Plucking Questionaire/Survey

[suncoast]

Was your bird plucked by parents or siblings?

Was your bird allowed to fledge?

Was your bird forced weaned or allowed to wean itself?

What kind of grooming products do you use? Make-up? Hair spray? Etc.

Ginger

 

[suncoast]

Do you pet your bird? How much?

 

[suncoast]

What is your age, gender, occupation? Do you smoke? How old is your house? What part of the country are you located in? Rate your personality on a scale from 1 - 10, one being laid back, 10 being a raging maniac. What about the people you live with?

 

[Lynne]

Has the bird been tested for Giardia? A 3 day test that is then sent off to a lab. A fecal or fecal stain at the vet's more then likely will not find it. Vet's offices for the most part do not have the microscopes powerful enough to see the cysts.

 

[Monica]

Not having read through this thread... just scanning it... there's already surveys that have been done. Maybe not as comprehensive as this one that you are planning to do... but the information may be useful.

Oh, okay I do have something... has the bird been tested for allergies? Any skin/follicle samples taken to test for infections of the skin? (did anyone mention humidifiers and air cleaners/ionizers?)


Alright... for the surveys...
Feather Plucking Survey; Finally An Answer


Actually, looking at some of the other links, well it's not like the above one........ so I'll just through this one out there! It doesn't have anything to do with plucking, but it's still an interesting survey! Perhaps it will give you some other ideas to include!
Land of Vos - General Care and Information Articles/Talk/Weaning/Aloe/General/Entertainment

 

[southernbirds]

How about the health history of the owners. The human could be on a medication that perhaps the birds are sensing and it makes the bird display what humans perceive to be neurotic behavior? There could be a common link.

 

[suncoast]

On a scale of one to ten, 1 being a cave and 10 being on a sunny beach at noon what is the light level of your house?

Ginger

 

[southernbirds]

Now that is a great question Ginger. Also, if the light level is between 1-7 do you use artificial light to compensate for the light deficiency. Remember, no sunlight, less Vitamin D and therefore a calcium deficiency can occur. What a thoughtful thread you started.

 

[lovemybirds]

Didnt read the whole thread but I know a good question is how much natural light they get. I have a friend who spent so much money on vet visits and medication and it never got better. She then bought a light from dr fosters and smith and he stopped once he was getting sufficient lighting

 

[Billie Faye]

Diet:

Nuts? Seed? Fruits? Veggies? Organic? Animal Protien? Herbs? Does your bird eat with the family..
I would add:
Pellets (what type)
Soy products
Dyes in their foods

Wild Caught or Domestic

 

[suncoast]

Do you feed your bird "junk" food. If so what?

Do you have other bird species in your home? If so what are they? What is the "pecking" order of your flock? Both human and avian. Who's the top bird/human?

Ginger

 

[suncoast]

In what order did your birds come into your care?

Ginger

 

[Holiday]

What is the activity level of your bird? Perch potato or acrobat?

If activity is low, does your bird seem depressed?

(Sorry if this has already been brought up--I just scanned the thread quickly).

 

[suncoast]

I am going to start compiling this so if anyone else has imput please get it in here.

Ginger

 

[suncoast]

I'm wondering if it's a flock dynamic thing. Like somehow they're missing out on the meeting, knowing, courting and mating ritual that takes place in a specific time frame during their lives? So that even if you do introduce them to a bird of the opposite sex they still have missed out on the crucial time frame to bond and mate. Also who knows how they choose? What causes that instant bonding? What do they recognize?

Ginger

 

[suncoast]

There has been a lot of questions lately about plucking so I am bumping this up for people to look over as food for thought and also to add too. I keep thinking I'm ready to compile but then I think of something else.

Ginger

 

[Harley's Mom]

You might want to also put a n/a or unknown as a selection
I could answer some of those questions, but since all three of mine are re-homes I don't have all their history.
I think this is a great idea!

 

[Msminnamouse]

I'll be glad to see when this is finished. I'll happily contribute. Clover is driving me crazy with her plucking. She has a good diet, free of potential allergins now, gets allergy medicine just in case it's allergies, has exhausted options at the vet, is showered with love and attention, has a huge toy filled with toys, even has another lovebird in the cage next to her and they get supervised playtime together, lives in a nice and peaceful environment, etc., etc. I can't figure out why she's doing it besides assuming that maybe she's neurotic.

 

[Anneka]

I am going to start compiling this so if anyone else has imput please get it in here.

Ginger

Oh, good that you will start working on it soon. I can help if you need, just let me know.
I was just thinking about this thread not long ago and was wondering if anyone was going to do something with it. We do have a good amount of Qs, which is fantastic!

 

[jenwren59]

i am interested also! i do not know much about how to design a survey but i do data analysis for a living.

i have 2 pluckers out of my 7 birds and one is a mess right now. i wish i could get to the bottom of it so i could help her.