Have you ever had to.......

[Saemma]

clip the wings of a parrot who very skilled at flying and enjoyed flying very much? If so.. how did this affect your parrot in the short term and the long term? Would you clip them again?

At the moment I do not have any intention of clipping either of my parrots. I love the cardiovascular exercise that they are BOTH getting and it's quite obvious that they are both getting a big charge out of flying. I just want to gather this information in case I should need it in the future. Thanks in advance.

 

[tracie]

I had to clip Luca's wings when I first brought Jack home because he would not stop dive bombing Jack and trying to intimidate him. I tried everything to stop it and finally for his safety I decided to get him a soft clip. I would say for one day he was kinda quiet and then he was his hilarious self again.

 

[Welshanne]

Never done it myself, but have seen the devastation it causes to intelligent birds who have known nothing else but being able to fly.It is the natural thing for them to do and sets them apart from other animal species. Who are we to take it away from them?

 

[Jacob]

I have no experience with clipping a flighted bird but I have seen the positive changes in a bird once he could fly again. That alone makes me not want to clip wings.

 

[Cynthia & Percy]

I have one very skilled flyer Rocky that I am clipping again let me tell the history he has attacked other birds the dog me and is now bothering the other birds again it will take a lot to clip him and I would rather not do it but that is the only way to keep him in check

 

[suncoast]

It's definately a challenge to keep a fully flighted bird. Especially a bigger bird. Truely has turned into The Holy Terror of the Skies, Destroyer of Bud Vases, but she loves it and for us, it's more important for her to be a bird and have us work around her than for her to be flightless.

Ginger

 

[Prince Toasty Buns]

Saemma,

I never clip (not even a light clip) but have taken in or purchased birds that were partially clipped and even some that were clipped severly by their prior keepers.

I have even purchased back a few birds that left my place fully flighted but were then clipped by their new keepers (after promising me they wouldn't clip). They seemed very depressed that they could no longer fly like they used to. I can't even begin to tell you how happy they were to fly again, once they grew their flight feathers back in here and were flying around my place with their buddies having a grand ole time playing chase, tag-your-it and keep away, etc. etc. etc.

I always advise people to do whatever it takes to keep one's bird(s) fully flighted, rather than handicap them by clipping. I never have birds fly into windows, doors, walls, etc. because I take the proper precautions to see that this does not happen.

 

[Beatriz Cazeneuve]

Yes, I have. Last breeding season I had to clip my male senegal's wings beicause he attacked two birds in two days. It was the first time in my life that I had ever clipped a bird (I do not believe in it, I think it's unhealthy both from an emotional and a physical point of view) but I felt I had no choice. And it had a devastating effect on him! This bird is an excellent and avid flier who zooms from one end of the room to the other several times in a row just for the pleasure of flying. He is also utterly fearless but, after he was clipped, he hid for days and days, only coming out to eat and drink. After a week or so, he started climbing up but he was a changed bird, timid and keeping to himself instead of following around, dancing and generally showing off to his mate. He molted two of his primaries at the end of the summer and was fine after that but I promised myself never to clip him again... I still haven't forgiven myself for it.

 

[saroj12]

I accidentally clipped a feather each too short on JoJo and Chickie (caiques) last year. I was trying to keep them from smashing into the aviary wire and wanted to do a teeny clip but overshot. It took 16 months for them to grow back and now FINALLY they are flighted again as of last week. I regretted that slip of the scissors every day!

 

[Stevo]

I have clipped my birds all my life - My last parrot, and Alexandrine, I would allow to fly for 3months of every year. He had no problems and his demeanor was exactly the same when clipped or not.

We do not know what birds are thinking so it is very difficult when people apply human emotions to behaviour that they are seeing. Enjoy, love, hate, sulk, anger, etc, cannot be determined 100% in birds as we are not mind readers.

Research has shown that birds rarely, if at all, fly for the simple pleasure of it - it has a purpose, be it to get to the next feeding opportunity, it's mate, or away from a predator. If you remove the need for flying to these things, as we do in captivity, there is a reduced need for a bird to fly. Exercise not-withstanding.

I do agree though that a bird needs to be able to fledge to develop its brain, as any todler needs the use of all of its faculties to learn and develop.

Danny came to me flighted and has since been trimmed - he is still healthy and in fine spirit.

To each their own and it will always be a personal decision.

 

[saroj12]

To each their own and it will always be a personal decision.

Well said!!

 

[Thugluvgrl187]

I have never clipped Squeeky but he had a night fright which caused him to thrash and lose most of his flight feathers. He was not able to fly until they grew back and let me tell you he was a different bird. He got very depressed and even more needy lol. He wouldn't sing or talk for a few days. It really affected him.

 

[Bokkapooh]

When I clipped my budgies. I very much regretted it. They tried so hard to keep on flying after they were clipped (I have always done a light clip of no more than 4-5 feathers) but they were upset. I never clipped them again after that

I will never clip my big guys. Or any personaly smaller birds. I have taught my mom how to clip her quakers, tiels, lovie all correctly, so she does clip them, to have "controleld" flight. They can still very much fly, and they do, but its not beaming all aroudn us,. over our head,etc.

 

[Jally]

We had to clip our male sun conure because he kept flying to attack me and the kids. Then we clipped Oreo, our blackmasked lovebird because he kept chewing up every piece of woodwork that he saw and could get to. He was clipped when we got him and was enjoying his flying time to be with the other birds. But, he was also a bully to the other birds so when he did get to where they were, he would bite them and push them off of where ever they were.

 

[Welshanne]

Saroj12 is my choice to carry on with this game!

 

[allison]

I did not clip her, but Harper used to be a very good flier. She pulled out and barbered many of her flight feathers during her plucking sessions and now plummets to the ground. Before Beau (but after the plucking), she was much less confident and seemed more depressed, but was also less aggressive with me. She is happy having Beau now though.

 

[Jadesmom]

My baby sunday Bella was like a B-52. She flew so fast around the birdroom I was afraid she would kill herself. She is a super super fast flier. I had her clipped with the assurance that she would be grounded, but all it did was cut her speed in 1/2. This worked out great as she could still fly and "make the rounds" but slow enough where I didn't see an accident waiting to happen.
My quake Jade just reciently grew her flights back and has been a absolute raging snot ever since. Oh well....

 

[JLcribber]

The smarter and larger they are the the worse the physical effect and thus the bigger mental effect. JMHO