Artificial Resuscitation of Mourning Doves

Abstract

Successful rearing of nestling doves, either hand-raised, or raised as captives, is an extremely time-consuming process. Accidental losses must be held to minimum in the interests of conserving time, money, and effort. Sometimes, live birds go into shock, cease breathing, and die while being handled during study. The technique of artificial resuscitation described here has proved successful in reviving mourning doves (Zenaidura macroura). In 1948, the Illinois State Natural History Survey initiated research project on the mourning dove. Since that time, approximately 250 nestlings-some hand-raised and some the progeny of captive pairs and 100 trapped immature and adult doves have been used in various phases of the study. Dove mortality caused by handling was encountered in the early stages of the study. As the experience of the investigators increased, it was found possible to curtail this type of loss by applying rescue technique used successfully by this writer on quail (Colinus virginianus). The method for inducing artificial resuscitation is as follows: place the bird on table, board, or hold it in one hand; use thumbs and index fingers to spread and hold the mandibles open; make sure that the tongue will not block the air that will be transferred into the bird. With your mouth about 1 in. from the bird, exhale two or three rapid, strong breaths of air into the bird's mouth, release the mandibles, and watch for any movement which may indicate a take. If there is no response after 5 to 10 sec., repeat the procedure every 10 to 15 sec. If movement is detected, open the mandibles and slowly transfer long breath of air into the bird's mouth, three to five times minute, until the bird assumes breathing rhythm. While waiting for the bird to resume breathing rhythm, cup the hands around the bird's body to conserve body heat. This is especially helpful to nestlings. Success in mouth-to-mouth resuscitation was achieved 8 times out of 10 attempts made on doves ranging in age from nestlings 4 days old to adults. From all indications, nine of these birds had stopped breathing, and one was gasping in its final effort to survive when the rescue technique was applied.