Ask Lafeber

Talking eclectus parrot

I have a wonderful Solomon eclectus and he is 9 years old I saved him from a previous owner that was really bad to him and he became a really bad feather plucker under his wings the outside is beautiful he started feather plucking his chest to where it started bleeding I usually spray my birds with that problem with apple bitter and they don’t like the taste and they stop the plucking the problem is my eclectus likes the taste so I thought of getting a small potato salad top and cutting out the center and putting tape around it then plopped it on his head he could still do everything he did before but couldn’t pluck his feathers so he finally stopped and he never plucked his chest again. And it healed up but now I have a more serious problem he is started to pluck again but now it’s on his neck and it looks really bad and I don’t know what to do because he does it in his cage at night and I can’t see him to stop it.
Do you know of anything I could do so stop it? Appreciate any help he is my favorite bird.

Hi Eugene,

You should start by taking him to an Avian Vet for a full check up. Plucking can indicate an underlying health issue or some type of skin infection. A collar can allow the feathers to grow back, but if there is still a health issue, they start plucking again. There have been advances in treating feather plucking so hopefully the Vet can determine a cause so your bird can have some relief. .

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda