I noticed my java hen flying very clumsily and taking several attempt to land properly. I took her out for a quick examination and turns out she's missing all her primary feathers on both wings! And only those feathers too. I didn't notice any blood or any sign of injury.
She recently finished moulting, but that was only on her head, neck and chest. Is it normal to lose all the wing feathers too during moult? She seems otherwise healthy and I haven't witnessed any plucking.
Missing all primary feathers?
-
Albinosilver
- Persistent Pursuer
- Posts: 298
- Joined: Fri Jul 30, 2010 1:14 pm
- Location: Ottawa, ON
-
lovezebs
- Mod Extraordinaire
- Posts: 18214
- Joined: Sun Dec 15, 2013 11:51 am
- Location: Calgary Alberta Canada
Re: Missing all primary feathers?
Albinosilver
Yes, they will molt all of their feathers.
She should still be able to fly, as not all feathers are lost at the exact same time.
Yes, they will molt all of their feathers.
She should still be able to fly, as not all feathers are lost at the exact same time.
~Elana~
Linnies~ Canaries ~ Zebras ~ Societies ~ Gouldians ~ Orange Cheeks ~ Shaft Tails ~ Strawberries ~ Red Cheek Cordon Bleu ~ Goldbreasts ~ Red Brows ~ Owls ~ Budgies ~ Diamond Firetails ~ Javas ~ Forbes Parrot Finches ~
Linnies~ Canaries ~ Zebras ~ Societies ~ Gouldians ~ Orange Cheeks ~ Shaft Tails ~ Strawberries ~ Red Cheek Cordon Bleu ~ Goldbreasts ~ Red Brows ~ Owls ~ Budgies ~ Diamond Firetails ~ Javas ~ Forbes Parrot Finches ~
-
Albinosilver
- Persistent Pursuer
- Posts: 298
- Joined: Fri Jul 30, 2010 1:14 pm
- Location: Ottawa, ON
Re: Missing all primary feathers?
lovezebs
Just to clarify, is it normal that it all happened in one day? I only cleaned the cage the day before and now suddenly all her primary feathers are on the ground. I wouldn't have been worried had it happened gradually.
Just to clarify, is it normal that it all happened in one day? I only cleaned the cage the day before and now suddenly all her primary feathers are on the ground. I wouldn't have been worried had it happened gradually.
-
Ricardo Ronsini
- Novice Nester
- Posts: 402
- Joined: Sat Mar 11, 2017 1:00 pm
- Location: São Paulo - Brazil
Re: Missing all primary feathers?
It is not normal, are you sure she isn't being plucked?
-
Albinosilver
- Persistent Pursuer
- Posts: 298
- Joined: Fri Jul 30, 2010 1:14 pm
- Location: Ottawa, ON
Re: Missing all primary feathers?
Ricardo Ronsini
I don't think she's been plucked. I've been watching her all day and her behaviour is completely normal (besides being a bit clumsy) and no one's bothered her even the slightest. She's not missing any other feathers, just the wings.
I was afraid maybe she had gotten caught in something but I examined both her wings and only the primaries are missing from both sides with no visible damage.
It's so strange.
I don't think she's been plucked. I've been watching her all day and her behaviour is completely normal (besides being a bit clumsy) and no one's bothered her even the slightest. She's not missing any other feathers, just the wings.
I was afraid maybe she had gotten caught in something but I examined both her wings and only the primaries are missing from both sides with no visible damage.
It's so strange.
-
Emma4
- Pip
- Posts: 20
- Joined: Fri Jul 14, 2017 5:50 pm
- Location: Southern California
Re: Missing all primary feathers?
I don't have an answer what happened. But I think you should be sure to pick up those feathers from the ground and keep them for examination.
-
Ricardo Ronsini
- Novice Nester
- Posts: 402
- Joined: Sat Mar 11, 2017 1:00 pm
- Location: São Paulo - Brazil
Re: Missing all primary feathers?
Very strange indeed.
-
Icearstorm
- Weaning
- Posts: 1612
- Joined: Thu Sep 01, 2016 5:21 pm
Re: Missing all primary feathers?
Albinosilver
I can't think of any likely cause, but below here some possible (if improbable) explanations.
Did she pluck them herself? I once had a society finch that would rip all her tail feathers out if she was stressed (often while breeding). I didn't know the cause of the missing feathers until I saw her removing them. Is there any evidence of mites? These can cause irritation and plucking, but are more likely to affect light-colored feathers.
