Train your parrot not to pluck its feathers
Plucking feathers is a very common misbehaviour in birds and there are many ways to get rid of it. Your bird maybe an essentially bored character who has nothing better to do other than pluck his own feathers. But this is no solution; you have to train your bird to stop this activity as otherwise all its plumage will be lost in no time leaving you with a shrivelled looking, half plucked chicken birdie. For complete solutions to these problems please get our parrot training newsletter and help your parrot become your friend.
Plucking of feathers is a very common behavioural defect in parrots and there can be many reasons to it. The first, is your bird really bored? Does he have enough toys to play with, enough things to do to occupy him when you are not around with him? If the answer to these questions is no then this may be the exact reason for your bird’s behaviour. See, you need to get him some toys so that he can keep himself occupied and not get bored. Buy foraging toys, shredders so that he can utilise his free time in a better way.
But before you start delving into the mystery of your bird’s behaviour you have to treat the already made wounds on his body. The best restraint is a collar, preferably a tube collar which will not allow him to bend his neck and reach his plumage. Then get the wounds made by plucking feathers treated with medicine. Give him good food and medicines and he will be back to normal in no time at all.
Sometimes the environment may be the reason that your parrot is plucking its feathers. Say, if the air is not humid enough then parrots have a tendency to pluck their plumage. If you are not aware then buy a humidifier for your bird. It will keep the cage humid; remember, 60% humidity is a must. Along with keeping the humidity at the required level you can also try giving him frequent baths. Maybe his plumage itches due to uncleanliness, you can never know.
So give him frequent showers and see how he moves on to taking care of his feathers rather than tearing them out of the body. Make sure that he is not wearing any collar or bandage when you are giving him a bath because that may give way to another problem and the issue at hand is problem enough.
You can also try getting a bigger cage for your pet which has varieties of perches in it. Some building material like straw can be placed at the bottom of his cage with food hidden in them. This will keep him engaged as well as well fed and give you some relief at the least; however it maybe something deep and not just misbehaviour. Get the vitals of your parrot done and see if everything is normal or not.
See if mites are the problem and get a mite detector instantly also you may consider getting him a partner so that he is not alone anymore. Try these few solutions and see if they help solve the problem of your parrot plucking its feathers.
