Cockatiel plucking feather

[deepika]

Hello Everyone,

I am new to this forum.
My cockatiel is plucking out her feathers since very long.
The vet I met recently gave her psychotic drugs saying that its behavioural issue. The course of her drugs is over and the plucking has only increased and now I am hopeless.
Her feather in the other end looks damaged with skin and blood. Today it's extreme and I put a neck collar to avoid more damage.
Please help me out !!!! I don't know what will fix this.
Her skin has a lot of new pin feathers and the skin has black spots , I am not sure if theyr'e mites.
I have also attached few pictures.

Thank you very much

 

[CrazyKozmo]

Most likely, the black spots are little specks of blood from the feathers that have been pulled out. Did the vet do any blood work to check for an underlying medical problem?? That's the first place to start....

 

[sunnysmom]

As CrazyKozmo said, did the vet run any tests? Medical issues are the first to rule out. Sometime tiels pluck when they are extremely hormonal too. How many hours of sleep does she get? What is her diet like? Remove anything that might be seen as a "nest"- like no sleeping huts, etc. Does she have toys to play with? Get out of the cage time?

 

[deepika]

Most likely, the black spots are little specks of blood from the feathers that have been pulled out. Did the vet do any blood work to check for an underlying medical problem?? That's the first place to start....

Thank you for your response.
The vet just looked under her wings and said that the plucking pattern looks like a behavioural issue and prescribed psychotic drugs and vitamin supplements.Its been over a month now and the plucking has only increased.
There is no certified avian vet in my city so I am helpless.

 

[deepika]

As CrazyKozmo said, did the vet run any tests? Medical issues are the first to rule out. Sometime tiels pluck when they are extremely hormonal too. How many hours of sleep does she get? What is her diet like? Remove anything that might be seen as a "nest"- like no sleeping huts, etc. Does she have toys to play with? Get out of the cage time?

Its strange but the vet was very sure that its a behavioural issue. He didn't run any test. she gets enough sleep around 12 hours everyday. her diet is mostly seeds and pellets, she also loves corn on the cob and apple. I haven't kept any nest in her cage and she rarely ever stays in the cage, she is mostly outside during day time. I have got her a ton of toys but she doesn't show interest, she would rather pluck. She screams while plucking out the feather and most of the feathers have blood and skin in them.

 

[sunnysmom]

I am not saying this is the cause but this is one of the things vet's often test for when a bird plucks: Giardia in Birds (exoticpetvet.net)

Sometimes it can also be a vitamin deficiency or allergies: Feather Plucking in Pet Birds | Beauty of Birds

And then there is also the behavioral reasons and hormones. It's sometimes hard to determine the cause. Is there anything outside that might be stressing her out? Other animals? Loud sounds?

 

[deepika]

I am not saying this is the cause but this is one of the things vet's often test for when a bird plucks: Giardia in Birds (exoticpetvet.net)

Sometimes it can also be a vitamin deficiency or allergies: Feather Plucking in Pet Birds | Beauty of Birds

And then there is also the behavioral reasons and hormones. It's sometimes hard to determine the cause. Is there anything outside that might be stressing her out? Other animals? Loud sounds?

She wasn’t completely weaned when I got her. The breeder said that her mother won’t feed her anymore and he wants to give her away, she was just 2 weeks when I got her and she is 2 years old now. Except for the time she eats, she is always busy plucking the feathers recently.. she has lost almost all of her feathers under her wings and it makes me sad. I will get the giardia test done and I have been giving her vitamin supplements since she was very young.

 

[deepika]

Also, is it normal for her to pluck out the feathers with skin and blood on it?? I made a neck collar in velvet material and I’m using that for now.. I let her wear it atleast 3 hours a day so she stops plucking, that’s helping but she seems to be very frustrated wearing that..

 

[sunnysmom]

She wasn’t completely weaned when I got her. The breeder said that her mother won’t feed her anymore and he wants to give her away, she was just 2 weeks when I got her and she is 2 years old now. Except for the time she eats, she is always busy plucking the feathers recently.. she has lost almost all of her feathers under her wings and it makes me sad. I will get the giardia test done and I have been giving her vitamin supplements since she was very young.

What type of medicine to the vet try? I'll tag some other people too to get their thoughts.

@Mizzely ? @Monica ? @Birdbabe

 

[Mizzely]

It makes me sad for you that your bird immediately went to behavioral. Birds pluck for many reasons and the reasons are not always clear. Pain and illness are other reasons, and in this case, since she is being very adamant, I worry it is not behavioral at all.

Any other vets you can get a second opinion from?

The collar is a good idea; some birds have to use them daily to prevent injury to themselves. If she is able to eat and drink with it on, I would be inclined to leave it on as much as possible. She risks infection with the way she is hurting herself.

Does she have any types of toys to distract her? You could try to make her forage for a lot of her food so she isn't done in a few minutes and going straight back to plucking.

 

[Monica]

I would suggest taking a look over this article.

