Ask Lafeber

I’m not sure what’s going on with my cockatiel and his feathers

So my cockatiel has been losing feathers since the Fourth of July. Since then, everyday I find a lot of feathers accumulating at the bottom. I started giving him The Missing Link Avian Formula two days ago and I’ve been bringing him outside for morning sun. I also try to mist him twice a day even though sometimes he doesn’t do anything other than fluff up and shake the water off. He’s also been doing a lot of preening lately. I catch him preening a few times throughout the day and at times find the broken keratin sheath at the bottom. Should I be concerned? What should I do?

Hi Giovanni,

This sounds like he is going through a normal molt. He will lose some feathers year round, but go through a heavy molt once or twice a year. As long as he doesn’t have any bald spots, then this is normal molting. It will last a few weeks, and some birds will get a bit grumpy when going through a heavy molt.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda