[Lisa1957]

Does anyone know if you can rub mineral oil on the chest of a quaker who is plucking? i used vegatble oil before but im out right now..want to know if i can use mineral oil instead?

[Sage n Tunia]

I've never heard of rubbing any oil on any part of a bird Birds regulate their temperature by fluffing their feathers, or "going skinny" by zipping them. Oil prevents their being able to move their feathers and leaves them extremely vulnerable. It's why oil spills at sea kill so many birds.

There are many ideas about what might help a plucking bird. Please let us help you evaluate some good ideas. Was the purpose of the oil to help feathers regrow, to cure dry skin, or what exactly? Who recommended it?

I'm so glad you asked! I hope we can help you find a healthier alternative.

gail

[Joysmom]

I agree with Gail...plus if they ingest the oil it can hurt them. I'm sure mineral oil would cause diarrhrea if ingested too...

Maybe someone can suggest a better way to deal with the plucking..have you taken him to the vet?

hoping to hear from you again,
Rebecca

[Jeepingchick]

dont know if it would do it to a bird but i assume it would , but.........

now this is not a pleasnt reply warning ya .........

my daughter is constantly "plugged up" and to loosen her the doc says to give her mieral oil as needed before bed......sooooooooo after seeing the efect it does to my 40 pound child, id assume that the bird might poo himself todeath. if he was to preen that area after you applied it ....... so i would say not to try it. but i have no degree and not nearly as much bird experience so listen to what others might say as well

[Quincy's Slave]

Is this something your vet told you to do? I wouldn't use any oil of any kind as everyone said it can cause more feather problems.

[Carrie~Anne]

I rub a little Aloe Vera juice on Max's skin, but not oil. Like the others, I would be hesitant to use oil. Seems to me that it would clog up the pores/follicles.

[Marcos]

I have to agree with the rest here.....oil? Nope.....does not sound right. Check with an avian vet, and if he suggests it, I certainly would be curious where he is getting this remedy from....

[Lisa1957]

Thank you all for your input ...i will not use any oil on her again she has been a plucker for a while i almost had all feathers back then one day poof they were gone again but this time under wings and everything..i dont remember who told me to rub a bit of veggie oil on the bare spot it would help so she couldnt grab the pin feathers coming in i never cover her feathers ..just the bare spots ..but i am not going to do it again !! after reding your posts thanks so much!!!

[Lisa1957]

Do you think she would have plucked this bad because i changed to a different cage? it bigger then the one she was in i know sally was a very stressed quaker before i got her and she also hates me out of her site..i feel so bad i covered her 2 nites in a row and thats when she plucked..so now i have a little cage i put her in at night in my bedroom with us she would sleep with us if id let her lol it almost seems like she was never caged, always want to be lose..i would like any advice to see if i can stop the plucking..thanks again..also she will only eat food vegies ect..if i feed it to her if i use food dishes she go crazy and rips them down and throws them no matter what dish i use..she want stuff from me ..like if id let her she will eat right out of my mouth..she is a very sweet quaker and only lets out chirps no quaker crazy sounds ...

[RichVR]

When Scooby was plucking I asked our vet the same thing and she said never to put any kind of oil on Scooby, due to the temperature regulation thing.

She prescribed an antibiotic and told us to continue her on the Elavil prescribed by another vet. Eventually (after a small relapse) Scooby stopped plucking. All of her tests came back negative for any kind of infection so I think it was a psychological issue that was helped by the Elavil.

But essentially I guess she got over it herself. This is an interesting and informative article about plucking:

http://www.birdtoyou...er-plucking.htm

Best of luck,
Rich

[Sage n Tunia]

Do you think she would have plucked this bad because i changed to a different cage? ... she also hates me out of her site..i feel so bad i covered her 2 nites in a row and thats when she plucked...it almost seems like she was never caged, always want to be lose...

Lisa, I work off instincts, not professional knowledge, so I might be really wrong. Take my free advice for what it's worth to you I think your little girl (What is her name?) is very bonded with you and afraid of being abandoned. The stress of being covered and unable to see what was happening around her and where you were was more than she could bear.

