My GCC mutilates himself :(

[orhanyor]

hello parrot lovers. i have a 2 year old green cheek conure i got him when he was 2 months old from a local breeder. Hes very well behaved doesnt bite doesnt scream. i work from home so i only put him in his cage during the night and i let him out first thing in the morning. he gets constant attention during the day and i can say hes pretty happy.
Except that he periodically enters a state of intense self scratching(around his neck) periods lasts for like 1 week. its so intense that i can see patches of skin almost about to fall off swollen almost rotten looking. he completely ignores me, his mood changes and stays in the corner in the room. first time it happened around a year ago. i went outside for like 2 hours i got back and his neck was all wet and yes you guessed it, it was all blood. i took him to a vet actually number of vets but none of them could help him. they just gave me multivitamins and antibiotics to be used for a week. it was so bad that i thought he is going to die because he lost the ability to fly because he lost all his power during that period. after a week he stopped scratching himself and there was a big scab around his neck for almost 2 weeks. he completely healed and when i thought it wont happen again, happened the same thing after around 4-5 months but he didnt lose his ability to fly this time i would say he was abit better but the sight around his neck is just hard to look at. and now after around 4months hes having the same thing. no matter what i do i cant stop him to scratch himself. i filed his nails to be sure they are not sharp and looked for any pin feathers that might give him troubles i even pulled them out completely but no it didnt help at all. all i ask from you guys if anyone experienced the same thing so i can know what im dealing with. watching him slowly mutilating his neck destroys my heart love him to bits just dont know what to do..

 

[Laurasea]

Did they scope his crop? Or do an x-ray? This makes me think he has thread or something impacting his crop..... does he have a happy hut??? Many birds get impaction of the crop by eating the fluff. Does he chew on ropes?
I'm sorry to hear of this, and glad you have tried vets. I hope you have gone to avain specialist, who have advanced training and certification? If so it might be good to seek a veterinary school and see if they can help. Something like this sounds like it could risk his life at some point....awww I just feel for you!!

 

[Flboy]

This has to be heartbreaking!

 

[RemiBird]

Oh my goodness, that is terrible... I used to have two cockatiels, and the female would pluck her feathers and chew on the skin too - it was all behavioral unfortunately. The certified avian vet suggested birdie collar (made of some kind of Styrofoam and it didn't work well) and antibiotics... Unfortunately, her condition progressed to worse over the years to the point that I felt I couldn't and didn't know how to help her anymore. It was hard to watch. I had to surrender her to a bird sanctuary/rescue where they had regular vet visits and knowledgeable caretakers. It was so heartbreaking, but I knew she was gonna receive better care there. They put this fleece collar on her and she was receiving a lot of one on one attention, something I couldn't give her at home because I had her partner, the male cockatiel. Well, to cut story short, the male went crazy without her, crying all day and attacking me, which he had never done before. So, I had to surrender him to them as well. However, it turns out, they figured out that he was stressing her out so they separated them permanently. The male was paired up with a cockatiel he got along with well and she was adopted by a lady who was going to devote all the time to her. I still miss them to this day and my heart is broken for giving them up (I felt like a failure for a long time after that), but looking at the bigger picture, they are both much happier and probably healthier for that matter.
Anyway, there is always a reason why birds do things like that. It's just the matter of finding the right person who is knowledgeable enough to figure it out. Don't give up, I would find a certified avian vet to begin with and maybe a parrot rescue or something where you can get more answers, not necessarily give him up but get help from them. See if a fleece birdie collar works. Test for parasites and other illnesses maybe?
I feel bad for you, it is a very stressful thing to watch your bird suffer like that.

 

[orhanyor]

Did they scope his crop? Or do an x-ray? This makes me think he has thread or something impacting his crop..... does he have a happy hut??? Many birds get impaction of the crop by eating the fluff. Does he chew on ropes?
I'm sorry to hear of this, and glad you have tried vets. I hope you have gone to avain specialist, who have advanced training and certification? If so it might be good to seek a veterinary school and see if they can help. Something like this sounds like it could risk his life at some point....awww I just feel for you!!

thanks for all the replies it means alot. before i had him i was aware of this situation with the happy hut and read some horror stories so instead i made him myself from a cardboard.
the problem is where i live birdies are not popular so finding an avian vet is like searching for a unicorn in the middle of a desert but i swear i ll find one day because this situation wont disappear it will keep coming back this is the third time and im not sure for how many more times he can tolerate this situation with its tiny body i swear to god he is going to turn my life upside down is something happens to him.
noted your suggestions thanks for everyone who responded i will try to see what more i can do apart from giving him antibiotics which seems to help abit.
its also interesting how this situation happens in an instant theres no transition or any other signs or may be i cant read them i dont know.

