TuliBird
New member
Wondering if anyone could help me identify this rash on my GCC's face. My avian vet is out till October because he's having surgery, and I'm having trouble finding any other place to go, so was wondering if I could treat at home. I could get an opening early in the morning Friday for a place that's a drive out of town (their avian vet is leaving town this weekend for a month, too, but they had a cancellation), but I'd have to reserve with a non-refundable fee tomorrow morning, and I have a newborn that I'd need to scramble to find childcare for, so I'm kind of hoping someone here can at least help me figure out whether this is a situation that needs to be treated right away. I certainly don't think it's life-threatening, but I don't want him to permanently lose his feathers in that area. He had the same rash in April and I'd treated with coconut oil and it appeared to go away, but I wasn't paying close attention since I was having pregnancy complications and kind of preoccupied by that, obviously. He just lost feathers around where the rash is for the first time again this week, though, so I'm worried it's back and getting worse.
I'm attaching my best photos, but he's got what appears to be some scaly skin and some yellowish discharge around the base of his feathers on either side of his beak. Interestingly, my baby has cradle cap and this looks like something similar, but for birds. I know that cradle cap is fungal (as is human dandruff), so I'm wondering if there's a bird equivalent-- like a fungal infection that causes increased oil from the follicles. Anyway, I have no idea what this could be-- someone on a facebook group suggested mites, but there's no other evidence of mites, and I'd think it would've gotten much worse since April if it was that, or I would've seen mites while cleaning his cage, etc. I also think the rash may be itchy since he scratches there a lot, but also the fact that he's lost and replaced the feathers in that area could cause it be itchy even if the rash itself isn't. If anyone has any idea what this could be, please let me know, and thanks for your help!
I'm attaching my best photos, but he's got what appears to be some scaly skin and some yellowish discharge around the base of his feathers on either side of his beak. Interestingly, my baby has cradle cap and this looks like something similar, but for birds. I know that cradle cap is fungal (as is human dandruff), so I'm wondering if there's a bird equivalent-- like a fungal infection that causes increased oil from the follicles. Anyway, I have no idea what this could be-- someone on a facebook group suggested mites, but there's no other evidence of mites, and I'd think it would've gotten much worse since April if it was that, or I would've seen mites while cleaning his cage, etc. I also think the rash may be itchy since he scratches there a lot, but also the fact that he's lost and replaced the feathers in that area could cause it be itchy even if the rash itself isn't. If anyone has any idea what this could be, please let me know, and thanks for your help!