illness

Question

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Followup To

Okay, this parakeet and one other (female) were purchased about 5 months ago.  They were 6 to 8 mos old.  The third one was purchased 2 mos. ago - same age.  The problem did not start until we got the third one.  He (Bonnie) is completely bald on top, some underneath this wings and under his beak on his neck.  His poop looks normal, just like the other 2 birds.  He eats, drinks, etc. normal...The drooling thing, he drools out of the side of his beak sometimes and it is creamish in color...seed color....I also thought it could be mites, but the other 2 birds do not have any problem.  He was caged with the female for 4 mos and had no problems.  I am kind of at a loss on this...These are the only systoms that are going on....could he have a vitamin deficiency?  His diet is, of course, bird seed, milo, sweet treats daily....fruits and veggies throughout the week.

Answer
Hi again, Deneen.  Good details!  We'll get to the bottom of this!

If Bonnie is bald on top, and he doesn't have a medical condition causing his feather problem, I'd say another bird is overpreening him, since he can't pluck himself on top of his head.  Same might be true for the area under his beak, unless the area is far enough down his neck that he could reach it himself.  Is he pair-bonded with the female?  However, this doesn't explain the feather loss under the wings, but he might be plucking himself under his wings.  

For the drooling, I'm wondering if he might actually be regurgitating to a female...another reason to know if he's pair-bonded to the female.  Seed (they hull the shell and eat the inside of the seed) that has been processed by the crop can be regurgitated to a mate (bird or human companion).  This is a sign of affection if to a human and males will feed their mates, which is a sign of pair-bonding.  This is also how parents feed their chicks.  

Mites - parakeets can get scaly mites if using to tree limbs for perches or from other things brought inside from outside and used in their cage and/or that they come in contact with.  Scaly mites bury under the skin on the feet/legs and around the beak and look like warts.  Otherwise, parrots don't get feather mites and such.

Is this male no longer caged with the female?  If not, are their cages side-by-side or close to each other?  Is this bird bonded to you?  

It's possible he could have a vitamin deficiency or something else, but I'd rule out the other above first.  In addition, he isn't on the best diet...too much seed isn't good.  Seed has little nutrition and a whole lot of fat.  Keets are prone to fatty liver problems from eating too much seed.  Sweet treats daily...not good either.  Fruits and veggies...GREAT!  Need to introduce pelleted food in his diet and limit the seed.

Get back to me again and we'll see if we can figure this out!

Chrys