Lesser Goldfinch Fledgling Struggles To Eat

lesser goldfinch fledgling sitting on hands as taken out of a cardboard box — Courtesy of Napa Wildlife Rescue

The following story about a lesser goldfinch was shared with us by Napa Wildlife Rescue of California.

From Day 1, this lesser goldfinch fledgling did not want to be a patient at Napa Wildlife Rescue (picture is from unboxing the finch). Unfortunately, he arrived with some medical issues, which meant that he was not going to be able to be reunited with his parents. We did our best to make him a little more comfortable, placing him with another goldfinch buddy and lots of opportunities to try seeds and plant materials.

However, it took him a long time to really become comfortable feeding himself to the extent he could maintain and gain weight. That’s where EmerAid came in. We use EmerAid IC Carnivore to boost the digestible protein content in our diet for baby finches.

Many, many hand-feedings of finch formula later, this finch finally figured out feeding himself and was able to be released alongside his new best friend.