about my birds

Question
i have a 9 yr old umbrella cockatoo that i just bought from a lady and her feathers look are missing from her chest are they going to grow back

Answer
Hi Angela,

Wow - a cockatoo is a challenging species of bird to take on.  Have you ever had a cockatoo before or any type of parrot?  

Birds, cockatoos specifically, are prone to plucking and mutilation that can be caused by any number of issues:

- boredom/understimulation
- hormones/sexual frustration
- cigarette smoke/air fresheners/other household pollutants
- underlying medical causes
- verbal or physical abuse
- poor diet / allergies
- environmental issues (dry air, poor air quality, no humidity)
- no bathing

If the follicles have not been damaged, then there's a good chance they will grow back - but the reason the bird is plucking needs to be addressed and remedied before this can happen.  Sometimes the original issue the bird started plucking may go away and the plucking then becomes a habit which can be very difficult to break.  

I strongly urge you to find a very good and experienced avian veterinarian and take her in for a complete evaluation - blood tests, fecal tests, skin tests and physical exam.  Be sure you tell the vet any history that you're aware of including diet, cage size, toys, any previous abuse or neglect.  

If the problem can be identified it is going to take a lot of work, time, love and patience to remedy the situation.  Just do what you can to work with your avian vet on this before she starts mutilating further.  A good website to visit to learn more about this and anything else you want to know about cockatoos is www.mytoos.com .  

I hope this helps and wish you the best of luck.