Green cheek conure unable to fly during molt

[Ember-Tiel]

Hi guys, my green cheek conure Jade began his molt about 2 months ago, before it started he was really good at flying, by now he lost a lot of tail feathers which are beginning to grow back slowly, but he hasn't been flying now at all. Is this normal?

 

[Donna turner]

Birds don't normally lose the ability to fly during a molt. This would literally make them sitting ducks in the wild. Does jade try to fly and fail or does he just not want to try

 

[Ember-Tiel]

He doesn't wasn't to try, but when when he does he just ends up on the floor.

 

[Lady Jane]

Have you checked his flight feathers?

 

[Lady Jane]

Flight Feathers
The following feathers make up the typical bird's wing:

Flight Feathers

• Primaries: Elongated flight feathers that grow out from the end of the wings (the 'hand' area of the wing). Birds typically have 9-10 primaries.
• Secondaries: Long flight feathers positioned just behind the primaries and grow out from the 'forearm' area of the wing. Many birds have six secondary feathers.
• Tertials: Three flight feathers that are closest to the bird's body along the wing, located next to the secondaries.
• Remiges: A term used to refer to primaries, secondaries, and tertials together.
• Greater primary coverts: Feathers that overlap the base of the primaries.
• Greater secondary coverts: Feathers that overlap the base of the secondaries.
• Median secondary coverts: Feathers that overlap the base of the greater secondary coverts.
• Lesser secondary coverts: Feathers that overlap the base of the median secondary coverts.
• Alula: The feathers that grow from the 'thumb' area of the wing on the leading edge of the wing.

 

[Lucas2019]

my bird has lost a lot feathers but he has been able to flight and he is still molting and I see a lot of pins in the head area , I freak out when I saw tail feathers being molt . So far he flight good and way to fast lol that I get scared hahaha

 

[Ember-Tiel]

Do you think his case might actually be a problem then? I could get a few pictures of his pin feathers in the morning if need.

 

[Lucas2019]

Do you think his case might actually be a problem then? I could get a few pictures of his pin feathers in the morning if need.

I don’t have an idea of what it could be . Maybe @Zara or @Monica can help . Have you seen some abnormal behavior ? Maybe is cause is a heavy molt.

 

[Ember-Tiel]

This is his first molt, at the beginning he was very angry since he had a lot of pin feathers, now he is really playful and sweet. He seems fine.

 

[Monica]

Has he lost flight feathers as well?


Jade could be feeling "unbalanced" with the loss of some of those feathers and may not know how to compensate for them.

 

[Ember-Tiel]

Has he lost flight feathers as well?


Jade could be feeling "unbalanced" with the loss of some of those feathers and may not know how to compensate for them.

Alot of his flight feathers are pin feathers, and he has started to grow back his tail feathers.

 

[Donna turner]

Unusual. Maybe being a first molt has something to do with it, but still unusual to lose so many at once he can't fly. Maybe Monica is right that he's unbalanced and doesn't know how to deal with it. Poor baby