feathers on african grey

Question
our bird is about 1 year old, he is picking feathers as if he was grooming.the now looks like a young bird just out of the nest with down feathers.his wing ferathers look a bid rough on it to.their are not bold parts on his chest,it appears to be all over his.he,s still very livery and talking away.stupid to say but he would,nt be covered in any sort of miter that would make him do this.ats been happening for several weeks now.many thanks, dennis haighton.

Answer
Hello Dennis and thank you for your post.
Feather plucking is a big concern for any bird, but it can usually be corrected fairly easily.  There are many things that can cause it.  Lack of stimulation is a big thing.  African Greys are very intelligent birds, and they need to have a lot of time spent with them.  Several hours a day.  Try teaching him some tricks.  He'll have fun learning, and you'll have fun teaching him.  This may help take his mind off of his self mutilation.
There are many more factors that will make a bird pluck it's own feathers out.  Environment is one of them.  Do you use any kind of scented candles, cleaning solutions, perfumes, hair sprays, air fresheners, and so on?  These can irritate a bird's skin, and can result in feather plucking.
Mites is another skin irritant.  Take him into a Certified Avian or Exotic animal Vet and have him check for mites.  You won't be able to see mites with the naked eye, but the vets can test for mites.  The test is not expensive, and it is painless for the bird.  You'll get the results right away, and then there is a medication that can be administered to kill the mites without any harm to the bird.
Diet is another factor and can cause a bird to pluck it's feathers out.  If he is on an all seed diet, this is not a good thing.  Seeds are fine for treats or rewards, but they are not nutritionally balanced for birds, and they do not have the correct amount of vitamins that your bird needs.  A pelleted diet, with fresh fruits and vegetables every day will help to ensure that your bird is healthy, and an unblanced diet can cause skin irritations, among other health problems.  
Your bird could have an allergy, either to something in his diet, or something in his environment.
You can lightly mist your bird with water, this will help to relieve some of the itching that your bird has.  You can also take your bird into the bathroom, turn on the shower with straight hot water, and let the steam build up (but please do not let your bird go into the straight hot water as this could give him serious burns or worse).  Again, this will help relieve some of the itching that your bird has.

Good luck and God Bless.
Dianna