How to improve feather quality in parrots
How to improve feather quality in parrots – Pumage maintenance in Parrots
By: Rafael Zamora Padrón – Scientific Director at Loro Parque Fundación
Featured image: Hyacinth Macaw exercising its new feathers in flight. Foto: M.Perez/LPF
As the breeding season evolves, one of the concerns for parrot breeding centers is that their birds maintain a good feather appearance.
In the past, there was a lack of knowledge that the quality of the feathers in the growth stage of a parrot did not seem to matter, since it was a weaker plumage that would later be replaced by a better structured one during the first molt.
The reality is that every feather of a growing parrot is very important for its future quality of life. Its ability to protect itself from cold or heat and to achieve better growth will depend on it.
If a parrot in the first months of its life is not able to insulate itself conveniently thanks to its plumage or more importantly, is not able to fly thanks to its feathers, it will have a direct impact on its health.
It is so important that even the attitude of the parrot towards its fellows and its wellbeing under human care will depend to a great extent on its feathers.
A parrot that has its plumage shiny and strong will be able to get the best positions in the aviary. It will be the one that flies the best, the one that can ruffle its feathers the most and become strong in front of its aviary mates. It will also be the best feeder because it will know how to establish its territory.
Expert breeders know how to identify these situations. A parrot with stained, damaged, or broken feathers has shy, withdrawn behavior and lacks the ability to compete within a group.
Feathers also play a fundamental role in nutrition. The parrot that flies, eats well. It is hungry because it exercises and needs energy. The parrot does not, selects more food because it does not spend what it consumes and therefore is less well nourished.
For the reasons listed above, the caretaker is responsible for the juvenile parrots to remain clean from the first days of life. On many occasions, it is necessary to clean the damaged parts or to separate the specimens that need feather recovery in an aviary so that they can get in a calmer situation.
To favor the good growth of the feathers there are obligatory premises to fulfill:
- Provide them with a clean bathing area
- Provide them with a clean space at all times
- High-quality nutrition to build up new feathers
- Motivate them to fly and exercise.
- Provide sufficient perches for resting and grooming.
- Preventive control of external parasites
In Loro Parque Fundación we have observed throughout a long trajectory that the character of the parrots raised by hand is calmer when their plumage grows in optimal conditions. The birds are more confident and have more tools to advance in the stages of emancipation and their first molts of plumage.
Another observation is that if a parrot loses feathers in its growth stage, its body makes an effort to create new feathers and this means a metabolic effort that has costs. This is why it is so important to maintain the feathers from the very beginning.
At the moment we have many macaws in growth and those that have become independent from the previous year are in the phase of musculation, preening and socialization. All a guarantee of health for the long life of the parrots.
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