# Budgie molt after sickness?



## Japaso101 (May 24, 2021)

Hello all, this is my first time using this forum. 
So early April my parakeet got sick. I brought him to an avian vet who said it was a bacterial infection and I treated him for 45 days with doxyciline. He was molting right before his sickness but he stopped when I started the treatment. After the 45 day treatment was completed my parakeet started molting again. There are no bald spots and he flies very well. I only see one black pin feather on his head so I’m not sure. Also some of his feathers didn’t grow very well with his sickness, they where ruffled. Could this be a reason he is dropping them?
There are no evident bald spots and his feathers look good. Only one small bald spot under his wing which is growing new feathers since I stopped the treatment. 
Thanks for any help,


----------



## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

Was your bird being treated for Chlamydiosis (Psittacosis) ?


----------



## Japaso101 (May 24, 2021)

Cody said:


> Was your bird being treated for Chlamydiosis (Psittacosis) ?


Thanks for the reply. We didn't do any tests, she was certain it was a bacterial infection. She didn't mention which one.


----------



## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

I asked because antibiotics are not typically given for 45 days, however in the case of a diagnosis of Chlamydiosis (Psittacosis) they are. That is also a zoonotic disease meaning that it can be passed to humans. Has your bird fully recovered? 
Here is some info about Chlamydiosis https://www.putnamveterinaryclinic.com/sites/site-6748/images/Avian Chlamydiosis and Psittacosis.pdf. Molting is a stressful time make sure he is eating and drinking and getting adequate rest.


----------



## Japaso101 (May 24, 2021)

Cody said:


> I asked because antibiotics are not typically given for 45 days, however in the case of a diagnosis of Chlamydiosis (Psittacosis) they are. That is also a zoonotic disease meaning that it can be passed to humans. Has your bird fully recovered?
> Here is some info about Chlamydiosis https://www.putnamveterinaryclinic.com/sites/site-6748/images/Avian Chlamydiosis and Psittacosis.pdf. Molting is a stressful time make sure he is eating and drinking and getting adequate rest.


He has fully recovered and I never got sick. Could the molt have been paused from the sickness? Also is there a chance that before the sickness he was losing feathers due to the infection and now he is truly molting?


----------



## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

I have never heard of a molt pausing because of an illness and I don't think the feather loss would be due to a bacterial infection unless it was involving the feather follicle or maybe some type of skin issuue, that would be a question for your vet. Birds can molt in varying degrees throughout the year some molts worse than others.


----------



## Japaso101 (May 24, 2021)

Cody said:


> I have never heard of a molt pausing because of an illness and I don't think the feather loss would be due to a bacterial infection unless it was involving the feather follicle or maybe some type of skin issuue, that would be a question for your vet. Birds can molt in varying degrees throughout the year some molts worse than others.


Could it be normal? It have a molt in mid to late March and one in late May because of the temp change here in NY. Could it have two molts so close together?


----------



## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

Yes I think so, some birds molt several times a year. How severe a molt is it?


----------



## Japaso101 (May 24, 2021)

Cody said:


> Yes I think so, some birds molt several times a year. How severe a molt is it?


He is losing probably like 30 feathers a day including all the small, tiny white ones. Maybe like 2 mid-sized feathers a day. He is still super happy, excited, and loves to fly all around the house. Not grumpy or attacking me. Thanks again for the help.


----------



## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

This may provide some useful info for you Molting in Birds


----------



## Joyvke (Jan 14, 2012)

Do you have pictures of said feathers by any chance?


----------



## Japaso101 (May 24, 2021)

Joyvke said:


> Do you have pictures of said feathers by any chance?


Here are some pictures of her and the feathers.


----------



## Joyvke (Jan 14, 2012)

Thanks, she looks pretty good though (from just a first glance). Do you have pictures of the feathers that fell out too?


----------



## Japaso101 (May 24, 2021)

Joyvke said:


> Thanks, she looks pretty good though (from just a first glance). Do you have pictures of the feathers that fell out too?


Oops forgot to add them. These are just some of them. They look rather normal to me.


----------



## Joyvke (Jan 14, 2012)

Yea for fluff feathers they look good. Do the bigger feathers have like the proper pins as well or are they slightly misformed?


----------



## Japaso101 (May 24, 2021)

Joyvke said:


> Yea for fluff feathers they look good. Do the bigger feathers have like the proper pins as well or are they slightly misformed?


I don’t have any right now but they are all good. This would be a normal molt but the only think I found weird was that she molted mid to late March as well.


----------



## Joyvke (Jan 14, 2012)

Japaso101 said:


> I don’t have any right now but they are all good. This would be a normal molt but the only think I found weird was that she molted mid to late March as well.


It can sometimes happen though. I used to have a bird who was molting so often he looked like a rock star due to the pins on his forehead all the time. Gave extra vitamines and such (like spirulina with the egg food stuff) and that helped him enormously back then. It's good you went to the bird vet, just keep an eye out of it happens or if the pen ends look weird/ crooked.


----------



## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

*Some budgies molt more frequently than others. It depends on many conditions including diet, amount of light, stress, etc.


Hi, Welcome to Talk Budgies!

Please take the time to read through the Site Guidelines, the FAQs, the Budgie Articles and all of the Stickies located at the top of each section of the forum.

Truly, the very BEST advice anyone can offer you is to take the time to read ALL of the stickies throughout the various Talk Budgie forums as well as the Budgie Articles we have posted.

These are great resources for Talk Budgie members and have a wealth of reliable information which will assist you to learn the best practices in caring for your budgies for their optimal health and well-being.*

*SITE GUIDELINES*

*List of Stickies*

*Posting on the Forums*

*Let's Talk Budgies!*

*FAQ*

*Articles*

*Be Prepared for Veterinary Care Expense*

*Avian First Aid*

*Quarantine IS Necessary!*

*A heartfelt plea to forum members new and old*

*Tips For Discouraging Breeding*

*Before You Ever Consider Breeding Your Budgies*

*Guidance for Breeding Advice Threads*

*Cage sizes.*

*Essentials to a Great Cage*

*Resource Directory*


----------