The Basics of Feather Picking

Article containing veterinarian's approach to diagnosing and treating feather-destructive disorders

featherpicking.com

I took in a cockatiel that plucks her back, exact same spot you show in the photo - however, she doesn't pick enough to the point that it's obvious. She still has plenty of feathers that cover that area up.


I've gotten fecal stains, skin stains, giardia test and bloodwork on her. So far, nothing has shown up. Haven't managed to get feather testing or radiographs (x-rays) done. (re: vets refusing to do them, or me refusing anesthesia for such a simple procedure....)


The full list to check for all medical issues can be extensive, as well as expensive. You may need to search for other vets who might be willing to do the tests required to completely rule out medical reasons.

 

[Birdbabe]

I was thinking the same thing as @sunnysmom said, I had a teil " rescue ":..here who plucked under her wings, pulling new blood feathers, always in pain, the skin was flaking and red, I tried vitamin e oil, A&D ointment, aloe vera. ..she was misdiagnosed with for a few years, then , finally Dr.Lamb, at Arizona exotic .diagnosed her with Giardia.. it was a long process,,,Giardia can be a " false negative ".. but once my baby was diagnosed correctly,,,cant remember what meds she was on, she fianally healed, and lived a few more years after that. Dont give up ! Get a second opinion or a third if you need too!

 

[FeatheredM]

Poor little cockatiel!! Hope you find the right help.

 

[deepika]

It makes me sad for you that your bird immediately went to behavioral. Birds pluck for many reasons and the reasons are not always clear. Pain and illness are other reasons, and in this case, since she is being very adamant, I worry it is not behavioral at all.

Any other vets you can get a second opinion from?

The collar is a good idea; some birds have to use them daily to prevent injury to themselves. If she is able to eat and drink with it on, I would be inclined to leave it on as much as possible. She risks infection with the way she is hurting herself.

Does she have any types of toys to distract her? You could try to make her forage for a lot of her food so she isn't done in a few minutes and going straight back to plucking.

Thank you for your reply.
I have taken her to three vets and only one of them is avian and he is the one who gave me the psychotic drug.. she looked very lethargic when I gave her those drugs and I never wanna force her to take that again, I prefer the collar but haven’t consulted any vet about the collar. I browsed about it and got one to avoid further damage to the skin. I’m worried That the skin might get infected since she is plucking out the feather with blood in it and she screams in pain.
Except for the collar, nothing works. I have got her ton of toys and trust me, nothing works. She shows absolutely no interest in anything else. When she is wearing the collar, she tried to preen my face. All she does is preening and plucking all day.

 

[deepika]

I would suggest taking a look over this article.

The Basics of Feather Picking

Article containing veterinarian's approach to diagnosing and treating feather-destructive disorders

featherpicking.com

I took in a cockatiel that plucks her back, exact same spot you show in the photo - however, she doesn't pick enough to the point that it's obvious. She still has plenty of feathers that cover that area up.


I've gotten fecal stains, skin stains, giardia test and bloodwork on her. So far, nothing has shown up. Haven't managed to get feather testing or radiographs (x-rays) done. (re: vets refusing to do them, or me refusing anesthesia for such a simple procedure....)


The full list to check for all medical issues can be extensive, as well as expensive. You may need to search for other vets who might be willing to do the tests required to completely rule out medical reasons.

Thank you for your response..
We do not have good avian vets in our city , I have even taken her to a different city just for a vet visit but it didn’t help. He didn’t even take a look at the skin, he prescribed medicines for mites and I’m not trying any of that on her.
i have hand fed her since she was just 2 weeks.. I have always made sure she takes enough veggies and fruits, I have alsogiven her vitamin supplements since the beginning and it makes so really sad that this is happening and I donno what to do. Her bare skin is visible under her wings and also behind her back.

 

[deepika]

I was thinking the same thing as @sunnysmom said, I had a teil " rescue ":..here who plucked under her wings, pulling new blood feathers, always in pain, the skin was flaking and red, I tried vitamin e oil, A&D ointment, aloe vera. ..she was misdiagnosed with for a few years, then , finally Dr.Lamb, at Arizona exotic .diagnosed her with Giardia.. it was a long process,,,Giardia can be a " false negative ".. but once my baby was diagnosed correctly,,,cant remember what meds she was on, she fianally healed, and lived a few more years after that. Dont give up ! Get a second opinion or a third if you need too!

That’s gives me hope. I will definitely get the giardia test done, thank you very much.

 

[SumitaSinh]

@deepika , are you in India? I am in Kolkata, if you are in my vicinity, I will try to help. Your bird is very pretty, I am sorry for the situation you both are facing.

 

[deepika]

Hey Sumita, thank you very much.
I live in Bangalore .. she wears the neck collar most of the times now.. I feel sorry for her because she hates it

 

[deepika]

Poor little cockatiel!! Hope you find the right help.

 

[deepika]

What type of medicine to the vet try? I'll tag some other people too to get their thoughts.

@Mizzely ? @Monica ? @Birdbabe

Exotica - supplement
Birdplus supplement
Anxocare- psychotic medicine