Feathers are very important to birds, not only do birds use their feathers to fly, but feathers are also used by birds to stay warm, to keep dry, to show off to possible mates, and to blend in with their surroundings.
If you notice that your bird is starting to pluck the feathers under its wings then you’d be right to be concerned. This article looks at why birds pluck the feathers under their wings
Bird plucking feathers under wings:
Why this happens: It’s the nesting period
One reason why your bird is plucking the feathers under its wings is that it’s the bird’s nesting period. Cockatiels are known to pluck the feathers under their wings during their nesting period.
What to do:
An easy way to get your bird to stop plucking it’s feathers is to use an anti-plucking spray on it.
Anti plucking spray tastes bitter to birds, if you apply this spray onto your bird’s feathers, and the bird tries to pluck itself, the bird will be put off by the taste of the spray and the bird will stop plucking itself.
Anti plucking sprays can be found online and at pet supply stores.
Why this happens: Lack of calcium
Birds have very demanding nutritional needs, if they don’t get the right amount of certain nutrients, like calcium, from their food, they will find other ways to get it.
If they need to, birds will pluck their own feathers in order to get calcium from the feathers.
Birds will pluck out their feathers and chew on the ends to get calcium.
Not only will your bird pluck feathers from under its wings, it may also pluck and chew feathers from other parts of its body as well
What to do:
If your bird is plucking feathers from under its wings because it isn’t getting enough calcium then you need to add more calcium to the bird’s diet.
Increase the bird’s calcium intake by feeding the bird commercial powdered calcium, or, you can crush bird eggs to a fine powder and sprinkle the powder over the bird’s dry feed.
Why this happens: Stress/disease
Birds can become stressed over a number of things, stress can cause your bird to self-mutilate by plucking itself under its wings. Another reason why your bird may pluck itself is if the bird is ill with a disease.
What to do:
If you think that stress or disease is the reason why your bird is plucking its feathers then you need to take your bird to a vet.
The vet will be able to prescribe anti-anxiety medications for the bird if needed, this will help with stress. If the bird has a disease then the vet will be able to prescribe appropriate medications for the bird.
Why this happens: Intestinal parasites
Birds can become infected by a number of internal and external parasites. If your bird is plucking the feathers under its wings, then the bird likely has an intestinal parasite called giardia.
This parasite lives in the intestinal tract of birds and infects your bird through contaminated drinking water.
Giardia infections can also cause anorexia, weight loss, diarrhea, loose stools, and depression in birds.
What to do:
The best thing to do for a bird that is suffering from a giardia infection is to take it to a vet, taking the bird to an avian vet will be best for the bird but a general vet will also be of help
The vet will be able to properly examine and diagnose your bird and will be able to offer a treatment plan for your bird after running a number of tests
Treating the injured skin:
Regardless of why your bird is plucking, this activity likely caused some injury to the bird.
Apply some aloe vera on the wound to soothe the area, the aloe vera will not only help to calm the area, it also acts as a mild disinfectant.
When applying the Aloe Vera, spray the liquid on your bird and try to make the spray fall down on your bird like rain
Does it hurt a bird to pluck its feathers?
Birds don’t react to pain as humans do, screaming out in pain like humans do would attract predators in the wild so birds try to mask any signs of pain, they may even pluck or chew the area where they feel pain.
It is said that a bird plucking its feathers can actually make them feel better.
The plucking is a response to stimulus, if the bird becomes anxious about something it will pluck a feather, the plucking of the feather causes a release of endorphins, these endorphins will calm the bird
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other bird related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Why Do Birds Pluck Their Babies’ Feathers?, Budgie Plucking Feathers Under Wings, What Happens When A Bird Loses Its Tail Feathers, Bird Losing Feathers Under Wings
