Zebra Finch question

[bobsinoregon]

I just received a few Zebra Finches. I understand that it is not unusual for the male to pluck some of the females feathers on the back of her neck when mating. A few questions;

is this just a normal thing for breeding season? Is there any way to stop it? I have more females then males

will the feathers grow back

I'm feeding them all the right things, (seed, veggies, offering apple) plus calcium and minerals on the food.

THANKS for you help !!

[OAvila1986]

bobsinoregon I'm not sure about the breeding season for zebras I have society finches and they can breed any time. By stopping them to breed you can take out the nest out if they continue to breed with out it it's time to separate the males from the female.
Yes that sounds about right in nutrition. Offer other types of greens like lettuce broccoli carrots see if they like it and spray millet as well.
The feathers should come back again. I'm not sure but hopefully others can help.
You can check more info at finchinfo dot com

[finchlover24]

bobsinoregon My male zebra finch tends to do that too. I bought some Avicalm and it seems to help a little. The feathers should be fine as OAvila1986 mentioned. As long as he isn't chasing/attacking her, causing any bleeding etc, then it's fine. You could always swap the couples if things get too crazy

[ac12]

It may be that he wants to mate and make a nest but can't find nesting material to build the nest, so he is using the feathers from his mate, or another bird.

WATCH CAREFULLY.
It is very easy for the plucker to get carried away and BADLY pluck the other bird. I had a male that plucked the back of his mate from the neck down to the rump naked of feathers. Then he started plucking her sides, and also started plucking the chicks. Once I realized what was happening and how bad it was, I immediatly separated him. And the next time I mated him, as soon as I saw him plucking, usually just before or around fledging of the chicks, OUT HE CAME. A plucker will always be a plucker, you can't break him of that behavior.

If the bird has not been badly plucked, the feathers may grow back. It is like your hair. If you pluck your hair, as long as the hair folicle is not damaged, your hair will grow back. If the hair folicle is damaged, the hair may not grow back.

To help the plucked bird, I usually separate them. Leaving a plucked bird in the community cage, makes it a target for any other bird to pluck it. In the separate hospital cage, I can give the plucked bird egg food every day, and "feather fast", to help it regrow its feathers.