PBFD or plucking

[komodeno]

I need to know how to make the difference between plucking and PBFD?
I have a Goffin Cockatoo who have some feather issues.I think he is overprinting and also have some food issues but i recently read that sometimes PBFD is starting with loss of feathers....
I don't see him plucking.We give him a bath almost everyday.Im also giving him vitamins made to help moulting and improve feathers quality.
He was adopted year and 3 months ago and the problem started last summer.He has small part of his chest without feathers.I noticed improvements and a mew feather are coming but they do not grow long they look like under-feathers,very soft and fluffy.He also have some parts with this small soft feathers.Sane under the wings.
Please advise what to do.


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[lupe]

I always play it safe and before I concentrate on behavior I would take him to an avian vet
& rule out any physical illness. PBFD is a viral issue and only testing thru blood will you know
for sure. Did you quarintine him when you first got him? did you vet him at all? If you have any
doubts please be VERY cautious not to infect the rest of your flock. Remember, this thing
attacks the birds immune system and can be fatal if not caught & treated on time..Prayers for
your lil Goofy...

 

[komodeno]

He was under observation for 45 days and away from rest of my birds.He also came from a very good family and was only one bird.
Unfortunately it is very difficult to make the test here.It cost around 500$ to do the test and they are usually send to south africa then you wait 3-4 weeks to get the result.
Hi was veted and the doc did not see nothing extraordinary.The problem with the feathers started after 6-7 months in the house.I have change his diet,also he saw other birds and my dogs.I have got him a new cage and a lot of toys.He did not have to many before and was always out if cage.He had a small cage...He was also clipped.Now he is fully flighted but time to time is in the cage as i need to take out my CAG out.He don't like the Grey and is a bit aggressive to him when out together so i don't take the risk.Goofy is very playful,poop is normal.I have change the diet and now he is on pellets and fruits,veggies and other healthy food.He use to be fed a lot of seeds and eggs.They lady was looking well after him but did not have a knowledge of parrot feeding.He was just doing what most of people here do and feed seeds and other parrot mixes but not pellets.he is moulting now and i can see the place is getting smaller but what worries me is the quality of the feathers.I have never had a plucked parrot and have no idea how the feathers grow and how long takes to have them like the normal parrots.
I got him also a light with UV b and he likes it a lot.He stay close to it when on.
By the way he was also really showered now he is getting shower almost in daily basis.
This is a pic of him soon after he came home.


This is recent picture.You can see how fluffy is he.Unfortunately the chest is not that visible but u van see that the feathers are not so good.


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[lupe]

Well, you are doing everything right from what I just read. My Elvis is just getting over a
heavy molt and his chest is also full of fuzzy feathers that have come in. I suggest you
weigh him periodically which says alot about a birds health and have plenty of play time
with him to challenge him so that he doesnt get bored. Routine is important, but strict
routine is not realistic. Do you change his cage around? Is he in
fear of the dogs, other birds? there are sooooo many reasons why??? Honestly, when a
bird plucks, you will KNOW...There are many more experienced too owners which will chime in.
I hope I helped somewhat...

 

[komodeno]

Somehow i think he is not plucking.He may over-preen but i have given him a rope type of toys which he really enjoys.He is the only one who make the rope look like it was chewed by a dog
He is not scared from the other guys and get use to the dogs.He now knows he can fly and enjoys it.Goofy even train extremely well with me and my elder daughter. He can do wave,give a leg to shake hands,turn,fetch,he also have some flight recall but it is not always reliable.We are working on harness training and also other trick.He is eager to please and will do anything for a sunflower seed.Im not giving him a lot if the. In the food and he definitely looks for them in his food dish. Im almost to the point to completely fake them away from his feeding and he will be receiving them only in training.
His beak is also normal.I don't see nothing abnormal there.


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[Bokkapooh]

Looks like he is barbering himself(Breaking/chewing the feathers off so the down only remains, some birds chew down so that the down doesnt even remain but it gets chewed down to the skin(but not the skin)). This isnt PBFD.

 

[Bokkapooh]

From the looks of it it looks like he is overpreening only around his crop area.

