Urgent: Goffin feather plucking help

[dotsie]

Hi my goffin has been plucking until she bleeds. No vet has been able to help they think it might be behavioral. There has been no change and she gets plenty of attention. Can anyone help???????????????/

[lavender955]

Sorry I cant help with info. I have read a lot of threads with a lot of info. have you tried putting in search engine goffin plucker. stopping etc. I am sure there is a lot of info out there. that may or may not help you will just have to keep trying different things. I think...

Hopefully you can get some info that will help in some say....

Good luck

[dotsie]

Thanks for answering I"m so afraid of her bleeding to death or an infection I'm giving her an anihistimine.

[lavender955]

I would contact vet for some type of antibiotic that they are use. and do some full research on your own... once you have all the info you can . from what i understand they can be doing it for a lot of different reasons. you will need to get any infection under control (If it has one.) You are in touch with avian vet then start getting all info you can..

they say you need to learn all that you can about your bird possib le reasons for plucking etc. good luck to you.

[lavender955]

I wish I could be of more help to you dotsie somebody may not answer your post as they see that somebody has answered you.. so you may have to repost.

I wish that I was able to be of mor ehelp..

[sasame318]

:-( I'm sorry to hear that your baby is plucking. It's unfortunately so common. Was it sudden onset? Did they do any workups or blood tests to make sure that it's not something medical? Where is she plucking? Depending on the area, sometimes that can be indicative of the cause. It is VERY often behavioral, unfortunately, and can be spurred by reproductive frustration, believe it or not. Is she sexually mature? Has she ever layed eggs? Do we know sex for sure? Does she ever regurgitate for you, or a toy, or ever show any other reproductive signs? What do you do when she picks? How do you react? What do you do if she does show you any reproductive activity? (humping, regurgitating, other amorous behavior) Did something change in your house? Did her cage get moved? Does she have a certain toy that she's REALLY fond of? Like a mate? It may be causing her sexual frustration. Does she get 12 to 14 hours of TOTAL darkness and sleep at night? What does she eat?

Please feel free to contact me, I'll be glad to offer any advise I can.. where are you located? I know a couple good behaviorists in my area. I'm in NJ.

[wildirish]

What antihistamine are you giving her....I wouldn't use anything that wasn't prescribed by an avian vet as it could be potentially harmful. Birds have a sensative respitry system.

Plucking is very common, unfortunately! If all test rule out medical then it can be anything from hormones to who knows what.

I am still not sure where the thing about 12-14 hours of dark sleep came from, birds in the wild etc are up at sunrise (6-7am) and down at dusk (8-9pm) varies a bit from summer to winter.

[ndeben]

I have know people to make a "vest" of soft material to cover the front of the bird so they cant reach so easily. Can you try another vet, to get more information on how to stop this, do you have plenty of things for her to shred, or tear up. I have heard of a woman putting peacock feathers in her parrotlets cage for her to preen. You might need a collar for the bird, that is extreme I know, but you have to stop the behavior before infection sets in.

[sasame318]

the 12 to 14 hours of sleep simulates winter months, and discourages the hormonal triggers that tell them "Time to make a family!!" Being as spring and summer, I.E. short nights, long days, is mating and family raising time. This only helps if the problem actually stems from reproductive overstimulation.. Honest, I didn't make it up!- though I apologize, I should have phrased it better, more so the question is.. How many hours of complete darkness does she get at night? If they are getting too little sleep at night regardless.. I.E... You're watching TV in the livingroom till 1 am cause you work late. the Bird is covered, but is still awake hearing the noise from the television, and is up at 5:30 with the first crack of sunshine coming through the window...


The Dr. I work with has made vests from tube socks from a little Timneh she adopted, he has keel wounds from his previous adventures... They work great! i also know a little hawkheaded parrot that wears tube socks to keep him from mutilating his chest. You cut holes in the side just big enough to safely pass his wings through, and make sure it's short enough that movement of the legs aren't compromised- you also want to make sure that the wing holes aren't so tight that they irritate the thin skin where the wing connects to the body.... you can even dye them and make them cute little rock n' roll themed t-shirts... I've seen it!

[wildirish]

That makes sense, but mine still wouldn't sleep that long no matter what I try LOL! They are asleep between 9-10 and up at 6-7 without fail even if I try to sleep in LOL!

I am also working on a kitted vest for GyspyRose, she is nekked bellied getting it to fit right is fun!