George

[gourdlady247]

Thanks for all the welcomes. My name is Marla. I'm not real computer lingo smart. So when I put gourdlady247 I didn't realize it was wanting my real name.LOL

I was wanting any information I can get on Plucking. When we got him I noticed he would what i thought as prenning. George has been pulling feathers out from under his left wings. He I think has plucked it raw. I can't see under his wing. And of course he won't let anyone touch him still. Because he still bites. But I wondered if there was something I could do until I can find a vet to take him to. Unfortunatly the closest bird vet is in Dallas. About 2 hours away. So I want to find a good one that has patients for a biting bird and someone who knows only what I have learned in the last two weeks. When Ithink I'm making abreak through, the next day it seems like Iv'e taken a step back. I am a lucky one that I don't have to work

(thanks to my husband) I have plenty of time to work with George. But I'm not sure when to tell when enough is enough for that day.

[Anmlhggr]

When I first got woody he was the same way, couldn't touch him. However I'd be patient and try and work with him, and everyday I would push him a little further than the last day. Now I can lift his wings up, kiss him, roll him over (almost! ). He would let me know when enough really was enough, but it took some pushing on my part.

 

I imagine it will be the same with George, he will let you know when he is done for the day, but try to be patient

 

Hope this helps, I'm sure others will have good advice too!

[judygram]

Hello Marla, the first thing you want to do is not pay any attention to his plucking, ignore it. You don't know why he is plucking but some will do it for attention and if you pay attention when he plucks it may encourage him to do it more.

 

I wouldn't worry too much about the plucking right now, he really needs to be seen by an avian vet for full bloodwork to determine if there is any physical reason for the plucking. Most plucking is for behavior or emotional reasons and sometimes it takes a while to figure out why so this could take some time.

 

Don't be discouraged if you feel you sometimes have to take a step back, you are making progress and if you aren't working then you do have the time to work with George.

 

I would work with him for 10 to 15 minutes at a time for several different times during the day with spending a lot of time sitting by his cage talking to him, reading the newspaper or a book to him, offering him treats from time to time to help him get more relaxed with you. He has to come to trust you before he will bond with you.

 

You say he bites a lot, are you pulling back or reacting to the bites? Any type of reaction or pulling back may be seen as entertainment and that only reinforces more biting.

 

Some of the other members will chime in with their ideas and suggestions for we have many members who are capable of giving you some good advice and willing to help someone in need.

[Dave007]

There's lots of information about plucking all over the place. But most of the information has to do with 2 things

1--plucking that has nothing to do with a medical condition.

2--plucking which is related to a medical condition.

#2 is diagnosed by a vet. It entails having some tests done if the vet sees something that warrants a test.

 

We'll go with #1

Some information is needed though

1--how old is he?

2--how long has he been plucking?

3--is he plucking anywhere else?

4--do you bathe him regularly?

5--if so, do you towel dry him or use a hair dryer?

[gourdlady247]

George is between 7-10 years old.

I have had him for two weeks and he came to me with the plucking problem ...I guess.

The only place we see any feathers missing is under his left wing.

I do spray him with a water bottle... I was trying to not get it in his face. But apparently he likes it cause he will squat to get his face in the spray. No I don't towel dry him and never new about the blow dryer. I thought they did it themselves. Everyone please forgive my ignorance. But I'm trying to learn. The lady we got him from had about 50 other birds, she her self said she couldn'tspend personal time with the birds like she wished she could. She has a Macaw that almost took her thumb off she she has many birds with many bad habits.

[judygram]

No one is going to fault you for any ignorance or I would have been gone a long time ago and you can't learn if you don't ask questions. You want to know more and you will learn lots here, all you have to do is ask and Dave is one of our more knowledgeable members, he will help you with your problem with George.

[Dave007]

You're not ignorant. It's good that you never heard of the hair dryer. Unfortunately, people do use it. It's wonderful that you're not squirting him in the face. You're right, birds do dry themselves.

