2007-07-30 09:25:25 · 8 answers · asked by Scott M 1 in Pets ➔ Birds
You have heard that he is bored or distressed. That is true.
Try to remove stress as one way to stop him.
Give him special "anti-plucking" toys ! These toys are made of ropes or cloth with very ratty ends which will look like they need trimmed. Hopefully he will pluck the ropes or cloth and stop plucking himself ! These toys are common, and can even be made yourself. Just be sure to use materials which will not be harmful or poisonous tohim, as birds are susceptible to some strange items.
Find these toys at DrFosterSmith.com
Also join a Yahoo bird group to get help from experienced bird owners . I recommend helloeberybirdie as a group with helpful people and lots of knowledge. Its totally free and can be a great help.
2007-07-30 10:00:32 · answer #1 · answered by John P 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
birds can pluck for a large number of reasons. Boredom, could be hereditary, could have mites, stress, etc. The key is to find why it is plucking and go from there. How long has it been plucking for? Did it start after a stressful situation, that just developed into a bad habit? Do you know where the parents are? Do any of the parents pluck? Have you had the bird tested for mites? Are there a lot of toys in the cage and do you spend enough time with the bird? Parrots are very social animals and need to interact with other birds or people to prevent these bad habits. Answer these questions and go from there. Once a parrot starts plucking it is very difficult to break the habit, but with a lot of hard work (and probably a lot of money) you can hopefully break the habit. Good luck!
2007-07-30 16:35:05 · answer #2 · answered by sdographics 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Get him more toys, but not too many. There's a lot of toys that birds love to preen, and that helps sometimes. Make sure that he's getting enough sleep (usually about 10-12 hours, or you can just let the bird go to sleep when the sun goes down, and wake up when the sun rises). Make sure you're spending enough time with him (most pet stores say one hour is enough, but I disagree), and make sure nothing stressing him out (like another bossyy bird, or a cat). Good luck :)
2007-07-30 17:20:58 · answer #3 · answered by cottonblosssom 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I agree with the others that the bird is displaying behavior that is consistent with being bored. Did you know that this large and beautiful bird is very social and requires at least 4 hours of interacting with you each day? True! Even a parakeet requires that type of interaction with people. You need to talk to the bird and play with it. Its wings are clipped and you do allow it out of the cage for a large part of the bird's day, right? No? Then start there. Talk to it, feed it out of hand, play with it via toys, make it part of your family and not just a piece of furniture.
2007-07-30 17:40:30 · answer #4 · answered by DaveSFV 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Another thing to look into is diet. Birds need a variety of fruits and veggies, and macaws in particular need more high fat nuts than other birds. Also he could have some allergies so a trip to a vet who specializes in birds is in order.
2007-07-30 18:08:15 · answer #5 · answered by razorlily13 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Macaws do this when they are bored or emotionally distressed. Your bird is telling that he needs more attention, toys and exercise.
2007-07-30 16:28:09 · answer #6 · answered by Nicole 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
he is bored... birds pluck themselves when they get too bored and begin to stress especially parrots because they are so intelligent..... get him more toys, spend more time with him or buy him a mate
2007-07-30 16:28:08 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
the bird is either bored or nervous
2007-07-30 16:34:21 · answer #8 · answered by nunya b 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