# Please, help a pigeon with some skin disease.



## atete (May 18, 2012)

This pigeon flew into an open window and walked around, trying to
peck something off the floor. It looked like it had a beard and weird
around the throat. I gave it some food and it pecked it very
deliberately, slowly. I managed to catch it after chasing it around,
and checked inside the beak and throat - no signs of canker. But,
underneath the beak, all the feathers feel out and there is something
like a lichen? I have never seen anything like this before. Please,
tell me what it is and how to treat it.
There are no avian vets here, so, please, don't suggest going to a
vet. I can't, not because I want to play a doctor with the poor bird,
but because there are none. Also, avian medicine there is none, but I
can buy human equivalent.
Sorry for the photos, I had to keep the bird in one hand and
photograph it with the other.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

*Canker doesn't always show as lesions inside their beak. 

Can you take a clearer pic?

It may be internal and you can't see it. The fact that the feathers fell out under the beak makes me suspect canker. *


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## atete (May 18, 2012)

I thought it was depluming mite?


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## atete (May 18, 2012)




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## tjc1 (Aug 22, 2012)

Skyeking is right and the canker may be internal. You probably would see the mites or the lesions if it was infested with that. Also from looking up depluming mites the bird would be scratching like crazy and pulling feather out. Since it cant from the beak a guess would say its some thing else here is the right up on Merecks veterinary dictionary for the mites

Depluming Mite

Neocnemidocoptes gallinae burrow into the epidermis at the base of feather shafts and cause intense irritation and feather pulling and loss in chickens, pheasants, pigeons, and geese in spring and summer. Hyperkeratosis, skin lesions, and digit necrosis can result from the burrowing. Affected birds should be isolated and treated with iver-mectin, malathion or sevin dust.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

canker, also scratching due to mosquitos at night..they esp like to bite around the head. I would seven dust him and treat him for canker. dust again 7 days later.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

spirit wings said:


> I would seven dust him and treat him for canker. dust again 7 days later.


*THIS ^^ .... would be best, treat for both, you can't always see mites.*


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