Bloody discharge from nostril

[Betrisher]

My Madge had a dark stain on her nostril this afternoon when I got home (was fine this morning). I'm assuming it's blood, as I haven't fed anything like red pepper or beetroot lately. The Beaks are moulting at present and Madge is having a much harder time of it than Barney. She's dropping lots of feathers and growing back crops of pin-feathers on her head and sides. She's scratching a lot and is very irritable and beaky. So they argue.

I guess my question is: should I treat the little stain (about the size of a pinhead) as a serious matter, or should I watch and wait to see what happens? Could an overly bonky peck from Barney have caused the bit of blood? What other signs should I check for?

I'd be so grateful for a reply - I'm nervous about Madge, but would rather avoid a vet's fee if there's a simple explanation.

 

[MrSquak]

Poor beaks...I'd keep an eye on it. If it happens again call a vet, otherwise just try and keep them as comfy as possible.

Alex birds can go through terrible molts, tango (19 months old) is just recovering from one now. Poor little guy lost all her long flight feathers and has been really upset. Also had pins sprouting all over the head, neck and body

Tango was a great flyer and used to always greet me when I came home from work. When she'd hear that front door close she'd fly right over! I hope they grow back ASAP

 

[weco]

Often our feathered friends like to pick their nose/nare, much like children, just to do it, or because it might itch or even to mine the contents that might be found.....

When nares bleed, usually they can be equated to our picking our nose with uncut finger nails.....while there might be more to a few situations, clipping a bird'e toe nails/talons keeps sharp pointed ones out of their nares.....

 

[Betrisher]

Weco, when you put it like that I can relax a lot more. You can't imagine the battle I had with my little darlings (the kids, not the Beaks) to try and stop them picking their noses! And yes, Madge is always fiddling with her face: it never occurred to me she might be - urgh! - picking her dainty little snout. I will watch carefully, though. With this awful moult, poor Madge looks positively mouldy!

 

[MikeyTN]

Although what weco says might be what happened but to give you a peace of mind you should always have them checked out by a vet as we can only speculate what's going on.

 

[Pajarita]

I don't know about them picking their noses been a common thing... I've never seen any of mine do it. They do scratch their faces but they never actually pick their nostrils. Are you keeping them at a comfortable level of humidity? How about betacarotene intake?

 

[Betrisher]

Aha! Humidity! It's as dry as anything here ATM - cold and windy. My skin is flaking and my lips are sticking together. Might that be a factor? I could spritz the cage with water or boil the kettle every hour or so. What else can I do to increase humidity?

PS. The Beaks have a shower every three days or so. They're not all that keen on showering, though.

 

[BoomBoom]

Yeah humidity is great for our birds. Good for skin and plumage condition. Great for their nares. My bird used to pick his nose a lot and have swollen nares before I got a humidifier.

You can buy a good humidifier for cheap. I use a cold mist humidifier that do not need filters. Very easy to refill and clean out. In summer, it gets my indoor humidity level at about 56% daytime, 74% night time. Without the humidifier, the humidity level drops to 36%, 60% night time. Big difference! Just watch out for mold growth and keep it cleaned regularly.