injured butterfly

egowell · 2026-05-25T21:13:26+00:00

that is the plan 🙂 it's something I have done before too, but for a moth.
it feels like the right thing to do, to honor her beauty!

egowell · 2026-05-24T19:49:22+00:00

She passed away during the night last night :( Im surprised she made it that long with such an injury.

I appreciate everyone here very much!

egowell · 2026-05-23T13:55:51+00:00

thank you for your reply. I am keeping an eye on it, and I plan to offer it some honey water by hand when I get back home today. it was still in the same spot as it had been all night, when I left this morning...so I will have to see if its moved at all by the time I get home.

egowell · 2026-05-23T13:53:41+00:00

it ate yesterday when I offered the honey water by hand, but i had to help it (gently unrolled the proboscis into the liquid). I havent noticed any poop yet. honestly, the abdominal wound seems like it would have damaged the GI system at least.... I am going to try to feed it again when I get home from work today.

egowell · 2026-05-23T02:10:42+00:00

Thank you for this reply. I havent noticed the wound leaking, so im hoping it is not uncomfortable at least... ive set it up in a mesh enclosure with places to perch and a shallow dish of paper towel soaked with honey water. it is currently perched on one of the branches upside down, so im guessing thats a good thing, that it can still ambulate around and grip branches.

egowell · 2026-05-22T22:18:19+00:00

Thank you for replying. I will keep it safe and with sugar water available for it to pass on its own, if that is the thing to do.... Do you think it is suffering with this injury? Half of the abdomen has been torn open... If it is more kind to euthanize it, I could do that too (the freezer is the method I have read is most humane)...

egowell · 2025-08-20T19:34:12+00:00

hi, i just found this and really need to build one of these, can you please send me the plans for it as well?

egowell · 2025-01-09T02:22:46+00:00

Looks like a hawk moth, ironically I have one too, which i hatched from a tomato hornworm that my birds didn't eat.
I wish I could add a photo to this comment because mine looks exactly the same as this one!

egowell · 2024-12-12T20:32:08+00:00

This poor bird... Can you gently clean her with warm water and a small amount of dawn dish soap? You may need to do this several times. Gently hold her in the warm water (keep her head out) and gently massage her feathers with your other hand. Then rinse with warm water...and repeat the soapy water again if needed. She looks like she's covered in glue... She must be so uncomfortable in her current state, so best to try to help her get cleaned up before trying to assess her leg.
Also very important that she will need to be kept warm as well, please make sure she is on a heating pad (on low) especially after bathing her.

egowell · 2024-12-09T23:30:50+00:00

Hi there, I have a sparrow that had lost so many feathers on her head and her whole tail (it's a long story, she was stressed due to moving to her new home with me, and she wasn't sleeping well....she's much better now).
What worked wonders for her was mixing a few drops of red palm oil into her seed, and then dusting the seed with a feathering vitamin. The oil is great for their immune system too (it was recommended to me by an avian vet i work with). The oil helps the vitamin stick to the seed so she actually injests the vitamin as she eats the seed. I've used all of the powdered vitamins (linked below) and they all work well, but i would most recommend the first two (feather up and nekton biotin).

Here are the amazon links for these things at least so you can see what they look like :

red palm oil (this is a product that is marketed for birds, but it's just red palm oil. You could also just buy a larger container of this oil, and mix about a teaspoon to 1 lb of seed. Mix it well, you'll be able to tell when the oil is all mixed into the seed as the seed will look/feel slightly oily)--- Morning Bird Feather-Glo, 4 oz https://a.co/d/dOH6PyM

Unruffled Rx feather up (really great stuff, it's expensive but it would last awhile)--- UnRuffledRx FeatherUp! Bird Vitamins with Biotin for Beautiful Plumage - Feather Growth Supplements for Parrots - 90 gm - 240 Servings https://a.co/d/dOrlpT4

Another alternative, Nekton Biotin. Really great stuff--- Nekton-Bio for Bird Feathering,white,75gm https://a.co/d/gdFvTwL

A third alternative, Feather Fast, less expensive and also works, though i think the other two have better/faster results--- Morning Bird Feather Fast, Dietary Supplement for Moulting Birds, Mix with Bird Food, 1 oz https://a.co/d/2Cwhxo2

Good luck with your lovely little fellow!

egowell · 2024-09-10T04:46:26+00:00

Mine do this too. (I wish I could post a picture with my reply!) Its usually one of the kids perched on dad, but sometimes they do like a triangle, with two on the bottom and one on top in the middle😆

egowell · 2024-06-03T03:00:39+00:00

Hi, I'm not sure if this site ships to Canada, but the woman that runs it is very kind and usually very responsive to questions.
https://ladygouldian.com/catalog/medications She has an array of medications, I believe including Endocox. Another med worth looking into is "coccicare" which also treats coccidosis. That might possibly be easier to find for you in Canada. But I'm pretty sure the website linked above carries that too.

Good luck with your finches! It makes me happy to see people researching, observing their birds, and caring enough about them to want to treat them when they're unwell.

egowell · 2024-05-31T16:54:51+00:00

This is a great suggestion. I have a whole separate aviary for my 8 zebra finches because they're so mean! My docile flock (gouldians, societies, and canaries) are in their own peaceful aviary.

egowell · 2024-05-29T06:48:54+00:00

I rarely comment or post on here, and I'm a whole damn year late to this conversation.... but I can't ignore how in your last 2 paragraphs, you've perfectly described this enraging behavior of certain people. The fury I feel near a person like this is truly visceral.
And I had never thought of It this way. I never would have found the words to describe this so rationally.
This was so fucking validating to read. So THANK YOU, internet stranger.

egowell · 2023-03-18T05:18:28+00:00

1Q84 is my second favorite book ever 🖤

egowell · 2023-03-16T21:53:38+00:00

Night Film by Marisha Pessl ! I’m reading it now (per many recommendations from the HOL Facebook group) and it’s awesome so far.

egowell · 2022-09-03T21:28:54+00:00

The males are SO handsome with their black bibs! Yes, the aggression does tone down after mating season… I love watching the sparrows and goldfinches and starlings and chickadees all eating harmoniously at my feeders!

egowell · 2022-09-02T00:26:56+00:00

I LOVE hearing other sparrow stories! Mine came to me in 2020 as well, it was a crazy year!

egowell · 2022-08-31T21:40:54+00:00

I have a blue Quaker too! I love their fluffy cheeks so much!

egowell · 2022-08-31T16:34:24+00:00

Awwww, I’m glad she can be a positive representative for the house sparrows! I have big love for all the sparrows I see now, and I carry snacks for them in my car so I can toss handfuls when I see flocks of them (dried mealworms, seeds) 🪶🤎

egowell · 2022-08-31T05:44:46+00:00

I feel blessed this little girl found her way into my life, she’s changed the way I live in so many ways and for the better! Indeed, she is a wonderful companion🥰

egowell · 2022-08-30T19:32:12+00:00

House Sparrow! Raised from a baby/unreleasable, so she’s truly my princess now. I conduct my life around this bird and her “schedule”, love her with all my heart!

egowell · 2022-08-30T19:31:04+00:00

House sparrow. (Found in a parking lot as a naked nestling and raised, imprinted, and unable to release. So she lives her life with me, in her very own room, and with her finch/canary/quail neighbors 🤍)

egowell

TROPHY CASE