Raising a baby bird can be both exciting and stressful, especially if you’re new to raising baby birds or if your baby bird is doing something you’ve never seen before.
If your baby bird is shaking you’d understandably be worried, so why does this happen? This article looks into it
Your baby bird is likely shaking because it is cold. Baby birds can become cold if their food is cold, if they’ve just had a bath or if their environment is too cold.
Table of Contents
Why is my baby bird shaking:
It feels cold:
Baby birds feel comfortable in rooms where the temperature is between 65 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. If your room is colder than this, then your little feathered friends will start to shake and shiver as its body tries to get its temperature up.
What to do
Increasing the temperature of the room that your bird is in will help the bird be more comfortable. Your baby bird should stop shivering after you do this.
Their food is cold:
Baby birds are born with very few feathers on their bodies, because of this, they aren’t able to regulate their body temperature very well. Cold food will cause the bird’s body temperature to decrease and the bird will begin to shake
What to do:
If you notice that your bird is shaking after being fed, you need to stop feeding the baby bird, warm the food to room temperature, then feed the baby bird. This will stop all the shaking
They’ve just taken a bath:
Baby birds can become cold after taking a bath. The water on the bird’s skin will absorb heat from the bird’s body, this helps it evaporate after the bath, this heat absorption makes the baby bird cold. If they’re cold enough, their bodies will shake.
Shaking happens when the muscles in the bird’s body involuntarily contract and expand, this contracting and expanding is how the bird’s body warms itself up.
What to do:
Taking the bird out of the bath quickly and getting the bird warm will stop the shaking. You can place the bird in a brooder to keep warm after the bath, they will stop shaking soon after this
The baby bird is scared:
There may be something in the environment that is scaring your baby bird. Your baby bird’s body will involuntarily release adrenaline when they feel scared. This will cause them to shake. This is their bodies way of preparing for fight or flight
What to do
Try to figure out what the threat in the environment is and remove it. Once the threat is removed, the baby bird will stop shaking and calm down.
When to see a vet:
If your bird is shaking, and if you’ve tried the solutions listed above with no success, then you’d need to take the bird to a vet to have it checked out.
Sending the bird to a vet if you see shaking, and signs of illness, is highly recommended. Signs of illness include not eating or drinking, lethargy, a change in excrement, and changes in behavior.
If you see these signs then there may be an underlying issue that needs professional help.
Why do baby birds shake their wings?
Your bird will usually shake its wings after it preens itself. Preening involves removing debris that are stuck in its feathers. The bird does this with its beak.
The bird will also spread preen oil all over its feathers while preening, this oil is what will make its wings waterproof.
After the bird has fully preened itself, it will shake its feathers off and this act will release dust from its feathers. They may also shake their tail feathers after the preening as a way of releasing tension
What to do:
This isn’t something to worry about, in fact, if your bird isn’t preening itself then this can mean that the bird is ill or feels uncomfortable in its environment.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the reason your baby bird is shaking may be that it is cold. Baby birds cannot regulate their body temperature very well and will thus shake to increase their body temperature. Getting the bird warmer will stop the shaking
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other baby bird related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: How To Protect Baby Birds From Crows, Do Birds Mourn The Loss Of Their Nest?, Do Bird Beaks Grow?, Do Mother Birds Leave Their Babies At Night?, Do Mother Birds Sit On Their Babies After They Hatch?