|
|
Post by cheekyprincess on Oct 26, 2004 15:29:16 GMT 10
Hi Guys
Its that time of year here in Aus, I have 3 baby blue princess
parrots and a bit of a problem. All 3 of my 4 week old chicks seem
to be having their lovely new pin feathers plucked off thier back and
wings, I feel I should remove them from the nest but the question
is 'Who is doing the plucking'? I think it may be the hen, so I was
wondering if anyone on this forum has had a similar problem and does
the hen give up the habit?
Cheers
Deborah
|
|
|
|
Post by billspets on Oct 26, 2004 15:47:04 GMT 10
hello deborah
yes i have come across it before and i was told that it was one of two things
firstly it could be an over clean mum that is getting carried away
or the mother is trying to get the chicks out of the box so she can go down again
if it is an overclean mum she may get out of the haddit
in my case it was she wanted to go down again once i placed a second log in she was fine
regards
bill
|
|
|
|
Post by cheekyprincess on Oct 26, 2004 16:03:15 GMT 10
Thanks for the advice Bill, I think it may be a case of her wanting to lay another clutch given that it only started doing it today. I have now brought them inside and will handraise them from here on, so it looks like I will have 3 handraised Princess parrots for sale in a few weeks.  Cheers Deborah |
|
|
|
Post by hillcresttiels on Oct 26, 2004 18:01:06 GMT 10
Hi Deborah the issue of feather plucking is one i wanted to raise but never came round to doing it .As Bill mentioned sometimes feather plucking is caused by breeder males to chicks prior to fledging to get them out of the box this is usually stopped once the chicks have fledged. In your case at pin feather stage it could be a host of problems and one that shouldn't be tolerated some of the reasons behind severe plucking are diet related eg lack of protein which is a common problem in breeding pairs diet The feather folics are high in protein and is sometimes there only source hence the plucking the other is boredom or frustration and this is recognizable by the plucked feathers not being eaten.Calcium defiency also leads to feather plucking but once a bird has developed the trait it's very hard to repair and most will pluck forever this is when irresponsible breeders pass on mature birds for the sales table the only suggestion is to increase the protein in the diet (Beans is a good source especially mung bean sprouted) and add calcium to their diet a good dose of Avical is also appreciated otherwise if someone good put a finger on the art of feather plucking they would solve a lot of head aches cheers Frank  |
|
|
|
Post by AussieBirds on Oct 26, 2004 19:57:04 GMT 10
Feather plucking is a really complex topic and the opinions different breeders and bird keepers have as to it's cause are just as varied and complex. I agree with Frank on this it can't be tolerated and I believe you have no option but to pull the babies. To try and prevent it you should alter the diet of the birds by increasing protien into the diet and add some calcium to the diet. Perhaps we could start a discussion on feather plucking and put forward some ideas on the subject.
John
|
|
Viraba
Addicted Member
Posts: 145
|
Post by Viraba on Oct 26, 2004 20:19:49 GMT 10
Hi everyone,
Is feather plucking more prone in different species then others ??
I certainly haven't had much experience in this area but a friend of mine has kept birds for over 20 years, mainly neophema's and says that he's never had any real problems. One wonders whether it more likely in the larger more gregarious species. Any thoughts ??
Viraba
|
|
|
|
Post by fischer on Oct 26, 2004 20:22:07 GMT 10
Great idea John, Iv'e never had any big problems with feather plucking, even in the Lovebirds, and they can be particulary prone to it, but like any breeder I have opinions and some theories on the subject.
Theres not much I can add here, Frank,Bill and John have pretty well covered it, I do agree with Frank, that if a breeder has a bird that is a chronic plucker, that the problem should not be passed onto someone else, these birds should be retired from breeding. Iv'e done this over the years Iv'e had birds a few times.
I, for one, would be greatly interested in a discussion on the subject...Cheers Tony
|
|
|
|
Post by cheekyprincess on Oct 27, 2004 9:21:11 GMT 10
Thanks everyone for your input, and I agree that feather plucking is a complex and frustrating topic, however I think Bill was on the money in my case as this morning my blue Princess hen has layed an egg in the nesting box that I removed the chicks from, in less than 24 hours from the time she started pulling their feathers out. It will be interesting to see what happens when this new clutch reaches 4 1/2 weeks of age. I am betting that she will be happy to raise them as I don't know that Princess parrots would lay 3 clutches in the one season. Cheers Deborah |
|
|
|
Post by billspets on Oct 27, 2004 9:40:52 GMT 10
hello Deborah
i have heard of princess parrots having three cluches in one season but ity is very rear that this happens
hope this helps
regards
bill
|
|
|
|
Post by cheekyprincess on Oct 28, 2004 15:38:45 GMT 10
Now that you mention it Bill, I do have a hen who layed a clutch and played footy with the eggs and destoyed them, layed the second clutch and brooded but they weren't fertile, she then layed the third clutch and destroyed the eggs again. I am now waiting to see if the fourth clutch will be productive. But I won't hold my breath |
|
|
|
Post by billspets on Oct 28, 2004 15:47:54 GMT 10
hello cheekyprincess
how old is the female by the sounds she is a young one say between 12 - 18 months and i have had a female do the same thing and i rested her for the rest of that season and let her try again the next and she had 2 cluches and she had 3 chicks in each
me personaly would remover her from the male as well as the nesting boxes and wait till next season to try again
regards
bill
|
|
|
|
Post by cheekyprincess on Oct 28, 2004 16:09:24 GMT 10
Hi Bill
The hen in question is 2 years old, she had one clutch last year and produced 3 chicks, only 1 of those survived, I removed the chick at 5 weeks and handraised it. It was my first effort at handraising and I couldn't bring myself to part with her, God knows I will need to be stronger with the 3 I am raising now. One can only keep so many birds.
|
|
|
|
Post by billspets on Oct 28, 2004 16:16:29 GMT 10
where the other 2 chicks alive when moving the one for hand feering
regards
bill
|
|
|
|
Post by cheekyprincess on Oct 28, 2004 16:41:25 GMT 10
No, I removed the last chick because it had been attacked and was bleeding, the other 2 chicks were already dead before I started handfeeding and I didn't hold out much hope for the last one. She was named 'Brick' because my boyfriends son was admiring her when he dropped her and I believe fractured both legs. So I had her proped up on tissues for about 3 weeks before she started to walk herself around (staggering assisted by flapping the wings), after which she attempted to fly (jump from heights and landing badly) and aggravated her injury, making it another 2 weeks before being able to walk again. Brick is now 1 year old, she walks with a slight twist to the left and flys around the back yard, visits all the aviaries and spends most of her time with her 1 year old boyfriend, a green/yellow Princess parrot. If we didn't love these birds we wouldn't waste so much time on them, I'm sure.
|
|
|
|
Post by cheekyprincess on Oct 29, 2004 8:52:44 GMT 10
Hi again I am so excited because the first egg from the clutch of the above mentioned bird has hatched. Oh and I am hoping this chick will do OK because I stole the egg when it was first layed, from the princess hen and placed i with a kakariki hen who thinks she has outdone herself with such a relatively large egg. hehehe Time will tell anyway, but here's to happy healthy babies.  |
|
