it's always a disappointment when you buy a bird as pretty as the female eclectus i am going to post a picture of a female on the picture board.

my son has one for more then ten years and it started to pick at abvout 2 years okd, if it's a medical problem like lice or something on the skin, it can be corrected, but if it's a nervous habit, i have never heard of anything that will stop it.

ross has sprayed his bird with a safe spray that the birds don't like, doesn't work.

i have heard of people spending loads of time with the picking bird hoping the activity would correct the problem, doen't help..

i have even heard of putting a collar around the birds neck so she can't preen or pull feathers, similar to what they use for a dog or cat that has stiches and you don't want them pulling them out. 6 months later when the collar was removed, the bird went right back to picking.

i don't think i've ever seen any pictures of wild birds picking. if they did, they would be unable to navigate or keep warm or cool,

i suspect it's something about not needing the feathers for protection.

My wife is a zookeeper. She works with many birds there. I'll ask her if there is anything that she can recommend to help.

I do know that even birds cared for by professionals have this problem.

Thanks for answering my question Rick.

The female started chewing her feathers after three years age. It was a surprise because she's not a nervous bird, she's very calm and friendly. The only exception to that rule is she does not like other women, she will draw blood on any woman that get near her. The male began plucking his wings after two years of age. He is a very nervous bird, he seems a little scared of me, although, he does trust me. He's also not as strong as the female, his grip is a little weak and he gets winded easily.

I have read that they chew their wings after being sexually frustrate for so long. I do not have the room to have more, so, I will not breed them. But an interesting thing happend over the summer. I would take them out with me in the back yard as I smoked a cigar and read a book. I would perch them in a tree and they loved it, they would talk their little hearts out. Eventually, the male started growing his feathers back and I thought being out side really stimulated him. I'm one that tried to be one step ahead of things and began thinking "He wants to fly away". I really do believe that. As much as these animals sre pets, freedom is always a compelling idea for a bird. Anyways, as the days got colder and I did bring them out as much, the feathers were history. My birds names are Pretty Girl and Buddy by the way, not the male and the female, LOL! They were gifted to my dad by a guy he used to work with. I suspect Buddy is nervous because his previous owner had a dog. Buddy barks like a dog when ever he's not happy, it's kind of funny. I'm looking forward to hear what the previous poster finds out about birds chewing their feathers. Thanks to all.