Rescued Jenday Conure...

[Menteerd]

Hello all, I recently (read: 3months ago) rescued a 5month old (8 now) Jenday named cowboy. His owners left the island and didn't want to pay for him to go with them. I love him to death and he is very affectionate and cuddly. His previous owners had his wings clipped and they are just starting to come back. My question really is should I keep his wings clipped? He is always out of the cage and wants nothing more than to just sit on our shoulders,... Which is great, but if he is not on our shoulders he now flies to us all the time. Is thus a good thing? Should I clip his wings a special way? Let them grow? Let him fly to us all the time? Not sure if I'm doing him any favors by letting him be with me all day. Sorry for the long post.

 

[gemini84]

U will get all different answers regarding this. Some people are for clipping some are dead set against it. I personally feel it totally up to u. When i first got oxy from the breeders he was clipped. His wings grew in quite quickly and he escaped, i got him back but after he escaped a second time i had him reclined (wish i hadn't now) i have since rehomed 2 more Alex and they are fully alighted (oxy still unable to fly properly and i feel bad).. my house is now bird roofed with airy wire over windows. If u are confident that urn house is secure enough fir a alighted bird then keep him alighted., but if u have children running in and out the doors, cannot supervise home 100% while he is out etc, then i would consider clipping. The constant flying to you is both a good and bad thing. It means he has formed a great bond but. I don't know ur situation, if ur home al day or work but it can become stressful on the bird if they are unable to play independently and are left alone

 

[Grenage]

If you live in a house where people leave doors and windows open, and you never know when - you'll probably want to clip, not that it guarantees they won't make it out).

If you live in a house where that isn't a problem, then it's entirely up to you. Personally, I have no intention of clipping unless I have no choice - which isn't going to happen.

 

[goalerjones]

Seeing as you are on an island I think that provides some interesting issues. Are there natural predators? How far away from the water are you? His escape could be quite limited if he did get out, and if there are no hawks or the like then he can survive.

 

[Featheredsamurai]

A fully flighted bird is a big responsibility, if your house is safe for a flying parrot(all windows are screened, door won't be left open) you can leave him in clipped. But if you don't think doors can be kept closed when he is out it's better to clip. My galah is fully flighted, but she lives upstairs in my room. I always keep my door closed. I also have her harness trained and take her outside often. I am able to keep her fully flighted because I keep her in a secure environment.

It's sad his past owners weren't willing to take him with them to the mainland, but now you have a wonderful friend