These species are from the families Alcedinidae, Cuculidae, Picidae.

These birds are insectivorous except for the kingfisher which eats fish as a major part of its diet. See individual species pages for further details.

Fluids (water):

• Offer a rehydration (electrolyte) solution such as Lectade (Pfizer Limited) to drink on admission.
• Water should be freely available at all times unless the casualty is unconscious or severely debilitated and unable to hold its head up.
• Both water and a rehydration (electrolyte) solution, in separate containers, should be made available initially.
• (V.w5, V.w26)

Convalescent Diet:

• Casualties are often anorexic when presented and have an immediate requirement for energy. (B156.15.w15)
• Alcedo atthis - Common kingfisher: mixture of liquidised fish mixed with rehydration (electrolyte) solution, as for other fish-eating birds. (P24.355.w12, V.w26)
• Or (for all birds on this page): 50:50 mixture of A/D (Hill’s Pet Nutrition Ltd) and rehydration (electrolyte) solution.
• Proprietary products such as Critical Care Formula (Vetark Animal Health) have been specifically designed as a short term product for anorectic and sick birds. (V.w26) 
• Use of convalescent diets:

  • May be given by crop tube (gavage feeding).
  • Give up to 2% of body weight per feed.
  • Assume 1ml of made-up feed equals 1g, therefore maximum 2ml of feed per 100g of bird.
  • (B156.15.w15)
  • See: Gavage / Tubing of Birds

Short term Maintenance Diet:

Caprimulgus europaeus - Eurasian nightjar

• Hand (assisted) feeding of these birds is required, as they normally feed on the wing and appear unable to learn to feed from a dish. (B224, J23.26.w4)
  • Present food as rolled boluses.
  • Feed every two hours during daylight:
    • Hold the bird's head, gently pull the lower bill open, place a small food bolus in the back of the mouth, close the mouth and wait for the bird to swallow.
    • Offer water or rehydration (electrolyte) solution from the moistened tip of a fine paintbrush between mouthfuls of food, or moisten each bolus.
    • Allow a brief period of rest between boluses.
    • Do not disturb after feeding as this increases the risk of regurgitation.
• (B203, B151, D24, V.w28)
• Suggested foods:
• Minced meat, insectivorous mix, vitamin/mineral supplement (e.g. Nutrobal, Vetark Animal Health) and dead mealworms, mixed. (D24)
• Mixture of 75% mince meat, 25% proprietary insectivorous food, moistened with water. (B203)
• Mealworms, dusted with vitamin-mineral powder such as SA37 (Intervet UK Ltd.).(B203)
• Hills feline maintenance diet (Hill’s Pet Nutrition Ltd.) soaked and mixed with "beef dinner" baby food.(B203)
• Waxworm larvae.(B151)

Woodpeckers (Dendrocopus minor - Lesser spotted woodpecker, Dendrocopus major - Great spotted woodpecker,  Picus viridis - Eurasian green woodpecker) (Feed mainly on insects taken from tree bark):

• Difficult to train to take food from a dish. (J23.26.w4)
• Simulate feeding pattern in wild by smearing food over bark of a sturdy tree stump/log placed upright in the pen/cage. (B199, D24)
• Tinned cat food, insectivorous food, mealworms may be offered. (D24)
• Peanut butter and artificial, high-protein nectars may be offered as additional foods and are often taken readily.(B99)
• Other live food should be given as well as mealworms.(B99)

Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis - Common kingfisher):

• Freshly dead fish.
• Whitebait, freshly thawed, and supplemented with thiamine.
• Often do not eat well in captivity; commonly require assisted (force) feeding.
• Always feed fish head first.
• (B99, B151, D24)

• Fresh drinking water should always be available in a container of an appropriate size and type for the species concerned.
• Fluid replacement therapy other than oral fluids may be required for casualties which are extremely dehydrated on admission or are unable to take in and absorb oral fluids.
  • Fluid therapy should continue until the animal is no longer dehydrated, even if it is self feeding.
• Feeding of convalescents should take into account their requirement for additional nutrients for healing as well as maintenance requirements.

