FINCHforum

I noticed one of my canary's feather condition rather odd. Feathers were not plush and bouncy looking. Instead clumped together. Like it was greasy or wet looking. Upon removing the bird, I took a closer look. The breast area had no feathers of any kind. The feathers folded over the breast area, from its sides, but nothing grew out of the breast area. Like a comb over. Its siblings are healthy looking. It did eat and fly perfectly fine. This is an area where there might be some disagreement. Rather than returning it to the flight cage with the other birds, I decided to cull it. It was not an easy decision, but I did not feel comfortable keeping it with my "healthy" birds. I hope nothing was passed on during its time. I could have brought it to a vet, google information or even wait and see. I did have some coconut oil (not in liquid form) in a finger dish. Maybe I screwed up and it was nothing serious. Hindsight I probably should have waited a few days. But I felt best, at that time, to eliminate a potential risk to the rest of the flock. I still feel a bit sad.

What feather type are the parents of the culled bird in question? Omg you were brave

You killed your bird because the feathers didn't look right! In my opinion, you shouldn't have any birds.