Is my skittish canary molting or plucking feathers from stress?

Thanks for reaching out about Quiz and including photos. It surely sounds as if this is a stress response. Too many changes in a very short period of time: different room, different cages, different routine. The only answers are to try and mitigate stress: keep area quiet and maybe dim lights. Avoid any other additional stresses as in loud noises. Try and spend more time with them as a calming effect. Good luck.

Hi there. Sorry that Sunny is having this issue. The normal annual molt occurs naturally during the last half of summer and continues into the fall. So, I would say this is the normal time of year to be molting. He may have pulled out a feather due to normal preening or it could be an injury. Can't really tell from the photo. I would not be worried unless you see any bald spots. Molting can be a taxing process. It is stressful for them so they do tend to stop signing and seem less active. That would be normal. To help ease the stress of molting I would recommend a vitamin supplement like this one: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Molting-Conditioning-Supplement-for-Cockatiels/dp/B0082D247E I hope this helps. If you have more questions feel free to post again!

If your bird is otherwise acting normally and healthy, it is possible it may be a molt, especially if you are seeing feathers coming back in already. Other possible causes to look for are plucking, as you suggested, as well as parasites such as mites/lice. Making sure your bird is in an area that is low stress (aka, he has a chance to relax quietly when he needs to) can help as well as looking for/treating any possible mites. If the bald patch increases, the feathers don't regrow, or you see other issues, then having a vet take a look is best.

Thanks for reaching out about Silver and including photos. Stress can cause shedding, but also poor nutriton. Lettuce does not have much calcium or other vitamins, nor does cucumber. A wide variety of vegetables (including carrots, yams, brocolli, collards, etc) in addition to a protein source (sprouted seeds, chopped beans) are important for feather growth. Feathers are possible but usually contagious from one bird to another. Improve the diet, provide bathing options. Good luck.

Feather plucking is often associated with boredom, or other issues within their environment, but the cause of this problem is not always known and highly debated amongst avian experts. Making sure she is not bored is a good first step. One good way to keep your bird busy is by making them work for their food. Birds in the wild spend most of their time foraging for food. Instead of just putting food in their bowl, you can hide it, or put it in puzzle toys that require them to do some work to get the food out. I fed my parrot almost exclusively this way. Other enrichment options include putting a mirror in the cage and putting her in other environments. It's best to give your canary as much possible space that you can to let her fly and roam around. You may consider getting perches or other cages for different rooms, or outside. If you can afford to have a flight cage built, this would be even better. Below is a link to some more information about enrichment ideas: http://www.parrotenrichment.com/ It's also good to make sure she is getting enough sleep. This is best achieved by keeping the bird in a dark room during sleep time. Birds should have 12 hours of sleep a night, so don't feel bad about putting her in a dark room for that amount of time. Diet is also very important. She should eat mostly a formulated pellet diet like zupreem. Make sure she is not eating a seed, or nut based diet as these are too fatty and can cause issues leading to feather loss. For more information about diet, read the article at the link below. https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/canaries-feeding Lastly, make sure she is bathing regularly. Dry feathers can itch, break and cause them to pluck. It's good to put a bird bath in the cage as much as possible (once a day would be best). I hope that helps and Tweedy gets better soon.

Hello. I’m so sorry you are dealing with feather destructive behavior, but I’m glad your vet said he’s healthy. FDB is extremely frustrating and can have many causes. Illness must be ruled out first by way of a physical exam, blood work, X-rays, fecal tests. If those are all normal, then we usually do a feather and skin biopsy to see if there is an issue in the feathers themselves. After that, we consider the behavior psychological. Since you say this started during your cancer treatments, I suspect this is a stress response in your bird. Birds are extremely social and bond strongly to their person. If you were sick and stressed he likely picked up on that. If you had less time for him, thatvlikely caised him stress as well. Birds also are used to being in flocks and flying miles and miles a day. So just being indoors in a cage is stressful. As you can see, birds have a lot of cause t be stressed and pick feathers! There are many strategies to try but to be honest, once this starts it’s very very hard to stop. Special collars, vests and other things can be worn to prevent plucking. Medications for pain, itching, and antipsychotics can sometimes help. The best thing would be to see your veterinarian again, or seek the help of an avian specialist to work through the possible causes and implement a treatment and management strategy. This will be a long road, but hopefully will be worth it in the end. Good luck!

Thanks for your question about Hazlet, and thank you for the photos - they are very helpful. You are correct in that Hazlet is more fluffed than a normal canary should be. You are also correct that this can be a sign of illness (it is part of what we call the "sick bird posture" - this also includes sitting low on the perches or sitting on the ground, closing the eyes, tucking the head, faster breathing). It can also be a sign of stress, or being cold as well. I would recommend that you evaluate where the cage is located - is it near a window, near an outside wall, or near a door? Is the temperature in your house 70F or below - if so, I would recommend increasing the temperature. Now that it has been two days since you posted (I apologize for the delay, by the way), if this has continued and the temperatures and cage location are appropriate, it may be time for a veterinary visit. Often it can take a few days for a bird to get comfortable in their new environment, but if it is still going on now, I would recommend taking him in to see a veterinarian. They can perform a physical examination, and depending on the findings, may have treatment recommendations for you. They can also evaluate the husbandry/care/diet for Hazlet and may make recommendations that are tailored to you and to him. I hope that gives you a place to start, and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.