Ask Lafeber

Preening toys

My, approximately, 6 month old cockatiel has a tendency to ‘nibble’ his neck feathers when he’s at peace and roosting. From what I have read, preening toys can relieve stress as well as the need for social preening. I have tried adding a simple preening toy and so far it does seem to have made a difference.
Is this behavior that I am seeing just the natural need for social preening and is the addition of a preening toy an acceptable practice?
My other fears are ingestion and preoccupation. From what I have read ingestion is very rare as they chew on all sorts of materials in nature and don’t seem to ingest it nor become ill from it.
On preoccupation, would it be a reasonable solution to remove the preening toy when he is active, so he occupies himself with a wider array of activities, and only offer it up during times when he is likely to be roosting and feeling a need for social preening?

Thanks in advance for any insights and/or advice you could offer.

Hi Tery,

Birds are always preening to keep their feathers healthy. Preening the neck feathers the way you describe is a normal behavior and seems to be a form of contentment when the bird is at rest. Some birds gently grind their beaks. It isn’t anything to be concerned about. If you handle the bird, and he has toys to keep him busy and a variety of foods to explore, I wouldn’t worry about “social preening”. This really isn’t a factor with a bird that has a human companion. When you scratch his head and he explores your hand or arm, this is a replacement for any mutual preening that takes place in a flock. You might also look into teaching him to forage for his food as this is the best form of enrichment you can offer, since wild parrots spend most of their day foraging for food. We have a playlist of videos that demonstrate how to start your bird with foraging and offer different ideas.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda