loss of several tail feathers

[ernita]

hi maggie and everyone:0)

I was just wondering about my 3 year old aiko. In the last 5 days, I have found a small tail feather and today, I found two long ones. I was wondering what to make of this. IS he loosing too many feathers at once? He seems fine, sometimes he shakes..but I was trying to determine if he is ill or scared..and it seems that he is afraid of something because when he appears comfortable, he is still and fine:0)..he prefers my mom the best so, if he shakes, I put him on her hand and he stops. To me, that indicates that he is afraid, for if he was ill, would he not shake no matter where he is perching? Just wondering. I have to go file his beak and nails so I will be visiting a vet soon, however, in the mean time, I was wondering if it is normal to loose that many tail feathers in such a short time.
thanks maggie, I hope you and the flock are doing wonderful!!!!
ernita

[Guest]

Ernita,

Greys molt tail feathers the same as they do all other feathers. Three does not sound like a lot.

Can you describe "skaking" better? If the breast feathers are "shaking," that means he's very relaxed and happy. If he is nervous, usually the feathers are completely flat and they may act fidgety and nail biting.

Make sure the vet you use has experience with the beaks. Beaks have lots of blood vessels in them and if cut too short, the bird can bleed profusely. So, please be very careful about that.

Keep us posted,
Maggie-

PS: How do you guys like the new site?????

[ernita]

hi maggie,

thank you for your advice. AIko is shaking with flat feathers..not just belly ones..although, he does that alot when he is content..I really feel that he is just afraid of something..after all, my sister's husband moved in and he and aiko don't get along..I would not be surprised if he frightened him when I wasn't around:0( . HIs stool looks healthy, he is eating everything, and sings and chats all day. RIght now, he is watching France play soccer:0)...he loves that ball.

Yes, I will be careful about the beak trim, however, rigth now it's overgrown and I believe, like last time, the vet only filed it a little, is that ok? Usually when I see pictures of older african greys online, their beaks seem way shorter than aiko's..just curious.

I love the web site, although I did not have the time yet, to go through it all..so far, I like the camelot!! :0)
thanks maggie,
i'll keep you posted
ernita

[Guest]

Ernita,

If you feel that Aiko is afraid of your brother-in-law, you are probably right. We have a telepathic connection with our animals and we sense things from them.

While the man is there, please try to help Aiko feel as secure as possible. You may want to spoon feed him a few spoons of pureed something, such as butternut squash, or sweet potatoes.

Maggie-

[ernita]

thanks for the suggestion, I will do that. SOmetimes AIko wants to fly toward him , other times I notice that as soon as my brother in law passes by, aiko is on the lookout for something bad to happen. I feel awful that AIko does not feel 100 % safe in his own home..but I am working on it, trying to make sure that everyone gets along. My whole famiy ADORES him!!! BUt my bro-in law does not like birds particularly. I will take your suggestion, and spoon feed him.

Hope you enjoyed your weekend. Say hello to your flock!!
thanks again,
ernita

[Guest]

Ernita,

Can you describe any interaction your brother-in-law has with him? I mean the interaction or NON interaction when bro-in-law is in the same room.

My flock sends you kisses right baaaack!
Miss mag-

[ernita]

HI,

To tell you the truth, I feel that he may have frightened him for fun, when I wasn't around or something. Usually, Angelo just stays away from aiko because I had a talk with my sis and my sis had a talk with angelo. ANgelo isn't very sensitive toward animals..when he moved in here, he wasn't careful to not frighten aiko. For example, I told angelo that aiko is sometimes afraid of stranger's hats, and angelo went by aiko's cage to pick up the newspaper on the coffee table, in a fast and rough manner...with a hat on. He is a nice guy..but is not very considerate
when it comes to aiko. HE is also not very spiritual, so I think that would pretty much sum up, as to why he and aiko do not always get along. Plus, aiko loves my sister and one time when angelo was touching sara, aiko attacked him. BUt as much as I tried to explain, angelo does not care to understand the temperament and personality of african greys. Things are slowly improving however, but I believe that sometime in the past, angelo must have thought it was fun to scare aiko to toughen him up or something..and in the process, I sometimes have a scared bird.

Me and my sis are always trying to educate angelo about aiko, it's just taking a long time for angelo to learn what it really means to respect aiko, who by the way is singing with the national anthem of spain!!
thanks for your concerns...
soft, gentle hugs to your flock!!
ernita

[Guest]

Hi Ernita,

It sounds like a "hurt" Angelo who is "passive aggressively" trying to get back at Aiko for attacking him. You know, WE humans tend to think we are smarter than animals, but Angelo is certainly not acting very smart.

Just make sure you help Aiko know that you will protect him from Angelo and all will be okay. Hopefully, the brother-in-law visit will not last much longer. Meanwhile, please follow the steps for working with nervous/phobic Greys and you can help Aiko work thru this.

Love & GREY'T Blessings,
Maggie-