White feather sheaths

[cvyas20]

Hello everyone, I want to know when my parrot grooms himself and preens himself, is it normal for those white feathers from the inside to shed? There are like 5-6 little ones in a day on his cage floor. I was worried about plucking but he doesn't eat to pluck his greens... When he grooms like once or twice in the evenings, he sheds a few white ones. Normal?
Thx

 

[Anita1250]

Oh yeah, that is totally normal. Sometimes during molting season, I comment that it looks like someone plucked a chicken in my living room. They are everywhere.

Usually, just before winter they lose quite a few and grow new ones to keep warm. I guess it is kind of like our hair. They only stay on for so long before they are shed. Then, there are the new tail and wing feathers. We just replaced a whole tail here. Those you have to be careful with. When they are long and still covered, they have a vein in them to allow them to grow. If they break, the bird can bleed quite a bit.

 

[cvyas20]

Oh yeah, that is totally normal. Sometimes during molting season, I comment that it looks like someone plucked a chicken in my living room. They are everywhere.

Usually, just before winter they lose quite a few and grow new ones to keep warm. I guess it is kind of like our hair. They only stay on for so long before they are shed. Then, there are the new tail and wing feathers. We just replaced a whole tail here. Those you have to be careful with. When they are long and still covered, they have a vein in them to allow them to grow. If they break, the bird can bleed quite a bit.

Thanks Anita! That's some good info.

 

[MauiWendy]

My parakeet is molting. White feathers, everywhere! He's also dropped two tail feathers. I have to vacuum all the time.

 

[cvyas20]

There are not a lot from mine, like 5-6 in a day but it is because he is preening, itching himself on the body lol Thankfully he is not pulling or trying to pull out the green real feathers.

 

[Anita1250]

Well, mine is 35 going to be 36 in February. I have quite a collection of pretty tail feathers!

 

[cvyas20]

Lol mine is a 5 month old baby so I will expect some feathers in the future years!

 

[Anita1250]

Oh, I remember those baby days! How much fun they were. Sam was a clumsy little baby with huge feet. He couldn't turn around on the perch without falling. So cute. When I walked near the cage, he would launch himself onto my chest to be cuddled.

 

[cvyas20]

Wow mine loves being on the perch only haha, he is still getting used to his new family. Mine doesn't want to come out and doesn't let us touch him yet, but loves eating from my hand lol

 

[Anita1250]

Give him time. They are all different. When I went to get Sam, they had about 12 baby BFA's in a large pen. He was the only one that came over to me and didn't try to bite me. That's why I picked him. 36 years later, he is still the same sweet birdie!

 

[geff]

A light misting with water seems to do birds some good when they are moulting.