Too much change for him to handle?

[Mom of Waddly]

Hi! I'm new to the board. We adopted a 2 year old Black headed caique, and have had him for 1 month. He is adjusting well in many ways, and is becoming more demonstrative and outgoing every day. He sits on our fingers and shoulder, does a few tricks, says the words he knows, etc.

However, he has begun plucking his feathers out...He has a small bald spot on his left hip, and one under his beak (where he can reach), and is now pulling from his back. His previous owner says they never saw him do this on purpose. They said that he had been having problems molting. I'm not sure what to think.

We are taking him to the vet on Saturday.

Any thoughts about this plucking? We are encourarging him to try new things that he didn't really do in his old home...tricks, wrestling with him, getting him to lay on his back. He is easily irritated, but I let him calm down and keep trying to teach him things. Are we being too rough or demanding? Or could the plucking be a product of moving?

[Freedomoflight]

Hi!

Are you positively sure he is plucking? In some instances a hard molt can reveal a birds natural 'bald spots' and cause owners to worry and wonder about plucking.
If he is plucking, one of two things comes to mind:
The stress of a new home, new environment and new people have lowered his immune system, and opened the door for some sort of irritant to cause him to pluck. A sign of Giarda, for example, is plucking.
It could also be- the stress of a new environment, new people, etc is causing him to develop a nervous habit- aka plucking. Where is his cage in your household? Is it in a really busy spot? Is it up against a wall? Is it a round or square cage? Does he have a lot of toys? Does he have an area in the cage that he can 'hide' in?
Are you sure he is male, also? My female I adopted as a plucker, but she tends to really beef up her plucking activities in the spring. Could the plucking be hormonal? Does his food contain photoestrogens like soy, or hemp, or foodstuffs like yams?

[FLANCE]

my coockatoo did to he looked like a plucked chicken ready for the oven (IS GROWING FEATHERS BACK TAKES A WHILE .stress also big for them .he should do better if you cuttle him ,telling him what a pretty bird he is hope this helps

[Mom of Waddly]

oh yes...he's plucking. Yesterday he pulled a feather out while he was on my husband's shoulder. It landeded on his elbow, so Mr. Waddles walked down his sleeve, picked the feather up, and threw it on the floor. What personality!

He has a very large cage, and it is in the busiest part of our house. It is near a window and we have the curtains open. I do have concerns about humidity, as we have our heat on. We live in the midwest, and there's ton of snow right now. The cage is square, and it is about 6 inches from the window, and otherwise facing our dinner table. He has many toys in his cage, although he seems hesitant to play with the toys in front of us. He does have a cuddly hut that he can hide in and get away.

We do not know if he is a male or female...we just call him Mr. Waddles.

Your question...."Does his food contain photoestrogens like soy, or hemp, or foodstuffs like yams? " I don't know...we are using a pelleted diet, and we are trying to suppliment with veggies and fruits, although we haven't been as good at that as we should.

what else should we consider?

[Freedomoflight]

I am hesitant to say that the plucking is the cause of this or that, but there are some things you can try if you can't medically pinpoint the cause.

Move his cage against the wall, so that he can feel 'secure'. My plucker is very insecure about her surroundings and is most comfortable on the bottom portion of a double stacker cage, with the back of the cage sitting against the wall. giving him a box he can hide in, in the bottom of his cage, or a fleecy type thing he can snuggle might help as well.

If you want to treat it like its hormones you can : drastically reduced the cooked foods he gets. Stay away from foods like yam, hemp soy, etc. Check his pellets and seed to see if the food he is eating contains hemp- that really fires up hormones and can be an issue in caiques.

You can get a cheap, decent humidifier from Walmart and place that near his cage, esp. if you live in a dry climate. Or simply taking him in the bathroom and put him on the curtain rod while you shower will help too. If you think his plucking may be due to uncomfortable itchiness you can spritz him with aloe vera.

I would wait and see what the vet says, tho.

[Mom of Waddly]

We'll move his cage tonight against a wall. My mom has been trying to give me a humidifier for awhile...I'll take her up on her offer.

I have a feeling the vet is going to give him a collar. He will be pretty silly looking. Any idea how long he'd wear it for?

[huntress]

Your question...."Does his food contain photoestrogens like soy, or hemp, or foodstuffs like yams? " I don't know...we are using a pelleted diet, and we are trying to suppliment with veggies and fruits, although we haven't been as good at that as we should.


Read the ingredients or go to the website for the pelleted diet you are on to get the list of ingredients.

COLLARS should be a last ditch effort. Are you going to a certified Avian vet? If not your probably wasting your money. Listen to Freedomofflight - she know Ciaques ANd one of hers is a plucker.

[Maxlovesboating]

I agree with the "Certified Avian Vet" If your not you are most deff wasting your $$$.

[Mom of Waddly]

So, here is the situation....there are no certified avian vets in my area...not that I wouldn't be able to travel to the right vet. However, the person who I am taking him to sees birds, owns birds, and has a large clinic. The secretary said that 30% of his business is birds.

what do you think?

[Maxlovesboating]

Just be careful, It sounds like better that a Petsmart type of place, nothing against them, just bad past situations in our area. Again, just be careful.