# Ruffled feathers



## tizercat (Sep 5, 2012)

One of my cockatiels always looks rumpled and disheveled. Peabody is an adult male of undetermined age (at least 4) who I've had for a bit over a year now. His chest, leg, and tail always look like they need a good preen. He's active and bright, eats well (mainly Harrison's Adult Lifetime), and blood work done last year showed no problems. He's overdue for his annual wellness and I'll be taking him to the vet soon, but I was wondering if anyone has any ideas about why he's such a messy-looking boy. My 12 year old male, Jake, shares a cage with him and eats the same food, and always looks like the typical smooth, sleek 'tiel. I see Peabody preen so it's not that he doesn't try to take care of himself, and he's not currently moulting. I shall try to get a picture of his messy feathers so you know what I'm referring to.

Any ideas? Peabody thanks you - I think Jake is mocking him.


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

I think we'll have more ideas once we can see pictures.  Can you also tell us what their diet is like? i know that you said Jake eats the same food, but it would be helpful to review anyway since some birds are more sensitive to nutritional issues than others.


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## tizercat (Sep 5, 2012)

Sorry they're so blurry, my camera is being irritating and he doesn't want to stay still. You should still be able to see the messiness of his feathers on his abdomen/legs. They're always like this, never smooth and tidy... 
















He and Jake are both on Harrison's Adult Lifetime Fine pellets with carrots, peppers, peas, apples, and spinach offered (though they mostly ignore it completely). They get a bit of a seed mix as a treat on occasion, and rarely get to have a spray of millet. They have a cuttlebone available, though I've never seen Peabody eat it, only Jake.


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

Hmm. They don't look that awful to me, although I do agree that most cockatiels have more smooth feathers. Does he bathe at all? And do you notice him preening as much as Jake does, or is there a behavioral difference?

Cockatiels are seed eaters in the wild, so I would add back some seed daily. A diet slightly higher in fat may help with feather health. Check out this sticky on nutrition: http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=27479


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## roxy culver (May 27, 2010)

It looks like he sits in water a lot or something. 

As to the diet, I would definitely add more seeds to the diet. Tiels are natural seed eaters in the wild, so no offering them is unnatural. An all pellet diet can end up hurting a tiel in the long run and cause health issues.


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## tizercat (Sep 5, 2012)

Oh I don't think they're _awful_, I was just curious about why he always looks so messy, especially since Jake is a typical smooth, sleek 'tiel. I have to admit that neither of my boys like to bathe and while I take Jake in the shower with me sometimes because he likes it, I don't mist Peabody that often because he hates it so much. I would say that I see him preen _more_ than I see Jake preen. I don't mind my messy boy, as long as I know that he's healthy. As I mentioned, his blood work last year was all perfectly normal (unlike Jake, who had high uric acid) but he'll be getting his yearly work up next week so I'll let you know if there's anything on it.

I will also mix a bit of seed into their pellets. They'll think they died and went to heaven.


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## enigma731 (Aug 12, 2011)

I would try to work harder on getting Peabody to bathe. That may be your answer. We have a sticky for that too: http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?goto=newpost&t=32556

If adding back the seeds and giving more frequent baths doesn't change his feather quality, I might consider bringing it up with the vet. I can't honestly think of a specific condition that would be associated with this, but it would be worth seeing what the vet had to say.


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## tizercat (Sep 5, 2012)

I will work on the bathing suggestions and let you know how it goes. Thanks.


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## bjknight93 (Nov 13, 2011)

Possibly a vitamin A deficiency...do you every give them Kale our other vitamin A rich foods? Vitamin A it's very good for the skin and feathers. Do they get natural sunlight or full spectrum lighting? That will also improve feather quality and is essential for calcium absorption.


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## tizercat (Sep 5, 2012)

Peabody decided this morning that if you stick him in the kitchen sink with a towel on the bottom and about 1/2" of warm water for 5 minutes, then start to dribble warm water over him with a cup repeatedly with the tap running in the other half of the sink it makes a bath not so bad. He even started to do the bath dance after a little bit of the dribbling. Jake, on the other hand, thought it was torture and would much rather go to the shower. But hey, found a method that Peabody likes! Until I started dribbling the water over him with the tap running he just walked around in the water with no interest in getting anything but his feet wet, but we succeeded in the end. He's now happily preening his wet feathers.


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

i wonder, is he an over-preener? over preening can cause feathers like that. 

i agree, the diet should be more seed, less pellets.


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