Feather advice (?)

[Rekillkos]

Hello all. I have a blue Quaker parrot who I’ve and for a few months now. I cal it a she and named her Billie. I keep plenty of other birds too, but I have a few questions for anyone with more Quaker experience than me. Billies’ previous owners clipped her wings, and as a result her tail is short and damaged from crash landings on the floor. The feather roots seem to be intact, but I’m wondering if there’s any supplements or anything that could help them grow better. I use feather fast for all my birds during molting with some extra calcium on top of soft food, and they all get liquid vitamins at least 2x a week as well as daily sunshine for a few hours. Billie also had extremely dry and flaky feet but rubbing coconut oil on them once a week has seemed to fix that problem completely. She’s on a diet of pellets, seeds, and fresh fruit and vegetables. I’d also like to know if anyone has any experience sexing these birds. I know about DNA testing and whatnot but am wondering if there’s any behavioral indicators of sex. I’m also getting a green Quaker, he’s 17 but that’s about all I know about him. I plan on quarantining him away from all the other birds for a few weeks and taking him to the vet first thing.

to summarize, looking for foods/tips/supplements for bright, vibrant and healthy feathers

and behavioral/visual sex indicators

Thank you

 

[Mizzely]

Healthy diet and time is really all you can do for the feathers they won't grow in until they are ready. You technically could pluck the feathers to speed up the process but I've always found that to be unnecessary stress.

I've been around boy and girl quakers and I've not noticed any behavioral differences. I have a DNA blue boy that lives with my Mother in law, and she has a female that she thought was a boy for 15 years. I also adopted a green boy that I thought was a girl, so clearly my family can't notice a difference if there is any

For the DNA test I just had my vet send in a sample of blood from a nail trim.

 

[cnyguy]

Unfortunately, Quaker parrots' long tails are vulnerable to damage from being bumped into things. As Shawna (Mizzely) said, new feathers will grow in when they're ready to; geather growth can't be rushed.

Other than the parrot laying an egg, the only way to accurately determine the sex is with a DNA test. There's really no significant difference in behavior or appearance between male and female Quaker parrots.