Molting Problem

[Raleighwheels]

This link explains about the preen glands, and possible causes. It is almost always a lack of Vitamin A that causes the problem. It sounds like impaction is very rare, but a warm compress and massage would maybe help, if that's what it is. Not sure how the bird would like you massaging his preen gland... but might be worth a try! In the meantime it sounds like you are doing the right things. With improved Vitamin A, and some help with the preening spray, he may improve. Good luck.

http://www.exoticpetvet.net/avian/uropygial.html

Thanks for the help. Do you have any suggestions as to how I could massage him without stressing him out too much? He is already pretty comfortable around me, he doesn't mind getting a couple of inches in front of my face, but I am afraid that holding him may be more than he is comfortable with.

[franny]

No, sorry. I don't handle my birds unless absolutely necessary (for nail trimming, for example). The waxbill is too flighty and gets stressed by handling, and the fact that I shake with nervousness doesn't help!

Is he showing any signs of improvement yet with the increase in Vitamin A? I think it might take some time to make a difference. As long as he isn't getting obviously worse, I'd be inclined to just leave it for another week or two and see how he does.

But some others who handle their birds a lot, for banding, medicating, etc. may have some suggestions on how to capture and hold him so you can get a look at the gland. I think it might be helpful if you do catch him up, to have 2 of you do it, so one could take a picture of the gland. Then some others with more experience can tell you if it looks normal or not.

[L in Ontario]

As Fran said, it may be helpful to post a close-up picture of his preening gland. Then some on here could say whether it looks normal or otherwise.

Though I doubt that he would appreciate being handled too much.

[Raleighwheels]

As Fran said, it may be helpful to post a close-up picture of his preening gland. Then some on here could say whether it looks normal or otherwise.

Though I doubt that he would appreciate being handled too much.

I may try to take a picture after he gets a bath, but I am going to wait until it warms up a bit. I gave him a bath a few days ago, and he spent a good portion of the time shivering on the perch. Taking a picture after a bath not might stress him out as much as being handled. He has been fine like this for months, so I am sure a little more time won't hurt him too much.

[ac12]

RW
When I have had a bird shiver after a bath I did 2 things
1 - Zap the bath water in the microwave (10-15 sec for 8oz of water) before putting the bath in the cage. This takes the chill out of the water. Some birds seem to have no problem w the cold tap water, others seem to not be able to handle the cold water.
2 - I put a 40 watt incandescent lamp right up to the cage next to a perch. So if they are COLD they can stand in front of the lamp to warm up. And they do go there after a bath.

I also put the bath out every day. My societies will bath several times a day.

[Raleighwheels]

Hey guys, I have some more information about my male society finch. A few weeks ago, I sent an email about this bird to a woman named Vonda Zwick. She runs the site Finch Aviary.com. She pretty much told me some of the things that you guys have been saying, such as the finch is not going through a normal molt. She said that maybe a cause to his condition is overzealous preening. Vonda said that it is very unusual and she also brought up the idea that maybe he is being plucked. She went on to say that most plucked birds usually are bald around the neck, head or breast area, but this is not the case with my bird.
One of her thoughts, that I think may be plausible, is that maybe the bird somehow damaged his wings and tail to the point where the feathers aren't growing in right, or not at all. This could have been caused by a night fright incident or he may have just flew into something hard. This seems like a possible solution now that I think about it, because there were a few times where he tried to land on a bed post and fell down in between the bed and the wall, leaving me to carefully retrieve him. Vonda said that if this is the case, then his feathers may never completely grow back.
I also talked to her about supplements, such as the Feather Fast, and she said that they aren't needed as long as the birds are getting the proper diet. She agrees with me that I should try increasing my bird's protein intake and see if that helps him at all.
Finally, I asked her about the massaging the bird's preen gland, since I think that it may be blocked. She told me that massaging is something she won't try, especially since she personally keeps flighty waxbils. And she said that really the only solution that she has ever seen have any effect is separation and time.

My plan is to continue feeding him more vegetables that are high in vitamin A as well as continuing to increase his protein. Neither my girlfriend or I have ever witnessed any of the birds plucking him, and we aren't sure that he is over preening himself. I was wondering if anyone could tell me how to figure out if he is over preening, and how I could stop it?

[franny]

If he is over preening I think you'd notice him preening a lot, and pecking at the area around the preen gland at the base of his tail. It's not common in finches though.

There is a spray product called Bitter Apple, that is used more for parrots and other hookbills, who seem to be more likely to self pluck. It simply tastes bad, so they don't preen or pluck themselves, is the theory. Never used it so don't know if it works.\

I think Vonda has given you the best advise. Separate him if you can, feed him the best diet you can, and wait. Another thought is to make sure all perches are far enough away from the edge of the cage that he is not damaging feathers by rubbing up against wires. Also take out the nest if there is one... can't recall if you have one or not. Sometimes the tail looks pretty ratty just being rubbed against the wall of the nest.

Good luck with him. Even if the feathers never come back, he can lead a good life, with a good diet, and be just fine, if not as handsome as some.

[Raleighwheels]

If he is over preening I think you'd notice him preening a lot, and pecking at the area around the preen gland at the base of his tail. It's not common in finches though.

There is a spray product called Bitter Apple, that is used more for parrots and other hookbills, who seem to be more likely to self pluck. It simply tastes bad, so they don't preen or pluck themselves, is the theory. Never used it so don't know if it works.\

I think Vonda has given you the best advise. Separate him if you can, feed him the best diet you can, and wait. Another thought is to make sure all perches are far enough away from the edge of the cage that he is not damaging feathers by rubbing up against wires. Also take out the nest if there is one... can't recall if you have one or not. Sometimes the tail looks pretty ratty just being rubbed against the wall of the nest.

Good luck with him. Even if the feathers never come back, he can lead a good life, with a good diet, and be just fine, if not as handsome as some.

Thanks for the advice. I have never noticed him preening to what I think is an extreme amount. I would say that he maybe spends 5 minutes or so a day preening himself, and that is just throughout the day. Also, I have watched the other actions of the birds in the cage, and the only bird that preens him is my other society finch, but he doesn't do it often. I am going to be on the lookout for the Bitter Apple spray to keep as a precaution. There was a nest in the cage when I first got him, but my zebra finch Pep-Pep kept chasing him out of it, so we removed it. Also, I will make sure to move the perches just a little bit further away from the sides of the cage.

[jimlas43]

Just a quick question that nobody has addressed yet.
Is there a nest in the bird cage that they all get into at night??

[Raleighwheels]

Just a quick question that nobody has addressed yet.
Is there a nest in the bird cage that they all get into at night??

There isn't a nest in the cage.

[Domenic]

I have a very similar problem. My orange cheek was fine when I got him almost a year ago, but went through a molt and came out with thin wing feathers. You can see my thread about it here. I haven't found a solution for this yet, but if I do I'll be sure to let you know.

Did Vonda mention why she hasn't updated finchaviary.com in so long?

[Raleighwheels]

Did Vonda mention why she hasn't updated finchaviary.com in so long?

You know, I never even thought to ask her. I was just so excited to get a response back to her on this issue. I don't really know if it is an update for her site, but she did mention that she has mostly waxbills now. At least it is somewhat comforting, for lack of a better word, to hear someone else has had similar problem. Please let me know if you find some solution to the problem and I will do the same. For now, I will just have to stick with increased protein and vitamin A.