Remain wing clipped or not?

Rudustin

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I have a question of the forum flock: How do most of you feel about letting a four month old Golden Conure being allowed to grow out his wing feathers or not? The reason for asking is that Muffin, my Golden Conure, had a slight accident this past Sunday( when every Avian Vet was closed) I gave him a shower with me and then I, stupidly, placed him on top of the frame work of the shower stall while I continued to shower. He loves baths and he gets very excited and flaps his wings a great deal while drying off. He has never flown because he has been wing clipped right from the get go at the breeders facility and he is still clipped. He sometimes attempt to practice flapping his wings and sometimes he gets too excited that he slips and he falls but not from such a distance as this particular time. He ended having bruised his upper mandible and likely his tongue and he stopped eating and preening and vocalizing and remained obviously in pain. He couldn't even climb down to his feeding cups to eat had he chosen to eat. I took him to a vet who confirmed that he had bruised his beak. He was given an anti-inflammatory shot, which I must say made a difference, and he is now eating and vocalizing and drinking normally but I can see that his normal nibbling is altered slightly by the sensitivity of his beak. I was assure by the vet that it would continue to get better with time and it has. It was a bit of a jolt to me because I have always had big birds and they have always been flighted so falling has been so rare that I have never experienced this kind of trauma in a bird before. So now I am just getting information from all of you as to what your personal ideas are about having him clipped when his flight feathers grow out or not? I know the ultimate decision is mine but having only had Toos and Macaws who were always flighted I just wondered what most of you that have smaller birds think. Thanks for any opinions.
 

Laurasea

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All the little birds in my house are flighted. The budgies do loop de loops for fun, and are the most active fliers in my house. It makes me cringe to think of so many budgies in tiny tiny cages and not flying, they are so active. I do hope your birds makes a full recovery, and hope you share pictures! I want one of these beautiful birds, but doubt that is in my cards.
 
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Rudustin

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All the little birds in my house are flighted. The budgies do loop de loops for fun, and are the most active fliers in my house. It makes me cringe to think of so many budgies in tiny tiny cages and not flying, they are so active. I do hope your birds makes a full recovery, and hope you share pictures! I want one of these beautiful birds, but doubt that is in my cards.

I'm not good at sending pictures but I appreciate your reply. My Macaws even went outside with me and rode with me on my scooter! They always stayed with me so I am used to birds flying in my home. It will be some time before his flight feathers will molt and new ones will come back but at this point I was just wondering what my eventual decision will be. It's nice to have some feed back. Sounds like fun in your house!
 

Jen5200

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I have 5 smaller birds (4 conures and a cockatiel) - 2 came to me flighted and the others arrived here clipped. I saw how much my first 2 liked to fly, so I decided that all of my birds would be flighted. Bindi and Screamer have both grown their flight feathers in. Bindi was obviously flighted before and has reasonable skills. Screamer has been a bit more work, and I’m not sure that she has ever been fully flighted - so we’ve been working with her to show her how/where to land, etc. Stanley has regrown about 1/2 his flights and can get places now with some extra flapping. Stanley came to me in August with a bruised beak and mouth from a similar incident to what you described. He seems to be relatively agile with his wings growing out, and I’ll teach him where to land/avoid as he starts to fly around.

I’m in favour of birds being flighted - but I would always recommend taking your bird around and showing them where to land and where walls/windows are :). This has helped greatly in my house to prevent crashes and injuries when mine are startled and take off without a plan - they know where the landing zones are and where the solids like windows are :).
 
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Rudustin

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Queen Bavarian Conure
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I have 5 smaller birds (4 conures and a cockatiel) - 2 came to me flighted and the others arrived here clipped. I saw how much my first 2 liked to fly, so I decided that all of my birds would be flighted. Bindi and Screamer have both grown their flight feathers in. Bindi was obviously flighted before and has reasonable skills. Screamer has been a bit more work, and I’m not sure that she has ever been fully flighted - so we’ve been working with her to show her how/where to land, etc. Stanley has regrown about 1/2 his flights and can get places now with some extra flapping. Stanley came to me in August with a bruised beak and mouth from a similar incident to what you described. He seems to be relatively agile with his wings growing out, and I’ll teach him where to land/avoid as he starts to fly around.

