I will start with my second pet. A rescued robin that was very small when it fell out of the nest.I successfully raised to an adult bird. My dog Penny(first pet) made a pass at it when I first got it and I yelled No and from that point on she treated it like another pet. ( photo / image / picture from jbest123's Garden ) The robin would ride on Penny's back all day. ( photo / image / picture from jbest123's Garden ) After the robin reached adulthood it would roost in a tree at night and get its own food. Don't ask me how it learned that. In the morning it would greet me by landing in my index finger. It learned that if it would ride on the cross bar of the cultivator it could fly down to get a worm that was turned over. One day the robin was helping my next door neighbor cultivate his garden. When the neighbor finished his garden the robin flew over and landed on his dog's back. I was about 10 year's old and that was the worst day of my life.
I'm sorry about your robin. I think that raising an animal up and nursing it to adulthood is overall a great experience for a kid. (Although not always fun)
