Cut on face, HELP!!!

[Ijistcantsayno]

I just got home from work and noticed that Precious has a tiny cut on his face. His vets office is closed. No blood that I can see anywhere in the cage, or on the wall. I left a message for them to call me back. In the mean time I’m a bit panicked. The cut is itty bitty, and I think it came from one of his wooden toys. It was new this morning and he has been after it all day from the wear and tear that I can see. Should I bring him to the ER vet (that doesn’t have an avian specialist on duty) or wait until the morning. He’s behaving normally, and singing so I’m taking that as a good sign. I know everyone says don’t wait, but I’m not 100% confident that the exotic vet will give him the right care.

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[Owlet]

No need for the vet, just keep an eye on it and make sure it doesnt get infected or anything but its just a small superficial cut, it'll heal on its own

 

[Laurasea]

Yep. All good will be fine.
Beak seems extra flaky and skin dry. If you feed strict pellets might want to add a few seeds back to diet. Eats Veggies, I hope?

Check home humidity, offer baths and misting

 

[Scott]

Kudos for high level of concern but agree with preceding.... does not appear an emergency. Keep a close watch for proper healiing, monitor food consumption and activity level.

 

[SailBoat]

Appears to be a cut that one would associate with beak rubbing against the cage bars. Likely a bar end /cut point like a door, or like semi-sharpe area.

You have received excellent advise above and I fully agree regarding the dryness of the skin. Check your humidity level as it has been a very dry Winter /early Spring.

 

[noodles123]

It's not bleeding, so that is good. I think it will be fine, but you are smart to keep an eye on it

 

[Ijistcantsayno]

Just a quick update because I just do not have time, 2020 was hard, but 2021 is KILLING us! Anyways…. Precious is completely healed, and as always the advice I received was 100% spot on. The vet asked for me to email photos and said no biggie, touch base in a few days. I did, and all is well.

On a side note, I swear this bird is going to be completely naked if his molt doesn’t ease up just a bit. It hit hard this week, and he has lost SO many feathers. Precious is also very grouchy and looks like a birdie pin cushion…he didn’t molt much last year, probably due to stress of his new home (we adopted him in February 2020). At least that’s what the vet says. Either that or he just doesn’t lose all his feathers annually, but because of the timing they think it was more stress related than anything else.

Trying to type this out as fast as I can on a phone, so please ignore any typos.

His diet is mainly pellets and seed. He has been on the same diet for many years. We were able to get him onto a healthier seed mix, but he’s mostly a pellet bird and will not change pellets. We tried, he refuses. He’s old, and any nutrition is better than none. He’s not great with veggies, but will eat them from time to time. They are offered twice daily every day, and mostly are played with (thrown out of the dish) but he’s an “old man” his blood work is good, and I’m not going to force veggies at this point. He’s stuck in his ways and my job is to love him the best I can for as long as I can.

Bathing is a bit of an issue for him. He’s either in the mood for a shower or not. Spray bottles were a source of panic, and we have managed to get one or two squeezes of fine mist out before he flies off. I’m thinking by his initial reaction of panic that it wasn’t anywhere near a positive experience in his previous homes. He will not bathe in a dish. The sink (kitchen sink -NOT the bathroom sink to be very specific) and the shower are fair game when he feels like it’s bath time. We have taken to offering him showers daily, but he hasn’t been willing the past couple of months. Because he is not very okay with a spray bottle I don’t want to force the shower or sink, that would remove all bathing options.

Okay, so not such a quick update, because I wanted to address the questions in the posts…but my dinner is burning (not my fault, I blame the hubby, he was “on it” ) so I’ve got to go open all the windows because birds…and smoke. [emoji849]


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[Laurasea]

Cockatiels seem to have less desire for baths. I know my freinds won't take a bath.

You could try putting a humidifier near the cage, burd safe of course. I use the old simple type.

Molting takes a lot of protein. You might offer a little boiled egg.

 

[SailBoat]

Wild birds more commonly change a 'near' full set of feathers. But it tends to be those birds that attempt to blend into the background as it transitions from green to white. With Parrots, especially those in zones that have cooler temperatures during the Winter, they will be seen as molting far more of their body and downy feathers as they seasonally transition.

Remember 'as noted above' it takes a great deal of body reserves to replace feathers. So, the diet is important! Stress of a new home will have them back-off molting. When healthy and happy, it can seem like they had friends over for a molting party!

Enjoy!

 

[Tman]

First as everyone else has said, good job on keeping an eye on it. Let me add a few more Ideas.
Mare sure his nails are trimmed, sometimes they go in for a good scratch and get carried away.
As for as for a bath a water bottle you have to keep pumping they don't like the sound. Get a plastic bug sprayer they go for like 10.00. This way you pump up the pressure and have it on the fine mist. It will give you a spray range so the nozzle is not that close. Also don't baby him he needs it a bath is part of a healthy lifestyle.
Follow him around a bit with it. He will get use to it
My rosebreasted cockatoo at first was the same way would run away from it. Now when he hears me pumping up the sprayer hr goes to his spot and can't wait for it to start. He will hang upside down and flaps his tail feathers. And open up his wings and I can just soak him.
One more thing get your cockatiel use to you wiping his beak with a damp paper towel. That way you can wipe it of once in awhile.

 

[Ijistcantsayno]

First as everyone else has said, good job on keeping an eye on it. Let me add a few more Ideas.
Mare sure his nails are trimmed, sometimes they go in for a good scratch and get carried away.
As for as for a bath a water bottle you have to keep pumping they don't like the sound. Get a plastic bug sprayer they go for like 10.00. This way you pump up the pressure and have it on the fine mist. It will give you a spray range so the nozzle is not that close. Also don't baby him he needs it a bath is part of a healthy lifestyle.
Follow him around a bit with it. He will get use to it
My rosebreasted cockatoo at first was the same way would run away from it. Now when he hears me pumping up the sprayer hr goes to his spot and can't wait for it to start. He will hang upside down and flaps his tail feathers. And open up his wings and I can just soak him.
One more thing get your cockatiel use to you wiping his beak with a damp paper towel. That way you can wipe it of once in awhile.

Precious is older, and has had traumatic experiences in his previous homes. He was terrified even seeing a spray bottle when we brought home, so I’m fairly certain the sound isn’t the issue. It’s a previous experience or several experiences he has to get over. It doesn’t matter what type of bottle, if it has a nozzle he’s not really happy to see it. I refuse to turn bath time into a forced activity, that will make him less cooperative in the long run. We are working on it, but we will move at his pace. Right now, he’s not ready. That’s fine, we have the shower in the bathroom or kitchen sink when he wants a bath. But again, it’s always a daily option, and is never forced. He gets his pedicure every 8-10 weeks and has finally decided to take a good shower this week. I will not force him or pester him for anything that isn’t life or death. While a shower is part of his overall health, it’s not worth forcing it. He has come so very far in the 15 months we have had him, and I feel like forcing things wouldn’t work well. He’s stubborn, but at the same time is willing to learn. I’ll take a happy dusty old bird over an unhappy clean old bird any day.


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