Has he seen an avian vet? Had a full blood test done? How is his CBC, liver and kidney enzymes? Hows the crop and fecal gram stain look?

How much out of cage time does he get? And toys?

How bright is that room? Is it as dark as it seems?

 

[lupe]

Somehow i think he is not plucking.He may over-preen but i have given him a rope type of toys which he really enjoys.He is the only one who make the rope look like it was chewed by a dog
He is not scared from the other guys and get use to the dogs.He now knows he can fly and enjoys it.Goofy even train extremely well with me and my elder daughter. He can do wave,give a leg to shake hands,turn,fetch,he also have some flight recall but it is not always reliable.We are working on harness training and also other trick.He is eager to please and will do anything for a sunflower seed.Im not giving him a lot if the. In the food and he definitely looks for them in his food dish. Im almost to the point to completely fake them away from his feeding and he will be receiving them only in training.
His beak is also normal.I don't see nothing abnormal there.


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That's awesome! It sounds like Goofy has a wonderful home..Mercedez is much more experienced and her
comment is valuable...BTW: Goofy is a cutie pie

 

[komodeno]

From the looks of it it looks like he is overpreening only around his crop area.

Has he seen an avian vet? Had a full blood test done? How is his CBC, liver and kidney enzymes? Hows the crop and fecal gram stain look?

How much out of cage time does he get? And toys?
How bright is that room? Is it as dark as it seems?

He has bean veted but no blood work done only his poop was tested and was normal as per the vet .He did not see anything abnormal in him and did not advise any other thest.To find an avian vet here is a challenge.Also it is very very expensive to do any blood work even dna testing cost about 250 $.All blood tests are send abroad and cost an arm and leg....
Im planing a vet visit soon for a regular check up.I do it once a year for my birds and have never ever done any blood work for them,and the vet did not ask for any...
I have not sex any of my parrot because of the extreme cost of the test.I believe in US this is just 20-30 dollars test.
He gets a lot of toys.I do my orders from Kathie MSBS and import all from US
I have an orbit from Oliver garden also a big swing from there. I have got Get a grip net (don't ask me about the sipping charges)
I also have a light for them.
Tje second pic is taken in the evening when we usually train him and the windows are covered with the curtains.
His cage is big-My macaw is in the same size cage.He also has a separate sleeping cage.He likes to sleep in dark and quiet area and we keep him in a spare room where he is not disturbed by the evening routine in the house and he likes to go to bed around 8-8:30 pm which is a bit early for us...
Mercedes what can i do to stop this barbering?
I have orders a spray so i can try and mist him and prevent him of chewing on the feathers.I also have put some foraging toys to stimulate his intelligence.



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[komodeno]

So how can i deal with the barbering of the feathers?


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[Bokkapooh]

Well first you have to understand why he does it. But also know you may not stop him and may just need to "get over" the fact he barbers. Just make sure he has toys and great variety of healthy food.

I helped Bokka (rip) stop barbering. Opa too.

Mali my female still barber's. She has done it since her first owner died. And I've had her for a year now and she is 9 now.

 

[komodeno]

I'm trying to spend some more time withhim. We are doing a lot of trainings to stimulate him. He is very active andeager to learn and please us. I also noticed that he is the only bird in thehouse who destroys ropes. So I have got him some preening toys and he reallyplay with them. The feathers are growing slowly. I noticed that the open areais closing. If he don't damage the feathers how long will take for them to growback?
I wish also to train him in flight recall and harness so I can keep him busyand also to have some natural sunlight. I have a UVA and UVB lamp for him now.I have installed it in top of his cage and he gets it when he is in the cage.When he is out we remove it. It looks like he really like it. He is usuallyquiet when the light is on. In that note is there any light that I can put asmy primary ceiling to imitate a day light?
I'm planning to get for him AviCalm and Featheriffic. Here this products arenot available so I will be ordering them online. As of now I'm giving himVitamins which suppose to help feathers to grow better and improve quality.

 

[komodeno]

Buy the way the pick in my avatar of Goofyis just when I have noticed that something is going on with his feathers. Youcan see he was slick and now he has a rough look, like a someone who did notcomb his hair in the morning...And the naked spot is very small.

