HELP!! Parakeet molt???

[Mariam0203]

I've had a quite a few parakeets but have never seen a molt this bad before. I've noticed bald patches on his head a day or two ago and I can't tell if he's just having a miserable molt or if it's a deadly disease known as PBFD. He's acting completely fine and playing and eating, but it still bother me a lot to look at him like this. I'm also thinking he mightve gotten into a fight with one of the males but I'm not sure. What do you guys think? I'm really worried about him

 

[Koko_the_fluf]

It can be mold. There is a low possibility it's PBFD BUT If your bird's feathers are bleeding or if they are very messy then you should go to the vet right away ( If it's fine still go to the vet to be safe)

 

[LaManuka]

I've had a quite a few parakeets but have never seen a molt this bad before. I've noticed bald patches on his head a day or two ago and I can't tell if he's just having a miserable molt or if it's a deadly disease known as PBFD. He's acting completely fine and playing and eating, but it still bother me a lot to look at him like this. I'm also thinking he mightve gotten into a fight with one of the males but I'm not sure. What do you guys think? I'm really worried about him

Welcome to the forums, Mariam and your little cutie! PBFD is certainly a very worrying condition -it's difficult to say from this distance whether your budgie is suffering from it or whether, as you say, he might just be having a bit of a miserable moult. My Val is pretty grumpy for exactly that reason right now, and I certainly have had budgies in the past who have lost a clump of feathers in that same spot in a fight with another bird so that might be a factor for you too.

It would be interesting to know how old your budgie is too, since PBFD generally affects younger birds. Have you ever noticed any abnormality in his feathers before? Affected birds' feathers are usually short and can show abnormalities such as a thickened or constricted feather sheath or clotted blood attached to the formed feather quill, and I think you might have seen some abnormalities before now if PBFD was the culprit.

Of course nobody knows your birds' regular behaviour or demeanor better than you, so if he is showing indications that concern you a trip to the vet to have him tested is the best idea. The link below will help you find one if you are not already acquainted with one...

https://www.aav.org/search/custom.asp?id=1803

Thank you for joining, and I wish your little guy all the very best!

 

[Laurasea]

Hi, beautiful budgie!!
Budgie are the one species that seem to be able to handle PBFD. But they present differently, instead of loosing feathers on head , the loose all their tail feathers, and sometimes wing feathers. Of course everybody can be different. But I'm inclined to guess this Is not PBFD.

My guess is a scuffle....or something else entirely.

Concerns are always best addressed by avian veterinarian. We are just regular folks sharing our experiences. Burds are complex .

A good tool to help monitor health is regular weight checks, weekly in healthy birds, daily when issues or sick and during treatment . Because most burds loose weight when sick as they burn way more calories. Because budgies are flighty that's a little harder. What I did was remove perches and toys, took the cage into the bathroom, or bedroom. Get a Tupperware, or box, or container that's just large enough to hold them. Put it on the scale and zero it out. Turn off the lights and reach in and grab them. Put them in the container and weigh them. Return to cage and put everything back in. I had to treat duck birds for nearly a year and that worked well with less stress.

In fact just this evening my avian vet who is also a longtime freind, was talking about a sick budgie. She stressed the importance to them about monitoring weight during treatment. She shared with them how we had done that with mine, and how helpful it was.

I don't know what you feed yours? Molt is a little stressful on birds they need more calories and a small bump in protein. You can offer egg food , make sure is in date and nit spoiled, as it spoils easy. Or offer a little boiled egg, mine live boiled egg, and you can remove un eaten ( I give them around 20 min) then I remove. Hopefully you offer leafy greens and veggies as part of their diet. That provides missing nutrients that all seed diet lack.

This article talks about budgie sometimes never show symptoms, and has one picture of another grass parakeet showing the more typical appearance that budgies would have. It does have some graphic images if you are sensitive. I couldn't find the better article I read before, but this will fo

Psittacine Beak and Feather Disease Virus (PBFD)

The avian vets at the Avian and Exotic Animal Clinic have written this blog about Psittacine Beak and Feather Disease. Thank you so much to them. Read this blog to learn more about PBFD, what causes it and how to treat it.

www.northernparrots.com

 

[Skarila]

Guys... Look at the bald patch - it's FULL of new pinnies!
Budgies sometimes look so scraggy when moulting, and a litteral hedgehog.

I give my 2 cents it's just moulting. Seen exactly this on mine and on other budgies quite often. My Csilli is starting a moult again as we speak...

 

[Zoruace]

Moulting
For sure
Cant u all see her head is filled with pins?-
Tiki is going through the same thing