Salty is in trouble with plucking

Giving him permanent medication would be the very last, last thing I might try and maybe not even then. would do anything other then that- wear him as a hat 18 hrs a day, room sized cage, heck wall to wall carpet or wildflowers! But giving him anti-psychotic drugs, nope. We are tryin lupron as a temporary thing, and it looks like that is not really doing much. I;ve adjusted his diet, restricted even more from shreddy stuff, more out of cage time, more 1 on 1 play time. We'll see.
 
wrench13 said:
Giving him permanent medication would be the very last, last thing I might try and maybe not even then. would do anything other then that- wear him as a hat 18 hrs a day, room sized cage, heck wall to wall carpet or wildflowers! But giving him anti-psychotic drugs, nope. We are tryin lupron as a temporary thing, and it looks like that is not really doing much. I;ve adjusted his diet, restricted even more from shreddy stuff, more out of cage time, more 1 on 1 play time. We'll see.
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Again, bless you Wrenchie for helping us talk and support one another, no matter our opinions or experiences. You have enriched this site so so so much. LOVE YA!
 
Oh Wrench I am so sorry. I feel you pain, having just recently gone through this with my Ona. Here's one suggestion for you that helped Ona: a fan for white noise by her sleep cage. She was doing almost all her plucking at night. I put a small fan next to her sleep cage and immediately I saw a difference. The vet recommended we try this and I was glad it helped. May be worth trying for Salty as well.

I can completely relate to your words about blaming yourself and wondering if you did something wrong. It's really hard! And it's an issue that often has no clear answer!
 
onamom said:
Oh Wrench I am so sorry. I feel you pain, having just recently gone through this with my Ona. Here's one suggestion for you that helped Ona: a fan for white noise by her sleep cage. She was doing almost all her plucking at night. I put a small fan next to her sleep cage and immediately I saw a difference. The vet recommended we try this and I was glad it helped. May be worth trying for Salty as well.

I can completely relate to your words about blaming yourself and wondering if you did something wrong. It's really hard! And it's an issue that often has no clear answer!
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Did your bird eat its feathers like wrenchs bird does?
 
I hope Salty is just going through a one episode thing. I know how upset you are because it's obvious how much you love Salty. This is what all people who love their parrots dread more than almost anything short of their parrot flying away or dying.
 
onamom said:
Oh Wrench I am so sorry. I feel you pain, having just recently gone through this with my Ona. Here's one suggestion for you that helped Ona: a fan for white noise by her sleep cage. She was doing almost all her plucking at night. I put a small fan next to her sleep cage and immediately I saw a difference. The vet recommended we try this and I was glad it helped. May be worth trying for Salty as well.

I can completely relate to your words about blaming yourself and wondering if you did something wrong. It's really hard! And it's an issue that often has no clear answer!
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I'm on this!
 
Thechoplady said:
Some Avian vets are having great success with Haldol for feather plucking. I know its controversial for some. Personally, im all for it. People have their coping mechanisms, whether it be caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, meds, etc. I think parrots too, need coping mechanisms if need be. I believe Haldol can help parrots cope with captivity, stress, anxiety, etc. It is not your fault. You could do everything 100% right and your bird may still pluck. It is in no way a negative reflection on you.
Haldol for feather plucking
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**SHudders** Having been on Haldol, I can say it's NOT fun stuff. It turned me into such a zombie... I hope it affects birds differently. If a bird is a serious plucker/multilator, wouldn't hurt to try it.
 
I got one of those sleep type white noise generators (basically a fan). Used it last nite. Of course it will take some time to see if the behavior has stopped. I desperately want it to. Its one thing getting a parrot that already has the issue, to see a perfectly feathered happy parrot start doing it - terrible. Salty seems to be in better form, more willing to play, more interest in toys, but he is still seeking out dark hiding spots, clucking over toys (a mating behavior). THis will be the mating season to remember.
 
Vampiric_Conure said:
**SHudders** Having been on Haldol, I can say it's NOT fun stuff. It turned me into such a zombie... I hope it affects birds differently. If a bird is a serious plucker/multilator, wouldn't hurt to try it.
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Haldol really is a tough drug to take. At one time before all the newer antipsychotic/neuroleptics started in the '90s it was used a lot. There's even an injectable depot form that's given once a month because people with severe mental illness are often not good about taking their meds, especially once they feel better and then the symptoms return. Haldol has been generic for about 40 years so it hasn't been prompted for a long time.

Most drugs in Haldols' class, even the newest ones, have similar side effect risks and risks of a permanent movement disorder. I wouldn't want to have to take any of them or give them to my birds, but many parrots have plucked for years, even decades, and end up either as "unadoptable" shelter residents or are euthanized. No bird deserves that fate. If drugs like Haldol can give these poor birds a chance to live happy, feathered lives I'm all for it, but obviously only after other solutions fail.
 
wrench13 said:
I got one of those sleep type white noise generators (basically a fan). Used it last nite. Of course it will take some time to see if the behavior has stopped. I desperately want it to. Its one thing getting a parrot that already has the issue, to see a perfectly feathered happy parrot start doing it - terrible. Salty seems to be in better form, more willing to play, more interest in toys, but he is still seeking out dark hiding spots, clucking over toys (a mating behavior). THis will be the mating season to remember.
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Does he still eat the feathers?
 
wrench13 said:
I got one of those sleep type white noise generators (basically a fan). Used it last nite. Of course it will take some time to see if the behavior has stopped. I desperately want it to. Its one thing getting a parrot that already has the issue, to see a perfectly feathered happy parrot start doing it - terrible. Salty seems to be in better form, more willing to play, more interest in toys, but he is still seeking out dark hiding spots, clucking over toys (a mating behavior). THis will be the mating season to remember.
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My beloved Lilly, the purple crowned lorikeet hen who I lost back in 2022, did not pluck but her breeding season was nonetheless very hard on her and made her extremely angry and vicious. It was awful to see, nothing either her vet or I tried really helped much as those instincts to reproduce are just so very hard-wired. I'm praying the white-noise machine works for you, @wrench13, and will be very interested to see if it helps 🙏 🙏 🙏
 
wrench13 said:
Yes as far as we know. I have yet to find more then 1 feather from his breast.
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Did you try giving extra protein? Its kinda of a balancing act because ive read that an over abundance of protein can trigger hormones…. In females anyhow. Ive never dealt with an overly hormonal male.
 
DonnaBudgie said:
I realize this may sound strange but do you think he might stop if you gave him other feathers to eat?
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Or he could provide other sources of protein like boiled/scrambled eggs.
 
I tried an "anti-plucking" toy that I got from MySafeBirdStore that's basically a big bouquet of feather (poultry, I presume). The Rb likes it but I notice no plucking change. Although it hasn't gotten worse...
 
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