I just received a Society finch who has no tail feathers: seller claims he's molting - do you agree?

[C_Mu]

I'll attach a picture to see for yourselves, but I'm a tad torn. I've had Societies for two years, and not once have I ever seen a molt resulting in no tail feathers whatsover. They obviously lose them and replace them, but I have never seen them lose all tail feathers at once. I contacted the guy I bought him from and he says he's molting because of the breeding season. I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt, but I just have never had a single finch lose all tail feathers at the same time because of a molt. It's not just one or two, they are gone entirely. Am I just ignorant or am I being lied to? I figured someone might be able to provide another opinion.

The picture is a couple days after I got him, you can see them growing back now. I'd appreciate it!

 

[nchls school]

Society Finches are a completely domestic finch not found in nature. They have no breeding season, breeding whenever. You are right, they do not molt the tail all at once; more likely his tail went to build someone else's nest. The good news is that a healthy finch will regrow the tail in 3 to 4 weeks.

Keep a close eye on this bird, but chances are that all will be well.

 

[C_Mu]

Society Finches are a completely domestic finch not found in nature. They have no breeding season, breeding whenever. You are right, they do not molt the tail all at once; more likely his tail went to build someone else's nest. The good news is that a healthy finch will regrow the tail in 3 to 4 weeks.

Keep a close eye on this bird, but chances are that all will be well.

Unfortunately, that's what I was thinking. When he tried to claim, "breeding season" that's when I got a bit more skeptical about him. I was trying to give him fair judgement, so I was just wanting to see what others thought, but it seems he just lied to me. Which is very, very sad. He'll be in quarantine a while longer. He looks healthy otherwise so being in a proper setup should get the little guy where he needs to be.

Thank you very much for your insight!

 

[nchls school]

It is quite possible the seller was ignorant of what he had and wasn't intentionally lying. I've encountered this scenario many times, so don't write the person off as a liar.

 

[C_Mu]

It is quite possible the seller was ignorant of what he had and wasn't intentionally lying. I've encountered this scenario many times, so don't write the person off as a liar.

Alright, that's a good point. Was a bit upset, but you are right. That's a bad way to think about it on my end. Thank you.

 

[ColtHandorf]

After breeding tons of Societies they drop their tails frequently. They'll pull each other's out and you can also pull them out when you catch them if you don't do it right.

 

[Serin]

They will grow back quickly and shouldn't cause any issue for your bird. One of my 8 year old oldest birds tail feathers tend to all break off after a few months.

I have seen juveniles lose every tail feather at once during their big adolescent molt, but your bird seems adult.

 

[C_Mu]

An update. A pretty late one, mind you, but nonetheless... "he" is, in fact, a SHE. Seller refused to comment when I made that revelation. And she still can't fly, even with her tail in. Curious. Now, I've never seen anyone talk about clipping a finch's wings, so I've never seen what that looks like. I didn't think anyone did that that often, but, turns out, this guy does and never told me. I can now see that her wings are definitely clipped, which explains why she still can't fly. Seller yet again refused to comment on that, just acted like I didn't even ask the question.

So, uh, yeah. Figured an update might have a slight chance of helping anyone in a similar situation. I didn't really think people clipped finches wings like this. I guess I never even thought about it. So, unfortunately, at the end of all this, it turns out the guy is just super shady. Incorrectly sexed the bird and clipped her wings without telling me. Guess she'll just be a hopper for a while. Quite depressing to see, though.

 

[Serin]

You can quickly pull a couple of the clipped flight feathers out of the wing if you are very careful, and they will regrow in a matter of weeks and allow her to fly again. I have done it before on birds that came in with bad feather damage. It may take a year otherwise for a natural molt to occur. Seller sounds awful.

 

[Gmbb58]

I'll attach a picture to see for yourselves, but I'm a tad torn. I've had Societies for two years, and not once have I ever seen a molt resulting in no tail feathers whatsover. They obviously lose them and replace them, but I have never seen them lose all tail feathers at once. I contacted the guy I bought him from and he says he's molting because of the breeding season. I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt, but I just have never had a single finch lose all tail feathers at the same time because of a molt. It's not just one or two, they are gone entirely. Am I just ignorant or am I being lied to? I figured someone might be able to provide another opinion.

The picture is a couple days after I got him, you can see them growing back now. I'd appreciate it!


View attachment 3024690

I'll attach a picture to see for yourselves, but I'm a tad torn. I've had Societies for two years, and not once have I ever seen a molt resulting in no tail feathers whatsover. They obviously lose them and replace them, but I have never seen them lose all tail feathers at once. I contacted the guy I bought him from and he says he's molting because of the breeding season. I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt, but I just have never had a single finch lose all tail feathers at the same time because of a molt. It's not just one or two, they are gone entirely. Am I just ignorant or am I being lied to? I figured someone might be able to provide another opinion.

The picture is a couple days after I got him, you can see them growing back now. I'd appreciate it!


View attachment 3024690

My society finches regularly lose their tail feathers. I often put extra perches for them so that they can hop back up to the top of the cage because it‘s more difficult for them otherwise. It’s a regular occurrence for mine.