I’m in favour of birds being flighted - but I would always recommend taking your bird around and showing them where to land and where walls/windows are :). This has helped greatly in my house to prevent crashes and injuries when mine are startled and take off without a plan - they know where the landing zones are and where the solids like windows are :).

Thank you for your reply. My other birds had to be taught as well where the places were to fly to. Macaws and my Toos were walkers in the house. They didn't even want to fly outside because they always preferred to walk. I would prefer that Muffin was flighted, especially after this incident this past weekend. He's doing really well and back to his constant eating! He just loves to eat! LOL! And he loves to cuddle even more so after this incident. Of course my entire place is carpeted except for the bathrooms and the kitchen. He fell on tile and I think he may have even hit the toilet before he hit the floor. Luckily I knew something was immediately wrong and didn't spend time wondering what to do. Off to a twenty four hour vet adjacent to my Avian Vet. I would like him to have more a cushion in the future so we shall see. Thanks again.
 

FlyBirdiesFly

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I also have small birds (GCC, cockatiel, and 2 budgies) and they’re all flighted. They’re so much happier and healthier in my opinion when allowed to fly. My birds all love flying laps around the room and it’s great exercise for them. Clipping should only be used as a last resort in situations where keeping the bird flighted would pose safety concerns. If there’s no safety concern then why clip his wings? It sounds like it would actually be safer in your situation to leave him flighted, obviously he fell and bruised his beak due to his wings being clipped. You’re experienced with flighted birds so why even question whether to keep him flighted if there’s no reason to clip his wings? Don’t forget to teach him to control his flight/not run into things and recall train him. Make sure to read up on refledging a bird as your golden conure likely never learned how to fly being clipped so young. Good luck!
 
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Inger

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I have a Parrotlet. Can’t get any smaller! She came to me at 7 weeks old with a light clip. It didn’t really stop her from flying, and I let her feathers grow naturally. She loves flying and I love watching her. It absolutely amazes me when she does a mid-air 180, when she sticks a landing on a moving target (usually my head but sometimes my finger which is astounding), and when she chooses to fly to me because I’m her favorite place. I hope [emoji1695] that I never have to clip her.

This is a hot-button topic and so far you’ve only heard from the anti-clippers. I’m sure folks with other thoughts will chime in soon.

Regardless, if your baby dropped like a rock, that sounds like a bad clip. If you choose to clip again, hopefully it will allow him to at least glide to the floor.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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bill_e

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I've had clipped and unclipped and I consider both conditions acceptable depending on the circumstances.

What I do find is that with my flighted Hawkhead she is like a bird at a birdfeeder...constantly on the move from the bush to the feeder, to the tree, to the feeder and wherever....that wherever usually being a shoulder can really be a nuisance.

We'll keep her totally flighted until the spring and then get her a mild clip which doesn't stop her flying but it does put a damper on her constant hopping from one place to another and we get to have our shoulders safe from the sneak attack landing.
 

ChristaNL

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I can imagine the shock when this bird just fell.
Glad to hear he is on the mend.

Sorry- I am somewhat of an anti-clipper as well ;)
Birds fly -it is what more or less makes them birds- and unless you have some very good reasons (and 'flying around inconviniences me' is not one of them imho) I see no reason to make them into handicapped ones.

I am struggling along with a wingdamaged and feathermutilating (prolly as a result of being in pain and in a too small a cage) macaw so I may be just a tad prejudiced of course!! ;)

If you are already used to have your birds flighted...go for it.
A smaller bird will be a lot more manouverable than the larger ones were, so escaping is always a real issues and (sorry to say) seem a bit more flighty.

(My neighbour 2 doors down lost his supertame budgie who all of a sudden decided *not* to stay put- after being a shoulderbird for ages. And I think he had him clipped. So no guarantees there...)