 

[Silvra]

Are you familiar with avian biotech? Avian Biotech - Europe
They might be able to help with disease testing if you still want to do it. I suppose it depends how they define 'surrounding countries.'

 

[Stormcloud]

I'd like to see some better quality pictures of his feathers if you can post them. I'd also like to see pictures of the feathers on his back, face and the condition of his beak. Do his feathers come out easily and more than you'd normally expect when moulting? Do his feathers seem unkept or dirtier than they should be?

Given that you have him on pellets I would ditch the vitamin supplements altogether. Your bird should be getting enough vitamins, minerals and trace elements from the pellets. Sometimes in endeavours to try and do the absolute best for our birds and try to make sure they are not missing out on anything, we can overdo the vitamin and minerals. There can be times where we provide too much of a good thing and this can create as problems as it solves. Try about 60-70% daily maintenance pellets, a little seed mix, fresh sprouts and veggies with a small amount of fruit. An overdose of vitamins and minerals can cause skin allergies that may cause him to pluck.

IMO I would have the Goofy tested and quarantine him from the other birds in a separate room until you have the results. $500 is still cheap compared to replacing a cockatoo, a macaw and a grey. PBFD and other Circo Viruses are contagious and can wipe out an entire flock and there is no cure these conditions. Good luck.

 

[komodeno]

I'd like to see some better quality pictures of his feathers if you can post them. I'd also like to see pictures of the feathers on his back, face and the condition of his beak. Do his feathers come out easily and more than you'd normally expect when moulting? Do his feathers seem unkept or dirtier than they should be?

Given that you have him on pellets I would ditch the vitamin supplements altogether. Your bird should be getting enough vitamins, minerals and trace elements from the pellets. Sometimes in endeavours to try and do the absolute best for our birds and try to make sure they are not missing out on anything, we can overdo the vitamin and minerals. There can be times where we provide too much of a good thing and this can create as problems as it solves. Try about 60-70% daily maintenance pellets, a little seed mix, fresh sprouts and veggies with a small amount of fruit. An overdose of vitamins and minerals can cause skin allergies that may cause him to pluck.

IMO I would have the Goofy tested and quarantine him from the other birds in a separate room until you have the results. $500 is still cheap compared to replacing a cockatoo, a macaw and a grey. PBFD and other Circo Viruses are contagious and can wipe out an entire flock and there is no cure these conditions. Good luck.

Thx for the advise. I will try taking better pictures of him.
For the vitamins i'm positive that they are actually helping. From the time he is taking them he have new feathers and the naked part is getting smaller.
I don't think that separating him will be beneficial. He is with us for more than a year now (one year and 5 months to be correct). This have started around six months after he came home.
The feathers are not coming off easy and they look normal, clean but just fluffy. His molting s are quiet heavy and I have noticed that he have a lot of pins on his body.
somehow I'm convinced that he is overpreening and need to find a solution to this problem. About the PBFD i think i just get paranoid from to much reading. If he was sick it would show it long ago....

 

[Bokkapooh]

I second what Gerard has said. Ditch the vitamins. If he is eating pellets, giving added vitamins can kill him. Please read up on vitamin toxacosis
Vit A, D, E and K are fat solubles. Theyre killers if taken in abundance and pellets have JUST the right amount. Anymore can cause organ damage, blindness, organ failure and a huge list. And its not curable. Once the toxacosis happens, its permanent.

 

[Bokkapooh]

And its not true about the sick part. Birds hide their illnesses. All my birds are healthy looking. A few have major health health issues. You can't tell by looking at them.

 

[komodeno]

Goofy's back side
Look at the top of the wings,he has feathers but they are very fluffy

That is one more closer look

Here you can clearly see the top of the wings

This is the part which now has new feathers.The place is getting smaller amd now the croup and between the legs have new feathers but they look tine and somehow like under-feathers.

Here you can see the new feathers coming out.



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[komodeno]

This is under his wings and both sides are equal.This is taken when we were training the trick Wings and he just lift one

This is the right trick with both wings up

Goofy's head

Beak and head close up


Beak
All pictures were taken just this evening
Let me know what do you think



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