Bella is plucking

[bellas momma]

She has a bald spot under a wing and on a leg both on same side. When a pin feather tries to come in she bites it off. Took to vet she said it looks stress related to watch her for a month. Her chest feathers also she chews at them you can she her fuzzy feathers as I call them. Any ideas I can try at home to help her out. We are on a tight bugdet but I want my baby to be ok and happy..

 

[Ziggymon]

What kinds of toys does Bella have? My Rosebud works out a lot of her nervous energy/stress on certaintypes of toys. She loves *preening* poly rope. Fortunately, her foster mom had told me that, and I had made a good suppyly of poly rope toys for her before she came here - she preened them nonstop for the first month or so. I suspect that if she hadn't had that outlet, she might have started plucking from stress.

Pony beads and small wooden beads strung on polyrope are favorites of almost all of mine, as are yucca slices, separated by beads and strung on poly rope. My small guys like grass rope with beads strung on it. I get most of those toy making supplies from California Bird Nerds.

Other favorites are untreated willow wreaths and willow baskets - you can find those at the dollar store. If she likes to shred paper, try paperback books from the dollar store, with the covers taken off, or old telephone books.

 

[bellas momma]

O believe me it isn't because of lack of toys she has it all ropes, wood,leather paper,beads,bells,but she doesnt really play with any of it but her bells. she will chew on the paper but that is it. she has pellets,veggies, dried fruit,millet,and nutter berries all the time. she gets bottled water and i have been misting her and she takes baths. i have a air purfier in her room she has a radio or tv on during day. I cover her at night in her sleep cage for 10 to 11 hours a night. I have been trying everything to ensure she is happy and healthy. She even has a huge cage and if she wants a window to look out but if not she can go to the other half of her cage and not see out the window. she is in a room that my husband and i are in most of the day. So see I am at a lost on this sudden plucking thing it started a month ago and has got worse. My husband left for two weeks last month that is around the time she started the vet said that could have caused it for he is normally home all the time. but he has been back home for a few weeks now and she is still plucking worse now that before...

Sorry for any miss spelling

 

[Ziggymon]

I'm not doubting that she has lots of toys, but IME, birds can be really picky about what kinds of toys they like. With each of my guys,you could have fifty different toys for them, and if they're not the kind(s) they like, they won't touch them. When I was new to birds, I would have said that my guys didn't like toys, but with trial and error, I discovered that I just hadn't figured out what kinds of toys each of them like.

ETA: And when I say "picky", I mean that they're really specific. You would think that my paper shredder would like the adding machine tape toys, but no, he won't touch those, or even books. It has to be flat sheets of paper. Two of my 'zons will only touch willow baskets, but not wreaths, and they have to be a specific type of willow basket.

 

[sodakat]

I COMPLETELY agree. Having 50 toys in a cage that are never played with or chewed does no good. Find something she will mess with. It will probably end up being home made. You can string playing cards on knotted string for example. Have you looked at Kris Porter's parrot enrichment books? Parrot Enrichment

Kris has heaps of cheap ideas made from stuff around the house. The tough thing about pluckers is they won't always work on the same item. So you may need to try lots o different paper things, since she will chew paper for you.

Also, be sure to get her soaking wet at least 3-4 times a week to encourage proper preening.

 

[bellas momma]

Thanks for the info
I got bella when she was 4 months old and she is now 4 yrs old. i have tried all kinds of toys bought and home made. she goes through so many fases she will like one for awhile then not touch it ever again. I try to rotate toys and try something new everytime i see something. I am going to clean her cage and rearrange all her toys again and see which ones she likes this month I guess.. I had read somewere that vit.E oil could be put on the areas to help heal them. So ya'll know anything about this. She doesnt have any red spots or anything I was just trying to do anything to help her out..

 

[JLcribber]

Does she fly? And if so how much and how much space to do it?

 

[GlassOnion]

Flight is HUGE! And I would stop free feeding, birds spend most of their awake time foraging. Teach your bird to forage and feed two meals accompanied by various foraging devices in the cage. Free feeding is too easy for birds, often leading to boredom.

 

[bellas momma]

Were we are now she cant fly but does alittle. We are moving into a house this week were she will have more out of cage time and plenty of room to fly. I will try the hunting for food.

 

[bellas momma]

We have moved and been in our house for about two weeks she has been flying she is alittle rusty but getting better. I have noticed that she is letting pin feathers come through,and has stopped plucking. I'm so happy I hope she lets them all come back in..

 

[Mizzely]

Glad to hear a positive update Hopefully the trend continues!

 

[suncoast]

What is she eating? I have two pluckers, my little drop of golden sun, Chotu, and my goffin girl Truely. I experimented with diet and discovered that Chotu plucked after eating anything with corn in it. So now I feed my own mix. I just made the connection a couple of months ago that Truely started plucking after I added pistachios to her diet. I removed them and she's flying now. I would examine her diet carefully and start eliminating things. Start with peanuts, remove anything that has peanuts or peanut products in it for about 4 weeks, if you don't see an improvement, move on to corn, then wheat, etc. Good Luck.

Ginger

 

[Holiday]

I'll ask the questions I always ask How big is the "huge" cage? How much time does she spend in it per day?

 

[bellas momma]

Bellas cage is 36 x 26 x 66

 

[bellas momma]

She is in it when I am working anywere from 6 to 8 hrs. If we go somewere which isn't often and the rest of the time she is out on it or on me.

 

[bellas momma]

Her diet hasn't change in three years she gets no peanuts and only gets corn about once a month.
Sorry it took so long to reply to ya'll we don't have internet at my house I get on at my moms once a week.

 

[bellas momma]

Bella is still letting her feathers come in her belly is almost all red again...

 

[FreeByrd]

I missed this before.... but I am VERY happy for both you and Bella!!!!!