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It looks like he’s rubbing himself because he’s itchy. Check around and make sure he’s not rubbing against something super rough that would yank those feathers off. The feathers should eventually grow back.
Poor itchy baby :( I've seen him rubbing his against perches and the bars of the cage, nothing rough or sharp. I see pin feathers growing in the area. Thanks for the help!
Mine has done that 2x (same bird, poor guy). Same spot above the cere - on one of the occasions he got a huge awful bald-patch for awhile. He was fine. Like the other poster said, it might indicate he's rubbing it - I removed their favorite scratching-perch and that did seem to help. Provide frequent baths and maybe some molting-food or egg-food, otherwise there's not really anything to do.
That’s the roughest moult I’ve seen in a while! Not “normal”, but not necessarily abnormal. I see some nice healthy pin feathers coming in. If you’re worried about your bird’s health I recommend sending this photo to an experienced avian vet.
If he's willing to let you, he might stop rubbing if you gently rub the pin feathers casings off with your fingers. If he's trying ro stop the itching, that'll help relieve some of it, and hopefully it'll help them grow back.
Oh I’m so glad I came across your post!
My budgie Cinnamon is going through a very similar moult right now!
https://preview.redd.it/wz6m7hafka9d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ea812c601dbdc038bdf887717aa37e0c9e922379
He had a moult similar to this roughly two years ago, it was a miserable time for him then, and now!
It’s nothing to worry about, the reason the pins are so pink is because of the visible blood supply to them. When pin feathers are in their early stages, the blood supply is very clear to see. Because the feathers on the head are smaller than the body, it’s much easier to see blood feathers there than say, the wings. Of course, they’re also much easier to see right now because of the quantity of them haha!
In a few days, the pins will become longer and fade to white, and begin to unfurl just like with any other moult, so please don’t worry!
Like others have said, the pin feathers will be extremely sensitive and itchy right now. The way that I’ve been helping Cinnamon is by misting him with warm water, and also by blowing on them very gently. Every time I come to the cage he will come up to me and bow his head for me to blow on them, it’s like giving them a scratch without having touching the sensitive pins!
I hope that info helps ☺️ like others have said, protein and vitamin dense veggies will be a big help to his energy levels right now too!
wow, i've never heard of the blowing! i'm definitely going to try that, because he doesn't let me pet him, so i think that's the next best thing. and i'm glad i'm not the only one who has experienced this, too!!
my girl only had that super bad molt a couple times, hopefully he will be the same. baths will soften those pin feathers as they come in so I would recommend offering them daily.
glad his buddy helps him out :)
Poor baby. I see those scratchy pin feathers coming through. Rub his little head to help with those pins. If he doesn’t allow you to pet him with your fingers then use a stick to rub his head. I had a lovebird that wouldn’t let me use my hands on her so I’d go get coffee at 7-Eleven and they have wooden stir sticks that I’d take a handful of and use those to help my lovie. And don’t feel guilty about taking some stir sticks from 7-Eleven cuz they charge a arm and leg for a cup of coffee.👍🏽
Poor buddy! It's not normal but it's not unusual either. Sometimes budgies have rough (or very rough In this fella's case) molts, it's not necessarily an issue. It looks like your boy has pin feathers, which is a good sign that his feathers are regrowing, and he looks healthy otherwise, so I wouldn't worry! He'll be back to normal soon, but in the meantime, offer a nice warm bath to sooth his skin (molts are itchy and uncomfortable at a baseline, since pin feathers are literally poking through the skin!) and try to increase his protein intake to help support feather growth!
Hi! How’s your friend doing? The best way to help budgies during molting is by providing them with baths or frequent mist showers. Plain water works well, but since your budgie is having a rough molt, you can mix half a teaspoon of aloe vera juice with 4 ounces of water. If you buy aloe vera juice, ensure it doesn't contain additives or chemicals. If you use fresh aloe vera, clean off the latex residue and remove any particles to prevent clogging your mist bottle. Use fresh aloe vera the same day or store it in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Additionally, you can support your budgie by offering egg or a plumage supplement like Missing Link during molting.
Sending many scritchy- scritchy to your boy!
