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Post by yoshismom on Oct 4, 2014 12:41:08 GMT -5
So Yoshi is 4 months old now and going through his first molt. It has hit him hard and he looks a little funny with pin feathers all over his head. He is such a character though. He has decided that when he is on me no one else is allowed near me and that he owns me and can boss me around. He has started talking and so far he says "step up" when he wants to be held, "aww" when he gets scritches, and what sounds like "hello" but he says it very quietly so it's hard to understand. I'm debating on keeping his wings clipped. When I got him the breeder had clipped his wings where he can fly a little distance but he can't get higher than what he starts out and this has been a blessing I think because I am a paraplegic and I can't reach him if he gets to high up on things. With him getting older he has started trying to see what he can get away with and likes to terrorize my dog and husband. I have taken the approach of redirecting his attention to something safe to play with when he tries to do something he's not supposed to do and making the safe things into a game and more interesting than the thing I'm redirecting him from. This has seemed to work really well for us. He's a mess but he keeps things interesting and fun.
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Post by cnyguy on Oct 4, 2014 19:53:59 GMT -5
It sounds like things are going well with you and Yoshi.  A major molt can be quite an ordeal for a parrot. My QP Ralph is molting now too, but still looks pretty good, except for his temporarily short tail.  |
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Post by biteybird on Oct 5, 2014 2:05:42 GMT -5
Nice to hear Yoshi's going well (even if he is making things hectic for your dog and husband!). Bonnie worked out very quickly which places I can't reach and goes straight to them when she knows she has done something wrong or doesn't want to go in her cage at bedtime.
Watch out for Yoshi's 'hello' changing in volume - Bonnie used to say it quietly, but now all of a sudden she started running up my arm and sitting right next to my ear...then SCREECHING 'hello!' at the top of her little lungs>:
I haven't noticed Bonnie moulting at all yet and she is about 10 months old. Maybe it's to do with the weather, as we've just come out of winter in Australia. Just out of interest, do you have any tips for when the moulting starts, or anything in particular I should do/not do?
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Post by yoshismom on Oct 5, 2014 12:46:27 GMT -5
Nice to hear Yoshi's going well (even if he is making things hectic for your dog and husband!). Bonnie worked out very quickly which places I can't reach and goes straight to them when she knows she has done something wrong or doesn't want to go in her cage at bedtime. Watch out for Yoshi's 'hello' changing in volume - Bonnie used to say it quietly, but now all of a sudden she started running up my arm and sitting right next to my ear...then SCREECHING 'hello!' at the top of her little lungs>: I haven't noticed Bonnie moulting at all yet and she is about 10 months old. Maybe it's to do with the weather, as we've just come out of winter in Australia. Just out of interest, do you have any tips for when the moulting starts, or anything in particular I should do/not do? Yoshi loves baths and it seems to help him relax and not sit there and preen all the time. He also wants me to sit there and rub his head where all the pin feathers are. He gets a little bit of boiled egg with eggshell because the vet said this would help along with his veggies and fruits. His molt is weird, he is only molting on his head. He hasn't lost any wing or tail feathers and hasn't got any pin feathers on his body. So he looks a little weird his body looks great and then his head has all these pin feathers sticking out. I've been keeping an eye out for him to grow new flight feathers because when he does I'm probably going to take him to get them trimmed like they are now, so he can fly somewhat but not get altitude. I would hate for him to get somewhere and get hurt because I can't reach him. Our weather here has been in the 100s and has just started dropping at night to 70s. I keep it about 78 in the house though. Yoshi loves to run up and make a really loud chirp in my ear when he wants something and I seem to not be doing what he wants. He is a mess but I love him anyway |
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Post by cnyguy on Oct 5, 2014 19:35:39 GMT -5
First molts can be a little odd, compared with later ones. It isn't unusual for the first molt to be heavier in one area while most of the feathers on the rest of the parrot stay put. That's often followed by a second molt, a few weeks or months later.
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A major molt can be quite an ordeal for a parrot. My QP Ralph is molting now too, but still looks pretty good, except for his temporarily short tail. 
