Curly feathers

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Wed Feb 22, 2006 3:59 pm

One of my canary hens went through a hard molt a few months back. This past week I noticed a feather sticking up from her back, between her wings. It stood up and curled back on itself. This wayward feather seemed to be bothering her so I caught Greta and attempted to remove it by gently, but steadily tugging. It wouldn't release, so I left it alone.

Over the past few days she has developed more of these curly feathers. I have never had a bird in this condition and don't know what, if anything, I should be doing to remedy it.

Here are a couple photos... Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Winston · Post by **Winston** » Wed Feb 22, 2006 6:17 pm

This looks like a result of plucking. Are there other birds in the cage?

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Wed Feb 22, 2006 7:27 pm

This canary is in a cage by herself.

The feathers began curling way after the molt was completed so I can't figure out what would cause tight, inplace feathers to start curling.

It's a mystery to me!

Crystal... any ideas?

Crystal · Post by **Crystal** » Wed Feb 22, 2006 10:29 pm

Hello Tammie,

The pictures are nice and big, but it is still a little difficult for me to get a good look at the problem area; if at all possible, could you take another photo of the area with her wings held out from her body so that her back is easier to see? I think I saw a retained feather sheath (see arrow in photo below), but I'm not positive. If this is too stressful for your canary, do not worry about it; I still have some suggestions of things you can look for...

If you feel along the canary's back, especially in the area where you see the abarrant feathers, do you feel any hard little lumps at the bases of the feathers (you can feel the unaffected areas to compare)? If so, I would suspect feather cysts, which are pretty common in canaries and can cause this kind of appearance when the cysts are small.

If there are no cysts, however, I think you should suspect mutilation of the feathers as Winston suggested (especially since this problem seemed to occur well after her molt was complete). Even though she has no cage mates, it is possible she is reaching that area and damaging her own feathers. Perhaps she is itchy there. Itchiness ("pruritus") can be caused by ectoparasites (mites, lice), giardia, malnutrition, and sometimes infection, among a few other (probably less likely) possibilities like toxins.

If that was a feather sheath in the photo, I personally would be more likely to suspect a nutritional imbalance or deficiency.

A few things you can try to remedy this problem would be to provide some good supplements if you aren't already doing so, treat her with SCATT and/or 5% carbaryl powder (dust her feathers lightly with it), and consult some canary breeders (preferably people who have had many a canary) to see if they've had similar problems (since they might have experienced this, too) and what they did to correct it.

Of course it is entirely possible that the problem is not cysts or feather mutilation. I am not a vet (yet!), and haven't seen the bird personally, so unfortunately these are just educated guesses on my part. However! I know of a Dr. Z who posts over at http://avianadvisor.proboards41.com/ind ... rd=birdvet. She is an avian veterinarian who practices in south Florida and (of course!) has tons more experience with avian dermatology and medicine than I do. She may be a good person to run your question by. If you end up speaking with her, let me know what she says. I'd be very interested to find out what is ailing your canary.

Best of luck!
-Crystal

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Wed Feb 22, 2006 11:44 pm

Thanks for your reply Crystal.

I will take another look in the morning and check for the cysts as you suggest. If I can get Greta to cooperate I will photograph her back, with the wings spread.

This evening I noticed a dozen or so fluffy feathers on the floor under Greta's cage. I'm not sure what that's all about either. She went through her molt already. Geesh!

I'll get back to ya.

Thanks!

TammieB.

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Thu Feb 23, 2006 4:48 pm

Okay, now I feel like an idiot. I examined Greta more carefully, this time without the camera in my hand and discovered those curly feathers are actually located on her left wing... not on her back!

It appears that the five feathers closest to her body are involved. Two feathers are really short, not sure if this is due to some breakage or if they grew that way. The other three are nearly normal in length, but are curled.

I did not find any lumps which would indicate cysts are the cause for this condition. I don't see how these damaged wing feathers could have been caused by an accident. Any ideas?

It will be difficult to hold her in the correct position for a clear viewing and take the photo, but I'll try to take a photo this evening.

TammieB.

Crystal · Post by **Crystal** » Thu Feb 23, 2006 5:04 pm

I would still suspect she is picking at them herself. Especially with the "evidence" of other fluffy feathers at the bottom of her cage.

Glad to hear she doesn't appear to have cysts though!

-Crystal

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Thu Feb 23, 2006 8:39 pm

So you think she is picking at them.... why? Mites?? Boredom??? OCD???

She was routinely treated with Scatt last fall. Do you feel I should dose her again?

Thanks for responding.

TammieB.

Crystal · Post by **Crystal** » Thu Feb 23, 2006 10:53 pm

It would not hurt to try. You can also try improving her diet if you haven't already done so (boiled egg crushed shell and all and leafy greens, daily). Beyond that you might want to look into asking the vet I linked you to for some more ideas as to possible causes for this.

I hope the problem resolves soon!

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Thu Feb 23, 2006 11:45 pm

I thought she was getting a well balanced diet.

I feed a good quality seed from Herman Bros. She has egg shell, cuttlebone and a mineralized grit at all times. I offer her egg food, veggies & fruits about four times a week. She doesn't always eat them though.

I'll dose her with Scatt tomorrow. Will place it under the wing she is picking at, see if that makes a difference.

Thanks again!

TammieB.

Crystal · Post by **Crystal** » Fri Feb 24, 2006 11:39 am

Is the egg food you offer a boiled chicken egg, or a commercial egg food product?

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Fri Feb 24, 2006 2:43 pm

I give my birds boiled or sometimes scrambled chicken eggs.

TammieB.

Crystal · Post by **Crystal** » Fri Feb 24, 2006 8:25 pm

Excellent, just making sure. :)

Post by **Hilary** » Sat Feb 25, 2006 1:15 am

Crystal -

Do you not recommend commercial egg food? I usually alternate boiled shmushed chicken egg with moistened commercial mix (they won't eat it dry, but love it moist).

Hilary

Crystal · Post by **Crystal** » Sat Feb 25, 2006 5:57 am

It really depends on the ingredients (quantity, quality) of the commercial product. With fresh boiled egg, you know you are providing a well balanced and nutrient rich supplement. Commercial products might contain more "filler" than quality protein for instance, and/or go through processing which may degrade the nutritional value of the ingredients. Not everything available on the pet store's shelf is beneficial for your birds (this goes for all products from toys to cages to diets); some companies and products seem to be geared more towards the bird owner than the bird.

As long as you are providing fresh boiled egg a few times a week, it should not really hurt to alternate between a commercial product and the fresh egg food (especially if you have picked a quality commerical product!), but I personally would not feel comfortable relying on commercial egg food alone.

This is not to say that all commercial products are bad. Lafeber's, Kaytee Exact, and Harrison's Bird Foods are just a few companies which make excellent products (namely pellets) for birds. Yet even though these diets are designed to be fed as 100% of the bird's intake, some vets still feel that the diet should be supplemented with fresh foods (egg, vegetables).

Your regimen sounds fine though, Hilary, as long as it is working for you and your birds. :)

FINCHforum

Curly feathers

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