Can't fly

[lj4rockpebbler]

My blue headed pionus is almost 2 years old and still can't fly. The last time she had her wings clipped was over a year ago from the place we got her from. Her aviary vet checked her out and all seems fine yet she won't fly. She's out all day, walks down her ladder and walks around the house. She can glide down if we force her to fly, she just won't do it herself. Any ideas on the matter? Thanks

 

[LaManuka63]

My blue headed pionus is almost 2 years old and still can't fly. The last time she had her wings clipped was over a year ago from the place we got her from. Her aviary vet checked her out and all seems fine yet she won't fly. She's out all day, walks down her ladder and walks around the house. She can glide down if we force her to fly, she just won't do it herself. Any ideas on the matter? Thanks

The poor little love, she may have had her wings clipped by her breeder before she learned to fly properly. This can make them rather reluctant flyers, like the GCC I once had. Eventually he did learn and got pretty proficient. but it did take him a while and he usually preferred to walk a lot of the time. I think your girl will pick it up in her own time

 

[wrench1356]

Some birds just are not big on flying. Salty, at 10yrs old, has been clipped and has been flighted many times over that period. He can, when he wants to, fly the length of the house and land exactly where he wants to. He just never does it often, like 2 or 3 times over that period.

 

[Zilga33]

One of my pionuses took a while to get into flying; she was clipped when we got her but flew some, then got sick in early 2025 so couldn't fly for ages. Now she flies all over. If you want to try, you can start with stepping up and gradually increase the distance for treats; we've had a few birds who came to us flightless, and all but one (who may never fly), got it eventually, though the amount of time it took has varied a lot and some of them are just less into it than others.

 

[rheashard2]

My CAG is 21. She's never been clipped. She flies where she wants then walks, climbs. She just not a flyer.

 

[OrrinocosMom]

HI Friends, Noco and I are now beginning our search for another non-flying Canadian (no border crossing, thank you) bird friend. If you know of a bird seeking a home, preferably an older bird, but we are open. Does not have to be a Macaw. Noco is a low key dude, mostly likes to sit on his house (always free to wander but almost never does), talk, dance, hang out with the dogs. . . I'd love to adopt a bird that loves water - - hoping they might be inspiration to Noco who remains terrified of bathing in any form. But again, we are open - the right friend will be the right friend and we are excited to invite them into our family. Mulit-visit/slow introduction will be the first step; we all must decide we like each other! Thanks and Parrot Love to All, Maya (&Noco)