White feather???

Jessxoxo

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Sep 4, 2012
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My cheech finally took a bath, he's not very happy about it, but he did! But I noticed he's got a lot of white feathers under his wings and under tail! Is this normal? Should I be concerned?
 

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Karigan

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Jul 3, 2011
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British Columbia, Canada
Parrots
Kitoko: Female Senegal Parrot, born 2002
Talia: Female CAG, born 2008
Mateo: Female CAG, born 2008
Don't worry, it just looks like down, the white fluffy under layer. When they bath, the feathers stick together and hang just like human hair so you can see them better. You've probably noticed a puff of white feather floating around the room after he preens, it's the same thing.
 
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Jessxoxo

Jessxoxo

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Shewwww ok thanks! But I do notice it in patches under his wings when he's not wet!
 

MonicaMc

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Sep 12, 2012
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Mitred Conure - Charlie 1994;
Cockatiel - Casey 2001;
Wild Caught ARN - Sylphie 2013
That's his insulation coat!!! :D

The white feather you should probably pay attention to, whenever you see it, is the one at the base of the tail/lower back region. It's the uropygial gland, aka preen gland. Not all parrots have it, but many do. The gland can sometimes get infected or impacted which can bother the bird. Seems to me to be a rare occurance, as I rarely hear of any birds with problems of the gland.


Preen gland from different species may appear differently. Here's a couple of articles. One about, one including diseases of the gland.

preen gland (bird anatomy) -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia
Diseases of the Uropygial Gland
 

Karigan

New member
Jul 3, 2011
682
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British Columbia, Canada
Parrots
Kitoko: Female Senegal Parrot, born 2002
Talia: Female CAG, born 2008
Mateo: Female CAG, born 2008
You can see it at odd times, the feathers on my sennie seem to be thinner around the connective tissue under the wings.
 

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