Molting
 |  |
MOLTING
In return for the many months’ happiness that our bird gives us, he needs special care
during molting. If people went through a molt or similar situation, we could appreciate the
physical and mental stress. However, no comparable situation exists.
Molting is a primary factor in a bird’s life and must proceed without a snag. The
pitfalls of a difficult molt extend from minor delays to chilling and death. Nature has timed the
molting cycle to occur under the most ideal conditions. Rarely does an event in the life of an
animal occur where the environment becomes so involved with an internal process that
intertwines nourishment, nutritional reserves, the endocrine (hormone) system, the circulatory
system and the integumentary system. Nature provides warmth, rain, humidity, lengthening
photoperiods, and a luxurious food supply. The bird must provide a good healthy body, having
its reserves prepared and its hormone system tuned to undertake a molt. The countdown
starts when spring arrives. Molting starts after the reproductive cycle.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR A BIRD IN MOLT
Heat: In a normal molt, no area of the bird’s body ever loses all its feathers. However,
the feathering is definitely thin, and this may cause the bird to chill. To avoid this, the room
temperature should not be allowed to drop. Should the bird’s feathers become ruffled, the
room temperature should be raised. If this is not successful, the bird should be placed in an
incubator, with the temperature elevated and maintained at about 80 degrees Fahrenheit. A
homemade incubator may be prepared by placing a heating pad alongside the cage and wrapping
the cage with a plastic wrap. An opening for ventilation is made at the cage door. It is desirable
to maintain the heat until the molt is complete. Depending on the quality of the molt, this could
continue longer than eight weeks. Remember, the bird with the abnormal molt will require the
longest care and nursing.
Rest: Eight to twelve hours of total darkness per day will be required during the
annual molt.
Security: Feather picking and other vices are more apt to begin during the molting
period. With all the bird’s energy being used to grow new feathers and with the loss of some
flight and tail feathers, its instincts render it more susceptible to predatory animals.
Confinement in an open cage enhances its fears and creates emotional problems, manifested in
feather picking and hostility.
Quiet: In nature, a molting bird resides in a peaceful, safe area. Molting pet birds
should be kept in an area free of disturbances.
Preening: As the molting process begins, the bird becomes increasingly concerned
with its plumage. When the quills begin to loosen, the bird removes them and is then ready to
care for the new feathers. Each new feather is wrapped in a protective keratin casing. As the
feather grows in length, this sheath must be removed before it can open. (The sheath is like a
cover on an umbrella. The umbrella cannot be opened until the cover has been removed.) After
the bird removes the protective coating the feather is still curled and the vein (flat part) is
narrow. Preening flattens the feather and opens it to its full width.
With hundreds of new feathers regenerating, the bird must preen constantly. A
white flaky material resulting from the bird’s preening will collect on the cage paper and may
alarm the owner, because it resembles heavy dandruff. Coupled with intense preening, it will
cause some owners to think the bird has dry, flaky, itchy skin. A natural but erroneous
conclusion would be that oil is needed on the bird’s skin and feathers. However, this powder is
simply the residue of the keratin sheath, which the bird removes from around the feather, a
normal and desirable process.
Bathing: For many birds, bathing is a refreshing experience that encourages
preening. A bath to some birds is splashing in a dish of water; to others it is being “rained on”
or rolling in wet greens.
Luxurious Food Supply: To supply the bird with a variety of food is relatively easy; to
assure that the bird eats a variety of food can be quite difficult. Molting is a test of the
adequacy of the bird’s nutritional state. Nutritional deficiencies are exposed probably more
often during molting than at any other time of the bird’s life. A specific molting food does not
exist, and if the owner waits until a molt to feed the bird a balanced diet, there will be problems.
An owber should add egg to the bird’s diet during the molting period. The eggs can be
prepared so that they are appetizing to the bird or may be included in other foods, such as egg
biscuits, pound cake, or cookies with a high egg content.
