Unhealthy Feather Plucking in pet Birds is often a worry for bird owners. It is a condition that could be due to a disease or a behavioural disorder. Birds naturally pick their feathers for grooming but when you start noticing rashes, bleeding, chewing of feathers, skin discolouration, plenty of feathers at the bottom of the cage, and abnormal bald spots and patches, it is an unhealthy feather pluck

Causes of Unhealthy Feather Plucking in pet Birds

• Pain.
• Disease conditions such as viral, bacterial, cancer, or vitamin deficiencies.
• Behavioural problems like loneliness, boredom, and lack of attention.
• A small-overcrowded cage with a lack of humidity or natural light
• Poor nutrition with a one-dimensional feeding.
• Allergy.
• Toxins from cooking fumes or heavy metal poisoning

Management of abnormal feather plucking in birds

Treatment of this condition depends on the inciting cause. Hence, with the help of your veterinarian, you will need to diagnose the cause.

• If it is a medical condition, it will be managed and the plucking behaviour is expected to stop.
• If you suspect a behavioural disorder due to loneliness, boredom, and lack of attention, provide new toys for the birds to keep them busy, interact and spend more time with the birds.
• Consider changing your bird’s cage to a larger one and moving it to where there is a lot of light. You can consider using a humidifier to raise the humidity.
• Give varieties of food. Consider more vegetables and fewer seeds to increase their nutrition.
• Take note of things that your birds might be allergic to and avoid them.