Have you noticed that your bird is missing feathers? Is your bird plucking themselves?

While a little bit is normal for preening. A lot of feather plucking can be harmful to their health. So how can we help them?

If your bird is plucking out its own feathers, it is best to address the cause of the problem first. Some reasons may have a quick solution, others can be a little harder to handle. So early prevention and treatment is key to a healthy and happy bird.
Reasons why your bird may be plucking feathers:

• Anxious
• Stressed
• Bored
• Separation anxiety
• External causes & predators
• Mites & lice

Once you know why your bird is exhibiting this behaviour you can take steps to fixing it.

It is a good idea to always have a good selection of toys for your bird to engage with. See our blog, The Importance of Foraging Toys for Birds for tips and tricks on how to keep your bird entertained with interactive toys.
Toys keep their minds stimulated and active. Remember your bird didn’t choose to live in a cage, its instincts are to fly free in the big open world, so offer them lots of different things to do daily, to keep them happy.

Birds are social creatures. They love interacting, talking, watching, and playing with their people.

If regular socialising is something you do with your bird, then understand that your bird will adjust to needing your interaction regularly. They become dependent on the connection.

So if you’re going on a holiday be sure to hire a pet sitter, or board them at a kennel (yes, some boarding kennels, do in fact take in birds). Even if you’re only leaving for a few days, it is best to have someone mind them, as birds can suffer from separation anxiety. Or should something happen while you’re away, there is someone there to address any issues when they occur.

If your bird is feather picking due to boredom, then we highly recommend using, Aristopet Stop Pick Spray. This is a great spray to use, as it has an extremely bitter taste that birds hate the taste of. This is a great quick fix to stop your bird from feather picking, while you work on addressing the cause of the problem.
If your bird is feather picking due to a pest infestation such as avian mites, lice, biting insects, houseflies, mosquitoes, cockroaches and even spiders found in the birds’ environment, then Aristopet Bird Mite & Lice Spray Plus is the perfect product for you. Spray on your bird, in their cages, as well as in any areas they spend time.

Birds make fantastic pets, and if we tend to their needs we can have them in our lives for a very long time. So if you notice that your bird is feather plucking, address the problem immediately, to avoid any long term harm and advance their recovery time. So they can get back to being their happy and healthy selves.