White marks on feathers

[Tigerlily]

Do i need to worry about the white spots/marks that are comming up on Tigerlilies longer feathers?

[Joolesgreyuk]

On the photograph it looks like normal dander, if it is actual marks on the feathers then I don't pretent to know the reason and I expect someone more knowledgeable to come along later today with some good advice so stay tuned

[Georgiesmum]

I think these are stress marks but someone else here will know for sure

[Lex]

i dont think they are stress bars as these are dots i will see if i can find anything?

 

Lex

Edited June 19, 2010 by Lex

[danmcq]

Dayo has these same "Dots". He has had them since his first year of life. I have notice over the last 2 years, that they "Appear" on new feathers, after a several shower and dry cycles. I can only assume they are deposits left by the aloe or water after several cycles of wash and dry.

 

I do know, they are NOT stress marks which appear as small successive bars horizontally across a birds feathers.

[Lex]

same here kya is just over a year old and has these dots not everywhere just a few feathers here and there. i do use aloe as you posted above Danmcq. I have had a look online and have found nothing about it. All i did find was some hen birds have them the site was not about greys. Are there any cock birds that have them on this forums? just an idea;) worth looking at.

[danmcq]

Well, this really got me interested in looking at my Greys feathers much closer. I have kept every feather molted for the last 3 years, except for the small feathers like the breast and down feathers.

 

After reviewing all his primary, secondary, tertiary and major dorsals, I have kept. It is all the secondaries that have this. Now I am starting to think it is somehow a wear pattern possibly. If it were from aloe or water showing up as drying spots. It would be on all feathers, but it is not.

 

[danmcq]

TigerLillies feathers appear to be the same markings Dayo has. Sorry for the quality, this is a quick shot from my phone, which Dayo wanted to eat:

 

Edited June 19, 2010 by danmcq

[Lex]

this is the same area as kya has to be something in this

[jessdecutie18]

Interesting... Yoshi gets dander spots but they come off

[Tigerlily]

yeah it looks exactly the same danmcq.

 

so the general opinion is its not really anything to worry about?

[danmcq]

yeah it looks exactly the same danmcq. So the general opinion is its not really anything to worry about?

 

Thats the million dollar question.

 

Now I am wondering, if this is normal, why aren't many other users on this forum saying they see the same thing? Another thing I noticed in my photo, is I can see what appear to be stress bars, yet just looking at Dayo with the naked eye, I do not see them. It is possibly the camera is picking up and amplifying more than I can see. But then, this leads to the question of, are there actually "Growing bars" created as the new feathers grow in and only if there is an underlying health need such as nutrition etc. what colors them more intensely to where we can visually see them glaringly?

 

I continued to look at this yesterday and it looks like mechanical wear on those secondaries to me from folding in and out as they extend and retract their wings. But, what puzzles me, is why only the secondaries show this?

[Tigerlily]

well i've decided to get tigerliliy checked out by the vet and see what she says.

 

i'll let you guys know what she says

[judygram]

This is very interesting to say the least but it is possible the camera picks up things we don't notice with the open eye because it freezes that moment of the shot, please do tell us what you find out from the vet Tigerlily.

[bandits_mom08]

Bandit has some of the white spots also. They are pretty small but they are there. I am interested to know what these are also.

[Ozzysmom]

Now I have to check ozzy lol never noticed them but now curious

[Lyric]

My greys have these too, please let us know what you find out about them.

[Dave007]

Those dots appear periodically and some are more noticable depending on the depth of color of the feather. Sometimes it surface dust, sometimes it's permanent until the feathers fall out. Those types of spots can appear when a bird is dried with a hair dryer or not allowed to drip dry after a bath. It can happen when there's extreme dryness in a bird area. It can happen when the outer feathers aren't sprayed well with water. I would tend to think it's temporary. The medical reason for it happening is a lack of VIT A but all of the feathers would have those spots if it was a vitamin defiency. Your birds feathers don't have that appearance. I would watch and see if the white spots spread all over the rest of the feathers and also watch the diameter of the spots. Many birds have this and there's usually no medical problem but if you need reassurance, see a vet. Wash off or spray those areas with coldish water frequently and keep your bird out of the direct sun if he's in that sun long long periods of time. This usually happens to birds that are adolescent ( 3 to 5 yrs old). Just keep an eye on the situation.

 

PS--if it is a medical problem, the white spots will be all over the tail feathers too.

Edited June 22, 2010 by Dave007

[danmcq]

Thanks Dave for the answer to this.

 

I do have both the birds out on weekend for 2 to 3 hours each day. They dry after a good shower of misting with aloe doesn't take long. They both sit in the direct sun while drying, then move over to the shaded part of their cages once dry and toasty. The lower part of the wings receive less wetness than the upper and front of Dayo. He constantly faces and moves with me as I move, keeping his battle stance as I spray him down.

 

You always come through and I truly appreciate that.

Edited June 22, 2010 by danmcq

[casper]

I remember speaking to Dave about these spots last year.

I too was at a loss. All four of mine have these dots which appear to be on the secondaries.

Will be interesting to see what an Avian vet says, Ive not worried about them though, I dont think there will be a problem.

[Tigerlily]

***UPDATE***

 

well i took tigerlily to the vets last week and tigerlilies feathers are worse than i realised. she has quite a lot of stress bars aswell.

 

the vet took a swab sample to check for anything fungal wrong but after talking to her we both thought it might be because i've let tigerlilies diet slip my vet (suitabley named polly) said that if she had her way every parrot would be on harrisons pellets.

 

so whilst waiting for the results i went straight home and ordered some harrisons.

 

the results came back last week with nothing showing but so she could rule everything out and say for sure it was the diet she wanted to do blood test.

 

so monday tigerlily was put under for the first time to have blood taken, although i wasn't allowed in whilst they were taking the blood i was allowed to sit with her whilst she came round which was nice.

 

i have just got off the phone to my vet and results came back saying that urik acid was slightly low and calcuim is low.

 

she said that low urik acid was a sign of kidney problems but as other signs of kidney problems were normal she thinks it is just the fact that i've let her diet slip. so is just going to leave it to me to improve her diet and see her in a months time.

 

i do feel quite guilty that i've been the cause of this but hope its not caused her any long term problems.

 

the reason i've struggled keeping her on a good diet is because i live alone and i have eating issues myself.

 

so now her daily diet includes

runner beans, green beans, chillies, potato, cucumber, asparagus, melon, a few nuts and seeds, and harrisons crushed up in ready break (which doesn't actually taste that bad

i know its still not great but its a step in the right direction.

Edited July 1, 2010 by Tigerlily

[danmcq]

Very interesting results. Thanks for posting this update on Tigerlilly.

 

My Grey Dayo, eats a very well rounded diet, lots of veggies, some harrisons pellets ( maybe 6 or 7 a day) , nuts and seeds.

 

Now, I am think about having a vet check as well. It's been about a year now anyway.

[Jayd]

Tigerlilly, thank you for being so honest, it's truly wonderful. Besides sunlight, dandelion greens are # 1 for calcium exchange. Jayd and Maggie