"To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

"To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

I know this is a very controversial subject and would love advice and opinions with as little conflict as possible. ;-) I have 2 conures, a sun and gcc if that helps at all, and they are both around 2 years old. They are both free flighted now and I am not at all opposed to clipping, getting them clipped is the dilemma though and I am not sure if I should just keep them free flighted or give it a shot. Let me fill you in on their back story.

To my knowledge the two of them (Mango and Kiwi) have been together since they were babies. A young couple got them young but shortly after purchase the wife became pregnant and feeling that they could not give the appropriate care and attention to the birds with a newborn they rehomed them. Their new family had two boys, (they were one of the boys pets) and had them for about a year, year and a half but after the first couple of weeks/months of living with them the boys lost interest and they stayed in their cage most of the time. They decided to find a new home for the birds and last January they came to us. Their previous owners had their wings clipped at least once but by the time they came to us Kiwi's wings were fully grown back in and Mango's were growing in. They both adjusted very quickly and are very affectionate and sweet but they allow minimal to no handling beyond stepping up and some beak stroking. I do not know if this is because of all the rehoming or no one took the time to work with them, (which the subject of how best to work with them, especially as they are currently fully flighted is also something I am researching though a wholly different topic). I am worried that trying to clip them or taking them to be clipped by an avian vet will break their trust or be detrimental to the bond we are establishing. Any advice you can give to help me with any of this I would be very grateful for.

Thank you and Merry Christmas!

Re: "To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

Wing clipping is a "hot" topic and there are pros and cons on both sides of the story. If you clip their wings correctly they will grow back so it's not like they are grounded for life. I've clipped my birds wings before and although they do sulk for a bit, they forgive me within a couple of hours. Same thing for nail trims (with the exception of my b&g who just let's me grab her foot and trim) kind of like "eh, whatever!"

Re: "To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

I understand both sides of clipping. When Avery took off outside on me when she got spooked as I was transitioning her inside, I thoroughly contemplated clipping her for her safety and for my peace of mind. And then when I got Shiko, who so wholly loves flying, I could never once think of clipping his wings. Avery on the other hand wouldn't notice as much because she was clipped as a baby (quite harshly), and as a result never fledged and has no reliance on flying unless scared. She prefers to be picked up and moved around to my dismay.

Quite honestly though, it depends on your birds. If they love to fly but you would prefer to keep that flying distance to a minimum, then give them a soft clip. They can still fly distances, take off, and land safely, but to nowhere near the extent of fully grown wings. A clip doesn't have to - and I would recommend it didn't for their safety - completely destroy their ability to fly. And clipped birds can and most definitely will be able to fly if given the right conditions outside (a strong wind, thermals, etc).

Re: "To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

I had Zilla clipped the day after I got her just because she scared the c***P out of me the minute she came out of the carrier in my living room! She took off and almost ran into the dining room wall, swiped several things off the "bar" between the dining room and kitchen and landed in the butter I had on the counter softening for making cookies later. Then not knowing me didn't want me to wipe the butter off her feet, so she ruined one of my best T-shirts by wiping it on my shoulder. I got a very light clip, and she can still fly about 10 to 12 feet or so, land safely and maneuver around things in the house. She isn't much of a flyer, has only flown a dozen or so times. Mostly when she wants to go back to her cage and I'm not "delivering" her as fast as she wants me to she will fly back then glare at me!

It's been 3 months and now that she is molting her flight feathers are coming back in.

Re: "To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

I have Loco's (my yellow sided conure) wings clipped, one for his own safety, and two it lets me work with him without the added issue of flying. I do not believe that clipping makes him less of a bird.

When I take Loco to get his wings clipped, I hand him over and walk away. When he's done I walk back over to him and "rescue" him. I console him and he's SOOO happy to see me. If you want to be able to work with them, I really believe clipping is the best thing to do, until you get to the point where they can be flighted and you can recall train them.

Re: "To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

Here is my 2cents worth, and I'm fairly new at the experience. I personally think it's wise to keep them full feathered for a couple of reasons, (1) They look a lot better unclipped. (2) They can still fly just not as much lift which puts them at greater danger with predators if they do get loose.
supposedly indoors they can't get hurt as easy by flying into objects if they are clipped which is untrue considering they can still fly clipped or unclipped. I clipped Conner a couple of months ago after much research and I regret it. like I said he still although rare before and after clipping can fly thru 5 rooms with ease with clipped wings. His wings clipped are noticeably missing their full complete beauty, yes you can have them clipped to leave a couple of end feathers intact but you will still notice they will not look right. Conner now gets aggravated when you touch his wings and he did not before. I have a flight suit with short lanyard for errand runs outside in public, and a flight harness with long elastic lanyard for more open air freedom and even though he is breathtaking either way in flight, he looks even better when his wings are complete

Re: "To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

I think it depends on your circumstances and the safety of your bird/s.

Re: "To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

Folks, this topic have been discussed countless times, please use the search function to view the past discussions on this very specific topic as it's very controversial. To each their own!

Keep this post clean and behave yourself folks!!!!

Re: "To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

Just so you're aware, the term "free flight" is generally used to mean allowing a bird to fly outside unharnessed, which is a seperate discussion from have an "unclipped" or "flighted" bird that flies around indoors.

Re: "To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

kimn818 said:

I have Loco's (my yellow sided conure) wings clipped, one for his own safety, and two it lets me work with him without the added issue of flying. I do not believe that clipping makes him less of a bird.

When I take Loco to get his wings clipped, I hand him over and walk away. When he's done I walk back over to him and "rescue" him. I console him and he's SOOO happy to see me. If you want to be able to work with them, I really believe clipping is the best thing to do, until you get to the point where they can be flighted and you can recall train them.

Click to expand...

Thank you all for your posts! Kimn818, I have a question for you. When you take Loco to get clipped, does he associate it with you and does it cause any damage to your relationship or does he only associate it with the vet and see you as his rescuer? Would it be the same for my birds if so, or is it all relative?

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas! Thanks again!

Re: "To clip or not to clip, that is the question..." (my apologies to Shakespeare)

When I got Pat back in June, I took him to get checked out by my Vet. She cleaned up the mess someone else did on his wings from his last clipping. I was in the room when it was done Pat doesn't seem to put that and me together. We've been back a few times for blood work, nails, etc and I've never had an issue with Pat after anything was done.

Just my two cents.