diff --git a/rss2bsky.py b/rss2bsky.py
index 88c78fe..bcd8a39 100644
--- a/rss2bsky.py
+++ b/rss2bsky.py
@@ -41,6 +41,9 @@ BSKY_BLOB_TRANSIENT_ERROR_DELAY = 15
 HTTP_TIMEOUT = 20
 POST_RETRY_DELAY_SECONDS = 2
 
+# Thumbnail upload cooldown state
+THUMB_UPLOAD_COOLDOWN_UNTIL = 0
+
 # --- Logging ---
 logging.basicConfig(
     format="%(asctime)s %(message)s",
@@ -478,6 +481,18 @@ def get_rate_limit_wait_seconds(error_obj, default_delay):
     return default_delay
 
 
+def get_rate_limit_reset_timestamp(error_obj):
+    try:
+        headers = getattr(error_obj, "headers", None)
+        if headers:
+            reset_value = headers.get("ratelimit-reset") or headers.get("RateLimit-Reset")
+            if reset_value:
+                return int(reset_value)
+    except Exception:
+        pass
+    return None
+
+
 def is_transient_blob_error(error_obj):
     error_text = repr(error_obj)
     transient_signals = [
@@ -494,7 +509,34 @@ def is_transient_blob_error(error_obj):
     return any(signal in error_text for signal in transient_signals)
 
 
-def upload_blob_with_retry(client, binary_data, media_label="media"):
+def is_rate_limited_error(error_obj):
+    error_text = str(error_obj)
+    return "429" in error_text or "RateLimitExceeded" in error_text
+
+
+def activate_thumb_upload_cooldown_from_error(error_obj):
+    global THUMB_UPLOAD_COOLDOWN_UNTIL
+
+    reset_ts = get_rate_limit_reset_timestamp(error_obj)
+    if reset_ts:
+        if reset_ts > THUMB_UPLOAD_COOLDOWN_UNTIL:
+            THUMB_UPLOAD_COOLDOWN_UNTIL = reset_ts
+            logging.warning(
+                f"Thumbnail uploads disabled until rate-limit reset at "
+                f"{time.strftime('%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S', time.localtime(reset_ts))}."
+            )
+    else:
+        fallback_reset = int(time.time()) + 3600
+        if fallback_reset > THUMB_UPLOAD_COOLDOWN_UNTIL:
+            THUMB_UPLOAD_COOLDOWN_UNTIL = fallback_reset
+            logging.warning("Thumbnail uploads disabled temporarily for 1 hour due to rate limiting.")
+
+
+def is_thumb_upload_cooldown_active():
+    return int(time.time()) < THUMB_UPLOAD_COOLDOWN_UNTIL
+
+
+def upload_blob_with_retry(client, binary_data, media_label="media", optional=False, cooldown_on_rate_limit=False):
     last_exception = None
     transient_attempts = 0
 
@@ -505,16 +547,25 @@ def upload_blob_with_retry(client, binary_data, media_label="media"):
 
         except Exception as e:
             last_exception = e
-            error_text = str(e)
-            is_rate_limited = "429" in error_text or "RateLimitExceeded" in error_text
+            is_rate_limited = is_rate_limited_error(e)
 
             if is_rate_limited:
+                if cooldown_on_rate_limit:
+                    activate_thumb_upload_cooldown_from_error(e)
+
                 backoff_delay = min(
                     BSKY_BLOB_UPLOAD_BASE_DELAY * (2 ** (attempt - 1)),
                     BSKY_BLOB_UPLOAD_MAX_DELAY
                 )
                 wait_seconds = get_rate_limit_wait_seconds(e, backoff_delay)
 
+                if optional and cooldown_on_rate_limit:
+                    logging.warning(
+                        f"Optional blob upload rate-limited for {media_label}. "
+                        f"Skipping remaining retries and omitting optional media."
+                    )
+                    return None
+
                 if attempt < BSKY_BLOB_UPLOAD_MAX_RETRIES:
                     logging.warning(
                         f"Blob upload rate-limited for {media_label}. "
@@ -590,6 +641,11 @@ def compress_external_thumb_to_limit(image_bytes, max_bytes=EXTERNAL_THUMB_MAX_B
 
 
 def get_external_thumb_blob_from_url(image_url, client, http_client):
+    if is_thumb_upload_cooldown_active():
+        reset_str = time.strftime('%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S', time.localtime(THUMB_UPLOAD_COOLDOWN_UNTIL))
+        logging.info(f"Skipping external thumbnail upload due to active cooldown until {reset_str}")
+        return None
+
     try:
         r = http_client.get(image_url, timeout=HTTP_TIMEOUT, follow_redirects=True)
         if r.status_code != 200:
@@ -610,7 +666,13 @@ def get_external_thumb_blob_from_url(image_url, client, http_client):
                 logging.warning("Could not compress external thumb to fit limit. Omitting thumbnail.")
                 return None
 
-        return upload_blob_with_retry(client, upload_bytes, media_label=f"external-thumb:{image_url}")
+        return upload_blob_with_retry(
+            client,
+            upload_bytes,
+            media_label=f"external-thumb:{image_url}",
+            optional=True,
+            cooldown_on_rate_limit=True
+        )
 
     except Exception as e:
         logging.warning(f"Could not fetch/upload external thumb {image_url}: {repr(e)}")
@@ -777,7 +839,6 @@ def main():
     post_lang = args.lang
     state_path = args.state_path
 
-    # --- Login ---
     client = Client(base_url=service_url)
 
     backoff = 60
@@ -798,7 +859,6 @@ def main():
     logging.info(f"Loaded {len(recent_bsky_posts)} recent Bluesky posts for duplicate detection.")
     logging.info(f"Local state currently tracks {len(state.get('posted_entries', {}))} posted items.")
 
-    # --- Parse feed ---
     response = httpx.get(feed_url, timeout=HTTP_TIMEOUT, follow_redirects=True)
     response.raise_for_status()