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Feather plucking or molting

15huricane

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Hi, so just 2 weeks ago I got 2 beautiful green cheeked conures who are both 4 months old (almost 5) over the last couple of days, I've noticed that both of them have started to loose a bit of fluff on their chest. This is my first time owning birds. They are scratching a lot, preening more than usual, and getting a bit moody but as they are new to my home, I want to make sure they are actually molting and not having any other underlying issues as I've read theyre a bit too young to molt. What do your conures do when they molt?
 

Fuzzy

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Hi and :welcome2: Congrats on your 2 GCC - what are their names?

Just Googled and according to a couple of sites they can start molting as early as 5 months old depending on when they were hatched. When you say fluff is that down feathers (underneath white or grey fluffies) or coloured contour feathers? A photo of them would help. :)
 

15huricane

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Hi. Their names are Tiki and Cortez. 5 months? That's pretty young wow. They were hatched in early January (came from 2 different places). I don't know their genders as of yet.

I tried to attach photos but they move a bit too much so I wasn't able to get a clear shot. They like phones a bit too much so I wasn't able to get close enough without the other one wanting to play. (It's like raising twins haha) It's probably 4 or 5 tiny patches rn on both of their chests (roughly the size of an eraser head, maybe smaller). The patches aren't bald yet (keeping an eye on that). Is this normal for a molt? Also, do conures usually molt at the same time? They've been together almost 2 months but the reason I'm so concerned is that they both got patches within a day of eachother.

If it helps, they've also started bathing more. Used to be 1 or 2 times a day and now they're bathing 4 or 5 times a day.

I'll try to attach photos once the spot is big enough I can capture it from farther away. As of this moment, they're a bit too energetic. I can try once they wake up but it probably won't be very good.
 

Fuzzy

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They sound adorable!! Love their names. When molting it is not usual to find bald patches but what you will notice is little "pins" as the new feathers grow back in. Pins or spikes are what the new feathers look like as they start to emerge and before the sheaths get broken/rubbed off as they grow. If you are finding it difficult to see the bald patches clearly, then hopefully it is not a problem. Bathing will help. Often birds in the same household will molt at the same time.
 

15huricane

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Thanks sm! They're a bit of a handful but I love them dearly. I attached a photo of them when they first woke up from a little nap. Couldn't get the bald spots though. (They're crazy alert) Tiki is the darker smaller one and Cortez is the lighter and larger one.

I will try to look for pins in the areas where it's thinner. Do the pins show up within the first few days of molting or does it take longer?

They bathe on their own. Glad to know that's not a bad thing.

Oh that's really good to know. I was really worried. Thanks so much for the help! I really appreciate it. I'll give an update once I figure out what's up. :)
 

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Fuzzy

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OMG cuteness overload!!! :heart: :heart: They look like in beautiful condition. Not sure how long the pins take to show... as soon as the old feather gets pushed out they are not far behind. You know the "holes" could even be wear and tear if they play rough.
 

15huricane

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Thank you sm! They like napping on my lap sometimes. Birds are fluffy little ovens when they sleep. XD Ok. I will keep an eye out for that.

They do wrestle with each other from time to time. At first I was scared cause I thought they were fighting but some friends of mine told me that ot was normal so long as they aren't hurting each other.

Thanks for all of your help. This is my first time owning birds so I really appreciate it.
 
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