FINCHforum

Hello Flighty Finchers.

Towards the end of September, our friend Big Bear, came across and purchased a very handsome pied Red Headed Parrot Finch .

After being unable to locate a hen for him, this little boy, was traded to the Pet Shop, where I happened to come across him today (in the back room of the store).

He is a truly lovely bird, but nervous, and in very poor feather condition, with only a couple of half broken tail feathers, and what appears to be some small bald spots and or scarring on his face. I'm not certain if he's molting, or stuck in molt.

I have no idea how old he is, as there is no dated band on him. From his colouring, I would hazard a guess that he is not a youngling in his first blush.

He is however a sweetie, and once I feed him a proper diet, get him calmed down, and get him into good feather shape, he will be magnificent.

Who knows, he might take a shine to one of my girls . Hopefully he's still young enough to give me some gorgeous babies

Oooh! Pretty boy!

That's a sweet first photo. He looks quite curious about you!

He does look quite scruffy, doesn't he? There's something quite pathetic about the lone, scruffed up tail feather. Poor kid.

But I"m sure you'll have him looking fabulous in no time at all! A bit of love from mama Elana and he'll be looking like the dashing young man that he is!

He looks like his name is Maxwell.

MiaCarter

Hi Mia.

Thanks for the vote of confidence .

Maxwell is a cool name, but I already have a Max.
This boy makes me think of a watermelon, but I can't very well name him that , now can I ? LoL

He's a lucky bird, i'm sure you'll have him looking prestine in no time, make sure you treat him for feather mites as his tail feather looks like it could have an infestation.

Smurf

I will grab the SCAT and the bird boy as soon as I get downstairs.
I was hoping you'd pop up Padraic. How old would you guess this bird to be?

There's no way of knowing age without closed bands or being in juvenile plummage.

Scatt doesn't treat for feather mites, something like S76 in bath water would be easiest treatment.

Ah, well you can't have two Max's!

Watermelon is kind of cute! How about Mellie? Like Nellie with an M.


I'm all for strange names! I've got crested society named "Used Napkin", better known as Nappy.
Totally odd name, I know. But there's a story. The other two in the cage were named Chip and Penny.
Now, there's a Spongebob episode where he decides he's never leaving his house again, so he makes up friends - Chip (a potato chip), Penny (a penny) and Used Napkin (a used napkin.)
I had a Chip, a Penny....so the third simply had to be Used Napkin!
And THAT is how you end up with a bird named Used Napkin.

lovezebs
Aww he so needed you Elana!

Little Pfinches can look a bit ragged when molting, he will be a beauty!!

Yes Scatt does treat for Feather mites...it also treats for ASM and scaly mites. Same with ivermectin 1%. Scatt contains moxidectin which also helps in deworming except for tape worm, you can use wormaway that covers tape worms.

The treatment or preventative for all three types of mites using scat or ivermectin 1% according to our avian vet is 3 doses (each dose 1 drop to the back of the neck) 14 days apart.... dose one at 14 days, dose two at 28 days and dose 3 at day 42. This breaks the life cycle of the mites. Topical scatt, ivermectin 1% are dropped on the back of the bare neck and are skin absorbed into the bloodstream, this bypasses the liver of meds given orally.

do not trust that S76 in a bath is reliable way to treat feather mites since not all birds get completely wet. It is meant to be used in the drinking water.

All of these can be used in conjunction with AIL (Avian Insect Liquidator) in the area and safe enough to use on birds, nests and around young (take up food and water before spraying)

One of the ladies I know that sells products like scatt, AIL and helps out with medical issues has a routine...when she comes home with a new bird it is sprayed with AIL, 2 to 3 days later a round of Scatt is applied, she also as recommended by her avian vet follows it up with 2 more doses, each dose 14 days apart. She does not have issues with mites or ASM.

lovezebs congrats! He's going to look amazing soon! I came up with the name Mello for him, hope you like it.

Thanks everyone !

So far so good. Our boy is in good appetite, calmed down quite a bit, and is curious about his new environment.

Not sure about his name yet.....Mellie-Mello ?

How about Melvin??
Sort of sounds like Melon!

That's great that he's feeling calmer and settling in.

Agreed with cindy about not using S76 in the bath. It's rare to find a bather who's enthusiastic enough to actually get totally soaked! Many bathe with just a portion of their body.

Neat looking bird! All my current birds are 2nd hand "rescues" in need of a home. I think this little man is in good hands.

In addition to meds, try getting him to bathe. My birds always look sort of amazing after they've had a bath and spent some time preening.

Only a few of my pfinches were really happy to bathe, others just stood in it.... not getting very wet at all.

lovezebs

He's very striking! I'm sure you'll have him looking and feeling better in no time