Escape!!!!!

Okay, before anyone freaks out over this, let me just say that it's not how we normally do things around here and we are usually very very careful and know how lucky we just were.

This is why I insist on clipping wings; It happened this afternoon. I had been folding laundry in the bedroom while both Sugar and Loki were free to roam around, go in and out of their cages as they pleased, playing on top, on the side or on their opened doors. Hubs had come in and taken Loki to give him some one-on-one, so I told him I was going to leave Sugar on her cage since he was still going to be in the room, while I went outside to meet our daughter as she got off the bus.

I closed the door behind me and saw my neighbor who I began chatting with. My daughter came over, gave me a kiss and promptly went inside as my neighbor and I continued our conversation. About five minutes later or so, my neighbor goes "Um, your bird's outside." To which I gave her a questioning look and turned to look at my house (which I was actually across the street from), saw that the front door had been left wide open, but didn't see anything as I looked up at our bedroom window thinking that the bird was at the screen. I looked at the door, then at the porch but didn't see anything. Then my neighbor goes, "She's in the front yard", so then I look further down and sure enough, there was Sugar, prancing in front of my rose bush! I called her name and immediately rushed over and picked her up. I looked at her and said "Yep, this is why we clip your wings darling!"

Apparently, after my daughter came home and left the front door open (honestly, she probably did it by accident, that door has to be pushed to latch correctly and it's been known to pop open), Hubs had put Loki away and gone to the bathroom, totally forgetting that I had left Sugar out, most likely because she was inside her cage when he left the room but her door was open. He said he heard her call, then some fluttering, then another call and didn't think anything of it because she often does that while hanging on the side of her cage. Then he heard scratching on the bathroom door but thought it was the dog. When he came out of the bathroom, Sugar was already in the front yard. He came running out, see's me with the bird and goes "Okay, you do have her!" and then I told him what happened. He apologized profusely and feels really bad.

We both made mistakes, and I'm thankful that it wasn't worse than her managing to get down the stairs and out the front door. She had been left alone, but could hear me talking outside, so she was trying to find her mama so she wouldn't be alone.

So glad to hear that Sugar is okay. I was hoping it wasn't going to be another one of those threads.

I thought it would be another missing bird too. Well I'm glad you still have her safe with you.

Its great you got her back! Phew, I hate threads where animals get away and they cant find them!

I still dont know about wing clipping for me though. It may be safer in some ways but unsafe in other ways. I have cats so if I got a bird I probably wouldnt clip wings because, just incase something happened and the cats got to the bird it could fly away (not saying it would happen, but accidents happen)

I am very happy for you that sugar was fine.

It could easily have been a lost bird post, if it weren't for the clipped wings. I've never been more thankful that we do clip then I was today!

Yep, accidents do happen, which is what happened today. I don't have cats, only a small dog who both loves and fears the birds. I've had a cat with a bird and I don't think it's a good idea, personally. I also think some dog breeds and birds don't mix well either, but again, that's just my own opinion.

Wow! It could have been a sad story. I'm happy you got Sugar home safe.

I'm so relieved that you have sugar back !! OMG !
Yes , that is the be ultimate reason to clip wings ! I totally agree !
Gives everybody something to think about , including me .
Now that it's warm weather , it's a constant worry of mine.
Accidents do happen , we just have to try to be vigilant .
But again , it gives you something to think about if your birds wings
are intact.

luvmytooo said:

I'm so relieved that you have sugar back !! OMG !
Yes , that is the be ultimate reason to clip wings ! I totally agree !
Gives everybody something to think about , including me .
Now that it's warm weather , it's a constant worry of mine.
Accidents do happen , we just have to try to be vigilant .
But again , it gives you something to think about if your birds wings
are intact.

Click to expand...

It literally only took a couple of minutes, too. Less than 5, because Hubs wasn't in the bathroom long and he had seen our daughter before he went in. It happened that quick.

With my nephew coming to live with us in a few weeks, who has never lived with birds before, it's going to be even more important to be vigilant, but also to keep them clipped. Especially with the move coming up!

I get why some people don't clip, but for us, I'd rather clip than risk it.

WOW, you are so lucky. It's too often that these things turn out badly. I also firmly believe in wing clipping. Matter of fact, Macky and Tiki both just had their grooming and wingclipping yesterday.

This incident really hit home for me for some reason.
I'm really contemplating it right now .
I'm cleaning cages and gave the birds all baths and I can't help
thinking about Katherine's Sugar escaping !!!
I went downstairs to cut up some watermelon for them and noticed my
Hubby left the door open slightly. That is a big no no here because of the dogs.
We are fully fenced but I dont like my dogs out unattended at all.
Also my goats are out and I have Border Collies. You know how that goes , the
poor goats would be kept standing in a small circle for as long as the dogs were out
BUT anyway , it's the same exact scenario , door open , bird could have spooked or just
decided to go for a walk about downstairs and right out the door !!!!
I hate this feeling

mtdoramike said:

WOW, you are so lucky. It's too often that these things turn out badly. I also firmly believe in wing clipping. Matter of fact, Macky and Tiki both just had their grooming and wingclipping yesterday.

