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my little female ( indoor pet) hahns macaw is going through a rough moult, the pin feathers in her head and upper neck area are drivng her nuts and making her slightly cranky, anyone have any good experience with any of these sprays designed to ease the moult? ive had birds go through tough moults but hers is the worst so far. take care all, MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Jay

I haven't had expierence with a rough moult yet, but I do know several members on this board use a 100% Aloe Juice and water mix to mist their birds. No chemicals involved. You might want to try that, I believe it is a 50/50 mix.

So far just water has helped with my birds. They also come into the bathroom with me when I take my shower to enjoy the humidity if they don't bathe.

I've read if you boil the aloe leaves and then use the water from that(cooled of course) it helps alot.

Almost 90% of the feather is protein so additional protiens added to the diet are needed. Shredded chicken, hard boiled eggs, yogurt are good along with legumes, whole grains, and nuts. The fatty acids in the grains and nuts are also needed for healthy skin and feathers.

Another idea...

Will your Hahn's Macaw let you preen her head and neck feathers for her? When I would cuddle my Triton Cockatoo, I would preen the ends of her pin feathers that she couldn't reach for her. I also think it was good bonding time for us.

It takes a balanced diet and a lot of different foods to meet the needs of a bird going through a heavy moult:
easily digested carbs, for energy; whole grain breads also give the bit of sodium that might be needed.
protein sources, of course. even some animal protein, including bone marrows (think chicken drumsticks) that give minerals including iron; hard-cooked eggs with shells also give added calcium;
nuts and peanuts also supply needed oils; plus fruit and vegetables for vitamin A; also, a bit of sunshine and vitamin D sources.

As noted, this is a varied and a balanced diet, which actually should be in place all the time, in varying quantities.

plus TLC and an area away from drafts.

thanks all! this little gal is a new addition, i know her diet in the past was not up to par with my flocks diet, her feathers have some slight stress striation and shaded etching, she seems to be open to new menu items and ive introduced a myriad of fruits veggies and pasta in addition to all white chicken breast and pine nuts. so far shes been a willing recipiant and has at least tried everything ive offered, some shes definitly liked. aside from the diet aspect which i believe i have a firm hold on now after 20 years or so, my feed bill per month can attest to that ( ouch!).

What im looking for is something to help with the pin feathers shes got now. i dont think shes ever been given the opportunity to take a bath, so i turned the sink on and had her watch my red front go bananas in it then put her down, she showed major interest but wouldnt get in the water, when i leaned over the sink and cupped my hands under the water she hopped on my arm and ran over the the little "pool" to dip her beak in and play a bit but it wasnt bath. shes got a wonderfull personality and seems to be open to trying things even though shes clearly not been exposed to much, so i believe in a few tries shell get the hang of it and it may help., thanks

Jay

A small pan or dish of water might help. All of my conures take a bath as soon as I clean their water containers, even trying to squeeze into the smallest containers. If you have a yard or a patio that you can have a sprinker passing over their play cages, that might help. All the parrots go crazy for this. Oops! I'm in Hawaii, and it's about 80 degrees F right now !
I'll go back and check out where you might be. Happy Holidays!

Hi My B&G loves to go in the shower. also when she goes through a heavy molt and when she wants some love I rub her head easy and when I feel a pin feather I pop or sqeese the top off . If it ready it will come off easy and I go under her chin and the back of her neck..That what a mate would do.Ive also used spray bottles to give baths .I spray sort of up in the air next to the bird so the water comes down like rain in a fine mist.

I like to mention this in the "winter" as many readers are in a colder climate and when the heater is on for the house this lowers the humidity to a percentage where our birds are effected. Remember to keep humidity levels over 40% this helps out with feather production and the overall well being of our companions. With that in mind I will move on.

http://www.wwvhcares.com/photos/birds/A ... anGrey.jpg

The above link is a picture of one of my baby greys' taking a bath. It is on my Vet's web page. It is intended to show how to give baths or introduce birds to water. I first cleaned the tub with "Dawn" dishwashing soap and rinsed it very good. Next I placed a towel in an area where it is close to a small amount of water (warm) and allow the bird to stand on the dry towel with toys nearby and experiment with the water. Grey's are the worst when it comes to water ... lol. All of my Macaw's love a bath!

For the Macaw's I built a simple 2 x 4 perch and made the water deeper. They hop around to and from the perch and into the water. I use the big garden tub because of their wing span. Usually when they get done playing it is a huge mess! They play for about a half hour or so and when they are up in the perch preening they are done.

I do not pop the Kentenic covers on their feathers. They are the best ones for doing that! I just supply more bathing time during their molt and extra humidity (with a humidifier) for this period of time. Yes they get agitated and irritated but they use their beaks and claws to uncover their feathers and they do not injure themselves as opposed to me "popping the covers."

Merry Christmas Jay!

Dutch