Soft collars i made 🥹

[u/LilPurpleDonut]

Hi all, my boy has an underwing plucking issue going on for couple of months and vet gaved us a plastic e-collar. In the country where i live there is no other collars than plastic so i made my sweety a soft collar because plastic one cuts his neck skin 😭 He is really comfy in his collar and i thought, i should make more to give the vet so babies in need gets some comfort 😭😭 Vet really liked the idea so im making them. Just wanted to share for people who wants to make their own. Just cut a 10,5 cm diametered circle from bird safe felt and and add another layer for thickness, sew them together open a small neck area and decorate them how you want. Thats it ✨

[u/ilikeUni]

OP, my tiel is going through the same issue with plucking. My vet gave a hard plastic cone covered in vet tape. I got it on a Saturday and let her wear it until Sunday evening. She was picking on it nonstop and was acting visibly dejected through her eyes, frustration, and body language. She was also having hard time eating as the cone is in her way, and probably too depressed to try harder to get to the food. She lost over 10 grams in 1.5 days. I removed the cone Sunday night because I had to go to the office on Monday. Knowing that she hadn’t adjusted to to cone I didn’t want to leave it on for 10 hours as she might hurt herself. I have not put it back, I almost feel like I rather let her pluck than leave the cone on. Seeing your post I want to revisit this option.

Q: When you first put a cone on your boy, how did he react and how long did it take him to get used to it?
Did you take off the cone periodically to give him a break?
Did you take off perches so that he stays at bottom of the cage?
How long does your boy take to destroy the collar?

Sorry for so many questions. Just excited someone in similar situation if finding a solution that I want to try.

[u/LilPurpleDonut → u/ilikeUni]

Sorry for your birdie hope things get better quickly 🙏 Our journey wasnt easy with the cone too. When we first put it, he was so stressed. On the first hour, he trashed around on the bottom of the cage, trying to get it off. Then he accepted and stand on the perch but didnt eat anything so i offered him millet (literally hanged it in front of his nose so he could eat). In a couple of days, he was better but of course, not playfull and happy how he used to be.

I do not remove the cone to give breaks because he plucks and even rips his skin. I didnt remove perches because i believe it would stress him even more. But if you worry about falling etc, maybe you can put something soft on the bottom of the cage?

He is not destrıying these and i can assure you, soft collars are way less terrifying for them. They get used to it much quicly also they dont hurt themself while doing it. Hope this answer helps you and please feel free to ask, i know its so hard to go through this.

[u/ilikeUni → u/LilPurpleDonut]

Thanks so much for your response. I will make the collar and find a few days that I know I’ll be home to try again. For sure if I have more questions I will reach out. 🙏❤️