I noticed a sparrow fly off yesterday with the others, but it got caught on some wire, then it got caught again in the hedge and was flapping about. Then later on it was eating away from the feeder where I'd thrown some seed, it was there for ages and didn't look right, when it flew off again it was all over the place. This morning it was back sitting in the same place - it flew off disorientated. I've put a wedge under the place where a cat sometimes comes through to protect it. It's very sad, anyone know whats wrong? I wonder if it was hit by a car. I'm not going to be able to catch it, I could put some food in a cage - but if I did catch it, it would be so distressed.
Hi lola, there are several possible reasons for the bird being disorientated, sounds like it may have suffered injury from being caught in the wire which has damaged part of the wing and is impeding its natural flight; other reason could be that it may have concussion from hitting a window which is not unusual for birds, especially if there has been some foliage or tree in the reflection. Most birds recover after a while depending on how severe the strike was; unfortunately, there is not much you can do other than leaving some food out for it and doing your best to make the area safe from cats or other predators, the rest is up to nature. Good luck. If you see any lose materials like wire around in your area that may cause injury to animals it may be a good idea to either tie it back safely or remove it if you can. I remember seeing several metres of barbed wire laying in a field which had horses and cattle in it so I informed the local council who said they would go check on it and then inform the landowner concerned.