At what age do cockatiels normally go through their first molt? Prinny has been molting and her cheek patches seem to be getting brighter. Is that normal? Or could she possibly be alot younger than I thought?

There's a good article on molting at NCS - Cockatiel Molting It says that the first molt is around 6 months, although my experience is that weather plays a part and it can be earlier or later than that.

Diet plays an important role in feather color, but you don't see the effect of a change in diet until the bird molts. If her cheek patches are getting brighter, it might mean that she's been eating more beta carotene or other nutrients!

Thanks for that info! Someone else said the same thing so I am sure that must be the reason behind the brighter feathers. Her diet has changed a bit since she came home.

Will you be able to show us a before & after photo of Prinny? Glad to hear she's doing so well.