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Stages of Plucking?

Flynn

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I was wondering what the stages of plucking are, if there are any. (Do they chew their feathers first? Do they start at the wing web? etc.) I know plucking is extremely tricky and varies bird-to-bird, but I’m just curious if there are any patterns that are super common. Thanks!
 

webchirp

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I think it starts out around the legs and then moves up the stomach/chest. Once the majority of those are gone, they will work on the wings. If a bird starts plucking over the heart/chest area, a cardio check is advised. Legs generally represent hormones. Wing web is an entirely other medical issue.
 

JLcribber

@cockatoojohn
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It starts with barbering the larger feathers for some. Others go right for the chest. All situational.

If there is no medical issue. The ultimate cause for plucking is stress from having to live in captivity and more so in a cage. It does not need to be any one specific stress although it can be but rather an accumulation of all the small stresses that the bird must live with. We may not recognize these things as stress but the bird most certainly does. Parrots are designed and programmed to fly hundreds of miles per day. To forage and work for their food. To have free will to decide where to go, when to go and who to go with. Making them spend time in a cage which is only a few steps in any direction even in a large cage is a huge stress factor. When the stress builds to the breaking point, that is when problem behaviors like plucking and screaming begin to show themselves.

If our bird is plucking and there is no medical reason for it then it's time to start thinking outside the box, literally and start to provide a more natural way of living so they can move, explore and forage so they get that stimulation. A busy beak does not have time to pluck. Changing the way they live, sacrificing some real space and providing a large secure area where they can be the birds they are as much as possible will go a long ways to stopping the behavior.

All birds are born with a certain amount of built-in stress. As most birds have little defence against predators, their only option is to keep a sharp eye out for anything that might eat them. They know they're one of the main food sources for all other animals. They are under "normal stress" Once a bird is captured and confined, the stress level increases. Depending on its new environment, this slightly higher stress level can also be within a "safe" range. However, start adding all the many types of stressful situations and soon the meter rises beyond the "breaking point" of stress. For instance... in the graph above there are all sorts of different types of possible stress related issues. One is not all that much more important than the other. (except for possibly health related stress). But when the different types of stress start adding up... your parrot is reaching the breaking point of how much stress he can handle.
 
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