My birb was looking similar to this a while ago, but he's all back to normal now! I've seen budgies have horrible molts poor things, I'd suggest a good bath If he's feeling up to it, mine loves to get on the roof of his cage and I have a smooth wood perch he loves to rub against while he's sprayed with water!
https://preview.redd.it/8veztaif6c9d1.jpeg?width=3060&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4211858cfd316f92f75879f2797f2d0f9c9a2fe3
This is him a week after with another good bath
bathing has definitely helped. it's been two days and it's already looking less pink, and more pin feathers have started coming in. I've just been misting him.
both of mine are having it pretty rough, but this little guy has it worse. i've been misting them and they're already getting better (slowly but surely).
this same thing happened to my lil guy just 2 weeks ago, just a little higher on his head and then it spread to that area - thankfully pin feathers grew in real quick because I was worried about him rubbing it too much too.
I did change up his food mix to something a tad healthier and I think that helped his feathers come in nicely.
yess, i made a special chop with extra protein and i've been misitng him. i just need to wait it out for now. so far, it's still quite pink, but the pinnies have grown in more.
Hi everyone! Before commenting on this post, please remember the first rule of Reddit, which is to "Remember The Human" and always respond respectfully, constructively, and patiently. But if C00kieM00nster broke a rule of this subreddit, please report it and the mod team will handle it. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/budgies) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It looks like he’s rubbing himself because he’s itchy. Check around and make sure he’s not rubbing against something super rough that would yank those feathers off. The feathers should eventually grow back.
Poor itchy baby :( I've seen him rubbing his against perches and the bars of the cage, nothing rough or sharp. I see pin feathers growing in the area. Thanks for the help!
Mine has done that 2x (same bird, poor guy). Same spot above the cere - on one of the occasions he got a huge awful bald-patch for awhile. He was fine. Like the other poster said, it might indicate he's rubbing it - I removed their favorite scratching-perch and that did seem to help. Provide frequent baths and maybe some molting-food or egg-food, otherwise there's not really anything to do.
Looks like waiting it out is my best bet for now. He doesn't bathe very often but I'll try misting him. Glad I'm not alone! Ty!
That’s the roughest moult I’ve seen in a while! Not “normal”, but not necessarily abnormal. I see some nice healthy pin feathers coming in. If you’re worried about your bird’s health I recommend sending this photo to an experienced avian vet.
Healthwise I think he'll be fine. Must be agonizingly itchy for him though! Glad to see pin feathers coming in.
I want to scratch him through the screen
LET ME SCRITCH YOUR BALD SPOT
Sorry I don’t have an answer but he’s sooooo cute
Awh thanks! He's a lot cuter when he doesn't have a bald patch on his face!!
I just want to comfort this little goober and tell him it's gonna be okay 😥
If he's willing to let you, he might stop rubbing if you gently rub the pin feathers casings off with your fingers. If he's trying ro stop the itching, that'll help relieve some of it, and hopefully it'll help them grow back.
He isn't very cuddly and doesn't let me pet him, unfortunately. I JUST WANT TO HELP HIM!!
Poor little guy 😢
It's the worst to see them molting and itchy :(
Oh I’m so glad I came across your post! My budgie Cinnamon is going through a very similar moult right now! https://preview.redd.it/wz6m7hafka9d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ea812c601dbdc038bdf887717aa37e0c9e922379 He had a moult similar to this roughly two years ago, it was a miserable time for him then, and now! It’s nothing to worry about, the reason the pins are so pink is because of the visible blood supply to them. When pin feathers are in their early stages, the blood supply is very clear to see. Because the feathers on the head are smaller than the body, it’s much easier to see blood feathers there than say, the wings. Of course, they’re also much easier to see right now because of the quantity of them haha! In a few days, the pins will become longer and fade to white, and begin to unfurl just like with any other moult, so please don’t worry! Like others have said, the pin feathers will be extremely sensitive and itchy right now. The way that I’ve been helping Cinnamon is by misting him with warm water, and also by blowing on them very gently. Every time I come to the cage he will come up to me and bow his head for me to blow on them, it’s like giving them a scratch without having touching the sensitive pins! I hope that info helps ☺️ like others have said, protein and vitamin dense veggies will be a big help to his energy levels right now too!
wow, i've never heard of the blowing! i'm definitely going to try that, because he doesn't let me pet him, so i think that's the next best thing. and i'm glad i'm not the only one who has experienced this, too!!
I had a girl who had a bad molt like that too. a nice bath can help. do they have a buddy to help preen them?
