mas Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 Hey everyone, Since having damaged feathers removed at the vets - in the last 3 days Zahzu has started pulling out soft downy feathers and soft little grey feathers from her left wing shoulder. We are trying to get her to bath more, have renovated her cage so she's got more things to shred and chew up, are making sure we walk away whenever she pulls out the feathers etc...... Have read all the posts here with advice re plucking, but just wanted to share this worry with you all! I know worrying about it will make it worse also, I try not to let on to her that I'm worrying, but inside I am! Will she stop plucking?? She's doing it less than day before yesterday as far as I know.. -Sameera Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovemyGreys Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 Hi Sameera, you are doing all the right things to discourage her not to pluck but im afraid the answer to your question is we just dont know if she will stop.As you are aware by reading the various threads on the forum about plucking there are many reasons to why greys pluck & there is no magic cure.Hang in there try not to worry too much & by all means vent your frustrations with us Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 Hi Sameera - With all the actions you are taking in helping Zahzu get rid of those tattered and irritating feathers, cage arranging and baths. It would seem that the plucking should start lessening as you indicate it has. Only time will tell, as plucking a difficult issue to resolve sometimes. Just keep up the Red Palm Oil in diet and misting with Aloe Juice often and your chances should be greatly increased of putting a stop to it. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mas Posted June 17, 2008 Author Share Posted June 17, 2008 Thanks so much guys.... I had to mist her with aloe juice (it's brown - is that normal???) because she wouldn't bath in it. She was screaming blue murder while I misted her- it was awful and after it was done she pulled out a shread of down feather! I'm wondering if that forced misting is going to increase anxiety? But I am also really worried if I stop it her skin will get even more dry than it already is... Should I start by misting once per day only? Or try a few times per day if that'll help get her used to it quicker? I know I need to persist till she's used to the misting, but i feel like such a meanie! Thanks again..... -Sameera Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 I've never seen brown Aloe Juice. It is normally clear like water. As you are spraying, it should be like a stream, not a "Mist" that would be squirting in your Greys eyes and face. That alarms them even more and is irritating to them. Adjust the nozzle to shoot a stream. aim it at the chest, wings, back etc. Not the face. Pulling a bunch of down feathers out in reaction, certainly sounds like a spiteful fit. You only need to give a good soaking one time a day or even just every other day. Probably the worst thing you could do is obssess over him, he will pick up on your anxiety. These Greys are just too smart and sensitive sometimes. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 My aloe vera juice is clear but it has a slight tan tint to it almost like weak tea. You need to ignore the plucking, just like Dan said, some are so sensitive and smart and they pick up on our emotions and reactions and you certainly don't want to encourage it further. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mas Posted June 17, 2008 Author Share Posted June 17, 2008 Hmmm... I also always thought aloe juice was meant to be clear - ohhh...it's whole leaf pulp - is this going to be a problem? She really hates the spray - I tried again with the stream and she was crashing around her cage a great deal...dear oh dear. -Sameera Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mas Posted June 17, 2008 Author Share Posted June 17, 2008 I"m trying so hard to ignore it - I walk away when she does it - maybe she knows I'm walking away because of the plucking??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 What I have is 100% aloe vera juice and it is clear but has that slight tint to it, I don't know about the whole leaf pulp, is it liquid like water? You know you can get a mister that you can set up and have it come down on her, you could use just water to get her thoroughly soaked and then give her a finishing off with some aloe juice as thats all she needs. I know this is frustrating for you since she hates the spray but she really needs the baths for her feathers and skin. My Josey doesn't like baths or showers either but she will tolerate them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mas Posted June 17, 2008 Author Share Posted June 17, 2008 Well, we bought a humidifier last week for her to avoid having to spray her - so I'm keeping the humidifier on most of the day. Is this going to be a substitute for misting her with the water? The humidifier is right next to her cage and she gets the mist from it directly on her sometimes.... This is really frustrating - but I guess it's one of those things...gotta deal with it! ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MisterDavE Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 With bathing, me and my partner used to just take cleo in the shower with us and sit her on the rail so she gets all steamed up and then making sure water is a nice temperature for her we wouldjust plonk her under it, she would go crazy for like a couple seconds fly onto my shoulder andlook at me like "that was too pleasant" and we did that for about a month a couple times a week and now she is actually ok with the whole showering thing and puts her own head under the water to get a good ol' soaking I hope you find a way to wash the wee one as it can be frustrating. Godd luck Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave007 Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 The humidifier isn't gonna do anything where is it concerns a plucking bird. Humidifiers moistenms the air, not the bird's skin. A bird doesn't open it's feathers just to get the skin wet from a humidifier. Ever see a bird do that? It opens up to heavy fluids. Just because the humidifier is next to her doesn't mean much because a grey's feathers are waterproof. The mist, even though you can't actually see it, just rolls off of a grey. The only way to deal with your special problem where it concerns fluid is to manually put it on and that might take some doing. That should be your first priority. Many birds don't even like misting and you have to go farther than just misting. You need to get the skin soaked. You need to do it everyday. You need to soak the bird in more places than just the affected area. You have aloe juice that turned brown? Dump it. Buy a fresh bottle. Sometimes, it just goes bad. Put the open bottle in a fridge. Use cold fluids on the bird's skin. A couple of things concerning a plucker-- many times a bird has setbacks. Just when you think the problem is finally solved, a grey will start plucking all over again. That makes a person feel that they've failed but that's not true. I've seen greys have about 3 setbacks bhefore the problem lesssens.A grey does an extreme thing to itself when it plucks and that extreme thing goes all the way down to the skin. The bird has to have a long period of treatment in order to help with those setbacks. At one point it passes the new feather growth irritations and finally the problem drastically lessens. Another thing--a plucker plucks less when it's out of it's cage. Being out of a cage is a big distraction. You need to do this frequently. You need to get some toys such a heavy duty bell that your grey can take it's frustrations out on.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2008/06/17 18:27 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mas Posted June 18, 2008 Author Share Posted June 18, 2008 Thank you everyone for your tips and advice. We are on a mission now: Mission Bathtime! We need to get this brat soaked even if she bites me ;-) I haven't seen or heard her pull out any feathers since the tantrum after being sprayed by me this afternoon, so lets hope we continue to improve. Wouldn't it be nice if there was a quickfix?? Hmm.. -Sameera Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 :lol: A quick fix would take all the fun out of it, I hope Mission Bathtime is a hit!!:whistle: :silly: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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