I put the dogs outside this morning and after cleaning/ watching telly etc I realised they were being unusually quiet- outside for over 2 hours without a single bark is unheard of. I thought they must be out enjoying the sun so I got a towel and was going to go out and enjoy it with them and when i got out i saw all these feathers and i go around the corner and my small dog Banjo is at the other end of the yard lying down with his ears back looking really suspicious and when i went closer I saw a very injured pigeon! it looks like they/ banjo have ripped out half of its wings from its feathers and all its tail it is all red and bloody I got the dogs back inside and went back out and saw it was getting covered in ants so I went and got a box and towel and put it in and now its in the cool laundry with water, no more ants
i dont know what to do :( it looks like its going to die- my partner who is not here reckons I should put it out of its misery but I cant do that! I have no access to the vet and unsure whether they would be interesed in helping a pigeon anyway and I dont have a job so no money to pay for vet care
i am just trying to make it comfortable until it passes away but I dont know if this is right
argh i am wrecked! advise please!
There's always a feeling of "arrrrrrrrgh, what do I do?" for people like yourself who don't like the thought of euthanising a seriously injured animal. It's a toss up between your pain & the animal's pain.
My suspicion is that this bird was injured prior to your dog getting hold of it because pigeons (& most birds) are usually alert enough to avoid capture by a dog.
From your description it seems there's little hope for your pigeon & it would be humane to have it put down. If you can't bring yourself to do that is there a wildlife authority or animal "rescue" service near you which could help - for free?
Next best, I guess, is what you've already done: make it comfortable until it dies. If it recovers then there'll be icing on your pigeon's cake.