Yes! He doesn't bathe often but he did today. And yes, he has a budgie buddy and they sometimes preen each other. :)
my girl only had that super bad molt a couple times, hopefully he will be the same. baths will soften those pin feathers as they come in so I would recommend offering them daily. glad his buddy helps him out :)
Poor baby. I see those scratchy pin feathers coming through. Rub his little head to help with those pins. If he doesn’t allow you to pet him with your fingers then use a stick to rub his head. I had a lovebird that wouldn’t let me use my hands on her so I’d go get coffee at 7-Eleven and they have wooden stir sticks that I’d take a handful of and use those to help my lovie. And don’t feel guilty about taking some stir sticks from 7-Eleven cuz they charge a arm and leg for a cup of coffee.👍🏽
i hadn't thought of that! he doesn't let me pet him but he lets me hold him and likes hanging out on my shoulder or head. i'll try that!
I can touch her with my nose and cheek but won’t let me touch her with my fingers. I use the strr
SAME! He will "boop" me and let me bring him right against my cheek, just not my hands.
Plus they like to chew the stir sticks because they’re wood
It's like a bonus toy!
Can you mist him with a spray bottle? Might help a little. That poor pathetic little face.
Yep, I have a spray bottle. Haven't tried it yet so hopefully it helps. It's so sad to see them all scraggly..
Make sure to give him a nice bath it really does help let him splash around it makes it less painful
I've found he only takes baths when molting, otherwise he won't pay much attention. Baths it is!
Poor buddy! It's not normal but it's not unusual either. Sometimes budgies have rough (or very rough In this fella's case) molts, it's not necessarily an issue. It looks like your boy has pin feathers, which is a good sign that his feathers are regrowing, and he looks healthy otherwise, so I wouldn't worry! He'll be back to normal soon, but in the meantime, offer a nice warm bath to sooth his skin (molts are itchy and uncomfortable at a baseline, since pin feathers are literally poking through the skin!) and try to increase his protein intake to help support feather growth!
Thank you so much!! I'll make chop with extra protein for him and my other budgie who is also molting (luckily, he doesn't have it as bad).
Ouch! Some aloe vera could help 💙
I've never heard of that! How would I go about getting it on him? maybe mixing it into the bottle i use to mist the budgies?
Hi! How’s your friend doing? The best way to help budgies during molting is by providing them with baths or frequent mist showers. Plain water works well, but since your budgie is having a rough molt, you can mix half a teaspoon of aloe vera juice with 4 ounces of water. If you buy aloe vera juice, ensure it doesn't contain additives or chemicals. If you use fresh aloe vera, clean off the latex residue and remove any particles to prevent clogging your mist bottle. Use fresh aloe vera the same day or store it in the refrigerator for up to three days. Additionally, you can support your budgie by offering egg or a plumage supplement like Missing Link during molting. Sending many scritchy- scritchy to your boy!
tysm for the help!!
My birb was looking similar to this a while ago, but he's all back to normal now! I've seen budgies have horrible molts poor things, I'd suggest a good bath If he's feeling up to it, mine loves to get on the roof of his cage and I have a smooth wood perch he loves to rub against while he's sprayed with water! https://preview.redd.it/8veztaif6c9d1.jpeg?width=3060&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4211858cfd316f92f75879f2797f2d0f9c9a2fe3 This is him a week after with another good bath
I would suggest baby oil. Can help the feathers. Or just water
mist baths to the rescue!!
bathing has definitely helped. it's been two days and it's already looking less pink, and more pin feathers have started coming in. I've just been misting him.
Unfortunately, it seems to be that way for both of mine. I just keep spritzing them with water to keep their skin moist. It helps a lot..
both of mine are having it pretty rough, but this little guy has it worse. i've been misting them and they're already getting better (slowly but surely).
Our flock have had some horrific moults, bathing and offering scratches might help. Schnitty used to shower with "Daddy" and it helped his bald spot
The good thing is that they get through it
yep, it'll pass and he'll look so spiffy in his shiny new feathers :)
I mix molting in my bird food
yess, i always make their food with extra protein when they're motling
this same thing happened to my lil guy just 2 weeks ago, just a little higher on his head and then it spread to that area - thankfully pin feathers grew in real quick because I was worried about him rubbing it too much too. I did change up his food mix to something a tad healthier and I think that helped his feathers come in nicely.
yess, i made a special chop with extra protein and i've been misitng him. i just need to wait it out for now. so far, it's still quite pink, but the pinnies have grown in more.
I buy aloe gel from the health food store. Dilute it with water and mist the bird daily or more. Under the wings as well. This has help a lot.
smart! will try. i actually just bought aloe for a different purpose so i already have it! yayy
aw poor baby :( give him some kissies and love for us all
will do ☺️
🥰 your budgie is adorable