Click to expand...

I personally know how badly this could have ended. My Mom's U2 died about 8 years ago because of a similar scenario, but only slightly preventable.

Casper figured out how to get out of his cage, unbeknownst to my mom or her partner. Despite all the birds being in a enclosed bird room, Casper discovered that the french doors that opened the bird room to the rest of the house had not been latched properly and he managed to open it. Like Sugar, he went in search of his mama.

Unfortunately, they had a dog with severe aggression issues that for whatever reason, my Moms partner refused to euthanize. That dog found Casper before anyone else did my mom was absolutely emotionally destroyed. She still can't say Caspers name without practically bursting in to tears.

I'm seriously thankful that there were no dogs, aside from my own, around when this happened.

luvmytooo said:

This incident really hit home for me for some reason.
I'm really contemplating it right now .
I'm cleaning cages and gave the birds all baths and I can't help
thinking about Katherine's Sugar escaping !!!
I went downstairs to cut up some watermelon for them and noticed my
Hubby left the door open slightly. That is a big no no here because of the dogs.
We are fully fenced but I dont like my dogs out unattended at all.
Also my goats are out and I have Border Collies. You know how that goes , the
poor goats would be kept standing in a small circle for as long as the dogs were out
BUT anyway , it's the same exact scenario , door open , bird could have spooked or just
decided to go for a walk about downstairs and right out the door !!!!
I hate this feeling

Click to expand...

I'm so sorry. I wanted to share my story so that maybe it could help to make others a little more cautious, a little more aware. Not to freak you out! We let Loki's wings go for a bit right after we got him and we had an incident where, as someone was leaving, he almost escaped while the door was open, despite my being right there. I took him to get clipped the next day Some people feel strongly about not clipping and I know it's a hot-button issue, but after those two instances, I will always clip.

I also am chuckling at the vision of the collies and the goats. I've seen that one too many times!!

KatherineI said:

mtdoramike said:

WOW, you are so lucky. It's too often that these things turn out badly. I also firmly believe in wing clipping. Matter of fact, Macky and Tiki both just had their grooming and wingclipping yesterday.

Click to expand...

I personally know how badly this could have ended. My Mom's U2 died about 8 years ago because of a similar scenario, but only slightly preventable.

Casper figured out how to get out of his cage, unbeknownst to my mom or her partner. Despite all the birds being in a enclosed bird room, Casper discovered that the french doors that opened the bird room to the rest of the house had not been latched properly and he managed to open it. Like Sugar, he went in search of his mama.

Unfortunately, they had a dog with severe aggression issues that for whatever reason, my Moms partner refused to euthanize. That dog found Casper before anyone else did my mom was absolutely emotionally destroyed. She still can't say Caspers name without practically bursting in to tears.

I'm seriously thankful that there were no dogs, aside from my own, around when this happened.

luvmytooo said:

This incident really hit home for me for some reason.
I'm really contemplating it right now .
I'm cleaning cages and gave the birds all baths and I can't help
thinking about Katherine's Sugar escaping !!!
I went downstairs to cut up some watermelon for them and noticed my
Hubby left the door open slightly. That is a big no no here because of the dogs.
We are fully fenced but I dont like my dogs out unattended at all.
Also my goats are out and I have Border Collies. You know how that goes , the
poor goats would be kept standing in a small circle for as long as the dogs were out
BUT anyway , it's the same exact scenario , door open , bird could have spooked or just
decided to go for a walk about downstairs and right out the door !!!!
I hate this feeling

Click to expand...

I'm so sorry. I wanted to share my story so that maybe it could help to make others a little more cautious, a little more aware. Not to freak you out! We let Loki's wings go for a bit right after we got him and we had an incident where, as someone was leaving, he almost escaped while the door was open, despite my being right there. I took him to get clipped the next day Some people feel strongly about not clipping and I know it's a hot-button issue, but after those two instances, I will always clip.

I also am chuckling at the vision of the collies and the goats. I've seen that one too many times!!

Click to expand...

Us , it did freak me out , big time ! But Katherine , it's a good thing.
Some times we need something like that to help change ones mind .
Something tells me I need to be extra careful with my birds.
You know when your instincts tell you something ?
Well , I think this is one of those times and I outta listen !
Thank you Katherine for telling your story
I hope it is a wake up all for everybody to be extra cautious with their
birds. Even if they don't clip , they will take extra care around the
home to make sure what happened to you or your Moms Casper
doesn't happen to them.

