Preening

Hi everyone

I am new to this forum and have a question about preening

I have a yellow naped amazon parrot which i have had for two months he constantly preens himself when out of his cage i have a climbing frame on top of his cage which also has toys hanging and foraging toys which he plays with occasionally but most of the time he preens he does not feather pluck but with constant preening is making himself look ragged any advise / tips would be great

bazzer said:

Hi everyone

I am new to this forum and have a question about preening

I have a yellow naped amazon parrot which i have had for two months he constantly preens himself when out of his cage i have a climbing frame on top of his cage which also has toys hanging and foraging toys which he plays with occasionally but most of the time he preens he does not feather pluck but with constant preening is making himself look ragged any advise / tips would be great

Click to expand...

Welcome to the Parrot Forums!

Preening is a natural activity of Parrots and there are a number of reasons of why, where and when they preen. Other than how long you had your Amazon, you do not state how old he is since age also plays in on this as well.

The most common reason that Parrots preen outside of the cage is the issue of room. There is no concern of making contact with the side of the cage, which could push them off balance.

The natural range that Amazons come from assures that rain is fairly common, from at least a couple of times per week to daily. So regular bathing is an important part of their experience and need as the rain cleans their feathers of a light natural 'dust' that helps the feathers to flow across each during flight.

You do not state how often your Amazon is receiving a good rising /bath. Since your parrot is new to you. His bathing practices are likely unknown and how he will react to the different methods. I recommend starting with a 'Misting' bottle first. It is very important to find one that provides a 'very fine' mist. The goal is to dampen the Amazons, not knock him off his perch.

NEVER Mist directly at the Amazon's Face! Never! At first, Mist up into the Air above your Amazon, creating a light fog above your Amazon that then falls gently upon him. Some Amazons will open their wings the first time, others do so with time and a developing comfort level with you. Its a good idea to place towels under the perch, since there is a high likelihood of water getting splashed about.

As I had state, its the first time with you, so he will either love it or not.

Once, you provide his age, we can look at specific age related issues that may play into this activity. But, since bathing is a common reason, I started there first.

Enjoy the Wonderful World of Amazons!

Hi
Thank you for your reply

Mr Jones is his name he is 6 y/o i spray him early each morning and have just last week purchased a bath that is hung from his cage as he was dunking his head in his water pot and throwing it around but at the moment he is very unsure of it.
I have had birds in the past Budgie's and Cockatiels which i used to breed but have always wanted a parrot.
just not seen a bird preen as much as him before

Welcome to the two of you!

Thank you David

Welcome to you and Mr. Jones, thanks for joining!

Can't think of much else to add to Sailboat's analysis. While preening is absolutely normal, some birds do to excess for various reasons. Some are just a bit more neurotic than others - one of my Goffins preens to excess. His two other brothers and parents live in the same environment, eat the same foods, etc and are calmer. Might just be his personality, but evaluate his bathing and consider increasing!

Thank you all for the advise and the welcome messages

I will continue with the spray and keep trying him with his new bath and see how it goes he has plenty to amuse him so it's not a boredom thing