# Missing feathers :(



## Silver (Apr 26, 2011)

I have just noticed my white faced cockatiel 'Silver' is missing a load of feathers from her left wing!  found them dotted around the base of her cage and the floor. Her wing is now half the size it used to be and she's not flying! is this a summer shred? boredom? im so worried  is there anything I can do to help her? she isnt missing feathers from anywhere else, she looks totally normal apart from her stumpy wing


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

she must have had a nightfright last night and lost them all. it happens. its happened to me more times then i can count with tsuka. they will grow back. just try to prevent nightfrights. thats all you can do. have a nightlight on for her at night


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## trace (Jul 3, 2011)

I'm sorry to hear about Silver. 

DallyTsuka is right, she probably had a night fright (which is when a bird starts flapping their wings frantically after they've been startled by something at night, when they are pretty much blind-- cockatiels are unfortunately rather prone to these panic attacks) and lost the wings against the bars/toys/perches of the cage. 

For night fright prevention, I recommend you install a nightlight or a dim lamp close to their cages at night so that they can see what's going on. It also helps to cover/block all gaps in curtains and window shades, because passing cars can frighten birds late at night. Sometimes it's a draft, so make sure the windows near your birds are closed in the evenings, particularly when it's windy outside.

For night fright repair/consolation, when you hear your bird flapping her wings late at night, immediately go and calm her down. I recommend not reaching in to grab her, since she might be scared enough to see you as a threat, but rather talking to hear softly outside her cage after you've stopped her from flapping her wings. It is very, very important to not ignore night frights, because cockatiels have very thin blood and can bleed to death if they break their blood feathers. If such a thing happens, and you notice blood is coming out of your bird's feather(s) after a night fright, be sure to remove the broken blood feather(s) promptly with needle nose pliers and then stanch the flow of blood using flour or cornstarch.

If you want more info, a quick Google search for "night fright birds" will do the trick. That's exactly what I did once Smokey had his first night fright-- three in one night-- but thankfully he escaped with only one pulled feather. Good luck!


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

and if you dont know what blood feathers look like...
the first one is a pulled blood feather, i removed it as it was growing in funny
the second ones are intact... had just pulled a broken one and a weird oddity from tsuka's wing

theyre the dark tube like feathers...


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## Silver (Apr 26, 2011)

Thank you very much for all your help! I have now bought a nightlight. Silver is always moved away from the window at night because of drafts and not in a room near the road. I appreciate all the useful information  xx


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## morla (Aug 15, 2011)

She is probably either moulting or had a night fright. Poor thing!


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