Chris, first I want to say, I absolutely understand the frustration and heartbreak. I know it's impossible not to take it personally, and nearly as difficult not to constantly obsess about it. Don't let it reach the point of counting feathers.
It won't help.
The results of the vet visit and tests are very good. The yeast infection and Chlamydia can be fixed. Both can cause discomfort before they are fixed though, when parrots are uncomfortable on the inside they tend to pick at the outside.
Parrots have their own time clock or time warp. Parrots (prey animals) hide their emotions and illnesses, it's a survival instinct, hard wired and hard to override. They can appear to be handling changes or experiences really well and then hours or days later have a delayed reaction. We make huge positive changes for them and logic tells us we should see results, not usually so. Birds are designed to fly, keeping their feathers in top flight condition in the wild takes up a lot of their time, that's what we call normal preening. It's no wonder parrots become obsessed with their feathers in our homes.
We know that Parker has been plucking for roughly four years. In all the research I've done, one thing that made perfect sense was explained to me like this. No matter what the underlying cause, some birds become habitual pluckers with the first feather they pull out. That rush of endorphins brings a sense of euphoria, it only lasts for a few seconds, it doesn't take long before the bird becomes addicted to the rush and voila you have a plucker. This isn't true in all cases, I've seen parrots that plucked themselves almost completely bald after a traumatic event and then never plucked or overpreened again. One diagnosis, one cure would be great but unrealistic.
Parker hasn't been with you very long at all, he's still processing the changes. I hope I'm wrong and I don't want to worry you, but Parker's plucking could get worse before it gets better. The worst bout of plucking I've ever seen occurred in the first three months after I adopted Harry. Lots of tears but never in front of my girl.
It may not sound helpful, but my advice is take things one day at a time. Focus on having fun and bonding with Parker. He has excellent talking skills, talk with him. Leave the wonderful toys you've provided within his reach, he may wake up one morning and adore a toy he hated the day before. Try to make his out of cage time a positive experience every time, he'll learn the routine and know this will happen close to the same time every day, he'll stop obsessing about being left alone. I've learned parrot care is not an exact science, sometimes you need to take information with a grain of salt, sometimes you need to throw away the rule book and listen to your bird.
Diet makes a tremendous difference, Anansi/Stephen, Our Wendy/JerseyWendy and labell/Laura are wonderful Ekkie dieticians, personally, I think the diet they've chosen for Ekkies is far more appropriate for all parrots and particularly plucking parrots. Dye free and organic foods are always the better choice.
Another idea to be aware of is Parker's past relationships. We talk about the incredible bonds we have with our parrots and I'm the first to agree, there's nothing like it. For the parrot the bond can cut both ways. Even birds that have known severe abuse can grieve for former humans they have bonded with. I'm not saying they think like we do, but they have proven they are aware and emotional. Think what it must be like to be rehomed again and again and again.
Relax. Laugh. Have fun. Parker will too.
I hope something I've said will apply to your unique circumstances. If not, let me know and I'll try harder. I have this awful habit of getting attached to plucking parrots, even those that aren't my own.