 

[Tami2]

I'm sorry to hear this.
It sounds to me like it could be a skin irritation or an allergy.
I wouldn't immediately think behavior based on what you've said about his day to day life. (which is wonderful btw)
Is it happening around the same time every year?

 

[RemiBird]

This is what I was talking about - birdie collars : https://birdsupplies.com/
You can probably make something similar at home.

 

[RemiBird]

I'm sorry to hear this.
It sounds to me like it could be a skin irritation or an allergy.

That is a good point. Maybe food allergy? Sometimes if there are bits of corn in the seed mix, the bird may be allergic to it.

 

[Laurasea]

You can feed yogurt with live culture no artificial sweeteners, and just a thumb size amount from a fresh new one each time, mine lick it from my fingers. It can help balance his flora.
Also be aware of any lotion or perfume you have on. Like mentioned it could be allergy to a food too, or behavior.... But I worry about the crop the most. Something their crop gets burned by the breeder feeding to hot food and scars, not saying this is what happened. Poor thing. Do you have any last pictures of this you can share?

 

[Tami2]

You can feed yogurt with live culture no artificial sweeteners, and just a thumb size amount from a fresh new one each time, mine lick it from my fingers. It can help balance his flora.
Also be aware of any lotion or perfume you have on. Like mentioned it could be allergy to a good too, or behavior.... But I worry about the crop the most. Something their crop gets burned by the breeder feeding to hot food and scars, not saying this is what happened. Poor thing. Do you have any last pictures of this you can share?

There is also birdie probiotics you can give w/out giving the dairy.

 

[orhanyor]

this is how he is at the moment. he stopped the scrathing but he has a fever. at least he eats well and flies. his mood is definitely off and doesnt talk at all constantly looking sunny spots to stay in closes his eyes during the day. i can say hes better at least

these are only partly visible it goes almost all around his neck. cant believe he can do such a thing to himself during the night he starts to scrathing and it continues up until the morning may be thats why hes sleepy during the day.

 

[orhanyor]

I'm sorry to hear this.
It sounds to me like it could be a skin irritation or an allergy.
I wouldn't immediately think behavior based on what you've said about his day to day life. (which is wonderful btw)
Is it happening around the same time every year?

i think it happened with around 4 months intervals im not sure if that indicates anything.

@RemiBird
i suspect that as well. hes so used to eat with us persistent and you cant literally eat your own meal unless you give something to him, you just cant. persistent like a kid and he will try every possible way and disturb you get that thing from your hand. even if hes eaten literally 10 minutes ago he must eat while you are eating too. i strictly not give him the deadly foods for parrots which i noted from the google apart from that i eat healthy as well so i give him from my food. other that that i make him pellet and fruit/veggie mix in the food processor and freeze that batch as thin layers so i can break a piece and prepare it when its time for a meal. so yea may be he got some allergy from my food too im not sure.

 

[orhanyor]

things are looking good hes got appetite, though even if it was his last day he would still try to eat something. hes just obsessed with eating) he has a strong grip which means he didnt lose his power. i think he will be fine but still i need to figure out the cause. may be i shouldnt give him from my food. tho its really hard imagine preparing a plate of food leave it on the table you just forgot to take a fork or glass of water and when you are back he already started to dig in. sometimes its out my control. i dont want to put him in his cage. even tho its a really big one he absolutely sees it as a prison. thats another thing we have to work on.

 

[Laurasea]

It takes more calories to heal or fight infection..
The sleeping and heat seeking make me very worried...
Also make sure he gets ten hours of sleep a night.
Did you try the yogurt? It will really help balance the flora in his crop, and digestive system. I credit it to saving my green cheeck conure Ta-dah. The capsicum in red hot chili peppers also good for improving immunity, plus isca good source of vitamin A.

