Listerine??????

[greyburd]

I just wanted to run this past you guys to see what you thought. On 2 seperate occasions I've heard people say to use Listerine (the original, brown colored one) to help birds stop plucking their feathers. They say to spray on the area that's being plucked. Apparently, birds don't like the taste, so they stay away from that area.

There is a HUGE part of me that doesn't like this idea. I was wondering if anyone else has ever heard of trying this.

[alleaa]

I've heard of this as well and I would never use this on Meko (CAG plucker) I think that it would burn as there is alcohol in it.
The best thing to mist them with is 100 % pure aloe & water...3 parts water 1 part aloe. Another good one is Bach's Rescue Remedy.
This is my older webpage with Meko's progress on it, my new one is acting up
http://www.geocities.com/jenniebabybird/indexmeko.html
since the last picture was taken Meko has feathered & unfeathered a few times.

[guanohappens]

Originally Posted by npgsoul

Apparently, birds don't like the taste, so they stay away from that area.

Ummm...wouldn't they then just start plucking somewhere else?

I got my baby hawkhead through an episode of plucking that seemed to me to be hormonal--indeed the breeder confirmed that when Trixie began plucking, the breeder 400 miles away had her hawkheads nesting and some on eggs. She was plucking her breast and concurrently doing some sexual behaviors. I increased her bathing (she likes her water dish) and misting, and provided a "shaggy" leather toy that she LOVED.

I prefer making everything BUT the plucking FUN rather than simply making the plucking itself NOT fun. They're plucking for some sort of release, and to simply take away that release and not substitute some other seems to me to be very cruel.

[The Outlaw]

You misunderstand the use of Listerine. Its not the taste that deters them, it only works if the source of the plucking is of bacterial nature. In theory, it will kill the bacteria and thus the bird will stop plucking. I've used it and had zero success on my plucking BG.

THE OUTLAW

[Lisa B]

it used to be a listerine and colace mixture that was suggested to stop birds from plucking(many moons ago) however...it does burn the bird's skin, and does not work...So I reccomend NOT doing it....

Kings supposedly now has this "pluck no more" stuff that they called to tell us about for the fundraiser we are holding. I know nothing about it....but will look into it. They are NOt going to donate it..we have to BUY it to display at the fundraiser...i DONT SEE THAT HAPPENING.

[yehudasf]

BS"D

I'm using a mixture of 3 Tbs. - 1litre of water as a mist for Ayatleila. When I picked her up from the breeder, she had plucked her breast feathers, back feathers,& was breaking off her wing feathers (what the hell did they do to her, I wonder?) when misted, she doesn't pluck, she does still groom, & I have yet to find any feathers on the bottom of her play area, or cage. My Avian vet seems to think that the beneficial affect may be due to a combination of moisture, & the anti-bacterial action. I would note that it should be very dilute listerine, or else the alcohol will dry out the skin, and likely exacerbate the problem.

[greyburd]

Thanks to everyone for clearing this up for me. It makes better sense now. When I was told about it, I wasn't told to use it for bacterial reasons or to dilute it. I still don't know how I'd feel about using it.

[feather]

Originally Posted by alleaa

I've heard of this as well and I would never use this on Meko (CAG plucker) I think that it would burn as there is alcohol in it.
The best thing to mist them with is 100 % pure aloe & water...3 parts water 1 part aloe. Another good one is Bach's Rescue Remedy.
This is my older webpage with Meko's progress on it, my new one is acting up
http://www.geocities.com/jenniebabybird/indexmeko.html
since the last picture was taken Meko has feathered & unfeathered a few times.

Have you heard of or tried Pluck No More? You can read about it at Kingscages web site. it's available of ebay and quite a discount for the time being. It is all herbal and there is quite a success rate with the product.

[Skyebirdsmom]

Originally Posted by alleaa

I've heard of this as well and I would never use this on Meko (CAG plucker) I think that it would burn as there is alcohol in it.
The best thing to mist them with is 100 % pure aloe & water...3 parts water 1 part aloe. Another good one is Bach's Rescue Remedy.
This is my older webpage with Meko's progress on it, my new one is acting up
http://www.geocities.com/jenniebabybird/indexmeko.html
since the last picture was taken Meko has feathered & unfeathered a few times.

As anyone who's used Listerine knows YEOWWWWWWWWIE it burns!!!! Nope, don't think I'd use it on my bird, for any reason. You know how tender their skin is!!! I agree with using aloe on the skin. I use George's Pure Aloe in a spray bottle. It can be purchased online I'm sure and at any health food store.
Listerine?????? Sheesh!
Linda & HRC~

[daniland]

frankly, i think most topical remedies, including aloe fail unless combined with other treatments, and then who is to say the topical remedy worked? i also continue to use internal herbal or homeopathic stress treatments (non-alcohol ones, so i won't use rescue remedy). i also stopped feeding her sweet potatoes and opted for suash, pumpkin & carrots instead (plant estrogens).

i used to use george's aloe on our plucker jenday (coby), but have stopped after consulting with a groups of fellow bird behaviorists with far more experience than me. we're talking mega-published authors & folks in the vird world for decades. not ONE recommended topical treatments of any kind. since this was the kind of information we all need, i thought i would tell you here. these behaviorists work with some of the finest avian vets in the world. so they aren't just speaking without sound medical advice. and they have worked in the field for decades- and seen lots of fads affect how we treat & interact with our parrots.

their advice? virtually all topical stuff is likely to exacerbate the problem in many birds. the only topical treatment they recommends is DRENCHING showers every day. and that's what we do. it's not just a topical treatment, but a behavioral one. showers calm most birds down, and also mimics the rainy season, which is towards the end of breeding season in new world birds.

i have been a compulsive nail biter since i was a girl. my mother tried everything when i was young to get me to stop, as i would bite til there was little nail left. she wanted me to appear more ladylike. she tried stopping me when she saw the behavior, painting my nails with bitter polish, all sosrts of things.

i am still a nail biter. not even being a (fairly smart) adult with willpower (i've sucessfully quit smoking) has deterred me from my compulsion. our jenday may always pluck. we have yet to find any physiological reason for it, and we think it is more hormonal/behavioral with her. just as my mom always will love me (despite having tiny fingernails), i will always love our coby (despite being mostly naked).