I would NEVER clip a Toos wings, esp. such a young one. Clipping a bird that already is showing signs of upset behavior is going to not only magnify that, but also that fact that he is a Too, clipping his wings are going to increase your chances that feather plucking/shredding will start.
I've had 2 too's and I clipped mine regularly, they never plucked. Usually toos pluck out of boredom and stress. Clipping will imo make him more docile and complacent. I usually clip every other feather so that the too will just glide down instead of crashing down.
Quote from an avian vet
[FONT=Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif] People have traditionally clipped wings on birds for two basic reasons: 1) to prevent them from flying away, and 2) to prevent them from becoming too dominant and aggressive [/FONT]
If you want to read his opinons on biting and clipping
Real Cockatoo Facts!: to wing clip or not?
I'm against clipping, but I'm happy to go either way for arguement sake. Both have their pros and cons but I'm against what you just said.
Cockatoo's are NOTORIOUS pluckers, barbers, shredders. Any slight change in their environment (new cage, etc) can cause them to go haywire and lash out, usually upon themselves.
Now take away their power of flight, a PREVIOUSLY flighted bird is going to become incredibly frustrated, upset, dependant and annoyed. Increasing their risk of self harm ten fold.
Then add in growing feathers to the mix, going through moults is upsetting for any bird, but feathers which have been trimmed are rough and scratchy compared to their normal feathers. This causes irritation, which causes the bird to overpreen, resulting in feather loss and there you go; another bad habit has been formed down to self harm and feather loss.
Cockatoo's and African Gray's are two species I will never advocate clipping for. I don't care what avian vets say, I don't care what anyone says. 'Toos are neurotic about their life and can easily flip like a switch to self harm, too many case studies, too many examples on this forum and others.
Find an alternative, clipping will likely cause more harm than good in this case. One clip can cause a lifetime of problems.
A behaviourist was mentioned, that's a good start.
Get rid of the clicker for now, it's causing too much stress or at the very least make sure it is hidden when you use it, so he hears the noise but not seeing the clicker in action.
Reward with tid bits of low fat foods perhaps. If your bird flies AT you - avoid. Make him land elsewhere for now unless he's stepping up onto your arm or perch. Consider investing in one of those "Buddy Perches" with a 'bite guard'. You say he's got toys in his cage, but what about outside? Merlin gets easily bored outside his cage because sometimes there is a lack of toys around, so we'll get bit! We quickly gather some toys and he calms right down again and begins to play with them.
It's all about focusing your birds energy elsewhere - contact you vet, see what they might suggest for your guy too.
