Rescued cockatoo behavorial questions

[itsmsbrat2u]

A few years ago my mom and I rescued this female cockatoo from a very very bad situation where the bird was not only being starved but also tormented with kids toys and other objects, etc. She's come a long way since my mom got her, she even enjoys being held and talks and all sorts of stuff.. But she still has this habit of pulling her tail feathers toward her chest with her feet and she does it all the time.. I took a video of her doing it but its a bit hard to see.. Im just trying to figure out why shes doing it and possibly how to get her to stop. Thank you.

 

[Maya The Ringneck]

A few years ago my mom and I rescued this female cockatoo from a very very bad situation where the bird was not only being starved but also tormented with kids toys and other objects, etc. She's come a long way since my mom got her, she even enjoys being held and talks and all sorts of stuff.. But she still has this habit of pulling her tail feathers toward her chest with her feet and she does it all the time.. I took a video of her doing it but its a bit hard to see.. Im just trying to figure out why shes doing it and possibly how to get her to stop. Thank you.

there can be a few different reasons, including medical problems, life stage of the bird and even nutritional problems. Medically there is a lot of different things that can cause a bird to do this.
But it is probably just a nutritional thing so maybe try changing to a different food with more nutritional value or add to her food. If this does not help, get her checked out by maybe a vet to see if there is something wrong. If everything checks out them it may just be a habit of hers.

 

[itsmsbrat2u]

there can be a few different reasons, including medical problems, life stage of the bird and even nutritional problems. Medically there is a lot of different things that can cause a bird to do this.
But it is probably just a nutritional thing so maybe try changing to a different food with more nutritional value or add to her food. If this does not help, get her checked out by maybe a vet to see if there is something wrong. If everything checks out them it may just be a habit of hers.

Okay I will try changing her diet and see if that helps. Unfortunately the closest vet that would see her is a 4 hour drive away and she gets entirely too nervous in a small cage and in a vehicle. Thanks for that information

 

[Free as a bird]

A few years ago my mom and I rescued this female cockatoo from a very very bad situation where the bird was not only being starved but also tormented with kids toys and other objects, etc. She's come a long way since my mom got her, she even enjoys being held and talks and all sorts of stuff.. But she still has this habit of pulling her tail feathers toward her chest with her feet and she does it all the time.. I took a video of her doing it but its a bit hard to see.. Im just trying to figure out why shes doing it and possibly how to get her to stop. Thank you.

What a beautiful cocky white as snow with that crest tucked back.
If it's something that she's always done then I would just put it down to her character, something she enjoys to do. I wouldn't worry about it, some of those cockys have the habit of plucking feathers, at least yours doesn't do that

 

[itsmsbrat2u]

What a beautiful cocky white as snow with that crest tucked back.
If it's something that she's always done then I would just put it down to her character, something she enjoys to do. I wouldn't worry about it, some of those cockys have the habit of plucking feathers, at least yours doesn't do that

She actually does rip out / break off her tail feathers, sometimes all of them in a short time

 

[Maya The Ringneck]

Okay I will try changing her diet and see if that helps. Unfortunately the closest vet that would see her is a 4 hour drive away and she gets entirely too nervous in a small cage and in a vehicle. Thanks for that information

no problem, any time

 

[Starling]

A few years ago my mom and I rescued this female cockatoo from a very very bad situation where the bird was not only being starved but also tormented with kids toys and other objects, etc. She's come a long way since my mom got her, she even enjoys being held and talks and all sorts of stuff.. But she still has this habit of pulling her tail feathers toward her chest with her feet and she does it all the time.. I took a video of her doing it but its a bit hard to see.. Im just trying to figure out why shes doing it and possibly how to get her to stop. Thank you.

I’m new here but I have a bit of knowledge to impart on this-
Your bird is performing a normal preening behavior. She is getting all the feathers to align in one direction. As she pulls from the base of the long tail feathers, each barb (the individual fingers) will be pulled toward the tip of the vein and put into smooth shape. Unless she is actually trying to pull out the feather, which is indeed abnormal, your bird is fine.