Parrot Health and Happiness

Parrot Feathers 

Part II

Moulting

Parrots, like all feathered creatures, must replace their feathers periodically so that their plumage stays healthy. After all, feathers are such an important part of their livelihood, allowing them to travel through the air, communicate, and protecting them from the elements. When a parrots feathering is lost and replaced with new feathers, the process is called a molt. Specific hormones are what trigger birds to lose and replace their feathers. Most parrots will molt once a year, typically during warmer months. The exact time of year that a bird will molt depends on the species as well as how healthy the bird is and whether the bird is getting adequate natural sunlight.

            Birds that are not healthy can have early molts brought on by stress, very long drawn-out molts, or multiple molts during a span of a year (it must be noted that some birds, especially small ones, do molt twice a year but not all). This abnormal molting often isn't really a genuine molt, but could actually just be called feather loss. Sometimes when molting or feather loss happens many times in a year, the birds hormonal balance may be off or they may be unduly stressed. Birds that are very young often molt multiple times a year and this is normal and healthy. Molting can also be affected by the amount of sunlight the bird is exposed to. The presence of natural light affects hormone levels in birds. Some of these hormones are responsible for the initiation of molting. When the amount of time the bird spends in light is either too little or too much, the molt may take place very early, very late, or very infrequently.

            When a bird goes through a normal, healthy molt, it will lose it's feathers symmetrically on it's body and only a few feathers will be replaced at one time. This is a survival strategy for the bird. The feathers are lost symmetrically on the body so that they bird is has the same number of feathers on one side of its body as it does on the other side of its body. Take the wings for example. If two flight feathers are shed on the left wing, the right wing will shed the same two feathers at the same time. This keeps the bird in balance so that flight is still possible for the bird. It's important that the bird is still able to move about in the air even if its molting. The reason only a few feathers are shed at one time is important for the same reason as the symmetry. This ensures that the bird always has a good supply of feathers to protect it from the elements and to allow it to fly. There are never any bald spots on a bird unless it is ill or feather-picking. The whole molting process can take many weeks or even a few months to complete.

Now that you know a little about why and how birds molt, let's take a look a closer look at the actual feathers and what happens to them during a molt.

            Feathers get old and fall out. They get damaged. They get plucked. For whatever reason a bird looses it's feathers, they are replaced by spiffy new ones. New immature feathers are called blood feathers. The shaft of the feather that attaches to the bird is hollow. This hollow space is filled with life-giving blood in growing feathers. This is why they are called blood feathers. The blood brings nutrients to the feather, allowing it to grow. During this time the new feather is encased in a sheath to protect it while it is forming. Sheathed feathers are sometimes called pin feathers. When the feather is completely formed, the blood supply will be cut off naturally and the shaft will empty and become hollow. Only then does the bird begin to remove the sheath from the feather. This is a part of the preening process. The bird uses its beak to peel away the covering on the feather, and then unfurls and preps the new feather, "zipping up" the barbules to reveal a brand new perfect feather. If you have a single bird, you may notice that the pin feathers on the neck and head are unreachable to the bird and you may have to help to "preen" the bird. This job is done by other members of the flock in wild birds or by cagemates in captivity. Simply check the bird for blood feathers before unsheathing the pin feathers because blood feather are very sensitive and you may injure the bird. As long as you are gentle, you can roll the feather in between your fingers to remove the sheath and reveal the new feather.

            Care must be taken to never disturb the blood feathers on your bird. Not only are they sensitive, but, if broken, they can bleed uncontrollably. If the shaft is cracked or broken in an accident, the feather becomes like a straw, letting blood flow out of the birds body. Even if the blood coagulates, the damaged blood feather can easily start bleeding again and the best thing to do is to take your bird to your local veterinarian so that he or she may remove the broken feather completely.

BIRD BITES – FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS:

Q: Every once or twice a year, usually in Spring and/or early Fall, my normally loving parrot gets grumpy, nippy and territorial about their cage.   What causes this?   

A:  It is breeding season for your particular kind of parrot.  They are protecting their “nest”, whether they have a mate or not, the “urge” is still there.  Let your bird exit the cage before trying to feed, water or play with him/her.  As long as they do not perceive you to be a threat to their potential nest; they should be their normal sweet selves.  Be on the watch, though; because they can be little Jekyll and Hyde personalities at this time.  A smooch can turn into a nip real quick, so learn your bird’s body language and leave them be if they display grumpiness to you. (Jan)

TIP:  Warmer weather is here for many of us and whether or not you clip or free-flight your bird; take extra precautions with ceiling fans, portable fans, opening and closing of doors and windows.  It only takes a nano-second for them to be gone.  By the time you hear the Whirring of wings, they are outside and gone. (Jan Santor)