 

George is an adult and has lived with many other birds. Being with so many other birds should tell you to locate that vet immediately because there's no way of knowing about the health of the other birds even if you were told that they were fine. It's called a *well check* visit.

Your bird might have an area in that wing that was damaged or had serious irritation which never totally healed. The skin might have turned dry and remains that way. You say that the bird only plucks that one area. A classic plucker goes after many different areas. I can tell you that the small area that you speak of is out of whack. I assume that the flight feathers on that wing are still there?

 

There is a way to treat the problem but because he bites, you would need you and another person. One to hold him while the other lifts the wing to expose that area. The area needs a moisturizing gel that will soften the skin in that area and make that area less irritated. The item is called aloe vera gel. it can be gotten in a drug store. That area has to be lightly coated with the gel and the gel will sink into the skin. Because he bites, be prepared for him to bite when you try this. When misting the bird change the nozzle so that a stream comes out. Use 1/2 sqirts and aim at the crease between the wing and body. It's not waterproof in that area so the water will get in and wet the inner area of the feathers and skin. Constantly do this even if he gets angry. Try to mist that area often. There's another item that you can use for misting. It's called aloe vera juice and it's mixed with water in the mister. It's very good for the feathers.

You said that some of her birds have bad habits and more than likely, having so many birds hampered her from making sure that all were in top health. So, look into the vet asap and moisten and mist until you see him. He might prescribe some topical Baytril but it's important that he sees the amount of area that's affected. For all you know, there are no more quills there and the skin is simply itchy and irritated. The vet will tell you about it.

 

Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2008/10/31 05:25<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2008/10/31 07:53

[BaxtersMom]

Hi Marla,

There is nothing to forgive and there are certainly no silly questions on this forum:) . By asking the questions is how we learn and find out what to do. When I got Baxter in July I asked a million questions but I needed to know and thank goodness I kept asking. The members here kept helping and because of it I learned alot and Baxter thrived:)

 

When I first got Baxter I got bit a lot too and it seemed like one day we'd take a step forward and the next we'd take 2 steps back. I'm afraid it's usually part of the process when you rehome an older bird but it is so rewarding in the long run:) I don't think Baxter was totally comfortable with me or his new home for atleast a month and many times it can take longer.

 

Judygram has given some great advice and Dave really knows his stuff about greys and anything he tells you is great advice.

 

Keep on asking those questions. It will benefit you and George:)

 

You can also put key words in the search box at the top like Plucking or bathing or Aloe vera or anything you want to know about and hit the enter key to bring up some of the many helpful threads here.<br><br>Post edited by: BaxtersMom, at: 2008/10/31 05:28

[gourdlady247]

thanks for the advice. I'll go tomorrow and find the aleo vera gel. I do have another question. And I may have started my own bad habit for him in the 2 eeks we have had George. When we got him he was in a small cage. So we ran right out the next day and bought he a condo campared to what he as in. And of course I have bought every book and mag, i could find. Even ordered a video Called bird tricks. Deals some with biting but I think the birds are more advanced than George and I. Any way. When George came to us he was on some type of pellet food. he ate it for a few days then we moved him into the new cage and he quit eating the pellets.....so of course i went to the net and found all kinds of recipes for cooking and making him food. He won't even look at the pellet food now. I read about sprouting seed for him, but i can't find hat kind of seeds i'm supposed to be sprouting. And is it good for him to be on food that i make him, and not the pellets. It didn't seem to mess his stomac up or anything. Cause I've been watching his poop. Never thought I would ever say any thing like that....lol

So the question is .... what kind of seed can I sprout for him and is fixing him food ok.

[Dave007]

Fixing different foods for him is fine as long as they're not harmful. We have a section called BIRD FOOD. You'll find just about any type of info concerning different foods, how to prepare them, feed them, amounts, recipes etc etc.

