# Our tiels are molting But i'm not sure if it's normal



## atvchick95 (Sep 17, 2007)

when the lady from the Rescue brought the birds to my house she told me they were molting, I said that's fine I've got a Quaker and a at least one Budgie molting - They loose a feather here and there, You see pin feathers, and you see them scratch allot - No Big deal 

On To The Tiels - well just one is concerning me at this moment 

The White Face Tiel has HUGE bald spots specially on the back of her neck, If she is sitting on a perch or the home made perch we made them the other day and has her head turned just right while she's preening You can see the HUGE BALD SPOT , THE SKIN and what looks like STRINGS over top of the SKIN - I've never seen a Bird MOLT before (even with my budgie and quaker they're not molting like this! they'll puff up their feathers and shake and a handful of little feathers will fall to the ground, Or like i said i saw all the pin feathers on my budgies forehead , or when i cleaned my quakers cage the other day there was a small pile of feathers right under where he sleeps) they do it more like how a dog sheds you never see actual bald spots 

but on the Tiel you do and I have NOT noticed it on the other Tiel ( who were together for a very long time from what i understand as i was informed they had to stay together according to the previous owner who gave them to the rescue)

I do Have Molting stuff I've been giving them along with my Budgie and quaker it's for parakeets though ( not sure if it'll make a difference) it is called SUN SEED SUNTHING SPECIAL ( BRAND NAME) Parakeet Moulting Food 

and I sprinkle a teaspoon of this on to their food just like the directions say ( only difference is I don't have the exact food it mentions to use it with it says " One teaspoon daily in conjunction with sun seed VITA PARAKEET(formula). is is also recommended that parakeet moulting food be alternated with parakeet revitalizer to help diversify the diet "

How long should I give the Tiels ( and my other birds) the molting stuff? or stop using it and get something that works?? or is the Tiel actually molting normally? I saw in the Dr foster and smith magazine different sprays for molting that you spray them with ( it's a bath spray but for molting like thing) - should i get something like that? or some kind of molting drops to put in their water?

and one other thing Since I've got 4 budgies that eat/ sleep together and only Tweety seems to be molting - is it going to hurt the other 3 to if they eat the molting stuff even know they're not molting?

I just have a very hard time stomaching when the white face when she moves her head the way you can see the Skin/ Stringy skin what ever it's called 

I've gave them a Pie dish to take a bath in - but they weren't interested 

how can i get them to take a bath? or should I just mist them like I do with my Budgies ( who refuse to take a bath) How often should I do it?

and how long does mottling generally last????????

Sorry for all the questions ( and I prob. babbled and went way off topic before getting back on topic a few times - I have that problem LOL I can only blame My ADD


----------



## Laura (Jul 30, 2007)

I don' know alot about molting in cockatiels other then what I have read, mine are both still young so I haven't been through it yet, but from what I have read molting doesn't usually cause huge bald spots, thats more related to diet, genetics, stress, feather plucking. 
Molting:
Loss of feathers is highly variable in captivity, but should occur once or twice a year. Normal molting depends on humidity, light period and breeding. All these natural stimulants are not present in captivity, so molting is often unpredictable. This is a stressful time for birds and good nutrition is necessary. The bird should be protected from cold drafts, since this is a time of increased susceptibility to disease. The bird may be less active and talk or chirp less. Molting can last 4-12 weeks depending on the size of the bird. At no time should there be bald spots. The bird should not be rendered flightless for long. If feathers are not re-growing then the bird should be examined. When new feathers are re-growing, the bird will spend much time preening. This is normal and does not indicate a problem.
As far as bathing you could just mist them like your budgies or you could try the shower both of mine love going in the shower with us, and Ollie also likes to have the bathroom sink filled with water and he plays in it.


----------



## Plukie (Aug 26, 2007)

Dooby has just started her first moult, she is losing feathers, but it's only a few at a time like you said...there are no bald spots.


----------



## Bea (Jul 26, 2007)

Bald spots makes me think either she is plucking herself, or another bird has been plucking her. I don't like to give anything for moulting in the way of products, but a mist bath every 2-3 days will make it easier and keep the dust down.  If she's been plucked by another bird then the feathers will grow back eventually, if it's her then i would think you will see her doing it...


