Flying??

Hi all,

I'm just wondering if / when / how / where your Eclectuses fly around?

Cherry is 12 years old and we've only had her for 7 weeks. Her cage is always open when we are here (so most of the day) and she usually sits on the cage. Most days she has flown a very short distance of a few feet (sometimes when she is startled; other times, she has just taken off suddenly, or she has flown back to her cage from us if she feels unsafe). She isn't very confident with taking off or landing (it's usually a crash landing) so I think she maybe didn't get out of the cage much with her past owner.

She is getting more confident now with flying (and better at landing) but I'm just wondering what other people's birds do... and does anyone have any ideas how I can let her outside in the warmer weather without risking her flying away (as she is on no way trained to do anything)!

Many thanks,

Anita

CherryBerry said:

Hi all,

She is getting more confident now with flying (and better at landing) but I'm just wondering what other people's birds do... and does anyone have any ideas how I can let her outside in the warmer weather without risking her flying away (as she is on no way trained to do anything)!

Many thanks,

Anita

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Mine fly back and forth between their playstands, and their cages. Occasionally one will fly to me, but they generally stay put fairly well...

As for outside, and flighted... untrained?! The only way to safely do that is with a harness or an outdoor flight cage.

Mine go outside, but I keep the ones I don't trust semi-flighted. The others are recalled. (And it's still not foolproof! They can, and have, gotten lost.)

I don't have an Eclectus but a good friend of mine does, and he flies to people, to his cage, and to his play stand, and occasionally just takes a turn around the room. If your bird is used to being confined it may take her a while to adjust - it took my Sam almost a year to start using his wings to explore after being confined as a breeder, and Lady still will walk rather than fly every time.

As far as outside, a harness is my preferred method. An Eclectus is big enough to probably be pretty well grounded by a clipping, but after having not one but TWO birds fly off while clipped and never be seen again, I do not consider having a bird clipped to be enough of a precaution. If you are not going to use a cage or harness, you MUST startle train and recall train, rain the bird to stay on your shoulder, etc in order to be safe. Of course all these should be on the list of behaviors you train for anyway, but I still like the security of using a harness. Or a cage, but I like to carry my birds on walks with me and I find the cage annoying for that.

Jolly (Solomon Male) is the only one of mine that is consistent about flying to me on command, he has never been clipped and is a very strong flier. I still only take him outside for sunshine in the warm weather either harnessed or in a small carry cage.

Jillie (Solomon female) was unfortunately clipped as a youngster and when I got her she dropped like a rock which further effected her confidence. Even after letting all her feathers grow back it took her quite a while before she would fly and it is still just shorter distances. The good news is she does seem to be getting more and more sure of her abilities to fly. It greatly effected her attitude as well when she couldn't fly she was much more "bratty" than she is now. She is a prim a-donna gal and when she wants me to get her she will hunker down slightly fanning her wings staring intently at me until I get her Majesty and take her where she wants to go, which is usually just on me.

Gomez and Lola (Red Sided) never got to fly in their first home but once they grew their wings out here they both ended up being darn good flyers.
Give your girl time and her confidence should get much better. Never under estimate the risks of a flighted bird though. We are super careful here and knock on wood nothing has ever happen but there is always that chance it could.

I do think eclectus fair much better un-clipped if you can safely do it in your home and your lifestyle.

Mango flies around the house like he owns it. He knows how to hover, turn on a dime, the only thing I haven't seen him do is a loop!

Sorry just had to brag a little; ).

She will learn in do time. Try coaxing her with treats. Start off short, like just a hop. Then lengthen the distance. NEVER outside, without a harness or cage.

Mango121913 said:

Mango flies around the house like he owns it. He knows how to hover, turn on a dime, the only thing I haven't seen him do is a loop!

Sorry just had to brag a little; ).

She will learn in do time. Try coaxing her with treats. Start off short, like just a hop. Then lengthen the distance. NEVER outside, without a harness or cage.

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Brag away, aren't they LOVELY flying!!

I have 2 ekkies, but I get the feeling Maya never got the chance to fledge. She's fully flighted, but is extremely hesitant to do so. She only flies when panicked or completely desperate to get to me. I've encouraged her, but she's simply not yet ready. It's only been 4 months, though. So I'll wait on her. No rush.

Bixby, on the other hand, enjoys flying. His training got a bit of a setback since he's been fighting a rather stubborn bug, but he's on the recovery trail now and regaining much of his strength. I have 2 tree playstands that he'll fly to and from, as well as 2 training perches that he'll fly to on command. (Mostly. He's FAR more interested in flying to me than away from me.) Basically he flies all throughout the house.

And as for outside, I agree with what everyone has said. Never without a cage or harness. Bixby still hates his harness, so that's a work in progress. Lol!