She is happy. I am very surprised in the change in her since her flight feathers and the ability to fly has made in her.
I have had her in my life since August of 2008, she was clipped at the store and then because of the living arrangements at the time she was kept clipped until now where I have my own apartment and can control the safety of my home for her.
When I first moved I would keep her with me most of the time during the day when I got home from work. With the exception of hopping onto my laptop she would sit sedentary on the play gym on the perch I placed her on. Not your typical lory. She would not play much unless I was holding the toy and wiggling it in front of her face but she was an acrobat in her cage with her toys. I thought she was just a very calm little girl.
Since her flights came in and she has realized that she has the ability to move about on her own she is becoming more and more active. She will fly to me, fly to my poor-poor laptop, she climbs the play stand and interacts with the toys on it. She flies to Bill, she flies onto his computer and she seems so much happier than she was before, like she was just a shadow of herself as she is now then.
Last night she zipped down her playstand grabbed up an apple slice and climbed back up and actually held it in her right foot and ate it. She only ever used her feet to eat when I was living on my friends couch and she had Harry the YCM in the same room as her and could see him do the same. After he got moved back into my friends mothers bedroom she stopped and would only bite the fruit a few times with her beak and let the rest fall or she needed someone to hold it for her or have it on a skewer for her to be able to get the most out of it. I really think her ability to move about and her new found independence are what are making her do the amazing things she is now. She is finally the bird she should be, happy and active and able to make her own choices (to a certain degree.).
I am really happy to see her as she is now, I feel so sorry to see that in a way during my divorce we were both suffering. I am glad now that we both have our independence and I promise to never take it away from her again.
I know it is a personal choice for people to clip or not. Not everyone can safely do it and every bird and situation is different but I am just so amazed in the change that she has gone through.