I need some advice

[12Katie03]

Hi I need some advice... I just got 2 boy budgies and they are about six months old. One of them has lovely long wings and looks normal but the other has really short wings and they are both different lengths and shapes. Also he can’t fly very well and would rather climb around and tends to preen a lot more than the other bird. I was wondering if his wings have been clipped wrong (we haven’t clipped them) or whether it’s just because he is young. He is also taking longer to tame than the other. Should I call the vet?

 

[Mizzely]

Sounds like from the description that the one with short, uneven wings has been clipped.

 

[12Katie03]

He’s very nervous of me. Will that go away the more I train him? And also will the wing grow back?

 

[Mizzely]

Clipped feathers will molt out and new feathers will replace them. Sometimes it takes a while. My Quaker was 3 months old when he was clipped and he couldn't fly until he was about a year old.

Taming takes time, and with him being clipped he probably just feels pretty vulnerable

 

[12Katie03]

Fabulous thank you!! You’ve really put my mind at ease. Is there anything that I can do that can get him to feel more at ease? I’m doing the hand in nice and slow waiting for them to come to me. They’ve calmed down a lot since we first got them.

 

[Monica]

Try using millet on the outside of the cage.

Do you have pictures of their wings for comparison?

 

[12Katie03]

Thank you that’s a helpful tip. He won’t stand with his back to me if I try to move around the cage to get a picture he turns so that he’s always facing me.

 

[Fergus Mom]

Hi I need some advice... I just got 2 boy budgies and they are about six months old. One of them has lovely long wings and looks normal but the other has really short wings and they are both different lengths and shapes. Also he can’t fly very well and would rather climb around and tends to preen a lot more than the other bird. I was wondering if his wings have been clipped wrong (we haven’t clipped them) or whether it’s just because he is young. He is also taking longer to tame than the other. Should I call the vet?

Katie, did you get them from a pet store? The uneven and different shaped wings on your one boy sounds like a botched wing clip! What are their names? There is a description of my budgies first months with me here on one of the forums, I believe it is the Budgie forum. Just search for Fergus and Fiona diary.

 

[12Katie03]

I got them from a breeder in the local area so assumed they’d be coming from a good home and from people who knew what they were doing. I have pure yellow one called Tweetie and the other is green and yellow and he is called Gary (boyfriends choice not mine)

 

[MojoIRN]

If you're concerned it is always worthwhile getting him checked over. I think I have vague memories of if one wing was clipped it best to clip other one to similar length so doesn't feel uneven. Then let them grow back in.