Ask Lafeber

Follow-up to sweet Ollie

He seems in addition to normal grooming to be pursuing some sort of black mites. It’s not constant but frequent. Does he need to go to the vet? If so, how do I get him out of his big cage into his travel cage without setting our progress back? Additionally in two weeks time I’m going to a vacation home for three weeks. I want to take him with me in the car, install him in a cage for three weeks then bring him back. Will this upset him too much? My option is to leave him At home with a part time sitter that Will come twice daily to feed him and cover his cage at night…please, what’s is your advice?

Hi Susan,

If you have definitely seen mites on Ollie, then you do need to take him to an Avian Vet. Birds can get feather mites or blood sucking mites. It’s not that common with captive birds, but it can occur. The best way to catch him is to put a lightweight towel over your hand and gently pick him up. If you can do this in low lighting, he will have a harder time trying to avoid you. He will associate being caught with the towel instead of your hand.

I’m not sure what would be best for him when you are ready to go on your trip. It really depends on how well he rides in the car and how quickly he settled in when you first got him. He might need to stay home this time, but once you are more bonded with him, he will enjoy traveling with you. Having someone come in to take care of him twice a day will be the least stressful on him. We recently hosted a webinar on this subject that you may want to watch. I’ll provide the link below.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda