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Thinking about cutting flights

Nnaime

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My ysgcc is flighted, I made the decision to let them grow out because I thought he would be happier with his own means of transportation and will. But he keeps perching in high places which at first was fine for me, because I was happy that he was happy and going where he wanted to, now he stays up there for hours and I have to get him down so he'll eat something or be interactive or anything. He is in the middle of a molt, but I am contemplating getting them clipped when he is finished because he has become distant and a different bird, which I anticipated would be a good change for him to fly bit has proven otherwise. My house is well bird proofed, he does not have a sense of potty, or play. I feel terrible taking this away from him, but I feel this is the best option.
 

sunnysmom

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Does he have playstand or some type of perch where he might come down to play? A boing? I know people have different opinions on clipping and there are different reasons, etc. but I think being flighted is so much better for a bird's physical and mental well-being that I really encourage exploring all other options first. :)
 

Bokkapooh

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Perhaps he is a "different" bird because he is molting? I suggest waiting a couple weeks post molt. Things may settle after his molt.
 

jh81

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Indeed, there are a lot of different opinions, and you might have start a little war here as people can be very passionate when it comes down to this topic.

For me? I would not clip wings, it takes away their natural ability (and mostly their only ability) to protect themselves against harm, you know there wont be any, i may know there wont be any, but your bird does not. Handicapting them this way can make them insecure and even more withdrawn then he allready is! Dont forget, a parrot is a prey animal, they seek high places to be on the lookout! It makes them feel secure if they can keep an eye on their environment!

Try understanding why your bird keeps seeking a high place! Maybe hes scared of an object in your house? A broom, vacuum cleaner? Dont forget, parrots are not domesticated like cats and dogs! They are nog that far from their wild ancestors, their instincts still run deep :)

On the other hand, i have two Senegals both clipped by their former owners. Ar this point they dont show any insecurity's, at best it keeps them away from me at times hahaha so its really something you have to decide for yourself if its worth the porential stress and anxiety your bird might get!

Try figuring out what makes your bird fly high, fix that and you're half way there!!
 

JLcribber

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Who's happiness are we talking about?

The solution is to change (adapt) the environment. Not change (handicap) the bird.
 

Chantilly Lace

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Can you get him a climbing net? They usually love playing on those, so you might not have as much of a problem. We have basically taken everything down that the birds can perch on all but a few things. They hate the dremel, so we usually keep a dremel on top of the tv, and one on the bookcase they like to land on, but they will not fly near there with the dremel. So maybe you can first get more places he will like to be, second bird proof the room, and third use deterrence by putting objects he is scared of on items that cannot be removed. Good luck, I know I could never clip my birds again, when I saw Phoenix's face when he realized he could no longer fly, I cried for days and promised him I would never do that again. It is not always easy, but it is worth it. And they live longer and are much healthier if they are allowed to fly.
 

Lady Jane

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John is correct on what he said. A bird is born with the instinct to fly and fly high. You are going against your birds natural activity. He knows where his food is and will go back for it when he is ready. I speak from personal experience you are hobbling you bird with a wing clip. We take away so many things from them but to clip wings is like cutting off your arms. Yes we are passionate about this subject for good reason.

It was a good suggestion by Sunnys mom to have a play stand and to train him to know that is his. Conures are very active birds and good fliers too. His world will not be the same if he cannot fly and fly high!
 

Wolf

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I am personally not a fan of clipping a birds wings, but that is not exactly what I wanted to say. You have a GCC and regardless of the color mutation this particular bird species is well known for being a Velcro bird which once he decides to fully trust you will derive a huge amount of his pleasure from hanging out not just near you but mostly on you. I don't know the age of your bird nor how long you have had him and these two things may easily be the root of your issue with him remaining perched on high. It may be that you just need to give him time to acclimate to his new environment and to you and then he will want to spend more time on your body. So if he is a young bird and if you have not had I'm for very long, please give it some time and just work on earning his trust. Please consider giving him the benefit of the doubt, I am sure that you will not regret giving your bird the chance. It only takes a few minutes to remove his flight, but it takes up to two years for him to replace the feathers that are clipped and could take much longer than that to repair the mental, physical and emotional damage from this act.
 

karen256

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How long have you had your GCC?
I do believe in keeping birds flighted and never clip mine at all, but there are certainly also situations where a mild clip is fine. Clipping, after all, is not permanent, and a light clip can sometimes aid in working with a difficult bird with the aim of letting them be full flighted again with a little more training/bonding.

However, it really isn't normal for him to want to always stay up in high places and not interact with you. He may not feel comfortable on whatever lower perches are available or something in the room may be bothering him. Or perhaps he hasn't quite figured out how to fly down yet (for new fliers, it's always easier flying up than down).
I have 3 flighted birds and they have a large playgym where the highest perch is around 6 feet high. They use all the levels, not just the top. If I'm in the room, my GCC, who is rather clingy, will spend her time on my lap or on her basket perch next to be - both lower places to perch than the lowest perch on the playgym. Even my other two birds, who are much more independent, spend a significant amount of time on lower perches such as the back of the sofa. The fact that your bird is only using the top perches seems (to me) that something is bothering him or that he doesn't have a lower perch that he likes, and it would be better to try and fix that before resorting to clipping.
 

Tinta

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Do you do any kind of trick type training or taming exercises with your bird?
If not, if might be a good time to start! And it's a great way to bond and get close to your bird. :D
 

Monica

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I ditto the training! Can you work on teaching your conure to fly to you on command for a reward?
 

noice

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I would train him. Parrot Wizard and Wings n' Paws on YouTube have great advice. Flight is really important to his safety. When people say "it might fly into the fan/window" I say close the curtains and turn off the fan :) And yeah, parrots tend to be touchy when they're molting.
 

Monica

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Parrot Wizard does not have the best of advice.... as per his book, he recommends slowly starving birds, then keeping them "underweight" (a healthy weight, but still on the thin side) for training. I disagree with this. I am not familiar with Wings n Paws, though...




In regards to flight, this is the channel that I *DO* recommend! :)

flychomperfly - YouTube
 

noice

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Sorry, I've never read his book, just speaking from his YouTube videos. Wings n Paws owns a congo grey and he does training videos :)
 

Monica

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Ah yes, I think I've seen a few of Wings n Paws videos! Kind of clicked when you said congo grey! If I remember right, most of his information was good! :)
 

Lady Jane

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I see the original poster of this thread has not responded. I am sorry if you feel we came on too strong. I hope you try some of the very good suggestions others have posted. Wing clipping is and always will be a "hot topic" on any bird forum.
 

Wolf

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Michael does not recommend slowly starving your birds. He is an advocate for food management which like you I am not in agreement with and I have had many discussions with him on this topic.
 

Monica

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Tyrion

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You can also try Training Parrots | Parrot Training DVDS & Books and look over her site to help you with training... she is great ...I wouldnt clip until all other avenues have been looked at ...most birds do better fully flighted ..there could be several reasons why your bird stays so high ...and molting could be a reason why your bird is a little different right now they get a little grumpy when molting :)
 
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