We have had 100% success with feather destructive behavior and mutilation using antipsychotic drugs. Dr. Jenkins of the Avian and Exotic Animal Hospital in San Diego has been helping rescues and sanctuaries as well as the public with the use of Haldol. Let me say frankly that anecdotal remedies do not work. Few birds survive the progress of this disease without drug intervention.
Many avian vets are unaware of the use of Haloperidol for FDB or do not believe that the general public can properly administer it. So finding a support vet might be an issue for you if you choose to use this medical remedy.
I am not a veterinarian and cannot recommend, approve or prescribe veterinary drugs or protocols. This information is provided for education purposes only. There are risks with any medical remedy.
You can see one of our mutilators who is now out of danger and in feather here: http://youtu.be/w-IB0tZYNTU
We have 8 birds who have been given a new lease on life with Haldol: Roman, Chloe, Snoball, Lauralei, Coco, Simone, Cozzi, and Sugar.
Here is more info:
This is a common problem with cockatoos: self-mutilation and feather destructive behavior. I can't tell you what to do but I can tell you what I have done. I have had success by using a combination of medicine and, temporarily, collars. The collar is an immediate fix for the problem. The bird can no longer reach its body.
From all of the research that I have done and one of our avian veterinarians concurs, the problem stems from being hand-raised by humans. Parrots and cockatoos have an extended juvenile dependency period much like humans. Most of their behavior is absorbed from their parents, their siblings and their flock. When raised by humans they usually become functionally autistic or psychotic. Imagine a human raised by chimpanzees. It's worse than that because at least chimps are mammals. Birds are wildly different than us.
Cockatoos mate for life. If you give up your cockatoo to try to help her it may work just the other way around. It is been very difficult with Sugar, our most recent mutilator, to make her feel loved and wanted again. I work at it hard. You never know how hard someone else will work at it.
Back to the main point. Many people find the fact that I use medicine, psychiatric medicine, unacceptable. They say they don't want to see their bird on drugs. But frankly, the most common outcome of mutilation in the long run according to every veterinary manual I have is death. Haloperidol, Haldol, has worked on every cockatoo that I have used it on. If a bird has had this problem for more than a year it will probably need to remain on it for the rest of its life.
I have found that most birds actually enjoy their lives much more once they are on this drug. One of the reasons is that is serves as an anti-anxiety medicine. The problem is that you have to adjust the drug on a daily basis. You have to observe and change the level of the drug till you reach a point where they don't mutilate and they're acting normally. I generally adjust the drug every two days either up or down based on behavior, this is, in fact, the recommended protocol. I didn't pull this out of a hat. Most veterinarians will recommend an initial level of the drug but they won't recommend adjusting on a daily basis. This doesn't work. Evidence shows that this does not work.
Most birds become more active but some birds become more docile for a short time on the drug. They may appear sleepy and might lose appetite for a few days to a week.
It's not expensive, . A years supply for you would run about $50. If they try to charge you more than this you need to find a different vet. A 4 ounce bottle is about $50. You would need to find an avian vet to prescribe it because it is a prescription medicine. It can be mixed with something like peanut butter but it’s best to just use a syringe and squirt it into the beak. It is important to get the exact dosage into the bird. One person told me their vet said to mix it in their water. That would be useless. There is no way to give an exact dosage if it is mixed in this way.
Haldol concentrate is a liquid 2mg/ml solution. Can be given with a syringe orally or mixed with almond butter or equal. It is colorless and tasteless.
I can’t tell you what dosages to use but I can tell you what I do. I do a test to see if there will be unusual issues by giving one dose at 0.08ml the first time (for large cockatoos, lower for small ones). Then, for a Moluccan mutilator I start with 0.2ml twice a day around 7am and 4 pm. For an umbrella I use 0.16ml as a starting dose. If the problem continues for 2 days I increase the dose by 0.01ml. I repeat the increase 2 days later if the problem persists.
I buy the full 4oz bottle rather than have the vet dispense a lower quantity because the cost is so low anyway. The markup on small bottles has been extreme. Some vets water the mixture down to 1mg/ml and it seems that this causes the solution to weaken faster. It also weakens if exposed to UV (daylight).
If I see stereotypic behavior, slow foot movements, or dazed eyes in the first few days I keep an eye on them but it usually passes. As long as breathing is okay I don't worry. Sometimes it takes a week or two for them to adapt. Mutilators require the drug for the rest of their lives (see The Manual of Parrot Behavior). Pluckers who are just starting can usually be weaned off if you watch closely when mating season is due. Mating season generally starts the behavior again. After a few seasons they can be taken off, usually. This info is from Dr. Jenkins at the Avian and Exotic Animal Hospital in San Diego and the book: The Manual of Parrot Behavior by Leuscher (a scientific compendium).
Appetite depression is normal for 48 hours. I check the bird’s weight daily and hand feed by syringe if needed.
