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I have a green wing macaw, teddie, new feathers are comming in on his tail, but he is pulling the feathered part off the shaft, they look all messed up. He has pulled chest feathers before I got him he is 12. any suggestions???

Tell us a bit more about him
What size cage is he in , do you take him out , can you handle him ... How long have you had him ? Does he bathe ? How long is he alone during the day/week
Alot of times it is out of bordem that they destroy thier feathers ...Other times it is due to over zelous preening ..
And yet it could be heavy metals that is causing it , check for chipping paint on the cage and walls near his cage ..
What is his diet ? Diets lacking can also cause issues
Has any thing drastically changed lately , besides the time yes the time change could have done it too . (Yes the time change for our guys upsets them but we work through it so that it is not too bad ..)

~~~~~here are some things I would recommend based on a plucker we have , he only plucks if he needs more attention or something is out of balance he had NO feathers on his belly when he came to us the below is most of what I did for our guy so it may not work for you , you will need to find that "happy" soulution, our vet also gave him a couple shots to calm him down as we worked with him he only had to take them for 6 months and we worked on it and have NOT needed it since there is hope ~~~~~~~~~~~
1st and formost what I would recommend is a full vet check up ... if that comes back negaitive
Next bordom busters such as toys that he has to work at and preen those to occupy him from destroying his feathers .. Get him distructable toys such as paper rolls, or string cotten candy (you must watch the string so that it doesnt get wrapped around little toes or legs )
Out time is important to their meantal well beings . Spritzing (if he will allow it ) , placing a tupper ware bin in his cage with luke warm water or taking him to the shower may help ... if those are a no go how bout a warm or cool humidifier you would be surprized at how well these help (Keep these clean as they are a breeding ground for bacteria )
Most times if you redirect him that will help but not always.. I am sure that others will have more solutions than what I can give but we had a plucker that only does it maybe once a year and it is nowhere as sever as it had been ..Best of luck with the lil guy it can be fustrating but you can get through this I promise

teddie is 12 yrs old. A rescue out of NY. He can be handled, but with caution. He bites, and man do I know that. He is out of his cage at 8am until 9am. He gets his cooked breakfast along with all the other birds. I leave for work at 9am and I am home at 2pm. I only work 4 hrs. He is out of his cage at 2 and stays out until 8pm. He is on a very nice play gym with alot of toy, just bought new ones at Bird Paradise in NJ. He is in a very large Calif cage with play gym on top. and it has toys all over. He chews the toys, but seems to be more interested in the new tail feathers. He will step up and have head scratches, but will lunge and try to bite when he has had enought. I have had him since the end of August. We are a work in progress. He eats pellets, seeds, cooked foods, fruits, veges, if its in his dish he will eat it or atleast try it. When he sees a new item he looks at me and asks "Is it good?' He is going to be a great bird, we just need time.

Kudos for taking him . Def get a vet check up as molting can be painful. The keritin(SP) sheath on them can be helped along with increased the humidity .. Do try some preening toys and telling him no when he goes for them . With our BCC we would tell him no even if he was "just preening" this helped as well ... It sounds like he is in a major adjustment phase and that can also cause the issues of plucking or over preening . Just continue as you are and you soon will see progress from one pluckers mommy to another it takes time but you can help him through this . If our guy starts we start back traking especially if it lasts more than 3 days ...He has not been bald since he came to live with me tho he will get nurotic if we take him to the vet this usually only lasts for a week thank god but he can distroy alot o feathers in that time

Thanks for the help. He is quite a handful. I am also looking for info on alot of other birds. I think I will try a general subject site. with all the birds i have, i need all the help I can get.LOL