dry skin

[rierie]

Charlie lets me scratch his head and neck.. but here lately more then usually.. maybe because he is getting more trusting as we have now had him since first of Dec. but it seems to me as his skin is dry and flaky.... when I scratch it it flakes... and seems rough at first and the more I scratch at it the softer his feathers seem to become... I just dont know if it is normal. Not having another bird that I could touch before I am not sure.

 

But he seems to like the scratching, but I feel like the monkeys at the zoo who are picking at each other. He has become so intense and insistent with it. lays his head on my chest or lap and closes his eyes he likes it so much. like he is relaxing... and wants me to do it for a long time....about 20 min and I quit but he would like more.

 

It is winter here which means furnace heat.. we keep pans of water on the heater vents to help keep moisture in the air.... But could Charlies skin be too dry and what can I do about it?

[LisaM]

When I'm skritching Kenya's head/neck, I see "powder" but not flakes. If they're preening on me though, I get little flakes all over. I think it's more the casing off new feathers in my case. And Kenya would accept hours upon hours of skritching if I had the stamina for it. If I stop she starts banging her beak on me to remind me of the task at hand. :laugh: I equate it to a good massage...I hate it when it's over! It may be the oils in your skin/fingertips that cause the feathers to get/feel softer while you're scratching him, but that's just a guess. I can't say that I've really noticed that happening with mine.

 

If you think it's dry skin (and even if you find that it's not), you could (and some would say should) try to get Aloe Vera Juice (not gel) and spray it, undiluted, on him, trying as best as you can to get under the feathers and to the skin itself.

 

Another thing is to give him Red Palm Oil if you're not already doing that. Lots of info here if the search the forums in case you haven't seen it already.

 

Does he seem to be preening any more aggressively than in the past? That could be a sign that his skin is bothering him too.

 

Does he get regular showers (soaking to the skin as best as possible)? If so, what frequency/temp? I scale back the frequency of showers in the winter to 1-2/week.

 

Lastly, it is DEFINITELY a great indication that you are building trust with him if he is letting you skritch more. You may also be able to tell if he's getting more relaxed (mine sometimes almost falls asleep now) while you're doing it for awhile. Heck, I almost fall asleep while I'm doing it sometimes. It's very relaxing to me. I think I go into a "bird skritch trance"! :-)

 

Lisa

[rierie]

Yes he closes his eyes some and you think he is sleeping until you stop and then he nudges me with his beak to continue.

 

 

Maybe not big flakes, but dusting, but his skin looks flaky. I will get some of the red palm oil to add to his diet. I have read about it before..

 

no he isnt preening more then he has since he came...

 

And for the bath... about once a week he seems to be bathing in his bird bath... I put fresh water in it daily and have been leaving it in his cage.. Ive tried the running water in a sink and am still working on it but he doesnt take to it well... at first when I put him in the sink he just screammed to be gotten out. now he is drinking the running water but no bath yet... I only put him in it when I am there to watch him... I have debated about whether to force bath him as some say they have some kind of preening stuff themselves so I havent presisted in getting him wet no more... did a couple of times and he really hates it, spraying, letting slow water run on to him... he fights it and i was afraid I was in for a mega bite if I presisted when he got older.

 

I will try the red palm oil as soon as I can find it... good old walmart hopefully.

 

Thanks lisa

[LisaM]

Super sweet, aren't they :silly: .

 

You can definitely find the Aloe Vera Juice at Walmart (it's the only place I can find it). It's in the pharmacy section. I'd definitely get it. I put mine in a spray bottle and spray them after their shower. There are a lot of threads about this great stuff too.

 

You might have to go to a natural/health food store to find the Red Palm Oil. Or you can get it online (Judy gets hers at www.swansonvitamins.com). It's thick and "solid", not like what you'd expect from something called oil. It seems more like "Red Palm Butter" :laugh:

 

I only asked about the showers because if they're too frequent they can dry the skin out, but that's definitely not the case with Charlie. It took my Grey a long time to get used to showers. I continued to take her in the shower with me (i have a shower perch for her). I turn the hand-held shower to a lighter spray and I aimed it up and over her, not directly on her at first. I started with room temp water, then went a little warmer than room temp, and then finally found that she actually likes it quite a bit cooler than I would have thought. Well, she doesn't "like" it, but she tolerates it more. She is actually getting to the point where she will sit long enough for it to penetrate down into the skin on her back, not under her wings yet though but I keep trying. She lets me spray it right on her from different angles to get under the feathers better. She even grabs a few drinks from it every once in awhile now.

 

I hope you find these things help Charlie. I'm sure others will join in with suggestions as well!

 

Lisa