Coconut Oil for Pluckers?

My macaw plucks her chest, under her wings, shoulders, and legs. She does appear to have dry skin, despite plenty of oils in her diet from nuts, flax, hemp, palm fruit oil, etc. A friend of mind recommended using organic coconut oil as a topical treatment for her skin. She was a big advocate for use for people, and thought it could offer great potential for my Nika. She thought that it might make a big difference in not only the dryness, but promote feather growth and overall skin health. She talked mostly about topical treatment, but said I should add it to her diet as well. She is not bird person, however, and thought I would see if anyone here has had experience with coconut oil for pluckers? Any thought/input?

Thanks,
Scott

I coated zupreem fruit blend with a little coconut oil when I was transitioning my grey over to pellets, really helped bring out the smell and he gobbled it up. Still watching to see if it helps him from destroying his flight feathers. It can't hurt to try as a topical or as a supplement as long as your macaw's weight is good. For the topical, I'd say give him a shower and then apply, to protect the skin and keep moisture in so the pin feathers aren't so itchy.

Thanks for the advice, Aquila! That's a good idea to apply the coconut oil after a bath to keep that moisture in. It makes sense, I just didn't think of it!

Thanks,
Scott

I don't know about applying it topically, however, the birdy bread I make contains a good amount of Red Palm Oil. You could try the recipe and substitute the Red Palm Oil with Coconut Oil. I've done it, and they like it just the same.
http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-food-recipes-diet/28298-my-birdie-bread-macs-love-these.html

Don't know if you've had a chance to read this great article/info about pluckers yet, but it certainly is a great read:
http://www.parrotforums.com/behavioral/52217-plucking-search-answers.html

My bird doesn't pluck, but I use Organic Coconut oil on her beak/skin around her beak, and feet about once a week.

Wendy, have you by chance read some of the articles out there surrounding the use of red palm oil? Seems to be somewhat controversial

chris-md said:

Wendy, have you by chance read some of the articles out there surrounding the use of red palm oil? Seems to be somewhat controversial

Click to expand...

Are you talking about the possibility of heart disease?

I am not worried. Not in the least. As with any and all food (supplements), I don't feed the birdy bread daily, nor do I put the Red Palm Oil in each and every batch. I DO know with certainty that big macs benefit from additional 'fats'.

Or were you speaking of the controversy on how the Red Palm Oil is harvested??

The truth about red palm oil and your birds and kakapo discovery - Los Angeles parrots | Examiner.com

Wendy, yep that was just one of the articles I saw. I was looking into it when I saw how much vitamin a was in there. But the more I read, I decided to pass.

Wendy, thanks for the link to the recipe and to the plucking discussion. I've read many articles/discussions on the subject over the last few years, but I'll give this one a look over; always more to learn. I would say the time when her plucking had really gone down significantly, and she was looking great, was when she was on an organic diet and was coming to work with me 5 days a weeks (I worked at a bird store, and made bird toys in the shop out back). She spent her time on a big playstand, getting attention from staff/customers, was around other macs, and got to hang out back with me when I wasn't cutting up wood. She actually loved to hang out with me when I was just assembling toys.. threading rope through precut wood blocks. Before this, she wouldn't touch her toys, but she would see how much "fun" I was haven't and would come over and play.. of course, I would try to be over the top to entice her . Also, I had heard a little of the controversy over red palm fruit oil, but was not aware of how harmful the farming/harvesting of dendo palms. I feed in moderation, but it was an interesting read. I'll have to do a search later to see if I can find a nutritional analysis..

Back to the coconut oil.. So I'll go ahead and grab a jar of some organic oil. How often should I plan on it? Daily seems more often that might be necessary, and weekly seems like it might not be enough. I'm thinking I'll mist with an aloe solution, and then apply the coconut oil.

Thanks for all the help and discussion!

I would say maybe three times a week should be plenty, try that for a month or two and adjust as needed. Might want to monitor weight as well if you have a scale. Worst case scenario if it doesn't help the plucking, try getting one of those birdie hoodies to cover her belly!