Problem wing clip - help!

[Ravenclaw88]

A couple of days ago my mum and I decided to clip my 'tiel Totoro's wings, since it seems to calm his hormones down and prevents him from crashing into things if he has a freak out. (We've clipped him before fine).

We did his left wing first, snipped a small section off two of the outermost primary feathers. When we opened his right wing, we faced a problem - after going through his moult he hadn't grown back most of his primary feathers yet - except for the other most feather. My mum accidentally clipped that primary feather, and it turned out a little over a centimetre shorter than the other side.

Totoro can still fly fine, it just takes more effort and he is slower. He can still fly up to perch in areas quite high.

I'm worried he might injure himself though he can fly fine, only because his right side doesn't have as much lift (due to lots of primary feathers not having grown back). I feel so horrible, if I had known he hadn't grown those feathers back yet I wouldn't have even dreamed of clipping him. I don't know what to do - is there anything I can do? Help, please!

 

[barry collins]

I think if your bird can still fly upwards and land on a perch as you said he will be just fine.... if he lost 2 feathers together during a moult he would cope.

 

[tielluver]

One of my birds was a baby I just bought from a breeder about 3 yrs. ago. She cut his wings so short he couldn't fly more than about an inch up. He was so unhappy, seeing the other 2 birds fly. He had a night fright, and about 4 flight feathers on one wing came out with the shaft. They grew in, he quickly taught himself to fly high with one wing. A few weeks later he had another night fright, this time hitting the flight feathers of other wing. With the shafts again. When they grew in he was flying crooked for about a day until he got used to it. Your bird should be fine.

 

[Monica]

Birds learn how to fly best without being clipped. The earlier in life they are clipped the more likely they are to have problems flying as adults. Most parrots are clipped while they are weaning or shortly after being weaned... so they never get enough time to learn how to fly. They need *months*, if not at least a year of flight and practice.


You say it helps to calm down his hormones. How does he act flighted vs clipped?

 

[Marloz]

My female cockatiel can still fly with both of her primary feathers cut. My male can't

 

[Ravenclaw88]

@Monica : He is over two years old and wasn't clipped until he was well over a year and a half. I would never clip an immature bird that hasn't properly learnt how to fly.

I don't know how it works psychologically for him in relation to his hormones and clipping his wings, but he is much less aggressive and territorial around his cage. He also looks for places to nest less/become possessive over my mum.

Just an update, he can fly fine since the clip (just to clarify, some of his primary feathers had fallen off and not grown back since his moult and we hadn't realised until after we had clipped his other wing) and those primary feathers are now growing back. Once they are all grown and he has finished his moult we will even out the clip so he is more balanced.

 

[AviaryByTheSea]

I wouldn't worry about a couple of feathers not growing back in yet... It could take almost a year for them to grow back. I know this because I had to pull a couple of broken blood feathers and that is how long it took them to grow back.... it sounds to me like he might have pulled them. Something I've noticed on my Macaws is they almost always loose corresponding flight feathers on each wing, and they grow back at the same pace...

While I am against clipping birds in general - I might consider clipping him more (depending on your home environment, other animals, etc)... If the bird is properly clipped he shouldn't be able to get lift... he should gentle glide down to the ground.

An improperly clipped bird, one that can still get lift and fly is put in a very precarious and dangerous situation should he somehow manage to escape the confines and safety of your home. Your bird would be at a huge disadvantage with his clipped feathers, he might struggle to survive outside.... And while various flight skills are common to all parrots (phylogenetic behavior), these skills must also be learned and honed. Having said that... unless your bird is a skilled free flier he only knows basic indoor flying skills and perhaps recall. Moreover, he probably is not an athletic bird that can fly for hours and he will tire easily, more so with clipped wings. He also is at a major disadvantage because has not developed advanced flight skills, rally point recognition, navigation skills, defensive flocking, defensive perching, predator avoidance and evasion.

 

[Monica]

@Monica : He is over two years old and wasn't clipped until he was well over a year and a half. I would never clip an immature bird that hasn't properly learnt how to fly.

I don't know how it works psychologically for him in relation to his hormones and clipping his wings, but he is much less aggressive and territorial around his cage. He also looks for places to nest less/become possessive over my mum.

Just an update, he can fly fine since the clip (just to clarify, some of his primary feathers had fallen off and not grown back since his moult and we hadn't realised until after we had clipped his other wing) and those primary feathers are now growing back. Once they are all grown and he has finished his moult we will even out the clip so he is more balanced.

It's great that he's had a long time for flight!


I have to wonder if he's getting enough sleep then?


Or maybe training?


Foraging opportunities?