I'm glad this wasn't one of those lost bird topics. I don't think my heart can take anymore of those sad stories. I always have to go hug my guys after I read one of those. I have a storm door like that too. My family and I are thankfully 'trained' to pull it shut so it latches behind us. We have a Siamese cat who we joke about "Doesn't want to live with us anymore" because he always escapes. He just wants grass, but it's scary to think if something scared him and he went running out of the yard. I've chased him around the neighborhood trying to catch him before. He sat on both of my side neighbors' front porches like he lived there. He's a silly cat.

I'm going to go hug my birds again they were napping last time I checked on them. They'll probably get mad at me for hugging them. I can't help it. I'd be so heart broken if any of them got away. :'(

Glad nothing worse happened to you all!

Ya know, prior to bringing Cody home, Joan wanted to give him a full clipping but I asked her to just slightly clip him because I wanted him to have a little flight to get from the cage to the couch to the recliner, etc. Anyway, after having him for 4+ weeks I guess he developed wing strength and would then fly from the Java Table Stand up to the top of my 7' bookcase. I would tell him to get down and he would always playfully scramble around up there. Then I would go to get him and as I would reach for him he would hide back pictures, etc. Anyway, I didn't want to take the risk so last Monday I took him to get a full wing clipping. Now I have to put the babies everywhere the want to go but it's better than having a runaway.

I just had Joan do Sugar about 2 weeks ago because she was getting lift. At first Juan didn't want to, saying she had just done them, but when she looked, she was shocked to find that Sugar was almost fully flighted!! Sugar doesn't know how to fly, she was apparently clipped early, but I won't take the chance!

Glad to hear Cody's such a little stinker

MollyGreenCheeks said:

Glad nothing worse happened to you all!

Ya know, prior to bringing Cody home, Joan wanted to give him a full clipping but I asked her to just slightly clip him because I wanted him to have a little flight to get from the cage to the couch to the recliner, etc. Anyway, after having him for 4+ weeks I guess he developed wing strength and would then fly from the Java Table Stand up to the top of my 7' bookcase. I would tell him to get down and he would always playfully scramble around up there. Then I would go to get him and as I would reach for him he would hide back pictures, etc. Anyway, I didn't want to take the risk so last Monday I took him to get a full wing clipping. Now I have to put the babies everywhere the want to go but it's better than having a runaway.

Click to expand...

I can relate to you having to chase Cody around , lolol..
When Yoshi gets on the rafters , I usually get him to fly to me.
But when he wants to stay up there , he will look at me like
he doesn't know me , lolol. If I get a step stool or a tree branch for him
to step down on , he will jump around like the rafters are burning his
feet I find it hysterical , but I try not to show any emotion
because if he knows it makes me laugh, he will usually keep doing it

You've got to admit though , when Cody tries to hide behind
pictures or scramble around like a little robot , you find it adorably
funny , right ?
These little antics are what make them special

I suppose I need to think about keeping Sassy clipped? She has a clip from her previous owners but she can still fly about 20-25ft., not a lot of lift. My concern with her clip job was that the tips of her cut feathers are sharp and jagged feeling, is that normal? Seems like it would be irritating to her.

My other feelings on this is, isn't it healthier emotionally for a bird to be able to fly? That's what I've always assumed,,maybe 20-25ft. is sufficient? I would be devastated if I lost my bird threw an open door, (not including Amigo).

Mare Miller said:

I suppose I need to think about keeping Sassy clipped? She has a clip from her previous owners but she can still fly about 20-25ft., not a lot of lift. My concern with her clip job was that the tips of her cut feathers are sharp and jagged feeling, is that normal? Seems like it would be irritating to her.

My other feelings on this is, isn't it healthier emotionally for a bird to be able to fly? That's what I've always assumed,,maybe 20-25ft. is sufficient? I would be devastated if I lost my bird threw an open door, (not including Amigo).

Click to expand...

Until this forum, I had never ever heard that clipping their wings is emotionally traumatic for them. Every Avian vet I've ever been to has automatically clipped their wings if they needed it, withou asking first, and recommended it. I've personally never seen any evidence of this. They tried to tell me that they stopped clipping Loki's wings because he supposedly got depressed when they did it (the pet store and not a bird store), but he's never shown me that and I've clipped his wings a couple of times now.

They're sharp if you just cut them bluntly, which is how Sugars currently are (and drive me nuts), but my vet has an awesome way of doing it do that they aren't blunt or necessarily "sharp". She uses cat clippers and puts the feathers pushed upwards, so that after the shaft is clipped, the feathers come down in a V, keeping the clipped edges protected. This also promotes a smoother glide, according to her. I'm going to have her show me how exactly to do it before we move since I've never see another vet do it that way before.

I am so happy it all ended well, as many members have mentioned, that they are happy it's not another bird gone missing.
I absolutely insist that Mishka's wings are clipped, the reason is so simple, she will not be able to fly away, and be another sad story of a missing bird.

Small incidences do happen, we are only human, BUT if we can prevent it from happening, as to choosing whether to clip or not "I SAY CLIP"