clipped wings have grown out, flight questions

When I got my Jenday he/she (we call her she) was already clipped. She was a few months old.

Her wings have finally grown in and have been for a bit now. She just turned 1 at the end of last month.

So Razzbin will be on her playstand and calling out for me. If I am busy she will jump and flutter down to the floor then walk/run to find me. If she wants up onto something she just climbs up.

I am starting to think she wasn't allow to learn to fly before her wings were clipped. I know I have read here and there that it is best to allow them to learn before clipping but have never read WHY, so why is that and if it wasnt allowed, what does that mean for my Razzbin?

I know she can teach herself, but how can she do this? How can I aid her?

I keep my Quaker clipped because she was a danger to herself, she broke her leg. (history, I got my Quaker when she was 7-8 years old and was locked in a cage for that whole time)
My other bird is a flighted B&G, who was this way when I got him.

Just trying to offer my birdie the life of a bird ) Thanks in advance for your help!

I think many breeders let baby birds fledge so that they develop confidence early on and learn what it means to be a bird. I'm guessing it's especially important for the most emotional and less forgiving of species? (Grey's, Eclectus, Toos). Breeders can chime in and tell you more about it.
That being said, my Red Bellied never fledged. I'm almost sure he didn't, and he's just as well adjusted as ever. I got him from a bird store who bought him from the breeder at a very young age. I let his wings grow out briefly once when he was about 15 yrs old. and he literally COULD NOT fly! He couldn't control it. He's fine clipped since it's the only thing he knows. My birds (except Budgies) are clipped only for safety reasons. I also had a Slender Billed who never fledged, and had to watch the Eclectus fly and land in order to learn. Now she flys free in an aviary (well, not really 'free') but better than I could ever provide for her inside a house. Can she learn by another bird's example? Are any of your other birds flighted so they can show her how? That was really the best way. Maybe others have tips for you. Good luck.

She'll be able to teach herself without much input from humans. Maybe you can call her to you form a short distance (2 feet) then increase it over time. Settle in a verbal cue to call her, and reward when she comes to you.

Just be wary of unsafe home elements such as toilet bowls, stoves, cables, mirrors, windows and ceiling fans. It sounds like a lot to look out for but it's really not that bad and you get used to it. I commend you in your decision. You and you'd bird will reap the benefits!

Bird, much like human, if learned to walk/run at 1 year old, will walk/run normally. Imagine been stuck in bed since the day you were born and learn to walk/run at 15 years old, will you be able to walk/run as strong and efficient as a normal 15-year old? Even if you can, will your gate and coordination appear normal? Once muscles and bones set into certain condition for so long, it is very hard to adjust. Same for birds, if they learned to fly when young, they will fly like normal birds. You can choose to clip their wings 2 years later after they learned to fly normally, clip their wings, and they will still be able to fly normal and strong when their wings grow back. They need to learn to fly while their muscles and bones are still flexible to adjustment.

I have a B&G that can and does fly. He is really very good at it. I think my little Razzbin watches him but she just seems so lost. It makes me very sad. When I got Razzbin she was being sold from petco. I watched her weekly for a few months, sitting in that tiny sound proof box. She stole my heart.

All of my birds are out of their cages a good 10-12 hours a day, depending on the day. I had hoped that with all that out of cage time and watching the Macaw she might get it. She just doesn't seem to. She does have great desire to get to the family if she is on her play stand. So I will try to she if she will come to me from the stand, if I had to take a guess she will jump, flutter to the floor, and race to me.

~sigh~ I didnt think there was much I could do in helping her. just thought I would ask. I will keep you guys posted...Maybe one day she will fly!

Thanks!

When my gcc female, Monkey, was learning to fly since she had her wings clipped early too and I had to help teach. I would drop my arm quick so she would spread her wings to catch her balance. Once she got that I would just drop her and she would flutter to the ground. I then started tossing her towards the couch. Eventually I started tossing her from the couch to her playstand. She caught on to the use of her wings after a couple years. It can take awhile to become automatic. She buzzes our heads now and flys after me when I leave a room. Sometimes she will still do the lean asking me to take her some place but I just nudge her and she flies to wherever she wanted to go.

The reason she can't fly is probably because she has no muscle mass. Especially if she was clipped early on. Monkey would lose her breath really fast. Her wings would shake a little from the exertion too. So just getting in shape enough to be able to fly well can take a little while. Monkeys the best flier in the house after my two cockatiel girls whose wings I didn't clip until they were about a year.

Ah I might add if your bird doesn't already completely trust you this might not be the best learning method....

She'll get it my conure didn't learn to fly until he was four (previous owners never let him out). It just happens. There may be a few bumps along the way, but she'll master it on her own. Just make sure she knows what windows are, take her to each one and have her beak the glass in different spots every day until its drilled in her brain

She does do the happy flappy dance... ALL the time. She gets very excited and holds on tight and just flaps away. I swear she can do this forever without a hint of being tired. So I do think she is pretty strong. My B&G will do the same flappy dance and after about 30 seconds he is winded and breathing heavy, and he FLYS! I know he is a much larger bird, just seems backwards. LOL

I do play very hard with Razzbin, she loves running up and down the sofa playing games. She loves to wrestle and get crazy. She is very high energy bird. She adores my 5 year old son who is ALWAYS playing with her. They run through the house together (she hitches a ride most of the time) Razzbin will also hunt my dogs down, she will chase them whenever she has the chance. That game I am not to happy with, so I stop that one right away. She is my wild child!

I do see how she may have the energy just not strong enough to fly. I love all the info and all the different points of view. Thank you!!

I once bought a young adult budgie (not fully mature, but not a chick, either) from a pet store fully flighted. He was so agile in the air, it amazed me! I took him home and after a couple of days of him not eating, I freaked out and clipped his wings!

Because his wings were clipped, he lost muscle tone in his wings, so even when his flights grew back in, he couldn't get more than 2-3 inches off the floor. I had to "reteach" him how to fly. I did this by frequently tossing him onto my bed and forcing him to fly his wings and I did this until he tired out. I'd often do it 2-3 times a day over a period of two weeks. After this time, he could indeed fly again, but he was no longer the agile flier that I had purchased.


Point is, birds can "forget" how to fly. They could lose muscle mass, or maybe even have some trauma that scares them from wanting to fly.




If your bird will allow it, and enjoys it, you can try running around the house with him on your hand and have him flap his wings. If he's okay with it, you can get him to flap his wings by holding him and lowering your hand quickly, but try to make this fun!


Or...... teach him to step up to you on command. Then increase the step up so he has to step up further. Then a step up that requires using his beak. Then a step up that requires him hopping to you. Then a hop and a flap. Then a couple of flaps. Eventually, you'll have flight! If at any time he gets stuck then go back a step!