Worried about Ben.. Advice??

I noticed a few minutes ago that bennie was VERY grouchy. He would bite me like crazy when i would pick him up. Even when i put him down on the desk, he was screaming at me as if he wanted to bite me again.. Then i noticed one of his wing feathers. It's loose, and it looks like if he pecked at it anymore it was going to come off. There is also blood.

I don't think this is a feather that is supposed to be coming off, which worries me..

Im pretty sure that this is the feather that isn't supposed to be clipped when you clip their wings. It's that really long one. I took pictures, but they're not good at all because you can barely see it 1- he's moving, and 2- the flash is too bright.

I'll post a few anyways.
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/...3/f517f6d6.jpg
That's how it is normally.

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/...0/f517f6d8.jpg
And here is how it is now.

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/...5/f517f6d7.jpg

Is this normal?? What do i do if it's not?

That's blood feather and it could be serious if left untreated. If it is still bleeding it needs to be taken out. You can do it, but if you never have I don't think you should before you are taught how. If you have an Avian vet call them and tell them that Bennie has a blood feather and they will likely get you in very soon. Otherwise call some pet stores. It's not likely you will find one to remove it, but the one I got Evie from does. As a last resort pack it with corn starch. Use your judgment. Milton had one that was too deep to take out and it healed, but it wasn't constantly bleeding. It would bleed very little and only once in a while. Remember, Bennie is tiny and what seems like a little blood could be a lot to him. Don't worry he'll be fine.

I just reread what I wrote. I'm not trying to scare you. These are very common and could happen over and over especially on young clumsy birdies.

BUT...it should be known that birds do not have a lot of blood, and can easily die from blood loss in a matter of minutes. If he is bleeding I would definitely take him into the vet clinic ASAP.

Buttons has done that before, too. He normally would just pull them out, but none of them were that large of feathers. Bennie might just pull it out himself.

I would follow what Diana said, she is one of the tiel experts on the board! :)

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Originally posted by chrissycat21
Buttons has done that before, too. He normally would just pull them out, but none of them were that large of feathers. Bennie might just pull it out himself.

I would follow what Diana said, she is one of the tiel experts on the board! :)

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We used to breed tiels when I was younger. One of our favorite tiels, a rescue girl named Pancha (she had a missing eye and was loose in our neighborhood for many many years...cockatiels are loose everywhere in California.) lost all of her tail feathers one time. We used to let our tiels free roam the house, and she was on the floor. My younger brother tripped over something and his foot landed right on her tail. She moved and ALL of her feathers came out. Poor girl, she looked just like a chicken!!! She used to hide under the couch and attack our feet when we got close. hehe. :D :p

Amber, that's something clumsy baby tiels do alllllll the time!!! My tiels usually pull it out themselves (scream while doing it but they do a good job :o), but sometimes, its left hanging there. If its loose enough, I can pull it out, but if its stuck there, its scary pulling it. He'll be just fine hopefully. You will need to take that feather out...by plucking it if its not too strong, or by taking him to the vet. He shouldn't bleed too long.

Twilight had a blood feather, which means a new feather that is still coming in, break one time and it was bleeding. I grabbed a towel and gently held her in it, using tweezers plucked the broken feather out at the base. That will stop the bleeding, it would be a little bit like pulling a hair out quickly on your head. The important thing if he is bleeding a lot is to get that feather out at the base ASAP.

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Originally posted by K9soul
The important thing if he is bleeding a lot is to get that feather out at the base ASAP.

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Exactly. This is why I tell people who don't have experience with tiels to not trim their wings. My mom did this, and even with 20 plus years of experience, cut a feather too short and our baby girl bled to death. It was very sad. Birds do not have a lot of blood, and any time they bleed it is really a big concern and something that needs to be controlled asap.

Lucy had a feather like that just the other day! he screamed like crazy and it was lat at night so i couldn't call the vet.:( i had to take him out before he did anymore damage to himself, but he ended up pulling it out anyway. then he was fine.

Thanks for the advice everyone!

Bennie is just fine. The feather came out on it's own and i looked to see if it was still bleeding and it's not. Im going to keep an eye on him just in case though.

:)

I'm glad he's ok, Amber. We have had this happen with Roger before. I think they just get busy fluttering and knock them loose. I know that Dr. Fernandez pulled one of Rogers with some tweezers one time because it appeared to have been bleeding a little bit over time. I would have never seen it because I don't mess with Roger and Milly's wings at all.

Sweet Bennie, I love you!!! :)

Great news! Glad the feather came out on its own and that Bennie is doing good. And now if it happens again you'll know what's going on and what to do about it :).

Also if you ever wake up in the middle of the night and he's flapping around in a panic (night terror), that is something tiels are prone to as well. I'm not sure if they hear a noise or get startled somehow, but will suddenly flap and then get panicked because they can't see and flap all over the cage. Get a light on if that happens, when it happens with Dawn I leave the light on for about 5 minutes and let her get calmed down and back on her perch where she sleeps. Also check at that time for any broken blood feathers, because night terrors is a more common cause of the broken feathers. Once the bird is settled again you should be able to turn out the lights and go back to sleep. Some people like to leave a night light where the bird is to help prevent this from happening so easily.

OMG, Mom! What a scare!:eek: Thank goodness Bennie's okl1:) PHEW! Give him a hug for me!:)

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Originally posted by chrissycat21

I would follow what Diana said, she is one of the tiel experts on the board! :)

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Aw thanks! I'm really no expert. I currently have 4 tiels and I had a 23 year old Lutino at one time. I guess I have been through a lot of problems with them over the past 8 years so I have a lot of advice to give :)

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Originally posted by My Peanuts
Aw thanks! I'm really no expert. I currently have 4 tiels and I had a 23 year old Lutino at one time. I guess I have been through a lot of problems with them over the past 8 years so I have a lot of advice to give :)

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Your welcome!

I just remember you (along with many of the other PT tiel experts) helping me out a lot when I had questions. :)

Stupid question, but what's a blood feather o_O I've never owned birds and know nothing of them

Glad Bennie is ok. (I've always called him BEANie for sme reason)

Hash, My sister calls Bennie, Beanie.. (As a nickname) :p

Here's what i got off of a website.. They could probably explain it better.

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"Blood" feathers are immature feathers that still have a blood supply to the shaft. You can spot them by the dark- colored shaft, as opposed to the white or clear shaft of a mature feather. Also, they will usually be shorter than surrounding feathers and not completely "spread out." If you cut one or it breaks, it will bleed profusely and not really heal, so over a period of days as the feather constantly gets knocked around and moved, it will bleed again and again, and the bird can actually die of blood loss.

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Thanks Mik :p