breaking news

"I'll miss their voices when they leave us."


Two of the baby barn swallows fell out of the next earlier today, into the stall where Keil Bay had been only minutes earlier. Luckily, this was the one day none of the cats were sitting out there waiting for just such an event.

I suspected the nest was crowded - there were so many voices up there. We have them in a small box with warm cloths and are feeding them every 20 minutes. Water with Rescue Remedy and diluted cat food. When husband gets home we will try to put this "secondary nest" up beside the other one to see if the mother will resume the feeding.

One is doing well, the other one seems to be getting weaker.

They are huge but have only a few wing feathers and wispy tufts on top of their heads.

You cannot imagine the looks on the faces of our four cats when we brought that box with squawking birds inside. We have them in their little nest box inside a cat carrier so we can move it as needed to warm spots of the porch.

Update, 7 p.m.:

They're both doing really well right now. My dedicated daughter has fed those baby birds every 20 minutes since we brought them in, and while there was a touch and go hour, they are now very warm and eating like mad every feeding time. When you open the front door they go nuts. Their eyes are now open and clear, and they're shaking their heads and stretching their wings. We're figuring out what the situation with their nest is before we decide what to do next.

And finally, 9 p.m.:

The babies have been successfully returned to the nest, well before dark so we could make sure their mama had time to re-group before the sun set. She was in and out many times after they reunited with their siblings, and the chorus of what we think is 5 was restored!