Help/advice appreciated

[Cherie]

Hi everyone
Im a new member looking for advice.
Myself and my mother both brought a pineapple conure from the same clutch and from a reputable breeder in january.
They are just over 6 months old.
While my bird ( miss pineapple) is bright in colour my mums bird (Rita) isn't
Rita ( mums bird) has funny marks on her feathers and her feather look short.
The birds do not live together but see each other every now and then as I babysit when my mum is away ( but this doesnt occur often and only for 2/3 days when it does)
Our babys both have the same diet ..which is vetafarm pellets, fresh fruit and vegetables and a very little seed.
they both have daily sun.
I have attached a photo of Rita and Miss pineapple ( sisters)
for comparison. There is 2 pics of Rita and 1 of miss pinapple
Would love any info

 

[Phlox]

They look pretty normal to me. I don't see any stress bars or frayed feathers. Each bird is different, even in the same color mutation and from the same clutch...just like people are. You never know how their adult plumage will end up.

 

[Mekaisto]

Has Rita always been like this, or is it only recent?

Those brown edges are a result of something called 'feather bronzing' - it's where the feathers are rubbed, chewed or malformed, taking off the top layer of keratin. It can be due to a couple of things - she may be rubbing the sides of her body on something (toys, perches etc), she may be chewing or over grooming her feathers, or it may be the sign of illness - an infection usually, but liver disease is possible.

If a newly growing feather is already bronzed, it is the sign of poor diet or illness. Based on the fact that only the feathers on the sides of the body are bronzed, I'd say it's more likely due to rubbing, but it wouldn't hurt to take a trip to the vet to make sure it's nothing bad.

 

[Dinosrawr]

I'm with Mekaisto - that doesn't look healthy to me. I would attribute it to all of those things, plus the possibility of overhandling, as the oils from our hands can strip the keratin and damage them.

 

[Cherie]

Thanks for replying
Rita's feathers were normal when we got her this has only just started to happen.