Lonely Female Zebra Finch

[amanda]

I have a female zebra finch who plucks every bird she's with. I've tried to introduce her to four different birds, but each time she plucks out feathers from their necks. I place the cages side-by-side for a while before putting them together.

It doesn't look like she is fighting with them. It looks like she is going to preen them, but she comes away with feathers. She has even left bald patches on some birds. I have her in her own cage now, and she can even see other birds, but now she makes this weird noise. It's this loud, desperate call. I think she's lonely and wants a companion, but she harms any bird she's with. Is being alone damaging? Is there anything I can do to reduce the plucking of other birds? Should I just keep her in the separate cage anyway?

[Sam007]

You may put a mirror in her cage. So she will not feel lonely and at the same time she will not be able to pluck feathers from her own image in the mirror and her plucking habit might fixed.

[Musetta]

Have you been putting her with males or females? Or both? And are the other finches all zebras as well?

[amanda]

She has a mirror she seems to like.

Tried with one other female zebra and after that one male zebra. Then with two society males. All were plucked.

[ac12]

I've had zebras that I had to keep in solitary confinement, as they did not get along with ANY other zebra.

In this situation, it does not matter how she feels. If she is damaging to any other bird, you can't put any other bird in with her.

[Bhatta]

In some zebra finches this plucking behavior cannot be changed. Although it is rare, but it is true. If all of your efforts fail, keep her in a separate cage for ever. Do you think she has calcium deficiency? Provide more calcium in liquid form and as crushed egg shell and cuttle bone.

[cindy]

this article is very helpful as to the reasons for plucking...

http://zebrafinchsociety.co.uk/index.ph ... &Itemid=68

the section on necks
"Plucked NecksThis is the type of plucking I least like to encounter as it is quite often indicative of a defenceless and therefore unwell specimen. When zebs socialise they will often preen a fellow bird across the back of the neck and around to under the chin. The bird doing the preening will often be strengthening its social bonding, but I have noticed that in a lot of instances this won't necessarily be the subservient bird. Dominant characters will also preen, especially if they stake a claim to the perch, but after a short preen they then expect some reciprocation and if this is not forthcoming they will tend to give a little nudge by plucking out a feather to get attention. If this attention is not forthcoming because the bird being preened is too weak, it can escalate until the bird is evicted from the perch to a lower one. If the bird isn't weak it will stand its ground until whose perch it is becomes settled by a quick squabble and chase. The weaker birds then proceed to lower perches, but this is often another birds domain and so gets similar treatment until the bald patch emerges and the bird reaches ground zero.If I ever notice this I will remove the bird altogether to a warm isolated cage for observation. Once it I have heard many a dealer and breeder pass such birds off at sales with the banter "that one must be coming into breeding condition as its being pursued by a male, hence the bald patch" - this is complete rubbish as far as I am concerned and has no foundations in truth. Never have a seen any relationship between bald necks and breeding condition, their claims that it is caused by the cockbird "holding on" is rubbish, zebs do not hold on with their beaks when treading hens."


How is your cage set up....only one perch at the same height? Is she at the top perch, does she dominate the cage no matter who she is with? Have you seen her chase?

[amanda]

I suppose it is possible she is calcium deficient. She devours cuttle bone.

The cage has multiple perches of varying widths at different heights. She does seem to dominate the other birds she is around. I haven't seen her chase any birds, but she does kind of bounce around them a lot. Any bird she is with seems to become less active.

[cindy]

most likely if she is downing cuttlebone she might be in breeding mode which sometimes prompts aggression if the others are near a potential nesting site of male she favors.

[DanteD716]

I would try setting her up to breed with amale, sounds like she wants to! Also, I had a similar problem with a female zebra so I housed her with a male canary, she never bothered him.