In return for the many months’ happiness that our bird gives us, he needs special care
during molting. If people went through a molt or similar situation, we could appreciate the
physical and mental stress. However, no comparable situation exists.
Molting is a primary factor in a bird’s life and must proceed without a snag. The
pitfalls of a difficult molt extend from minor delays to chilling and death. Nature has timed the
molting cycle to occur under the most ideal conditions. Rarely does an event in the life of an
animal occur where the environment becomes so involved with an internal process that
intertwines nourishment, nutritional reserves, the endocrine (hormone) system, the circulatory
system and the integumentary system. Nature provides warmth, rain, humidity, lengthening
photoperiods, and a luxurious food supply. The bird must provide a good healthy body, having
its reserves prepared and its hormone system tuned to undertake a molt. The countdown
starts when spring arrives. Molting starts after the reproductive cycle.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR A BIRD IN MOLT
Heat: In a normal molt, no area of the bird’s body ever loses all its feathers. However,
the feathering is definitely thin, and this may cause the bird to chill. To avoid this, the room
temperature should not be allowed to drop. Should the bird’s feathers become ruffled, the
room temperature should be raised. If this is not successful, the bird should be placed in an
incubator, with the temperature elevated and maintained at about 80 degrees Fahrenheit. A
homemade incubator may be prepared by placing a heating pad alongside the cage and wrapping
the cage with a plastic wrap. An opening for ventilation is made at the cage door. It is desirable
to maintain the heat until the molt is complete. Depending on the quality of the molt, this could
continue longer than eight weeks. Remember, the bird with the abnormal molt will require the
longest care and nursing.
Rest: Eight to twelve hours of total darkness per day will be required during the
annual molt.
Security: Feather picking and other vices are more apt to begin during the molting
period. With all the bird’s energy being used to grow new feathers and with the loss of some
flight and tail feathers, its instincts render it more susceptible to predatory animals.
Confinement in an open cage enhances its fears and creates emotional problems, manifested in
feather picking and hostility.
Quiet: In nature, a molting bird resides in a peaceful, safe area. Molting pet birds
should be kept in an area free of disturbances.
Preening: As the molting process begins, the bird becomes increasingly concerned
with its plumage. When the quills begin to loosen, the bird removes them and is then ready to
care for the new feathers. Each new feather is wrapped in a protective keratin casing. As the
feather grows in length, this sheath must be removed before it can open. (The sheath is like a
cover on an umbrella. The umbrella cannot be opened until the cover has been removed.) After
the bird removes the protective coating the feather is still curled and the vein (flat part) is
narrow. Preening flattens the feather and opens it to its full width.
With hundreds of new feathers regenerating, the bird must preen constantly. A
white flaky material resulting from the bird’s preening will collect on the cage paper and may
alarm the owner, because it resembles heavy dandruff. Coupled with intense preening, it will
cause some owners to think the bird has dry, flaky, itchy skin. A natural but erroneous
conclusion would be that oil is needed on the bird’s skin and feathers. However, this powder is
simply the residue of the keratin sheath, which the bird removes from around the feather, a
normal and desirable process.
Bathing: For many birds, bathing is a refreshing experience that encourages
preening. A bath to some birds is splashing in a dish of water; to others it is being “rained on”
or rolling in wet greens.
Luxurious Food Supply: To supply the bird with a variety of food is relatively easy; to
assure that the bird eats a variety of food can be quite difficult. Molting is a test of the
adequacy of the bird’s nutritional state. Nutritional deficiencies are exposed probably more
often during molting than at any other time of the bird’s life. A specific molting food does not
exist, and if the owner waits until a molt to feed the bird a balanced diet, there will be problems.
An owber should add egg to the bird’s diet during the molting period. The eggs can be
prepared so that they are appetizing to the bird or may be included in other foods, such as egg
biscuits, pound cake, or cookies with a high egg content.