Expert: Teresa Weingart - 11/30/2011

Question
just got a bird from a freind she had a small bald patch on top of head it has got bigger and now she has a couple on tp of her wingknuckles she is preening all the time and sometimes hurts as she squeels.

Answer

Hi Christopher -

Thank you for your question.

There can be a number of possibilities:

* She is under some sort of stress or bored.  This could be from her previous environment.  Does she have toys in the cage?  Other things to chew on?  A female cockatiel should have a cuttlebone at a minimum.  She should have some time outside of the cage if you can supervise her.

* There is some sore of skin allergy.  If there is something in the cage or if she has come in contact with something not tolerable.

* There may be some other underlying disease

* She is lonely and needs a mate (not necessarily a male).  But before considering a second bird, rule out illness.

The first thing I would do is take her to an avian vet. and get her checked out.  You want to rule out any diseases and go from there.  

In general, cockatiel need a lot of attention. If they don't get it, they take it out on themselves, sometimes in the form of over preening.  Good luck to you.

Regards,

Teresa