Even if you decide to clip later (for safetyreasons) plze... let him learn to fly first.
He obviously still wants to learn after the breeder grounded him.
 

EllenD

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All of my guys are fully flighted as well, the largest I have is a Senegal Parrot, so similar to your Golden Conure in size, then a Quaker, a Green Cheek, a Cockatiel, and 8 Budgies (they live in a huge walk-in aviary and fly all day long, then come out and fly around the house too)...All of them fly all around the house, no issues at all, but you will have to "bird-proof" your entire house. Everything. And you'll be continually finding new things that he'll land on/in that you'll have to move/put-away, because they do land everywhere, unlike larger parrots.

I grew-up with a fully-flighted CAG who my mom still lives with, but it was different with him due to his size. Larger parrots sometimes feel like they can't fly inside because they know their wing-spans are just too large and there just isn't enough space...My brother (CAG) would fly from room to room in short-spurts, or from upstairs to downstairs, but it was probably better he didn't fly everywhere and all around because he would either hurt himself or break something...with the smaller birds it's a lot different.

It's totally your decision, sometimes it is better to leave them clipped, like in a situation where there is a safety risk, or where the owner is disabled and can't be following the bird all over the house, etc. I'd say that you should at least let his wings grow-out from this point until he can fly, then let him fly and see how he does, see how it works in your house, and if it's okay with you then I would let him flighted, because it is better for them, they enjoy it, and after all, he is a bird...

***Keep in-mind that you cannot take him outside without having him on an Aviator Harness and a leash, even while he's clipped, as clipped birds catch wind and they're gone for miles and miles. Clipping does not keep them from flying away outside. Just wanted to throw that in there, in case that was one of your considerations, because no matter what you do, if you want to take him outside he will either need to be on a harness and lead or in a carrier...And if you want to harness-train him, I would start now while he's still young...
 

Kiwibird

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I'd let him learn to fly and once he is a competent flier you can then decide whether or not to clip again or not. Much like riding a bike, once they learn they remember how for life even if clipped for extended periods of time. BUT there is only a brief time in a parrots developmental process where flight can be learned and once that is gone, they may never be able to grasp it.

My BFA was clipped from a baby and when we adopted him (age 10 or so) we assumed flying would just 'come naturally' once his wings grew out. Not so. He's now 20 and while he enjoys holding onto my hand and flapping his wings, he can't seem to piece 2 and 2 together that he can do that without being affixed to a human hand. He has to remain clipped because the few times he's become spooked and took off whilst fully flighted he's injured himself because he has 0 control over flight and is absolutely panicked when airborne. Clipping at least keeps him on a low and slow gentle descent to the floor instead of full steam ahead into a cabinet/wall etc... It's not something I'd wish on any bird, having grown up with 3 fully flighted birds. He's also not the only bird on this forum with the same issue of being unable to learn to fly as an adult. Let your bird at least learn so in the future if circumstances change they can be flighted again:)
 

Alehner529

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My sun conure had always been fully flighted. She loves to fly around the house, and will even fly upstairs if the lights are on. Some things to think about in your daily routine if you do let them grow out: No ceiling fans. Seems obvious, but everyone screws up sometimes. Consider other animals. If your bird is flying around every now and the , dogs or cats may get more excitable towards your bird. Doorway entries. Making sure your bird won't follow you outside out go through the door when it opens. Just a few thoughts. :) I will never clip my girls feathers.
 

LordTriggs

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as I always say, clip if there is danger of them hurting themselves flying. clipped birds can fly outside very easily and much to the surprise of both the human and the parrot who then gets spooked and doesn't know how to get down (think child riding their bike off downhill not knowing how to stop)

Also I don't think anything really tops that feeling of your flighted bird coming over to you without prompt just because they love being with you so much
 

Laurasea

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All the little birds in my house are flighted. The budgies do loop de loops for fun, and are the most active fliers in my house. It makes me cringe to think of so many budgies in tiny tiny cages and not flying, they are so active. I do hope your birds makes a full recovery, and hope you share pictures! I want one of these beautiful birds, but doubt that is in my cards.

