Should I clip wings or not...?

[npandora]

This really is a hot button issue however, I think each bird owner has to make this decision based on their situation and what is best and safest for their bird. I don't think there is a right or wrong answer.

I think it's extreme to call clipping a bird evil in my opinion.
I just had my parrot's wings clipped mainly because we currently have a roommate and her play stand is in the living room close to the front door. I have also harness trained her and use the harness whenever I take her outside clipped or not.

At some point when I don't need a roommate in the future I will probably stop clipping her wings but, for now I feel clipping is safer. Just my two cents.

 

[xxgoldieloxroxxx]

Hi!
I am getting a sun conure, and what I think is best is to clip wile training and then once you have a strong bond let the wings grow.
There is no harm in clipping, and you will have a stronger bond with your bird.
then when the bond is real, you can let him be fully flighted which will make everything better! No Pros, no cons, If trained when not clipped everything, once full flighted, everything will be perfect and normal.
have it both ways!

 

[Scotty T]

My vote is not clipping. My baby loves flying around the house.

My baby loves to fly to me when I'm in the kitchen and see what's going on.

When I tell him to go home, he fly's back to his cage on command.

It's cute.
I'm hoping to have more control over the fight, I've seen people who have trained their baby to fly on command.

They eventually have them so trained they they can take them outside and they will fly with their owner without flying away.

 

[xxgoldieloxroxxx]

WOW! How did you ( and other people) get your baby so tame, if I could teach mine to do that, I wouldn't clip, but it would have to take a short period of time...

 

[Scotty T]

I've found that my sun love almonds. So I went out to the store and got some slivered almonds. So I would say "Go Home" and when he flew to the cage when I said "Go Home" I would then say "Good bird, and give him an almond". I try to repeat this as many times as I can.

I also do the "Go Poop" Command, that works pretty well, but you have to be careful not to say that word when talking to a friend cause he hears it and oops.

 

[kitt]

Clipping wings is such a personal issue and also a touchy subject.....

First off I have to direct the statement about a bird "falling" to the floor because it couldn't fly....no bird should ever be clipped so much that it can't land safely...that is very sad.

My babies have been flighted and clipped.....My hahns prefers not to fly and the same with my caique....My caique does get clipped to help keep his attitude in check sometimes.(that was on advice from my vet) My hahns gets clipped because the only time he flies is if he gets spooked...and a spooked bird can fly into anything and get hurt....that leads me to my lovebird (Ava) ....she is a little love and can fly like the wind. Over the past few months she had become an amazing flier and so proud of herself...it was always fun to watch her fly. Then one day when I was letting the dog in....Ava flew out the door. I typed about it in another thread.....she was flying away when all of the sudden she made a sharp turn and landed in our back yard in a tree....on a low branch no less...I thanked my lucky stars.....we have hawks around here and all I could think was that she would be someones lunch.....
My point being this.....I am a bird owner and as a bird owner it is my responsibility to keep my birds safe. Keeping them safe includes clipping their wings.....there are so many dangers in our houses....mirrors, windows, toilets, pots of food cooking on the stove...to many to list......people are so passionate about this subject because we are passionate about our birds and love them very much.........although I don't think it is "evil" to clip a bird, I do respect the right for all of us to have our opinion.....in my opinion it would be more evil to let my bird die an unnecessary death then to keep her clipped.
Just take in everything you have read, for and against clipping and weigh everything carefully....then make the choice that is best for you, your bird and your situation.....good luck...I know it is not an easy choice.

 

[havergara]

i think there is nothing bad in clipping a birds wings since it will eventually grow back and it depends in the necessity of it. in my situation, flight suits aren't available within our area and items bought online takes forever to arrive, i have no choice but to have my pet bird clipped, for a short period of time, until its flight suit arrives..

 

[xxgoldieloxroxxx]

Smart Choice! Clipping isn't terrible. The wings will grow back.

 

[CAGLulu]

@kitt: I agree with you with most of the things that you've written. You're absolutely right about, that this topic is so personal because we love our fids so much. I just can't imagine how people can clip their birds wings. Even if you clipped their wings before they could fly, I still see it very wrong. Just like us humans is born with legs it is just in our instinct to walk and run, so is a parrot. It is in their instinct that they can fly. If you clip a parrots wings before it can fly, it is like a child being born with no legs. He can't walk, but he know that if he had legs he would be able to walk and run. Even though a parrot don't like to fly, it is just the thought of not being able to. I was in a petshop a few days ago. They had a Green Winged Macaw. He was so gentle and cuddly. His wings was clipped, but just by looking at him it was not very hard to see that he would fly.

"My point being this.....I am a bird owner and as a bird owner it is my responsibility to keep my birds safe. Keeping them safe includes clipping their wings.....there are so many dangers in our houses....mirrors, windows, toilets, pots of food cooking on the stove...to many to list......people are so passionate about this subject because we are passionate about our birds and love them very much.........although I don't think it is "evil" to clip a bird, I do respect the right for all of us to have our opinion.....in my opinion it would be more evil to let my bird die an unnecessary death then to keep her clipped."

You mention that being a bird owner it is our responsibility to keep the birds safe, and sure you are right about that, but do we keep them safe by taking something from them? We all keep birds because we want them, not because they want us. I mean think about it, if a bird could talk to you like a normal person, and you asked the parrot if it wants its wings clipped, what do you think the answer would be? I'm pretty sure that they would say "no thanks."
So in the end all birds should be out in the nature flying, where nothing can go wrong.

NOTE: THIS IS NO PERSONAL ATTACK ON ANYONE! I TRULY RESPECT ALL OF YOUR OPINIONS AND JUST WANTED TO SHARE MINE.

We all have different opinions and nothing can change that .

 

[kitt]

I think this is a topic where people just have to agree to disagree....as I said we are all passionate in how we feel about it.
I respect your opinion and if not clipping works for you then that is fine...in my case, it is safer to keep them clipped.....
I disagree with one statement and it's just because I'm being a smarta$$ and that is the one about be out in nature where nothing can go wrong.....in nature, a lot could go wrong but then again, I guess that is nature.....thanks for your input...that is what the forum is for....
We all put in our advice and thoughts and hopefully help someone make an informed decision.....

 

[Atwee921]

Thanks SO much, especially kitt and CAGlulu!

 

[CAGLulu]

@Atwee921: You're welcome! Always good to have something to base your desicion on

@kitt: Just like you said, we must agree on disagree .
Of course something can go wrong in the nature, but that's nature . I don't think you can compare an accident happening to a bird being outside in the nature, with an accident happening in our living room .
In the end, we all care for our birds and only wan't them the best thing.

 

[kitt]

You got it kiddo.......we all just want what we think is best for our babies....

 

[xxgoldieloxroxxx]

So true...^.^