>I have a 5 yr old grey who doesn't pluck the feather out but picks at
>the feathers so they become fuzzy. We have tried everything we know to
>do to make him less bored, if it is bored, to no avail. One local vet
>apparently proscribes Valium. I have seen greys that have responded and
>look very good but I am wondering what experience other readers have
>had.
Hi, Burl, and welcome to Parrots! I'm the moderator. I've had more
experience with that type of plucking than I ever wanted to. I have a
Jenday conure who cuts her feathers off at just above skin level. It
leaves her looking like the inside of a sweatshirt. She's been at this
for 6 years now.
It's not always boredom that causes a bird to pluck. Has your bird seen
an avian vet for a THOROUGH vet workup, including blood work, a fecal
parasite exam, skin scrapings and bacterial cultures? If not, that's the
place to start. Most often, birds begin to pluck because of a physical
problem (illness, injury, or internal or external parasites).
If the vet has declared your bird totally healthy, then start to
consider other things that may have gotten him started on plucking. Have
you moved lately? Redecorated? Gotten the bird a new cage? Had a baby?
Gotten a divorce? Got a dog? Got rid of a dog?
You can probably see a pattern here...anything can upset a bird enough
to make it pluck once, and it soon becomes a habit. If you do ANYTHING
to interact with a bird WHILE it is plucking, that also becomes a
reward for the behavior. Giving it a new toy, speaking to it, even
yelling at it in anger WHILE it is performing the act of plucking, can
reinforce the unwanted behavior.
Give some thought to what, if anything happened in your home around the
time the bird first began plucking. If you can think of that event, it
may serve as a key to turning the bird's behavior around. But DO keep in
mind that some pluckers never stop once they start. You must also be
willing to accept your bird as a tattered or naked pet, just in case.
This is hard on some owners (I know it was hard on me!). But it is the
truth, and it is part of the treatment, both for bird AND owner.
I could go on and on, but I had a rotten day at work, and I'm falling
asleep at the keys. Please feel free to ask me more questions about
plucking--I'd be glad to offer more suggestions when I'm fully awake.
Welcome aboard!
--Kathy
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