----------



## atvchick95 (Sep 17, 2007)

its mainly on the back of her neck, I don't thinks he'd be able to reach it her self it would be a hard task to do on her own 

I was tryin to find some info about it, only thing I came up with that causes bald spots is something called a "French Molt" But I couldn't find any pictures of one to see if it looked like hers 

I'll try to get a picture of her tommorow , their cage is in my daughters room and she's in bed So i'll try to get some pictures after I get them off to school tommorrow


----------



## atvchick95 (Sep 17, 2007)

Here are a couple pictures of the White Faces Neck - While taking the pics I noticed the Pied has the same problem BUT no where near as bad, She had to have her head turned and was preeening at the same time for me to notice hers - where the whiteface really just has to sit there and I can see it 




















Hopefully they show up okay, I had to attempt to get a decent shot several times, had to shut the flash off on a few of them ( all i got was a bright light no bird) and She wasn't bieng very cooperative Hard taking a pic of a moving object LOL


----------



## Laura (Jul 30, 2007)

yup I can see it, that doesn't look like its from molting, was anything said to you when you got them? do you know any of there history? have you seen them plucking each other, I am sure you would have noticed that, hard to say what could cause it there are so many things it might be worth it to consult a vet or find out info from where they came from there might be some answers there.


----------



## atvchick95 (Sep 17, 2007)

laurago said:


> yup I can see it, that doesn't look like its from molting, was anything said to you when you got them? do you know any of there history? have you seen them plucking each other, I am sure you would have noticed that, hard to say what could cause it there are so many things it might be worth it to consult a vet or find out info from where they came from there might be some answers there.



I adopted them through a local rescue on Pet Finder, The woman said they were molting when she brought them to me saturday I don't know anything about their history other then the previous owner said they had to stay together 

I've not seem them pluck thier self or eachother 

The white Face has lunged at the pied and nipped at her but it was not hard or anything, and i've only seen her do it maybe 4 times ( my budgies do it too at times) but as far as picking feathers I've not seen either one do it 


I didn't think it looked normal, Since I've got a Quaker and one of my budgies are molting and they don't look NOTHING like this one 

Then I read about a "FRENCH MOLT" which according to the article it matches what the white face looks like -But I wasn't able to find any pictures about it ( the only picture i found brought up a duck)


----------



## Bea (Jul 26, 2007)

French moult usually affects young birds worst, and it will usually make the tail and flight feathers fall out. I don't think it would affect just one patch on the back of the neck. My best guess would be that she was plucked by another bird somewhere along the line. Perhaps by one of her parents and it damaged the feather follicles preventing them from growing back.


----------



## atvchick95 (Sep 17, 2007)

Bea said:


> French moult usually affects young birds worst, and it will usually make the tail and flight feathers fall out. I don't think it would affect just one patch on the back of the neck. My best guess would be that she was plucked by another bird somewhere along the line. Perhaps by one of her parents and it damaged the feather follicles preventing them from growing back.


I never thought of that , the add said there were 4 Female Tiels up for adoption, but by the time I emailed the lady ( 3 days after it was posted) there were only 2 left, they all came from the same owner - So it could of been all 4 Females were together in one cage and Just didn't get along 


How long does a Molt normally last? a month 2 months? or does it more depend on the Seasons/ Weather of the Area the birds are living in? 

I'm in Indiana and our weather is very wacky last week our low's for the night ranged from 45-58 and it was cool in the daytime even when the temps were higher 80s but this week it's high 80s and extreamly hot again ( or at least to me i've got my windows open and a fan roating beside me and i'm burning up lol) 

I wasn't sure if the weather/ seasons had anything to do with how long they molt or not though 


But thank you all for your help, If no feathers grow back any time soon I'll just have to get used to looking at it LOL


----------



## Laura (Jul 30, 2007)

I agree with Bea I would guess that she might have been plucked by another bird along the way and that makes sense if there where 4 of them together  molts can last anywhere from 4-12 wks.


----------

