The Bird Coorner @birdcoorner - Tumblr Blog

I never update here lol...

Also, I have like three followers... But I digress. The balding doves are okay. According to their doctor, they just “love too hard”. And so it goes. I may update more frequently, but don’t expect too much coming out of this account.

Thank you for your concern. uvu

I will actually be booking another vet appointment for their annual physicals in a week. I’m going to ask about getting a prescription to help with the bald patches. I mean, if they are actually over preening one another... maybe there’s some sort of bitter powder I can put in the spots so they will stop? Though I’m not entirely sure if it would help.

I know they detest the taste of apple cider vinegar. I wonder if there’s something with that base I may be able to use as a preen repellent... I’m willing to try anything at this point.

#amatsumagatsuchi #asks

COLUMBID SPECIALISTS, I HAVE A QUESTION...

My frustration and anxiety about this has reached its limit.

I have two female ringneck doves, a white pied (Ambie), and a tangerine (Orion). I rescued both back in July 2015. They’ve bonded to one another, and are still together now.

In November 2018, I began to notice Ambie losing feathers right below her beak/neck area. She’s had molts like that before, so I wasn’t concerned. Into the next year (2019), I noticed the patch growing bigger. Nothing was growing back, so I did some research, and read that the feathers sometimes take a while to grow back in. I gave it more time.

What tipped me towards assuming something was wrong was when Ori started forming a bald spot on the back of her head. I reached out to their vet. And the vet said “it happens, and sometimes, there is no reason.” There were no bugs, or mites, and the fecal samples came back clear of parasites, ringworm was a primary concern. They never showed sickness symptoms, and were lively and well.

I was frustrated with that answer, reluctant to believe there was simply “no reason”. So I reached out to another vet, in late 2019 who had known the birds well from when I first got them. Also, a specialist in columbidae... I was hopeful. They both had thorough examinations, fecal samples tested, and some extra nutritional supplements to potentially cover any essentials they weren’t getting enough of.

Tests? Negative. Examination? Nothing noteworthy. Overall? Happy, healthy, pest free, parasite free, but getting more patchy. Ori’s head patch has grown, and Ambie’s neck patch has remained at large with little to no signs of regrowth. The vet didn’t seem terribly concerned, since they were doing just fine otherwise. But I mean... my birds are balding.......

Time to seek specialist number three! July 2019, I sent a message to the Ramsey Loft (theramseyloft(dot)tumblr(dot)com.) She’s wonderful. But even she wasn’t sure what it could possibly be, mentioning she hadn’t had experience with something of that sort.

She was the last one I mentioned it to. I was too frustrated to see or ask anyone else, and just gave up. They flap and fly, and perch, eat, drink, run around, take naps... there is just NOTHING out of the ordinary aside from the patches!

So, I had a new thought... They’d been patch free three years into living together... it started so late. But what if they are over preening? Or plucking one another?

Ori always preens around Ambie’s neck, and Ambie always preen around Ori’s head.

I started putting that in my head as the justification as to why they are looking the way they are. And I sat with it for a good while, a good year.

But I just let them out, watched them relax, and just... lost it. I’m losing my mind.

I started thinking about their ages. Ambie is about six now, and Orion maybe around eight. But even that research didn’t come up with feather loss being a thing in aging doves. I just... am running out of personal options, before I go to another vet.

They say don’t ask the internet for opinions. I’m just so tired of re-reading the same articles that say “it’s a molt!” “cocks pluck hens sometimes!” “parasites, or mites!” No. It’s not any of that! And I have tried separating them already, and all they did was panic when they couldn’t see each other. I can’t do that to them, they’re getting too old for that kind of stress.

So, Tumblr... anyone who may be able to give me another possibility that hasn’t crossed my mind... can you please tell me what I’m missing? There are no mites, no bugs, no parasites, no signs of illness. They have hard-shelled eggs, good droppings, high energy, alertness, and a good appetite.

This was April 2018.