Have the entire feathers been lost? If part of the shaft is missing from the dropped feathers, they might be getting broken off (in this case, the rest of the feather shaft will still be in the bird's wing). Do your birds get night fright? This would lead to feather breakage, instead of total loss, most of the time. Are there shock marks? These occur under conditions of stress or lack of food and weaken the integrity of the feathers, making them more likely to snap off; however, it's unlikely this would happen to all of the primaries at once.
Are the same number of primaries she is missing present on the floor? If there are less than you would expect, she or another bird might be eating them, perhaps from a lack of protein. Birds seem to eat down feathers first, so this would also be unusual.
Are the feather shafts twisted or split? This may indicate West Nile Virus or other illness.
Has she consumed anything with steroids (ex. beef thyroid)? This can cause extremely fast feather loss, though it doesn't seem to act overnight.
These last two ideas are pretty close to impossible, but hey.
I can't think of any likely cause, but below here some possible (if improbable) explanations.
Did she pluck them herself? I once had a society finch that would rip all her tail feathers out if she was stressed (often while breeding). I didn't know the cause of the missing feathers until I saw her removing them. Is there any evidence of mites? These can cause irritation and plucking, but are more likely to affect light-colored feathers.
Have the entire feathers been lost? If part of the shaft is missing from the dropped feathers, they might be getting broken off (in this case, the rest of the feather shaft will still be in the bird's wing). Do your birds get night fright? This would lead to feather breakage, instead of total loss, most of the time. Are there shock marks? These occur under conditions of stress or lack of food and weaken the integrity of the feathers, making them more likely to snap off; however, it's unlikely this would happen to all of the primaries at once.
Are the same number of primaries she is missing present on the floor? If there are less than you would expect, she or another bird might be eating them, perhaps from a lack of protein. Birds seem to eat down feathers first, so this would also be unusual.
Are the feather shafts twisted or split? This may indicate West Nile Virus or other illness.
Has she consumed anything with steroids (ex. beef thyroid)? This can cause extremely fast feather loss, though it doesn't seem to act overnight.
These last two ideas are pretty close to impossible, but hey.
-
Albinosilver
- Persistent Pursuer
- Posts: 298
- Joined: Fri Jul 30, 2010 1:14 pm
- Location: Ottawa, ON
Re: Missing all primary feathers?
Emma4 Icearstorm
The feathers all appear to be fully intact and not broken or anything. If something scared her at night and she bumped into things, would they fall out like that without any broken shafts?
I think a night fright is the only realistic possibility. I keep geckos in the same area as my finches and they like to move around at night. Might have scared her? But they've always been kept like that so it's weird that it'd happen now.
What can I do to help her grow these feathers back?
The feathers all appear to be fully intact and not broken or anything. If something scared her at night and she bumped into things, would they fall out like that without any broken shafts?
I think a night fright is the only realistic possibility. I keep geckos in the same area as my finches and they like to move around at night. Might have scared her? But they've always been kept like that so it's weird that it'd happen now.
What can I do to help her grow these feathers back?
-
ann
- Flirty Bird
- Posts: 225
- Joined: Sat Feb 09, 2013 2:15 pm
- Location: Mission Viejo, CA
Re: Missing all primary feathers?
Albinosilver
The same thing happened to a couple of my birds earlier this year. One morning there was a pile of feathers and the birds couldn't fly. I never did figure out what happened, but I suspect it was a molt gone wrong. By the way, the birds got along just fine without their feathers. I put everything they needed on the cage floor until they were able to fly again.
The same thing happened to a couple of my birds earlier this year. One morning there was a pile of feathers and the birds couldn't fly. I never did figure out what happened, but I suspect it was a molt gone wrong. By the way, the birds got along just fine without their feathers. I put everything they needed on the cage floor until they were able to fly again.
2 owls
2 red-faced parrot finches
1 parrot finch hybrid
4 societies
7 gouldians
2 canaries
2 cocker spaniels
2 red-faced parrot finches
1 parrot finch hybrid
4 societies
7 gouldians
2 canaries
2 cocker spaniels
-
Icearstorm
- Weaning
- Posts: 1612
- Joined: Thu Sep 01, 2016 5:21 pm
Re: Missing all primary feathers?
Albinosilver
I'd think they would break rather than fall out, but it's hard to know for sure. Put her back on a moulting diet with a good amount of protein, and the feathers should grow back in a couple of weeks.
I'd think they would break rather than fall out, but it's hard to know for sure. Put her back on a moulting diet with a good amount of protein, and the feathers should grow back in a couple of weeks.