Wasi has bare patches

[tkessel]

Two days after Wasi arrived (about 5 weeks ago), I noticed quite a few downy like feathers around the cage area.

This was never repeated, and I don't notice any plucking yet, but when I look under Wasi's wings (I wasn't "allowed" doing that until recently.) I notice there are about 1 square inch of bare areas near the "wing pit."

I had a female cockatiel who had a bout of feather plucking about 20 years ago, and even had one of the sheilds for about a month. For the next 5 years (the rest of her life) she had bare patches like Wasi.  They never got worse, and never got better. 

Since I don't know details of Wasi's previous 14 years, I don't know what is normal to her.  It could have been the stress of moving - my most logical guess - but since she also went into a bout of paper shredding and egg laying (she had never laid an egg before, according to the previous care takers) it could have been a "seasonal stress." 

Is this bare patch fairly common among mature birds in captivity?  Right now I plan to do nothing as I see almost no down and no feathers around her cage.  (My male cockatiel is actually a bit more messy as far as feathers, at least for now, and he has no bare spots.)

[feika]

What I have noticed with my 2 greys, Captain and Jojo is that they have got less number of feathers in the 'wing pit' compared to all over the body, however, there is no bald patch as such. Let the experienced members log in and throw some light on it.

[jules]

i try to look under jasper wings when he's being sprayed and i have noticed less feathers there,right underneath i'm sure i've seen little pink patches of skin.

if wasi has the same under both wings then i'm sure its nothing to worry about 

[sweeetnlowww]

i too wouldn't worry...cjs and crew all seem to preen their pits alot, and as feika said, the feathers are scarce there...downy feathers fall constantly, and when molting the pretty feathers fall too...no need for worry...if plucking on purpose you will notice bald patches on chest or lower back area first...

[tkessel]

I do think she is OK, as I don't see piles of feathers around at all.  I just wondered how typical those bare skin patches might be.  Unfortunately, I did not get to examine her pits before we brought her home.  I was busy helping load the cage into our van, while her previous care giver gave her a very mild feather trim, and also went over her nails with an emery board.  I only got to visit with Wasi for about 10 minutes before starting the drive from New Jersey to Ohio.  She did seem to enjoy the trip, after about an hour she was hanging upside down from the top of her cage, which the previous owner told us via cell phone, "That means she is happy!"

[tkessel]

i too wouldn't worry...cjs and crew all seem to preen their pits alot, and as feika said, the feathers are scarce there...downy feathers fall constantly, and when molting the pretty feathers fall too...no need for worry...if plucking on purpose you will notice bald patches on chest or lower back area first...

Today I noticed that the bare spots seem to be getting larger.  When I first noticed them about three weeks ago they seemed very subtle.  Last week they appeared slightly less than 1 inch sqare.   Now they appear to be about 1 1/4" square.  I never see her picking there, and all other preening seems normal. 

However, she is doing a lot of nail biting, which she did not do when she first came here.  I never saw that mentioned in any of the books I read or posts here.   This is OK with me as she has no trouble perching on my hand or climbing around, and I don't have to worry for now about filing them down.

Regarding the bare feather patches under the wings, that is the only place I see any bare spots.  The only stressful thing I have added to her environment is starting to get her away from her cage and stepping up.  She is still very much in love with her cage and is very tense about being away from it.  But I don't want to stop now, she is getting better daily, I think.  I don't know what she thinks! 

She does have two wood toys she chews on, and another toy that I can't describe too well, but she picks some kind of fibers out of tubes.

Right now I still don't think a trip to the vet is needed.  Should I put a pause on the time away from her cage with me, or try anything else?

[feika]

It would be much better if you post a picture here. Bare patches as in no feathers at all or less feathers than the surrounding areas?

[tkessel]

bare patches with no feathers at all, about 1 1/4 inch square.  I don't know if I can get Wasi to pose for a picture, but I'll see.  I also thought maybe she is bored in the morning:  daylight is now starting about 7 am, but I don't take the cover off her cage until after 8:15 am to get her close to 12 hours of "sleep" time.  I hear her up in the morning, before the cover is off, playing with the toys, and occassionally vocalizing.

[tkessel]

I watched Wasi preen for a while, and then thought, "Now I don't see a bare patch!"  Although the wings were not quite so open as earlier when I thought "The bare patch is bigger!"

Here is a close up from several days ago when I thought the bare spot (with no feathers) was about 1 inch square.  Do you see it? I don't! 

[tkessel]

Wasi will not pose appropriately while I hold a camera, but the bare patch is there.  It may be like a comb over, but it is a feather over, not always apparent.  Here is a touched up photo indicating the approximate size and location of the bare patches.

[feika]

2 things in my opinion: 1) it's not a cause for concern; and 2) it seems to be a bad clipping. Only the 10 flight feathers, the primary feathers starting from the extreme left side and right side of her wings (facing the camera) should be clipped. Ideally only the 8 flight feathers are clipped and the last 2 (extreme right and left, farthest from the body) are left alone which give the bird better looks.

[tkessel]

The previous care giver gave the clipping right before we began a 10 hour car ride to Ohio from New Jersey.  I agree, it is not what I've seen in my books, but I don't think the previous care giver had access to the information 10 years ago that I do now, and she just did what she always did.