Feather Plucking

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Spike started plucking out her feathers about a year after we got her. I used to attribute it to the shift change at work. When we got her I was working 2nd shift and Mark was on days. I would take Spike out of her cage in the morning, then again in the afternoon and Mark had her out every night. We had heard the warnings about what happens when people spend every minute with a baby bird, then less as it grows up; the bird gets used to the attention and may resort to screaming or plucking in an attempt to regain that attention. In this case, I had no choice. My job on second shift was eliminated and I was forced to work days or quit. We still spent evenings with Spike, but I’m sure it was upsetting to her.
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We took her to the vet to see if there was a physical reason for the plucking. After numerous tests for known avian diseases it was determined that she was fine physically, it was just anxiety. I had noticed that around the time Spike started plucking she smelled different. She normally had a sweet and powdery odor, but now that was gone. I mentioned it to the vet and I also told her it seemed to me like something was making her itch, but she didn’t seem to think it was anything and Mark didn’t notice any difference in the way Spike smelled, so I let it go. Spike was put on anti-anxiety medication. We gave it to her for almost a year with mixed results – sometimes we thought it was working, other times she plucked no matter what.
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In desperation, I took her to a different vet. He took her off the meds and put her on something else, but it really didn’t help either. I was told that usually when a bird starts to pluck you can never get it to stop. Eventually I took Spike off all the medications. We had tried for several years with no results at all, in fact the plucking actually got worse. She eventually had to wear a collar to prevent her from mutilating her chest. After that she would reach up around her collar with her foot and pull feathers out of her cheeks or stretch her neck down and pull out her leg feathers! No matter what we did she was determined to pull feathers, but at least the collar kept her from making her chest into a huge scab.
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I know people who have gotten rid of their birds when they started plucking. I have to tell you I think that’s appalling. I know it’s not attractive, but I really never see how ugly it is until I see it in a photo. When I look at Spike I only see how cute she is. I do see the damage that she’s done to herself, but her sweet little face and spunky attitude far outshine that. To get rid of her because of the plucking would be like getting rid of a child with a problem – it’s absolutely unthinkable!
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Cathy