HolisticBird.org

In reply to a letter about the use of Haldol: I do understand the frustration of someone whose beloved bird is destroying its beauty. If a bird begins to mutilate its flesh, which can be life threatening, I can understand using desperate measures to avoid the possibility of severe infection that could cost the bird its life.

However, psychoactive drugs designed for use in humans seems to me a drastic solution for feather plucking. I have read about the changes in plucking and personality in some birds that were prescribed Haloperidol (Haldol) but the outcome is not always positive. There have been some not-so-happy endings following the use of these and other strong pharmaceutical drugs intended for human treatment.

My personal opinion, and I am the first to admit that I am NOT a vet, is that we should exhaust all the safe options before resorting to psychoactive pharmaceuticals that were not intended for use in birds. As I understand it, the use of Haldol for plucking parrots is "experimental". It is our responsibility to prevent our birds from being harmed by treatments that are not justified by the problem.

There are herbal remedies, homeopathic solutions, flower remedies, acupuncture and other harmless treatments that should be tried FIRST.