Parrotlet has coming and going lump below neck with no feathers. Any insight is appreciated!

[juliagrace31]

Hi! I have an 11 year old parrotlet, and as of a month ago I noticed her losing feathers below her neck to the point where there’s practically no feathers left in that area. I had worried that it was over plucking due to malnutrition or stress, so I put her on a primarily pellet/vegetable diet, and she doesn’t show any signs of stress throughout the day. Once all the feathers were gone, I noticed a large lump in that space but it would go away the next day. I’ve been keeping an eye on it, and it seems like it is completely normal (no lump) until we give her seeds/millet (so when she eats a lot). I’ve looked it up and can’t seem to find anyone with a similar issue, and will bring her into the vet this week. Other than the lump and feather loss she seems to be in perfect condition and acts like her usual happy self. I have attached photos of what it looks like after she eats. Her feathers also begin to grow back, but then it gets swollen and we seem to go back to square one.

 

[zERo]

Welcome to the forums!

It appears your baby is most likely plucking her feathers out.
The lump is her crop, filling with food, and then emptying in her stomach. This is completely normal and all parrots do this, only, it’s hard to see if they’re feathered.
I’d still bring her to the vet for bloodwork, to see if there’s a medical reason for her plucking.

 

[GaleriaGila]

What Zero said... it might even be a crop bulge due to a hernia or something... I have no idea and I tend to catastrophize! Plucking: the bane of the captive parrot world, yes.
Maybe this list will help? Good luck.
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In my opinion, any of the vets listed here should be better than a regular vet.
International contacts, too.

 

[ckg]

I can only imagine what that might feel like. You should really meet with a vet for that. All we can provide is a guess which may or may not be correct.