FINCHforum

Hi guys,

My male zebra finch is plucking his own feathers. He plucks around chest area to the stomach area..... he did that twice in the past, and this is the third time I see him doing it. His feathers grew back eventually, but I wonder why he does this odd behavior....

I have plenty of nesting materials (from harder one to soft material) in the cage for him to play w/. I also thought it might be mite problem but I clean the cage every single day w/ hot water & apple cider vinegar. Just in case, I spray the perch w/ Pestex. And I give him water w/ aloe vera juice while his feathers are growing back (but he doesn't like it).

I should observe more carefully to find out when he starts to pluck his feathers. Another thing I noticed is that he also pecks his feet and I saw a little bit of blood on the perch.... During the time he plucks his feathers, he doesn't play w/ nesting materials at all. He eats well, but rests more comparing when he's so enthusiastic to play w/ nesting materials.

Does anyone have any idea why he's plucking his feathers? I thought he was stressed (he used to be in a big cage w/ another pair) so I moved him and his mate to a smaller cage after he plucked his feathers for the 2nd time, and thought that was the solution, but I guess not.....

Some finches really like to have feathers for their nest. Maybe you have a feather pillow you can take a few feathers from and put in the cage for him. That might be all it is. He prefers feathers over whatever nesting material you've offered.

And just in case it's mites, you could also spray the bird with Pestex, not just the cage. Just lightly, and try not to spray too much in the face area.