Always work with your Avian veterinarian. It might not hurt to bring The Manual of Parrot Behavior along to show them the article on Haldol in the drug section. Avian vets are usually the top vets but some may not know of this information.
Many avian vets are unaware of the use of Haloperidol for FDB or do not believe that the general public can properly administer it. So finding a support vet might be an issue for you if you choose to use this medical remedy.
I am not a veterinarian and cannot recommend, approve or prescribe veterinary drugs or protocols. This information is provided for education purposes only. There are risks with any medical remedy.
You can see one of our mutilators who is now out of danger and in feather here: http://youtu.be/w-IB0tZYNTU
We have 8 birds who have been given a new lease on life with Haldol: Roman, Chloe, Snoball, Lauralei, Coco, Simone, Cozzi, and Sugar.
Here is more info:
This is a common problem with cockatoos: self-mutilation and feather destructive behavior. I can't tell you what to do but I can tell you what I have done. I have had success by using a combination of medicine and, temporarily, collars. The collar is an immediate fix for the problem. The bird can no longer reach its body.
From all of the research that I have done and one of our avian veterinarians concurs, the problem stems from being hand-raised by humans. Parrots and cockatoos have an extended juvenile dependency period much like humans. Most of their behavior is absorbed from their parents, their siblings and their flock. When raised by humans they usually become functionally autistic or psychotic. Imagine a human raised by chimpanzees. It's worse than that because at least chimps are mammals. Birds are wildly different than us.
Cockatoos mate for life. If you give up your cockatoo to try to help her it may work just the other way around. It is been very difficult with Sugar, our most recent mutilator, to make her feel loved and wanted again. I work at it hard. You never know how hard someone else will work at it.
Back to the main point. Many people find the fact that I use medicine, psychiatric medicine, unacceptable. They say they don't want to see their bird on drugs. But frankly, the most common outcome of mutilation in the long run according to every veterinary manual I have is death. Haloperidol, Haldol, has worked on every cockatoo that I have used it on. If a bird has had this problem for more than a year it will probably need to remain on it for the rest of its life.
I have found that most birds actually enjoy their lives much more once they are on this drug. One of the reasons is that is serves as an anti-anxiety medicine. The problem is that you have to adjust the drug on a daily basis. You have to observe and change the level of the drug till you reach a point where they don't mutilate and they're acting normally. I generally adjust the drug every two days either up or down based on behavior, this is, in fact, the recommended protocol. I didn't pull this out of a hat. Most veterinarians will recommend an initial level of the drug but they won't recommend adjusting on a daily basis. This doesn't work. Evidence shows that this does not work.
Most birds become more active but some birds become more docile for a short time on the drug. They may appear sleepy and might lose appetite for a few days to a week.
It's not expensive, . A years supply for you would run about $50. If they try to charge you more than this you need to find a different vet. A 4 ounce bottle is about $50. You would need to find an avian vet to prescribe it because it is a prescription medicine. It can be mixed with something like peanut butter but it’s best to just use a syringe and squirt it into the beak. It is important to get the exact dosage into the bird. One person told me their vet said to mix it in their water. That would be useless. There is no way to give an exact dosage if it is mixed in this way.
Haldol concentrate is a liquid 2mg/ml solution. Can be given with a syringe orally or mixed with almond butter or equal. It is colorless and tasteless.
I can’t tell you what dosages to use but I can tell you what I do. I do a test to see if there will be unusual issues by giving one dose at 0.08ml the first time (for large cockatoos, lower for small ones). Then, for a Moluccan mutilator I start with 0.2ml twice a day around 7am and 4 pm. For an umbrella I use 0.16ml as a starting dose. If the problem continues for 2 days I increase the dose by 0.01ml. I repeat the increase 2 days later if the problem persists.
I buy the full 4oz bottle rather than have the vet dispense a lower quantity because the cost is so low anyway. The markup on small bottles has been extreme. Some vets water the mixture down to 1mg/ml and it seems that this causes the solution to weaken faster. It also weakens if exposed to UV (daylight).
If I see stereotypic behavior, slow foot movements, or dazed eyes in the first few days I keep an eye on them but it usually passes. As long as breathing is okay I don't worry. Sometimes it takes a week or two for them to adapt. Mutilators require the drug for the rest of their lives (see The Manual of Parrot Behavior). Pluckers who are just starting can usually be weaned off if you watch closely when mating season is due. Mating season generally starts the behavior again. After a few seasons they can be taken off, usually. This info is from Dr. Jenkins at the Avian and Exotic Animal Hospital in San Diego and the book: The Manual of Parrot Behavior by Leuscher (a scientific compendium).
Appetite depression is normal for 48 hours. I check the bird’s weight daily and hand feed by syringe if needed.
Always work with your Avian veterinarian. It might not hurt to bring The Manual of Parrot Behavior along to show them the article on Haldol in the drug section. Avian vets are usually the top vets but some may not know of this information.
