Chopping up chicks at 2am in the morning is not the most appetising thing to do (they are dead I hasten to add).
Before you get on your high horse about cute little fluffy baby chicks, any of you who eat chicken or chickens eggs contribute to the mass slaughter of male chicks at a day old.
They are literally sorted on conveyor belts and discarded. Why? Because male chicks don't lay eggs - so the male chicks are gassed and the female chicks, guess what, go to battery farms, intensive chicken farms.
So these little creatures are a by-product of your desire for cheap chicken and cheap eggs. Enjoy your turkey.
Anyway.
Crecelle greeted me with some enthusiasm when I brought said part of chick to him and gobbled it down. Kestrels can eat up t0 1/5th of their body weight a day and mainly feed on very small mammals such as mice or voles. He had preened himself which was a good sign and after feeding his eyelids started to droop (mine too at 2.30am) so I picked him up to have a good look at her.
I guessed from his size, weight and feathering he is only in her first year. He was under-nourished. A couple of flight feathers were damaged and a couple of tail feathers missing, the talon I mentioned was not broken but torn out. No bites or blood. Beautifully clear eyes. No smell. So a healthy little bird. No rings or tattoos.
So I have transferred him into another box and left the towel off to he can have a look around. He's a bit wonky - can flap but balance isn't good. So he is not ready for release. I will make some jessies for him so I can carriage in the garden and he can flap wings and keep perky and interested.
Also I will have a look at if I can fix his wing and how her lack of tail feathers are affecting him.
Of course all these feathers are important as they are his steering and motoring tools and if I put him out in the wild now he would die.
All in all, the best Christmas present I could have wished for. Not that I wish he came to harm - but I am glad he chose to come here. I don't know how she was injured as there are no animal attack marks on him. One could have tried to catch her hence the missing tail feathers. Could have flown into a window but as he can't tell me I will never know.
By the way if you are not an experienced Falconer do not attempt to look after an injured bird of prey. Take to vet or local Raptor Centre. Lots of people try to give them water which should never be attempted as the water can go into their lungs and they will suffocate.
