lucyg
Egg
I have a cokaeil aout 15 yo that all of suddent no longer can fly. He is healthy, eats and preens,
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Post by lucyg on Mar 16, 2014 19:17:07 GMT
Hi- I was worried about my keet Mr. Bluey since for the past week or 2 he has been in a constant puffy state when he is quiet. Otherwise he preens, eats, plays with his mate Mr Whitey and right now is flying around the room and hanging on window blinds. He has a great appetite and loves teasing Whitey with high kicks. I think he is going thru a molt since he has a bunch of pin feathers coming out on his head and has lost a lot of large feathers as well as small. His tail is barely long anymore after losing a few, but he still flies w/out a problem. He is very vocal and otherwise normal. Should I worry about the puffy issue or is that a condition related to molting. I offered him warm baths and he only once went in. His mate Mr Whitey exhibits none of the same puffiness so I doubt any kind of buggy issue which would spread. Plus they have been only with each other for over a year so no exposure to possible infections. Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks!
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Post by Sarah on Mar 16, 2014 19:47:51 GMT
It is probably from his molt. He is uncomfortable, and his body is working in overdrive to form the new feathers. Feathers are not like hair, they are a specialized scale. It is considerably more work for the body to build a second skin than to regrow a little hair singed off because follicles grow all the time endlessly and we are used to it.
I suggest finding a way to make things a little warmer for him, so that he isn't feeling chilly missing some of his pretty overcoat. You might attach a heating pad to one end of the cage (which I recommend) or perhaps just turning the thermostat up a little unless that will make you uncomfortable. Also, go to a pet store or hardware store and buy a spray bottle that has never had anything in it and try misting him with little sprits of water. He may love it and want you to spray him until he drips, and if he doesn't one or two little spritses a day will raise the humidity in the cage and make it less painful for him to molt.
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lucyg
Egg
I have a cokaeil aout 15 yo that all of suddent no longer can fly. He is healthy, eats and preens,
Posts: 22
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Post by lucyg on Mar 17, 2014 21:54:28 GMT
Thanks very much Sarah. I did raise the house temp up over 70 as it is usually at 70 degrees so I think he is warm. Their cage faces south and they get a bit of indirect sunlight too. I am so relieved that you agree it's a molt and nothing more. He did use a saucer of warm water to jump in days ago but since then he won't do it unfortunately. If he hates the spray will that make him more afraid of me and do birds get chilly from being wet like we do even in warm temps and w/ warm water?
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Post by Sarah on Mar 17, 2014 23:40:06 GMT
In 70+ degrees he should be just fine getting wet, even if he does tremble a little.
Has he improved at all?
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lucyg
Egg
I have a cokaeil aout 15 yo that all of suddent no longer can fly. He is healthy, eats and preens,
Posts: 22
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Post by lucyg on Mar 19, 2014 10:30:52 GMT
Hi Sarah. I sprayed him a few times from the side and top over his cage. He's not finger trained as he was raised with his pal Whitey, so he jumped away from the spray every time he got wet and looked at me like I was some kid in grammar school torturing the class pet when the teacher left the room. I put a shallow dish of warm water in the cage and leave there for awhile and hope he'll go in. He seems fine, eating and playing, except for a bit of what looked like a lot of soft stool yesterday under where he slept, but I cleaned out the cage and saw no further soft stool at all for the whole day or this AM. I will spray him lightly again today as when he got wet, he seemed to fluff up and shake off then preen which I guess would help. He loves flying, and the room looks like I can make another bird from the feathers he leaves behind. I think flying also releases some of his stress.
Sarah do you know if a colored bird like Mr. Bluey who has intricate patterns on his wings and tail of black and white has a harder time creating new feathers compared to my all white keet who has molted but seemed to do it more gradually and less dramatically? Thanks!
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Post by luvsanimals2 on Mar 19, 2014 13:33:53 GMT
Budgies molts are different, there are different type of molts too. Is this its first big molt?
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Post by Sarah on Mar 20, 2014 4:10:20 GMT
The feather pattern is unrelated, but budgies do molt in different ways from individual to individual. Actually, very very slow molts are more concerning than drastic ones. A vitamin deficiency can cause something called a slow molt, a molt that takes several months to finish, and may actually become a perpetual molt. In general, one hopes to get it over with quickly enough that so that the bird doesn't have to be bothered by the itches, but slow enough that it is not painful.
Be watchful for bald patches: it would be concerning if he were losing feathers all in one area or not growing some back properly.
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lucyg
Egg
I have a cokaeil aout 15 yo that all of suddent no longer can fly. He is healthy, eats and preens,
Posts: 22
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Post by lucyg on Mar 20, 2014 22:07:27 GMT
Hi- It is his first big molt and he seems Ok except for the fluff. It's not as permanent as it was before and no missing patches. Should I add vitamins? I have Ecotrition Vita-Sol with D3, A, thiamine, riboflavin, B6, niacin, choline and pantothenic acid. I stopped them awhile ago because I heard you may do more harm than good but if that gets it over with quicker, I can use. it. Mr. Whitey looks like he is starting a molt but not as severe and no puff. Thanks!
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Post by luvsanimals2 on Mar 23, 2014 0:00:32 GMT
do you have apple cider vinegar (with the mother in it)? if you do, drop a few in their water
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Post by sabaton28 on Mar 23, 2014 5:05:10 GMT
Hi- I was worried about my keet Mr. Bluey since for the past week or 2 he has been in a constant puffy state when he is quiet. Otherwise he preens, eats, plays with his mate Mr Whitey and right now is flying around the room and hanging on window blinds. He has a great appetite and loves teasing Whitey with high kicks. I think he is going thru a molt since he has a bunch of pin feathers coming out on his head and has lost a lot of large feathers as well as small. His tail is barely long anymore after losing a few, but he still flies w/out a problem. He is very vocal and otherwise normal. Should I worry about the puffy issue or is that a condition related to molting. I offered him warm baths and he only once went in. His mate Mr Whitey exhibits none of the same puffiness so I doubt any kind of buggy issue which would spread. Plus they have been only with each other for over a year so no exposure to possible infections. Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks! My new DEC has been doing this for a week now but I have seen a lot of pin feathers and he is constantly preening and fluffing himself then preen some more |
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Post by sabaton28 on Mar 23, 2014 5:06:13 GMT
do you have apple cider vinegar (with the mother in it)? if you do, drop a few in their water I actually do this exact same thing |
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Post by luvsanimals2 on Mar 23, 2014 16:21:04 GMT
also spritz them a few times a day (make sure no drafts)
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