I'm not good at sending pictures but I appreciate your reply. My Macaws even went outside with me and rode with me on my scooter! They always stayed with me so I am used to birds flying in my home. It will be some time before his flight feathers will molt and new ones will come back but at this point I was just wondering what my eventual decision will be. It's nice to have some feed back. Sounds like fun in your house!

Oh the best fun is they've discovered they can fly to me when I. Eating dinner and steal from my plate. That's so much fun (wink)
 

Skittys_Daddy

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Ahh, the glorious debate of "clipped vs unclipped". lol. This is one of those subjects that are constantly debated here on this forum and fortunately these debates have been respectful.

I'll share my opinion, for what its worth.

Whatever you do decide to do, I would HIGHLY recommend letting them grow out the first time and letting him learn to fly. This is so very important because if you decide to with clipping and at some point decide to let them grow in the future, he'll have learned to fly.

As for what I think, I'm anti-clipping and personally only support clipping when its in the birds best interest (safety etc) and NOT when its in the owners best interest. I just believe everything should be considered before resorting to clipping. Even if it means the owner has to make some changes or sacrifices. I had to do that with Skittles in order to keep him free-flighted. Sometimes having him free-flighted can be a nuisance, but I manage. Truth is, the ONLY reason I cage him at all is when its for his own good (ie sleeping, when I'm out) other than that, he's out of his cage.

I know my circumstances are a lot different than others and do keep that in mind, but I'm just sharing my own experiences.

But there are also a few other things to consider when thinking about clipping. You can run into health problems with an clipped bird. They aren't getting the exercise they need and this can lead to obesity and fatty liver disease and its also harmful to their mental health, at least in my opinion.
 

GaleriaGila

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So much to think about. If you do allow flight, here's a display of the 'wall/window training'. We've used it every time we move. It's fun, and cute, and really works.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssC-fsVmgDE"]rickeybirdproductions: KNOCK KNOCK! - YouTube[/ame]
 

ChristaNL

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That was glorious, first the *tap* *tap* *tap* *tap* *tap* and then the confirmation-by-chirp.
Almost like is telling you, "Yes, I agree, item number XXX is solid, next one plze"
 
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Rudustin

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So much to think about. If you do allow flight, here's a display of the 'wall/window training'. We've used it every time we move. It's fun, and cute, and really works.

rickeybirdproductions: KNOCK KNOCK! - YouTube

Thank you so much for the video. As I brought this up in the original thread I would like to thank everyone who submitted their opinion. I just want to say I am not a novice at keeping birds. Have had them since I was ten and I am seventy years old this coming year. I understand all the pros and cons and I deeply appreciate your opinions. I will do what I must in the end of course. I have never belonged to a bird forum. Much of what I have learned has been by trial and error with my other winged companions. I just wanted to have some feed back from others that have kept smaller birds because most of my birds have been large. I agree that what makes birds so different than any other pet is the fact that they can fly! It is the wonder of birds and flight that have delighted humans for eons. It will be some time before Muffin is flight capable, at least inside, so I will measure the idea as he gets older and becomes flight capable. Once again thank you all for your input.
 

Laurasea

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Glad you joined the forums, and you can join our daily joys and struggle, I'm sure you have lots of great advice and stories you can share, and you never know when you can learn something new! And Gail I love that RickeyBird tap tap tapping on the walls, this way wicked something comes....
 

satocho

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Hi
I've been off parrotforums for about six months but just logged in and saw yr posts about Muffin. I have a pair of hand-fed goldens and am in Fort Lauderdale. I've also had many parrots over the years, but these guys really are the best. Samba and Charo are free flighted. They live in an aviary attached to our house accessed thru a sliding door during the day, and sleep inside the house. They are expert fliers and it is so much fun to see them exercising their wings. Also love their food as much as Muffin. They get mostly fresh fruits and vegetables, with some pellets, seeds, and nuts. As macaw relatives, they need higher fat in the diet than most conures. Hope you have fun with Muffin!
 

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