Pinning

[little1al]

I was hoping for a bit of advice. I have a 9 year old B&G which i rescued nearly 4 months ago. When I first got him he had a few pin feathers which he would always let me help him with but over the last month or so he has been molting loads and he now doesn't like me trying to get the wax off his feathers. He doesn't mind so much if the new feathers that are coming through are the small grey ones but if they are the blue or yellow feathers he doesn't like it.

He will let me touch them and get a bit of the wax off the end but when I then try to get more wax off he will squak at me like it is hurting him. Do their new feathers hurt them? How can I help him with the new feathers on his head? He has quite a lot of pin feathers on his head now and it must be bugging him.

Does anyone have any advice. Thanks

 

[Spiritbird]

The covering on the new feathers is not wax. It is composed of keratin which dries out as it ages. If you touch the pin feather too early it is painful to the bird. The covering needs to be ready to gently break. You can tell when it is ready when it turns white and looks dry. You only have to help the pin feathers on the head and around the beak as your bird will take care of the rest. Be careful you are not fooling with a blood feather. You will recognize a blood feather by looking at the shaft and you will see that it is full of blood. Keep the bird well hydrated during a molt and give extra calories and protein.

 

[mellykyitus]

they can get irritable when molting, its painful at times. Angel will let me know if one of her shafts is "live" just give a head rub to soothe the itching and a warm misting will soften the shafts x

 

[willist]

My Greenwing will let me help him get all his new feathers open, however it I accidentally tug on the feather instead of rolling it back and forth between my fingernail and finger he might squawk . Just be careful not to pull, also make sure the feather is ready.

 

[PrettyInInk87]

My Green Cheek doesn't like it when I touch his pin feathers... He's molting right now and has a few.

 

[Remy]

I've heard that aloe vera can help.

 

[JJones1719]

I would advise you to increase the amount of baths your macaw is getting, soak them to the bone, while they are wet, use a dime size of aloe Vera 100% pure, rub your hands together and wipe down your Macaw, this helps while the Macaw is molting and is very good for bright shinny feathers both new and old. Best of luck Joe

 

[cd4565]

My baby Huey has a ton of them on his head and i was rolling his and helping him get rid of them and he loved every minute of it. Was a great bonding time how funny this thread popped up.

 

[little1al]

Thanks for all your advice. I think I will give him a good soaking at the weekend and see how we get on then. He has some right near the white bit of his face which he won't let me anywhere near but I will give the rest a go. Thanks again