• The required fluid intake for maintenance should be considered when designing convalescent diets.
• Energy requirements for maintenance and healing should be calculated and used to determine the quantity of food required for both convalescence and short-term maintenance diets.
• Convalescent diets should be easily absorbed/digested.
• Care should be taken not to under or over supplement with vitamins/minerals.
• Diets intended for feeding from a syringe or by stomach tube (gavage) must be of a sufficiently fluid consistency to pass through the syringe nozzle or down the tube without it becoming blocked.
• The natural diet should be considered when deciding on suitable ingredients, including consideration of taste/smell.
• Fresh food must be provided daily.
• Regular cleaning of food and drinking water containers (e.g. daily) is important to reduce the risk of disease.
• Food and water containers should be sited to minimise the risk of contamination with droppings/faeces/urine. 

• Alcedo atthis - Common kingfisher have very delicate bills and great care must be taken to avoid damaging the bill during assisted feeding.(V.w26)

• Water bowls should not be left in the accommodation of a casualty which is unconscious or is severely debilitated and unable to hold its head up.
• Dehydrated and malnourished individuals sometimes drink rehydration fluids but refuse plain water initially; others will drink water but not rehydration fluids. Both should be made available.
• No diet, however well balanced nutritionally, is useful if the animal does not eat it, for example because it is not recognised as food.
• Ingestion of food should be monitored, not assumed. This may include weighing food before presentation and weighing waste food after removal, and periodic weighing of the animal.
• Monitoring of weight/body condition is particularly important for group housed/group fed animals, within which some individuals may take more food and others not get the food they require.
• Diets suggested on this page are intended for short term use for wildlife casualties; they are not necessarily suitable for long-term use or in individuals which are breeding.
• Diets suggested on this page are not necessarily suitable for feeding chicks; information on appropriate diets for very young individuals are described in the page on hand-rearing.
• If naturally-available food items are gathered for feeding to casualties it is important to be aware of the possibility of contamination with chemicals such as herbicides and pesticides.

• Oral rehydration (electrolyte) solutions are widely available from veterinary suppliers and chemists. 
• A basic oral rehydration (electrolyte) solution may be made by dissolving one tablespoon of sugar and one teaspoon of salt in one litre of water. (B203)
• Lectade, Pfizer Limited: from veterinary suppliers and agricultural feed suppliers.
• Mealworms are available from many pet stores and from specialist bird food suppliers. e.g. The Mealwom Co. Ltd, Houghton Road, North Anston Trading Estate, Sheffield S25 4JJ, UK.
• SA37, Intervet UK Ltd., Science Park, Milton Road, Cambridge CB4  0FP
• Vetark Animal Health)
• Critical Care Formula, Nutrobal,  (Vetark Animal Health, PO Box 60, Winchester, SO23 9XN)
• A/D Hills Science Diet, Hills feline maintenance diet(Hill’s Pet Nutrition Ltd.) from veterinary suppliers
• Complan (H J Heinz Co Ltd): from supermarkets etc.
• Whole fish may be bought from fish markets, bait stores and specialist animal feed suppliers.

• Experience and good dexterity are useful for hand feeding.
• Expertise is important if assisted feeding (force feeding) is undertaken.

• Short term feeding of these birds is not expensive.

• Under the Protection of Animals Acts 1911-2000 it is an offence not to provide animals (including captive wild animals) with necessary food and water.(B156.21.w21)
• Care should be taken not to let an individual become accustomed to a single food item as this may result in difficulties in feeding the animal if the food item becomes unavailable, and in preparing it for release.
• Every effort should be made to provide appropriate natural, locally available foods to animals which have been maintained in captivity for prolonged periods before they are released, in order to re-accustom them to a natural diet and reduce the chance of digestive problems following release.(P24.233.w11)
• The release of animals which, by virtue of an inadequate or inappropriate diet whilst in captivity, are not fit to survive when released may be considered an offence under the Abandonment of Animals Act, 1960.

• J23.26.w4, B99, B151, B156.15.w15, B199, B203, B224, D24, V.w5, V.w26, V.w28
• B156.21.w21, P24.233.w11