Mature lovebirds usually molt about twice a year.  General molting season is in the spring and the fall.  There are a few factors that can help influence exactly when each bird will molt, including diet, number of daylight hours, and ambient room temperature.

 

Young lovebirds are not necessarily so predictable.  Lovebirds do not have a particular “season” when they raise babies, so youngsters are available at any time of the year.  The first molt of a baby lovebird depends on two factors – their age and the season.  Baby lovebirds experience their first molt when they are between 4 – 8 months old, most commonly at about five or six months.  The temperature and amount of daylight hours (both indicators of season) influence whether a baby will molt at five months of age or closer to seven months.  As the baby matures and reaches about one year old, the molting cycles regulate and are influenced by the factors that control mature lovebird molts.

 

There are some factors outside of the above that can cause a lovebird to molt.  Stress or illness can cause a bird to go into a molt that is not on schedule.  Poor diet can affect feather condition, which can also lead to an unusual molt.  Feather plucking (when a bird pulls out its own or another bird’s feathers) can sometimes be mistaken as molting, but this is not the case.  Plucking is unrelated to molting.  Any of these above conditions should be investigated by a qualified avian vet in order to determine the exact cause and how to relieve the symptoms.

 

Lovebirds will often lose little, white, “fluff” feathers year-round.  This is perfectly normal (given that it is not excessive) and should not cause alarm.  A lovebird is officially molting when some of the larger feathers are found at the bottom of the cage (feathers that are the same color as the lovebird’s body).  You will often see “pin” feathers at this time as well.  Pin feathers are new feathers that are growing in to replace the molted ones.  They are still housed in the waxy safety case that they grow in, so they look like pins sticking out of the other feathers.  Lovebirds will preen these waxy cases open, revealing the new feather.  Single pet lovebirds have a difficult time preening their own faces and the back of their heads, so pet owners are more likely to find these “pin” feathers on their birds.  Bonded pairs of lovebirds will preen each other to help with the opening of these new feathers.