Ways to prevent plucking

[Nuesha]

I hear a lot about greys plucking and it seems to be common in them. I'm just wondering, what's a good way to prevent it to make sure it never starts?

[Jag]

I'm interested in responses to this...although it's too late to keep it from happening for us. I know the vet told the lady that since she was kept in a rabbit cage with not a lot of interaction and no toys... that made her pluck. I have read it can be caused by illness, diet, boredom, or neglect...and sometimes there just isn't a reason. Oh..hormonal can do it, too. I have heard of people who have a well fed, well taken care of grey with no history of neglect, abuse, or anything... yet they will pluck.

[Dana64]

Originally Posted by Nuesha

what's a good way to prevent it to make sure it never starts?

Unfortunately, there is no "recipe" for that. Anyone who comes up with THAT one will make millions. Ask anyone here who has owned their Grey (or any other parrot for that matter) from the time they were weaned. Sometimes it just happens. One minute they are happy and fully feathered and the next minute, they are still happy, but nekkid...

Other times, it is caused by abuse, neglect, allergies, food issues, etc... and you may be able to fix the plucking... but sometimes you're not...

[Scritch]

There's no guarantees about plucking, any which way you look at it, but it IS much easier to prevent it than it is to stop it once it starts... sorry Jag lol... (on the other hand, your girl has had it ROUGH and sometimes just getting them into a better situation does wonders!)

Most all the things you can do to improve a bird's mental and physical well-being will also go a ways towards preventing plucking. A few things to be especially aware of:

- A good diet. Definitely one of the most important things. Variety is the thing... keep it not just healthy, but interesting. Lots of fresh veggies, fruits, sprouts, cooked meals... plus some pellets & dry seeds & grains. Greys should get a little more fat and oils in their diet than most parrots -- a nut or two a day (esp. almonds, lots of calcium) are good.

- An interesting environment. I.e. large cage, lots of toys, at least one playstand away from the cage (several throughout the house is even better!). For greys particularly, it's important to socialize them to different toys, different rooms, etc. to keep them from becoming phobic (leads to nervousness, leads to plucking.)

- And on that theme, get them outside if you can do it safely. Don't rely on clipped wings, though. Harness-training or a travel cage, or if you have the means, a nice outdoor cage or aviary. Get them used to car rides -- most birds enjoy them once they get over the initial nervousness, but take it slow if the bird's not accustomed to it or has only had bad experiences. Many birds only go on car rides to stressful things like new homes, vet visits etc. and have to be shown it doesn't always mean something bad.

- Good lighting. If you can get them outside everyday for 1/2 hr or longer, that should do it, but for everyone else, this means a good full-spectrum flourescent bulb -- look for one marketed for birds (or reptiles ) that has UV range light.

- Frequent baths. A couple of times a week, minimum. For birds already plucking, daily mistings and 2x per week soakings are recommended.

- Good relationships within the flock -- that means you! Secure, loving relationships with the whole family are important. This means not spoiling the bird, not neglecting the bird, avoiding setting up a relationship the bird thinks is sexual (oops!), and -- like in any good relationship -- communication is the key! For all birds but *especially* greys I think talking to them is SOOO important. They understand much more than most people think, and if you just explain what you're doing it can go a long way towards making them feel more secure -- "mommy's leaving for work now" "be back in a minute" "let's go to the kitchen" etc. etc.

- Keep a schedule, but not too strict. Birds like to know when things are going to happen, and they DON'T like it when they never know what to expect. On the other hand, too rigid a schedule, and they may freak out when the schedule is changed. So have "early morning activities" and "evening activities" but don't bother scheduling 9:35 activities. Don't worry about a schedule that changes throughout the week -- so long as the changes aren't too drastic, birds learn the days of the week (I swear!) and adjust. Bedtime and wake-up times should be kept more-or-less the same, though, leading to...

- A solid night's sleep EVERY night. 12 hours is ideal. 10 hrs is acceptable for a bird that isn't plucking, but a plucker should get 12 hrs, no exceptions. Cover the cage or set up a sleeping cage in a quiet room if necessary.

Bah, I've probably forgotten a thing or two but that's some of the main points. Yes, sometimes plucking STILL happens, even with the best care in the world. I know there are plenty of people (*looks guilty* ) who develop bad habits even when they're lives are pretty good, and greys are not so different.

IF you do notice a grey begin to pluck, it's vet time ASAP. *Most* cases of plucking are at least partially caused by physical problems, even if it's just dry skin/feathers. A good avian vet can rule out some of the more common, and a few not-so-common causes of plucking. Don't wait -- the faster the problem is diagnosed and treated, the less likely the plucking is to become a permanent habit. A lot of plucking starts as a simple physical problem, but then becomes so much of a habit that even when the original problem is resolved, the plucking continues.

[Jag]

Great informational post! Thanks! She LOVED getting misted last night! She halfway closed her eyes...moved around so I could get everywhere... she was in heaven. Almost made me cry. How hard is it to mist a bird?? I'm hoping that she'll come around and stop plucking. Good news is I haven't seen her do it since I picked her up...but it IS a habit, so we'll see. I'm hoping she's just itchy, and can be fixed. Either way, a nekkid grey is still a beautiful grey!

[cloudy]

ever since i started my cag on RPO, he's healthy and fit as a horse! so beside him always having lots of toys, phonebook in cage to shred etc and us occupying him and talking to him red palm oil WILL always be in his diet!as another member told me a year ago, its better to treat their dry itchy skin from within as well.

[tkirsch9368]

I cant get my grey to let me mist her....poo!

[tkirsch9368]

My boy plucked for 2 yrs when I got him. I have had him for 6 or 7 weeks now and for the first 2-3 weeks he would get feathers in but pluck them right away. Well, as we paid attn to him and he noticed it is slowly stopping all but the very front of his chest that seems to going to stay bare. Folical damage I am sure but he is getting some back and leaving them. So, I guess interaction was our remedy........now if I could just get him to let me at least mist him but that seems to be out of the ???????

[tkirsch9368]

red palm oil.....where do you get it and is it a supplement for them not getting wet? My grey wont let me mist him so is this something I should be doing with the red palm oil?

[tkirsch9368]

"How hard is it to mist a grey" you ask,,,,,,,come to my house you will see, lol!