Amazon molting question

[ckarnold21]

I am new here and I am lookingb to get a bit of advise. I have and Orange winged Amazon that is 6 years old. I believe he is molting, but for some reason it has taken much longer for his belly feathers to come back. His belly is the only part that is concerning me. It is basically all grey "fluffy" feathers with the rest of his body being his normal feathers. He has molted before and had these grey feathers, but his regular green feathers have come in within a few weeks. For some reason or another this time around the normal feathers are not coming in. Any idea on why this would happen? I am starting to worry that something might be wrong

 

[henpecked]

Hey and welcome to the forum. It could be your 6 yrs old is starting to mature. He also might be a she. Many hen zons will pluck a "brood patch" in preparation for sitting eggs.Is he/she acting nesty? Territorial, chewing wood, interested in dark hide holes, shredding paper in the cage?

 

[ckarnold21]

Thank you for your rely. I would normally agree with you that he may be a she and that could be what's going on, but he was DNA tested to see if he was a he or a she when he was a baby

Here is a little background on him and his behavior lately because that might help also.

I have had him since he was a baby and still being hand fed. I am pretty much the only caretaker for him even though I have a full house. He is handled every day and is covered at night. He has never bitten me, but he has been seriously testing his boundaries and been trying more and more to get me lately. I switched his food up a month or so ago thinking that maybe it was lacking something and that was why his feathers weren't coming in, but nothing has changed. Again, any help is appreciated!!

 

[Kiwibird]

Is there any way you could get a photo of his chest and belly where the bare patch is? Also, have you taken him to an avian vet to have infection or a skin condition ruled out? 6 years old is about the time amazons hit sexual maturity, so him "testing" you is perfectly normal. He's going from a baby to a mature bird, so there will be some (totally manageable if gone about the correct way) behavioral changes. Think of the behavior of a teen boy, then add a beak and a bird brain and you have a male amazon going through puberty:52:

 

[ckarnold21]

Is there any way you could get a photo of his chest and belly where the bare patch is? Also, have you taken him to an avian vet to have infection or a skin condition ruled out? 6 years old is about the time amazons hit sexual maturity, so him "testing" you is perfectly normal. He's going from a baby to a mature bird, so there will be some (totally manageable if gone about the correct way) behavioral changes. Think of the behavior of a teen boy, then add a beak and a bird brain and you have a male amazon going through puberty:52:

How do I get a picture on here?

Sorry new to here, and not very tech savvy

 

[henpecked]

I'm sure one. of the members can get you a link to how to post pics. I use imageshack or photo bucket. Copy the url of the imsge and when posting you paste that url .

 

[JerseyWendy]

How do I get a picture on here?

Sorry new to here, and not very tech savvy ��

Here you go:
http://www.parrotforums.com/technical-support/6287-how-post-pictures.html