,as lots of people don't like crows and don't realise how they have very close family bonds and groups and need that sort of loving contact to thrive.I will see if I can find some good raven vs crow pics to link to! (the other clue might be where you found him,as they inhabit quite different types of landscape).

hellymelly · 18/06/2011 22:57

www.flickr.com/photos/l_iam/4669639067/ fledgling crow.The eyes are blus but will darken as it gets older.

hellymelly · 18/06/2011 23:00

www.arkive.org/raven/corvus-corax/image-A12625.html flegling raven.Beak is rather larger and the feathers look more spikey and rough.

Original poster
SarahStratton · 18/06/2011 23:04

He is probably about 12" long, it's hard to tell as he has virtually no tail left :(

What's left of his tail is still sheathed in the white casings for 2-3", as are the flight feathers on his wings (what he has left of them anyway). He has adult plumage but still has the baby fluff poking through on his neck and back. I think he is about 6 weeks old. He feeds easily from the feed bowl, but if you offer him food he still gapes. He is the size of an adult crow as one landed in the garden today. He is very friendly and follows me about like a little crow dog :)

I found a site called corvidaid.org, it's been very helpful, good advice on feeding and housing, and how to keep them entertained. He has parrot toys and a parrot mirror, which he loves. I also got him different parrot perches with different widths and one that is rough and keeps their claws trimmed

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Original poster
SarahStratton · 18/06/2011 23:11

Forgot to add that he was on farmland in the East Midlands. Ravens are not common here but there are nesting sites not that far from here.

He does look more like the crow fledgling in those pics though.

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hellymelly · 18/06/2011 23:35

ravens have a different call too,crows do the "CAW CAW" ravens are lower and rougher.

hellymelly · 18/06/2011 23:37

If he is adult crow sized and he still has such immature plumage then he might well be a raven.They frequent wilder and more remote places than crows,woodland with open ground-Crows are more common on farmland but ravens are possible.....time will tell! What is his beak like?

Original poster
SarahStratton · 18/06/2011 23:39

He sounds like an old man clearing his throat tbh. Not a Caw Caw at all, more of a gruff Ark Ark. I'm utterly muddled, he is definitely a baby because of the feather sheaths, the down and the gaping behaviour. Yet he is the same size as a crow and his beak is not a crow beak. He has a lot of hair on his beak too.

Maybe he is just a Mortimer Confused

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Original poster
SarahStratton · 18/06/2011 23:40

Beak is blackish with beige on the end. Slightly 'Roman nosed' IYSWIM.

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Original poster
SarahStratton · 18/06/2011 23:42

I'll just keep stuffing food down him and see how big he gets. Then I can tell Grin

I'm not over feeding him, honest. He eats what he likes. Tonight he has had soaked go-cat (recommended by corvidaid), peas, sweetcorn, brown rice and some mince. All mixed up with some baked and ground up egg shell and half the raw egg thrown in for good measure. About a cup full in total and he manages that twice a day.

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hellymelly · 18/06/2011 23:50

He does sound more like a raven than a crow from all that.Our baby crow was Caw cawing away very very loudly in an unmistakable fashion! here is a raven call soundbible.com/tags-raven-call.html and here is a crow soundbible.com/tags-crow-calls.html . !!

Original poster
SarahStratton · 18/06/2011 23:53

Definitely a raven call. He is much, much lower in tone than the crow call. Nothing like it at all.

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hellymelly · 19/06/2011 00:01

Am off to bed now, but am very excited about mini raven. They can live to 30 I think,so if you keep him you are in for a lifelong companion,how amazing is that!

Original poster
SarahStratton · 19/06/2011 00:09

It is amazing. I keep pinching myself (not literally) I can't believe I have this wonderful creature in my life. He is so intelligent. It's taken him under a week to learn that this weird human being is trustworthy and worth following round. He's also learnt to garden (after a fashion). Poor garden.

We need to up our loo roll usage. He likes deconstructing loo roll tubes. He enjoyed the Culture section of last week's Sunday paper too. Plenty to rip up.

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sharbie · 19/06/2011 00:24

how exciting

me and my friend went to lunch - sat outside at a pub and had the company of a raven.

he was perched on a kerb and kept asking for food and looking at us with his head on one side.
at one point he bent down and tapped one side and then the other of his huge beak on the kerb - i have no idea why. does mortimer do this??????