Question:
> My vet is Dr. Peter Sakas who occasionally has articles in Bird Talk. > He has stated to me that he has never seen an Eclectus, KEPT AS A PET, that > hasn’t chewed its feathers.
I am owned by a single male eclectus that has never shown any desire to pluck (knock Wood). I believe that a good diet, plenty of added humidity in these dry, cold MN winters and most importantly a great deal of time spent playing with him and providing him with supervised solitary playtime OUTSIDE his cage has gone a long way towards preventing this. Mike —
Response:
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I have personally worked with a large number of pet eclectus of > various ages who do no damage to their feathers. One of the keys to the > statement made by Dr. Sakas may be the climate of the location. It is one > of my beleifs that Eclectus are more likely to pick/pluck/feather destroy > in dry areas or areas where there is dry heat in the winter. I also > believe that Eclectus are very sensitive to food allergies possibly > including the artificial ingredients, particularly the food coloring in > some pelleted diets. >I keep and breed eclectus and I never have feather plucking. I both >hand rear and allow parent rearing with one trustworthy pair. >I believe the key is fruit and veg at about 80% of the diet with >vitamins on. I also feed pellets and a little seed as a treat. >A few people who have had youngsters from have reported plucking. In >all cases I found the birds diet had moved to pet shop mixes or the bird >had been left alone regularly. >I also recommend people to spray all birds lightly once a day (water no >additions) as it does seem to help with feather condition and stop >plucking. >Has anyone else had similar experiences. >Bob
I have a male eclectus who has never plucked a single feather. Once in a while he will get a little dandruff. I have found that if I take him in the bathroom with me when showering, the humidity seems to keep his skin from drying out. I also bring him in the shower about twice a wekk. I let the water bounce off my sholder then on him and he just loves it! ~The Dave & Milo Show…
Response:
My vet is Dr. Peter Sakas who occasionally has articles in Bird Talk. He has stated to me that he has never seen an Eclectus, KEPT AS A PET, that hasn’t chewed its feathers. I own both a male and female and both are chewers. My female has been bald for nearly 5 years and my male is not as bad off but does have a bald chest. I’m sure there are exceptions out there so I would love to hear from you. BTW, nothing has ever worked for me in stopping this problem. The WORST mistake I ever made was collaring my female for about a month. At that point she still had down, but was very depressed and still tried to get at any feather she could. Within 1 hour of having her collar removed, she chewed off EVERY bit of down on her body. Terry
Response:
I have had the priviledge of being owned by 2 pairs of Eclectus.My birds have never had any problems with feather chewing or plucking. John Fuller
Response:
>I have had the priviledge of being owned by 2 pairs of Eclectus.My birds >have >never had any problems with feather chewing or plucking. > John Fuller
John, are they breeders or bonded to each other? Terry
Response:
I have personally worked with a large number of pet eclectus of various ages who do no damage to their feathers. One of the keys to the statement made by Dr. Sakas may be the climate of the location. It is one of my beleifs that Eclectus are more likely to pick/pluck/feather destroy in dry areas or areas where there is dry heat in the winter. I also believe that Eclectus are very sensitive to food allergies possibly including the artificial ingredients, particularly the food coloring in some pelleted diets.
Response:
> I have personally worked with a large number of pet eclectus of > various ages who do no damage to their feathers. One of the keys to the > statement made by Dr. Sakas may be the climate of the location. It is one > of my beleifs that Eclectus are more likely to pick/pluck/feather destroy > in dry areas or areas where there is dry heat in the winter. I also > believe that Eclectus are very sensitive to food allergies possibly > including the artificial ingredients, particularly the food coloring in > some pelleted diets.
I keep and breed eclectus and I never have feather plucking. I both hand rear and allow parent rearing with one trustworthy pair. I believe the key is fruit and veg at about 80% of the diet with vitamins on. I also feed pellets and a little seed as a treat. A few people who have had youngsters from have reported plucking. In all cases I found the birds diet had moved to pet shop mixes or the bird had been left alone regularly. I also recommend people to spray all birds lightly once a day (water no additions) as it does seem to help with feather condition and stop plucking. Has anyone else had similar experiences. Bob
Response:
>statement made by Dr. Sakas may be the climate of the location. It is one >of my beleifs that Eclectus are more likely to pick/pluck/feather destroy >in dry areas or areas where there is dry heat in the winter. I also >believe that Eclectus are very sensitive to food allergies possibly >including the artificial ingredients, particularly the food coloring in >some pelleted diets.
You may be on to something there regarding climate. My knowledge of feather chewing Eclectus stems from the Chicago area, which is also where Dr. Sakas has his practice. Terry
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