Sick, malting, or tired??

[Jayanne]

Hi everyone,
I have a Jenday Conure named Alfie. I've had him for almost 4 months, and he is my first conure. There are so many questions I have about conure raising, but today the one that I'm most concerned about is one involving a weird tic he's had for about 2 days. He's been suddenly flapping a wing, or both wings out of no where. He'll do it every 3 to 5 seconds. His feathers are also constantly ruffled, he's bobbing his head more then usual, and seems a little off balance and kind of weak. He's been eating and drinking, and making plenty of bird noises though. The only thing that's been different for him is he's starting to fly a little. He'll fly from his cage to me, and back. Could he just be sore and tired from a new activity? I've also thought maybe he could be malting, and that's bugging him. He's not being more aggressive though. In fact he's waaaay more affectionate then usual. He's a pretty feisty bird, and I was warned that he was moody when I got him, but he's been so much more subdued then usual. THAT makes me nervous!

I read that he's showing some signs that he might be sick. Am I just being paranoid

 

[Frumpydumple]

He sounds sick to me. You need to take him to an avian vet. Fluffed up feathers is normally a good sign they're sick.

 

[Jayanne]

Thank you. I was afraid of that. He's just not himself. I will take him tomorrow.

 

[MikeyTN]

Have him checked out by a avian vet to be sure but the wing flopping and shaking of the wings is a conure thing. How old is he???

 

[Jayanne]

He's about a year old. I know he's around malting time too.

 

[MikeyTN]

Have him checked out by the vet and let us know how he's doing....Hope everything turns out ok for your baby.

 

[MonicaMc]

Do you have a gram scale to weigh him with to make sure he's still eating well? Do his droppings appear normal?


I agree, it sounds like he might be sick.

 

[Jayanne]

Thanks for your advice everyone! I'm going to get him to the vet today, and find a scale. I didn't think of that. He actually seems to be doing much better today, but I just want to be cautious. He seems to be more himself (meaning he's biting and squawking at me again!) I'll let you know the vet's diagnosis.

 

[Jayanne]

Hey everyone, I took Alfie to the vet yesterday, and found out today that he is slightly calcium deficient. That's probably why he's all wobbly and weak. She gave me some calcium supplements, and some ideas on new foods to feed him. So I'm bulking up his diet, and giving him a supplement. He already seems to be doing better. I'm wondering if the ruffled feathers is malting, though the vet didn't seem to think it was strange in any way. So overall Aflie's a Healthy bird!

 

[MonicaMc]

Good news! Since he's a bit calcium deficient, please also look into vitamin D!