Could My Parakeet Be Depressed

Question

I own three parakeets, two female and one young male. The two females I owned for six years before purchasing the male. Even before purchasing the male bird my family and I noticed that one of the female birds showed signs of distress. She began to loose weight and frantically pluck out her own feathers, exposing a large red lump on her chest. Since the male bird has gotten comfortable in his new surrounding he spends most of his time with the other female bird (the one that doesn't puck out her feathers) it seems that the lack of attention has caused her condition to worsen,along with the feather plucking, weight loss and irritated skin, she now constantly jerks the food and water trays in their cage. We have bought toys and also medicine but she continues to act out...could it be depression, loneliness or even boredom.

Answer 1

A large red lump on her chest is probably why she started being sick.

Find a certified avian vet to do a work up on her, or if you do not have the money to do this.  Birds can be sick for a long time before dying.

Answer 2

AWWW parakeets i love them i had some , well i think you should take your bird to the vet , she must be stressed out , & even more now because the new male has arrived , & now she is stressed poor baby . i hope you can fix this problem.

Answer 3

Yes.  The social dynamics have dramatically changed, and the feather plucking female has been left out.  My advice to bird owners is to buy the bird when it's as young as possible, only have one, and spend a lot of time with that bird so that it really bonds with you.  Also, make sure that they have a larger cage.  Cramped conditions may cause them to become violent with each other.

Answer 4

As the owner, I think you have a good assessment of the situation. Your cage is either too small and she is becoming stressed at living so closely with too other birds, or she is upset at the loss of attention.

As for the size of the cage, if it is anything less than 18"x18"x24" that is no good. With my birds, I always try to get (or make) the largest cage possible. Also, letting them out for exercise will help ease anxiety too. (Unless their wings are clipped...)

Since birds mostly mate for life, the unplucked female and male will probably not break up. I think the nicest thing to do would be to put the plucking female into her own cage and see how she fares after that. You might even add a companion after she becomes more accustomed, but most importantly, you need to schedule an appointment with an avian vet. They'll be able to tell you more than anyone here could (unless someone here is a vet?).

Answer 5

she could be bored

parakeets are a social breed of bird and prefer being in large groups it will be better if you buy her another male that way it will be even and both females will have a companion if you already bought toys then i cant say anything else except to give them watermelon it is good for the feathers and the heart plus it relives stress

hope this helps  ^_^