Finally witnessed plucking, and it's awful!!!

[miki]

Good luck! Gracie did that to me, when I brought her to the vet she was sitting on my hand and snipping her feathers off in front of the vet's eyes. Her blood panel (I did everything, metals, diseases, etc) came back normal We think its a stress trigger now.

Ouch!! Sorry to hear about Gracie's severe plucking problem. That must've been really scary to watch Gracie snipping her feathers off, right in front of the vet's eyes...yet. Glad that her blood panel came back normal, and that it was merely a stress trigger.

Having said all of the above, I have a couple of suggestions, which you might wish to clear with idea of with your vet:

A) There's a supplement that can be put in Gracie's drinking water called Avi-Calm. One small scoop of the Avi-calm in her drinking water (sprinkle it on the bottom of the water dish before giving the bird fresh water), then pour the water on it so that the Avi-calm(which is a white powder) will dissolve. Every time the drinking water is changed, one scoop of avi-calm is put in.

Another thing is to either add a small amount of flaxseed oil to her food, or, if that doesn't work, give a small amount of flaxseed oil to Gracie directly by mouth.

It is awful to see a bird plucking its feathers. My now-deceased Noble Macaw, McGee, who died at the age of 20, of unknown causes 5.5 years ago last February, developed a horrible plucking problem, and, despite trying various things, including accupuncture on him, his feather-plucking didn't let up, and he was a permanently bald bird, on his legs, 2/3rds of his breast, and underneath his wings. There were none of the above-mentioned supplements available when I had him, nor did I know about giving him flaxseed oil every day.

When Aziza began plucking her feathers, I learned about the supplements, and the Zoo-Med lamp, and it's helped calm her down a great deal. She'll go through a period twice a year where she doesn't look her best, but I've come to terms with that.

I use both the Avi-Calm in Aziza's drinking water and I give her a small amount of flaxseed oil directly, by mouth, because she won't eat any food that looks different to her, and both of those things together seem to have worked quite well.

Also, something called "Featheriffic" (a powder), and AviCal-Plus (also a powder). added to, and stirred thoroughly into her dry food might help.

Also, do you have a special bird-lamp, like a Zoo-Med lamp at home. Using it for 30 minutes per day, especially during the winter hours, might help. Covering Gracie at night, so that she'll get good rest might help also.

Here's hoping that I've been of some help here. All the best of luck.

 

[miki]

Since AFrican Greys are a powder-down bird, spraying the birds with a home-made solution of water and 3 Tbsps of human-grade, unflavored Aloe-vera juice is a great idea. It cuts down on the dust, and keeps the plucking to a minimum. I do that all the time with Aziza, as well, especially during the summer months.

 

[kodimerlyn]

Miki, where do I find the Alo-vera juice?

 

[miki]

Miki, where do I find the Alo-vera juice?

Do you have a health-food store, or a GNC (General Nutrition Center) in your area? You're more likely to find human-grade (unscented/unflavored) Aloe Vera Juice in either of those stores. A vitamin shop or a drug store might carry Aloe Vera Juice also. I also strongly recommend obtaining and trying the Avi-Calm for your Grey's drinking water. Just put one little tiny plastic scoopful of the white Avi-Calm powder into the bottom of his/her water dish, and pour fresh drinking water over the Avi-Calm, in a circular motion, to help the Avi-Calm dissolve. Ask your veterinarian about the idea of giving your grey Flaxseed oil once a day, as well.

Here's hoping that I've been of some help here.