 

Right now, put the sprouting aside. It's not important at this time. put your energies into organizing a feeding regimen for him. Dark green veggies are good. Many fruits are good. Some parrot mix is good. Pellets are very good. As far as pellets, there's different brands. basically, they all contain just about the same things but birds prefer different brands. When getting a bird back into a good feeding mode, just remember that no bird will starve itself. That's doubly true with your bird and the pellets. The reason is that the bird used to eat them and got tired of them. They can be given all by themselves with no other food around and eventually he'll eat them. Then the next day you can do the same with another food. Then on another day yiou might wanna combine 2 foods. Just remember that all of these things take plenty of time. If you try to accomplish to much, you're simply getting ahead of yourself. Also know that things that concern all areas of parrot ownership will take longer with an adult bird who hasn't had personalized relationships. Keep asking questions. People here will definitely help.

As BaxtersMom says, there's no silly questions. Questions can be major or minor.

[gourdlady247]

ok heres another question....

There are three people that lives ith George. Me My husband Doug and Our 24 year old son James. George does talk

He asks

Whats your problem

Hello

and other words that e haven't figured out yet. But when the Youngest son his wife and three kids come over he will talk up a storm. Or when other people come over he talks alot. But when it just the three of us he's pretty much quiet. Why's that. Is he showing off or what?

Oh my grandkids call me Nana... We think he called me Nana the other day but not real sure. But I was so excited I all most cried.

[Dave007]

The scenerio you describe can be compared to people.

 

Some people have sons and daughters and one day, other family members come to visit. One of the kids gets all excited and talks and plays and gets real wired with all the company. The other child is a bit reserved, quieter and a bit shy. Now comes the time that the visitors leave. The kid that was excited all day now becomes quiet cause all the excitement is gone. The kid that was quiet all day now becomes a little chatterbox and starts to talk and get excited about what went on when the house was full.

Is George showing off? Impossible to answer. Excited? Yes. Happy? Yes. Shy? No.

When your son and family leaves, he becomes quieter and slows down and relaxes. It's strictly the individual personality of your bird and all parrots have different individual personalities. More than likely, this was the way he was before you got him and there's nothing unusual about the way he is.

Many greys will do just the opposite than yours does and many people are disappointed when Chico doesn't say anything or do anything when people come over. That too is just another kind of personality showing through. Just by you observing these things is allowing you to see what your bird is all about. In the future, expect to see loads of new things. Probably, more things than others have seen because a bird's total *bird to human* personality can't totally surface when mixed in with loads of other birds.

One other thing--I just wanna say that you're a good person for deciding to give that adult grey a chance to develop that type of personalized relationship with you and your family. He'll make you happy in more ways than you imagine. Everyone here is rooting for you and George. Remember..slow and easy, patience, patience and most importantly, there should be no time limits on things that you think he should be doing. It'll take time cause he's an adult but it already sounds like a good beginning. That biting will even lessen as he gets to know you, your family, the new environment, the daily habits and routines o

of your house. Slow and easy. Patience, patience

 

PS--I should have also mentioned this important thing..

There are loads of people on this board who have adopted older birds, even older than George and many can share experiences and methods that worked for them and could possibly work for you. I'm glad george is with you.

 

Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2008/10/31 07:39<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2008/10/31 07:50

[BaxtersMom]

I love it that your bird says "whats your problem:{Feel-good-0002006E} That is too funny!!!

[Tycos_mom]

It sounds like your doing well with George so far Like Dave said Patients is the key. Try eating lunch with him Open the door and turn your back and eat a good health lunch that he might enjoy and make a fuss about it but don't offer him any eventully if you do this o a daily basis he may get curious enough to come out and help you eat your lunch when he does then you can share with him I got Tyco my Grey rescue to eat all kinds of good healthy veggies this way it took awhile and I thought I was goig to turn into a rabbit but it did help him with our bond and it got her eating a few more fruits and veggies.