 

[orhanyor]

It takes more calories to heal or fight infection..
The sleeping and heat seeking make me very worried...
Also make sure he gets ten hours of sleep a night.
Did you try the yogurt? It will really help balance the flora in his crop, and digestive system. I credit it to saving my green cheeck conure Ta-dah. The capsicum in red hot chili peppers also good for improving immunity, plus isca good source of vitamin A.

hes having it daily because i eat daily as well ) doesnt matter what it is whatever i eat he wants it too. sometimes i dont get it but yea hes having half a tea spoon of pure yogurt almost every day and he just stucks his face in it and then wipes it on my white tshirt

 

[Laurasea]

I was only just now able to see the pictures, oh my gosh it looks do bad. Had to break your heart every day. In my opinion you need to get him medical attention, as soon as you can find an avain specialist vet, or please try the nearest vet school. Swollen eyes, the look of his neck and him constantly having to close his eyes and rest is very scary to me.....
I do have a bird that uses her feet and beak to pluck around her neck. But she has only given her self tiny pink scratches tgdt don't open the skin..
Is that black stuff dried blood,???
Your buddy needs help, birds hide how bad off they are, and the symptoms you describe make me think he is bad off. I am just so worried for you,. I wish you could find the right help s d answers!!!! Heartbreaking
Please keep us informed do we can all learn from what you two have had to go through.....

 

[orhanyor]

I was only just now able to see the pictures, oh my gosh it looks do bad. Had to break your heart every day. In my opinion you need to get him medical attention, as soon as you can find an avain specialist vet, or please try the nearest vet school. Swollen eyes, the look of his neck and him constantly having to close his eyes and rest is very scary to me.....
I do have a bird that uses her feet and beak to pluck around her neck. But she has only given her self tiny pink scratches tgdt don't open the skin..
Is that black stuff dried blood,???
Your buddy needs help, birds hide how bad off they are, and the symptoms you describe make me think he is bad off. I am just so worried for you,. I wish you could find the right help s d answers!!!! Heartbreaking
Please keep us informed do we can all learn from what you two have had to go through.....

yes it is dried blood actually its worse when you see it with naked eyes. now theres very thick scrab around his neck almost like a collar. exactly like the last time it happened. sometimes while hes scratching himself he pokes his eyes and eyelids with his nails and that makes it even worse. i suspect that when he opens a wound it becomes itchy and he starts to scratch even more. but he cant penetrate the scrab now because its too thick and he rarely scratches himself at the moment. i give him vitamins and antibiotics for now if he doesnt get any better i will visit the same vet again. we live in a small town not many choices around here i will keep you guys updated.

 

[Laurasea]

I'm just do worried that he doesn't have s lot of time, he has repetitive blood loss, possible infection under the scab, you said he feels hot, and is sleeping or closing his eyes a lot...
Heat seeking, sick birds need to be kept warmer. There is a radiant heat panel I use, I hang outside the cage in one corner with a perch in front of it on the inside of the cage. I've used it for near 20 years..
It's called the sweeter heater, available at Amazon and bird safe I will find the link to Amazon and edit this. It puts out a lot of radiant heat so you have to place so they can get away from the heat, and not cover the cage completely when it's on. Put your hand a few inches of front if it and leave there, you will feel your hand heat up by the radiant heat, this is not a light, but s heat panel there is no light
I'm sorry you don't have good care available near by, but for my peace of mind I must stress that he needs help soon
I would try to use warm water to soak away the old blood, without opening up the scab. Old blood will grow nasty bacteria and stuff... I don't want you to disturb the scab, but just try and clean him up some. Did past vets give you advice on keeping it clean,??
https://www.amazon.com/SWEETER-HEAT...9Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

 

[MydearConure]

Sorry to hear about this! This is terrible! It seems like his neck itches very much due to a bacterial infection (that can be treated with antibiotics), or parasites. Once the itching disappears he will stop scratching his neck. Also, if he is molting it can be itching and stressful for him. An avian doctor can prescribe a medication for that problem. Also, frequent warm baths, and a diet that includes fresh fruit (not too frequent) and vegetables. I always gave Grinie, my old GCC, KAYTEE Fori-Diet Pro Health for Conure & Lovebird Food and never had problems with her skin. Another possible problem could be food allergy.
Hope you find what is bothering him. Let us know his progress.

 

[MydearConure]

Some sources in the internet said that "Yogurt" is not good for Green Cheek Conures and in general birds do not produce lactose (the enzyme necessary to help digest lactose). Essentially, birds are highly lactose intolerant. I use almond milk when preparing mashed potatoes for my conure.

At this point, I suggest go back to the basic and feed him only pellets or bird food with green vegetables. Cut down on fruits (3 times a wk). Give fresh water. Change the bowl at least twice a day. Birds would eat even if they are sick (this is by instinct). In the wild, birds fake to be healthy to avoid other predator birds to kill them.

Laurasea is right, he looks very sick and needs immediate medical attention. Any veterinarian could get some blood samples and find out what is his problem.

I feel so sorry for him and you. I know how it feels to see our "baby" suffering. Keep up us posted of his condition.