Issue 4
Blood
Feathers
Blood feathers are a normal part of molting.
When a bird molts, a new feather begins developing within the follicle,
eventually forcing out the old feather. This developing feather
has an active blood supply for nourishment. It can be seen as a
purplish, thicker shaft with a partially grown feather protruding.
As the feather grows, this blood supply will recede. A fully developed
feather will have a translucent yellowish shaft where the blood
supply was before.
Problems can occur if the blood feather is
somehow damaged or cut (e.g., if the wing gets caught in the cage
or the bird falls). The feather can bleed profusely and must then
be removed. Even if the bleeding stops temporarily, a slight bump
can dislodge the clot and the bleeding will begin again.
Because of possible life-threatening hemorrhaging
or breakage due to feather removal, a veterinarian should remove
the feather whenever possible.
If medical help is not available, you may
attempt to remove the feather. Hold the wing steady, and grasp the
feather at the base of the wing using hemostats or needle-nosed
pliers. Pull firmly (but gently) away from the wing, in the direction
the feather is growing. After removing the entire feather, apply
pressure to the empty follicle for three to five minutes, using
a sterile gauze.
If bleeding does not cease within five
minutes, or if you could not remove the entire feather, seek medical
attention immediately!
After removing a blood feather, a new feather
will begin to grow (again with a blood supply). It is common for
a bird to have multiple blood feathers, in different stages of development,
at any one time. The greatest number of blood feathers will be present
during molting.
Blood feathers should not be cut or removed
unless they are damaged and bleeding. Care should be taken when
trimming wings to avoid cutting blood feathers. If only one blood
feather is present, the feathers on either side should be left for
support, to help prevent accidental damage.
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