Tiny five-day-old orphan crow rescued and named Jug in Alloa

A tiny five-day-old crow who was found cold with his eyes closed was nursed back to health and released back into the wild by an animal charity.

The Carrion crow, affectionately named Jug, is one of 4,908 animals that were admitted to the Scottish SPCA’s national wildlife rescue centre in Alloa last year.

When he arrived at the centre, he weighed just 100g and was completely bald. His eyes were still closed and he was estimated to be days old.

After being exposed to the elements, Jug was cold on arrival and was placed into a brooder to be warmed up.

He was placed in a jug to prevent his legs from splaying. Scottish SPCA

He required a lot of care and initially needed to be hand fed around every half an hour.

When he was six days old, the tiny bird was placed into a jug to help protect his legs from splaying which is common in young crows – which is how he came to get his name.

Staff at the wildlife centre weighed Jug daily to ensure he was developing well, and once he was big enough he was upgraded from the brooder to a cage and then outside to an aviary with other corvids to learn natural behaviours and prepare for life back in the wild.

During this time, he built up his flight muscles and perfected his flying skills.

Once the team could see he was independent, in good body condition and coping well with different environmental factors he was ready to be released.

He was eventually released back into the wild. Scottish SPCA

After two months of rehabilitation he weighed a healthy 500g and was released to a soft release site, meaning that he can be supported in his return to the wild with regular monitoring and food.

Anyone concerned about an animal can contact the Scottish SPCA’s confidential animal helpline on 03000 999 999.