Rich mentioned how well Elavil worked for his Scooby. Would you be willing to consider using that, or an alternative that your avian vet might prefer? Just 2-3 months to see if it calms her enuf to give her a new start.

I presume you've had bloodwork done recently to be sure it's not an infection causing her to pluck. With birds like quakers who so often pluck from stress, it's so easy to assume that's what's causing it when a bit of testing might show it's actually something far easier to cure. Is your avian vet someone you trust a lot? If not, maybe we could help you find one who's more knowledgeable.

I feel so bad for your anxious little quaker. My Tunia has been plucking over a year now and I would sooo like to know why.

gail

[Lisa1957]

Well i have had sally about a year now and no i havent been to avaian vet as there is none close to where i live.i just might have to take a road trip one day to see one my daughter knows of one so i will check with her and see if i can get sally into see him..but im pretty sure its a stress issue as sally is very different from all other quakers i know..sally dont squak, screem,talk, ect..she just lets a a loud chirps if i leave her she has to see me all the time!she doesnt even do that what i call quaker dance and sqwak thing it kinda different..but still she is so sweet and gentle to me.she bit me once and i had the remote and she didnt like that at all lol. I have 1 other quaker in my house and she doent even chatter back to him she has nothin to do with him..its really puzzles me the way she is...she eats well,baths,doesnt like toys ect..it almost like she was abused before i had her or does stress do this to them ? im not sure.im just looking for any info that may help sally...Thanks again Lisa...

[RichVR]

Lisa try looking here:

http://www.birdsnway...es/abvpvets.htm

http://www.parrotparrot.com/avianvets/

http://www.aav.org/

I know some of them are a bit out of date but that's what I got from a quick search. I don't even know where you live, like the USA or elsewhere but I hope you find a good one.

Good luck,
Rich

[Lisa1957]

Lisa try looking here:

http://www.birdsnway...es/abvpvets.htm

http://www.parrotparrot.com/avianvets/

http://www.aav.org/

I know some of them are a bit out of date but that's what I got from a quick search. I don't even know where you live, like the USA or elsewhere but I hope you find a good one.

Good luck,
Rich

Hi Rich

what is elavil? and where do i get it? can u tell me if it safe for all quakers...i would love to see something work for sally i think she was stuck in a corner or in an avairie somewhere before i got her she is deffently different from all the quakers i have been with and seen...if u can let me know where u get elavil i may just try that...thx Lisa

[Sage n Tunia]

...if u can let me know where u get elavil i may just try that...thx Lisa

It's a prescription drug so your vet must prescribe and monitor its use for Sally's safety. Please get her to an avian vet as soon as you can for bloodwork and other tests.

Light, gail

[Marcos]

It's a prescription drug

Well......you just told the person how obtain the drug, but you did not tell the person what it is.

What is Elavil?

I'll tell ya. It's an anti-depressive that is given to humans (not birds) for clinical depression....Now that said, I guess vets figure that when birds pluck, their a bit nuts too, so they prescribe Elavil as well.....funny

[Sage n Tunia]

... you did not tell the person what it is...

I was counting on you to arrive and chime in. Solos are so boring

[Joysmom]

dont know if it would do it to a bird but i assume it would , but.........

now this is not a pleasnt reply warning ya .........

my daughter is constantly "plugged up" and to loosen her the doc says to give her mieral oil as needed before bed......sooooooooo after seeing the efect it does to my 40 pound child, id assume that the bird might poo himself todeath. if he was to preen that area after you applied it ....... so i would say not to try it. but i have no degree and not nearly as much bird experience so listen to what others might say as well

Be very careful with giving your daughter mineroil as it can deplete the body of oil soluble vitamin...especially, "Vit K-used for clotting" vit D, to heap your body absorb the Calcium and Vitamin E....Most doctors won't suggest this for the above reasons...

Rebecca

[Marcos]

Solos are so boring

Aren't they? How Symphonic !