WATCH: Senior Highland firefighter takes baby chicks under his wing; Scottish Fire and Rescue Service's Inverness-based deputy assistant chief officer rescued the baby blackbirds after their mother died
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
A HIGHLAND firefighter has been raising three blackbirds after their mother was knocked out her nest and killed.
John MacDonald, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service deputy assistant chief officer, hopes the birds, known only as Big, Medium and Baby will soon fly the nest.
Mr MacDonald, who lives in the Culduthel Mains area of Inverness, found the three birds at the end of his garden, after one of them had fallen to the ground after their mother was killed by a dog.
Mr MacDonald said: "We discovered one bird on the ground and after a bit more investigation discovered a nest with two more birds.
"My neighbour told me that the bird's mother had been killed by a dog.
"I phoned the Scottish SPCA and took advice about what to do, and brought the birds into the house in the nest. As the mother would not be returning to feed them.
"A Scottish SPCA officer came to the house, and was about to take them away, when I asked how things were during the coronavirus restrictions.
"When the officer explained that the Scottish SPCA was running an emergency service only, I volunteered to look after the birds myself, I got lots of good advice from them."
Being the custodian of three blackbirds has been an almost round the clock task for Mr MacDonald.
He said: "At first I was feeding them every hour in daylight with a mixture of mince in sugar water. But as they have grown, and they have grown very quickly, I am now putting down meal worm for them and they are picking it up themselves, just as they would in the wild.
"They were in their nest to begin with, but I have made them a box with a perch on it so they can now move about a bit more. I can hardly believe that it was only last Sunday that I took them in, and soon enough I will be putting them out to be the wild birds that they are.
"They are awake at dawn and they go to sleep at dusk, so we have moved them into the front room so we can stay up a wee bit later than them, if we want to."
He continued: "These are wild birds, and we want them to go on and have a full life so we haven't given them names, or touched them too much."
To contact the Scottish SPCA call 03000 999 999.
