Bluebell was acting odd tonight - a bit concerned

[FlyBirdiesFly]

Bluebell is molting right now, big time. Her head is covered in pin feathers and she’s missing primaries to the point where she’s having to work a lot harder to fly. Something odd happened tonight - Bluebell was very tame! I’ve had her for almost 5 years and she’s never really let me touch her. Well tonight, she stepped up for me, let me take her out of the bird room, let me pet her without any protest, and even let me hold her in my hand. This is very unusual for Bluebell - normally she squirms, bites and squawks whenever I have to grab her for a nail trim. She’s never let me pet her or touch her either. I was thinking at first that maybe she’s more tame because she can’t fly very well right now, but she didn’t even squawk or try to get away. She just sat on my finger quietly while I pet her back, scratched her head to break open pin feathers, and took a look at her wings. She let me grab her and turn her over without much fuss at all. It’s not like she’s not able to fly though, she can still fly across the room but it’s clear she’s having trouble. So I’m a little concerned as to why Bluebell acted so tame suddenly.

Do you think it has to do with her molting? She’s still eating normally and I haven’t noticed any other changes in her behavior. Should I take her to my Avian Vet just to be sure? It is about time for a birdie wellness check anyway. Is this a real cause for concern or is she just warming up to me? Am I being a paranoid parront??

 

[LaManuka]

Why is it they always manage to do this sort of thing when there’s weekends/public holidays etc, my guys do it to me every time!

What is Bluebell’s poop like? Poop doesn’t lie. She might just be low on energy from growing all those new feathers but if she’s almost due for a check anyway you may be best to go early just for peace of mind. I hope she’s ok!

 

[AmyMyBlueFront]

I think I hear a little paranoidie in your voice It could very well be that Ms Belle feels like "why not hitch a ride" instead of over-straining herself to try and fly. I'd say TAKE ADVANTAGE of her extra sweetness and give her all the lovin' you possibly can! She just might realize and say "HEY! this is pretty darn cool!" and keep wanting more lovies..


jim

 

[ChristaNL]

Not to mention: Why take care of all those pinfeathers when you can enlist someone else to do it for you...

Birds can reach every part of their body of course, but some take more effort than others, that where the headscratches come in.
They can only reach them with their feet, and that part takes some serious effort and is not very precise- so it takes longer.


So you are the favorite flockmate to help her!
(Maybe you can keep the job?)

 

[Laurasea]

I'm on the paranoia team as in I agree with you, this can be worrisome. I would get her checked out...I've seen mean ones become sweet when sick, just like the sweet ones can become mean when sick.. I hope everything is ok and it's just molting stress.

 

[EllenD]

If she's due for her annual Wellness-Exam anyway, then it's a good time to get it done...Just make sure it includes a Fecal so they are sure to catch any infections she might have going on...

 

[FlyBirdiesFly]

I think I will get her checked just to make sure - like I said before, all my birds are due for their wellness exams. Bluebell didn’t necessarily show signs of enjoying the scritches, she just tolerated it. No fluffing head feathers, closing eyes, etc like Ducky and Kermit do when they’re enjoying scritches. Bluebell has never really been that interested in humans and I don’t think she considers me a flockmate enough to let me preen her (I could be wrong, though). I guess I’m just being paranoid and I should take advantage of Bluebell’s tameness, but she’s going in for her annual exam soon and I will be sure to bring this up.

 

[Scott]

Hopefully just extra dependence due to the fatigue of molting.