I recently got a 3 month old indian ringneck, but something that’s been concerning me is that the feathers around his crop are considerably darker. I’ve searched the internet looking for anyone who’s experienced something similar, but I’ve found nothing. I’ve been feeding him a varied diet, pellets, fresh veggies, (i still offer formula as well) everyday, and i’m just not sure what could be causing it or if it’s normal. i’ve just never seen an indian ringneck with a darker crop area so it’s been worrying me.
My first thought was perhaps crop has been overstretched during the hand rearing process. Or has/had crop infection, crop burn ...so many things can happen with crop during hand raising
The crop looks abnormally large to me in tge Pictures .
I think Inflammation could cause the feathers to look different.
I'd suggest getting checked out by avian veterinarian
I agree a vet check is a good idea. Potential crop issues in baby birds would worry me.
I have a ringneck that had discolored feathers above his nares when I first met him in February, and it turned out to be a serious respiratory infection that still needs treatment. Looking back, I should have acted on my thinking something was off sooner.