Normal Feather Loss

[The Little Truth Teller]

I have had my canary for about two weeks now. He lost one tail feather the first week. In the last couple of days he has lost a hand full of the very small, light weight body feathers, as well as one more tail feather.

His appetite still seems good, and he sings, so my guess is that this is normal? How much feathers does a bird lose normally each week?

[B CAMP]

Have you checked out the : Canary FAQ Resource 11-1,11-2

[The Little Truth Teller]

Yes, I know about the regular moulting, but this is October, so I think it is rather late for a seasonal moult. Besides which, I have read that they tend not to sing during a moult, and my little guy sings a lot.

I suppose it could be a stress thing, but he shows no other real signs of stress. His appetite is good, he sings quite readily, and he plays, i.e. he bounces around his cage.

Perhaps I am just being paranoid. I spent quite a bit of money for him; I do not want him to be sick or anything.

[christie99]

Honestly, it sounds like molting. Birds that live in the southern part of the US will molt a little later. My birds have all just started molting.

[The Little Truth Teller]

Originally Posted by christie99

Honestly, it sounds like molting. Birds that live in the southern part of the US will molt a little later. My birds have all just started molting.

Really?! Oh, what a relief! I had begun to worry that I stressed him out to the point of losing his feathers whence I gave him a good misting. It started immediately after the misting, so maybe the misting just loosened up feathers that were about to fall out anyway (I hope!).

Gosh, I felt so guilty since last night over this! I saw him bathing in his water dish, so that is why I misted him. I thought he wanted a bath. He seemed to be afraid of the misting, though. I am going to purchase a birdbath for him. I saw one on ebay that is covered and hangs on the outside of the cage. I thought he might like that one more than one that sits in the bottom of the cage, as he would not use a shallow bowl I put in there a couple of days ago, hence the misting.

I must say, he has been chirping and bouncing all over the cage this afternoon, so I expect he must feel okay. The feathers keep flying off of him, though. I picked up a few before I went to the park this afternoon, but whence I came home, there were at least twice as many more on the floor!

[christie99]

I would skip ebay. I have had a lot of luck with the supplies on Lady Gouldian Finch. There is a great bath that I purchased for my finches there, and I also use a gravity feeder that hangs on the outside of the cage. This makes feeding less stressful when the pairs are breeding.

Here is the site Lady Gouldian Finch.com – Superior Birds, Supplements, Medications & Supplies

[The Little Truth Teller]

Thanks for the suggestion!