Putting it into words

[texsize]

I think I have a way of describing bingo’s over preening.
Athletes foot.

Don’t know how many of you have suffered athletes foot but I have.
One of the memorable things about it is it feels SO good to scratch it.
At least at the beginning.

When Bingo is preening the area of damaged feathers he sort of groans in a way that makes me think he is really enjoying it.

I recorded the noise and posted it at some earlier time cuz I did not know what it signified.

I don’t think Bingo has athletes foot it’s just the closest thing I can come to as an explanation.

I cured my athletes foot with antibiotics I got when visiting South America, it’s never come back.

 

[Scott]

That's an great analogy, Wes! No doubt that's a part of the issue in the universe of overpreening/barbering!

 

[Laurasea]

over preening releases endorphins, soothes tgem, so they kinda get addicted to the endorphins.

Now is the time to work hard to prevent this from becoming plucking.

I would move his cage across the room from the other burds. Work hard to get him over all these fears of stuff and new things. Build his confidence, And fill his cage with preen toys. Increase physical activity, train fun little things. Foraging, and more veggies.

I know first hand how hard that csn be. Penny has fear of everything. It took a year to get her enjoying new stuff and build her confidence, and get her active.

 

[SailBoat]

So well stated above! The chemical rewards make it a very difficult cycle to break. Combined with a set in stone behavior and it clearly limits the ability for a successful elimination when not caught early.

Best wishes that you can break it before it becomes locked in.

 

[Rival_of_the_Rickeybird]

My brother, you nailed that.
Talon'd it. Whatever.
Well done.

 

[Laurasea]

Texsize,
I've mentioned before I think moving his cage away from the other parrots, but most especially tge Twins will help him.

Here is brief paragraph on that from Pamela Clark a certified parrot behavior consultant. The full article is in my ornithology thread.

" Increased Stress: I think of parrots, even the smaller species, as having large personalities. Large personalities result in a sense of territory. If you watch a group of parrots who are able to be at liberty all day, you will see that they keep their distance from each other most of the time, even if they are the same species. They interact socially, but don’t perch side by side unless they share a pair bond.

My own experience has convinced me that cages for medium to large parrots should be no closer than four or five feet from each other. This allows each parrot to have their own “sense of territory” and reduces the stress that parrots feel when crammed in next to each other in a single room. When cages are closer, you will often see hyper-excitable behavior and increased “territorial” aggression in parrots who live full-time in a bird room."