Need Help

[JayBird]

So I'm definitely not a bird expert, but I try my hardest to be the best I can for Mochi. I've somehow come to acquired a Gold-Capped Conure. I'm clueless.

He's completely plucked, and very skittish. Something Mochi is definitely not. I understand that theres a possibility that him and Mochi will not get along. And also that he must be put into quarantine.
How can we start to bond without it negatively affecting the bond I have with Mochi? I don't want Mochi to feel replaced or like I love Pumpkin more than him, I would in an ideal world want the three of us to be able to be friends.

Just any advice would be great?

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

This is a tough one.

May I ask why he was plucked? Was it due to neglect or something else?

While there is no guarantee that two birds will get along, there are things that you can do that can increase or decrease the likelihood.

For me, I wish I could get a do-over of when I got Skittles. When I got Skittles, I had already had Peaches for 15yrs (she was 16) and the vet told me that Peaches would be aggressive towards the new bird which is why they cautioned me. However, I've never seen Peaches aggressive in the slightest. Even when she is sitting on her eggs. So I dismissed that concern.

I had Skittles quarantined for 30 days despite a clean checkup from the vet and blood work done. I could not bear to leave him alone for that long, especially since he took right to me. By the time the quarantine was over, Skittles was too attached to me that there was no way of getting him and Peaches to get along. He attacked her and she didn't fight back. Now, I cannot even go near Peaches cage (with her in it) without Skittles getting in the way.

Hopefully, people here can give you some good advice. I just know that in my situation, I regret the way I handled it. But I really was clueless as I never had a conure before. Just budgies and tiels for the most part.

 

[JayBird]

I'm not sure the whole story but I do know he was severely neglected by his previous owners.

Thank you for sharing your experience.

Mochi is very much over-protective/bonded to me so I'm very worried about how to slowly get them used to each other. He the main one I'm concerned about, he's smaller than Pumpkin but he's very scrappy when he needs to be and will most likely attack if he feels he's not getting enough attention. I'm hoping that they won't fight, but I guess I have to maybe prepare for the worst incase.

 

[MikeyTN]

I have many birds that don't play nice with others, I just have to take them out separately or hand one to my partner while I hold the other one. There's always a chance with any bird that if you get another they wouldn't get along. I adopted the Dusky as a friend for our Sun but they do not like each other what so ever. Good thing here is the Sun prefers my partner and the Dusky prefers me, so that settles the issue there. When I take them out, I always walk into a separate room with them so it wouldn't spike the jealousy issue.

 

[JayBird]

Okay, thanks for the advice/ sharing your experience.
Hopefully because both are on completely different schedules I can manage dividing my time equally.


Does anyone happen to have any advice on his plucking?
I'm not used to dealing with a bird with high anxiety or anything resembling fear to be honest.

 

[rosembers]

For plucking:

I've never had a bird that plucked, but I have researched the topic in case I ever come across a rescue that does. Here are some of the things I've read can help:

Cotton rope perches. I've heard of birds that stopped plucking when given these (although, they do have other dangers if the bird ingests the material or if it frays they can get caught in it and injured or strangled so you have to be careful with those and monitor if they are frayed or being chewed).

Poor diet and neglect from his previous situation probably contributed to his plucking, so transitioning him to healthy foods should help.

Shreddable/foraging toys can help a lot. Toys that the bird can chew, shred and destroy. Toys with paper, cardboard, etc. Yucca wood is great for this from what I've read. I give yucca wood to my birds as shred toys and they absolutely love to tear them apart! You can buy Yucca kabobs of various sizes, or you can buy slices to make your own or use as foot toys. They also have yucca wood blocks for larger and stronger birds. I love these! From what I've read and heard from people who have birds that pluck, these kinds of toys can help because the bird is used to the behavior of plucking, which can hopefully be diverted to the shred toys. Eventually, the goal is to wean the plucking behavior off itself and onto the shred toys. In time the bird will learn how fun and satisfying it is to chew the toys and hopefully forget about the plucking (especially with having a new/better environment in your home). I've heard this works for a lot of pluckers.

Good luck to you and your bird babies. I also want to say - YOU ROCK for taking in a needy bird with "issues." That's challenging, time consuming, and a lot of work and I think you are a wonderful person for doing what you're doing!!!

 

[MikeyTN]

Plucking isn't something that can easily be solved. Whatever you do, don't get rope toys period!!!! I've warned my neighbor long ago and she didn't listen. She came home to find one her birds hung herself. You can't always be there to watch as they frey the rope.

I've tried toys, food, etc. Anything you can think of, the plucking never ends. Some will recover and do better but they enjoy the taste within their feathers. It is very very tough to stop period. I've been dealing with pluckers for the past 11 years, some do good but some don't.

 

[JerseyWendy]

Okay, thanks for the advice/ sharing your experience.
Hopefully because both are on completely different schedules I can manage dividing my time equally.


Does anyone happen to have any advice on his plucking?
I'm not used to dealing with a bird with high anxiety or anything resembling fear to be honest.

You are a very kind and special person with a HUGE heart to take in this baby! :smile015:

Don't know if you've read this thread yet - it's a GREAT read! http://www.parrotforums.com/behavioral/52217-plucking-search-answers.html