Plucking question.

[pmaholm]

Hello all, as you've probably seen by the pictures Refund is plucked pretty clean. We were wondering if there's any way we can tell if he's still plucking? How fast do feathers grow back? I know we were told he probably wouldn't get feathers until he molts the next time, but how quickly should down be growing back? Thanks!

 

-Patrick

[mas]

Hi pmahlom,

 

You can tell if he's still plucking if you are finding marks/sores on the skin - if feathers are at the bottom of the cage or obviously if you catch him in the act!

 

Zahzu had about 3 weeks of being a plucker, and that was about a month ago - and she's got most of the feathers grown back in the bald spots already. Her mood is much better than the time she was plucking, she's back to singing, talking and manipulating us - and she's generally just happier and wants heaps more physical attention from us then when she was plucking.

 

The larger feathers might not grow back till the next molt, but I seem to think the smaller ones may grow back sooner - I might be wrong though.

 

All the best!

Sameera

[pmaholm]

Thanks! we've just been seeing a lot of down at the bottom of the cage and didn't know how much down they're supposed be grooming out! his chest was completely bare of regular feathers when we got him, so we'll be waiting for the molt on that