Pigeon chicks hatch on the 19th day after the first egg is laid. Check the eggs towards evening that day. Often a chick cannot get out of the egg; in that case, gently break the shell little by little by hand and help the chick out. If there is a lot of blood, leave it as it is and take it out the next morning.

After hatching, it is good to wash the chick's navel with an antiseptic (Dettol or Savlon), which lowers the risk of infection. If possible, change the bedding where the chicks are kept, such as rags, cloth mats or straw, every day.

For the first four days, check at least two or three times a day that the chicks are all right, because chicks are often crushed under the parents' feet.

Droppings often stick around the chick's vent; clean them off very carefully. For four days the parents feed the chicks pigeon milk. If one chick is not being fed, remove the chick that has been fed for a while, so the parent feeds the one getting less. After feeding, put the two chicks back together.

From the fifth day the parents start giving grain. From then on, if you wish, give the chicks extra food with a syringe or feeder. If the parents are feeding the chicks properly, extra food is not needed.

For extra food, soak poultry feed in water for half an hour and pour off the water. Then mix it well with rice starch (the water drained from cooked rice). You can add vitamins if you like.

Keep a constant eye on the chicks and check their weight by holding them. If the pigeons are kept loose, other pigeons may peck a chick to death. So when food is given and the chicks are a little older, both male and female come to eat; watch the chicks closely at that time.

Chicks' legs often become weak, mainly because of a lack of calcium and vitamin D. If this happens, give calcium and vitamins A and D for 8 to 10 days.

If a parent dies or goes missing while the chicks are small, feed them a little boiled egg yolk mixed with rice starch by syringe for days one to four, and wrap the chick well in a cloth.

Make sure it has no trouble breathing. After that, give poultry feed regularly and the chick will grow quickly. Clean the container it lives in every day.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.