Q&A for How to Care for a Molting Parrot

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  • Question
    How can I help my parrot molt?
    Hayley Heartfield
    Bird Specialist
    Hayley Heartfield is a Bird Specialist and the Owner of About Birds, a Pet Bird Shop in Montgomery County, Texas. Hayley specializes in pet bird care, behavior, training, and breeding. Hayley studied Animal Science at Texas A&M. About Birds carries many species of birds and offers grooming and boarding services as well as bird care products.
    Bird Specialist
    Expert Answer
    Try giving your bird a weekly bath as it molts. Bird bath sprays made with aloe may help your bird.
  • Question
    How do I tell if the bird is molting?
    Community Answer
    If a bird is molting, it will have a lot of pin feathers around its head area, and it will look ragged, with a bunch of dropped feathers at the bottom of the cage.
  • Question
    What should I do if my parakeet has bare patches of skin?
    Community Answer
    Take it to a vet, this isn’t normal for a molting bird. During a regular molt, the bird should not lose all its feathers at the same time. Bare patches could mean the bird is plucking.
  • Question
    I'm not experienced with cockatiels much, I would like to know if my bird is a male or female and how old it is. I was not told this.
    Charlie the Cockatiel
    Community Answer
    You can tell the gender of your cockatiel if you look at the tail and the cheek mark. If your cockatiel is a female, it should have dark yellow or brown streaks on the tail feathers, you might have to look under a light to actually see it. If it’s a male, you will not see streaks. Another way to tell the gender is by looking at the cheeks, if the cheeks look like a bright reddish orange, then it is a male. If it’s pale and not vibrant, then it’s a female.
  • Question
    How can I get a parakeet to stay still while I help remove old feathers from the head and neck? He's okay with hands but tends to move away from them two thirds of the time.
    Dope Tiger
    Community Answer
    Try to slowly move the hand towards his chest first and begin to pet him, then slowly make your way up his back while still petting him and them gently try to pull out the feathers. Make sure they are loose and if not, give him some time and he will most likely do this himself.
  • Question
    What to do if your 29 year old Senegal parrot plucks?
    Community Answer
    There can be many reasons as to why your bird would pluck. Either it is stressed over something -- did it have enough sleep, does it have a good diet, does it have enough space, does it have enough attention/stimulation? It could also be that something recently changed in your house and it doesn't like the new change. Another reason could just purely be addiction to plucking. Start at the root of it and find what is causing it. There are many toys you can buy for birds that allow them to "pluck" the toy instead of their own feathers. There are also soothing sprays made for pluckers that can relieve itchiness.
  • Question
    How do I tell if my red Lori is a male or female?
    Community Answer
    You can take a sample of their droppings to a vet. The vet will be able to test it and tell you its sex.
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