fiddlejen
Well-known member
- Mar 28, 2019
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- Parrots
- Sunny the Sun Conure (sept '18, gotcha 3/'19). Mr Jefferson Budgie & Mrs Calliope Budgie (albino) (nov'18 & jan'19). Summer 2021 Baby Budgies: Riker (Green); Patchouli, Keye, & Tiny (blue greywings).
As of a week ago, my beautiful darling Sunny is two years old.
I know this means we are heading into difficult, or more-difficult times, right? But I am hoping and praying so much that she does not change, or not too much.
She is still not fully-flighted, due to the timing of her last broken-feather-necessitated clip. However, ever since that last clip, so does go where she aims. And recently she's been maintaining height pretty well. Not yet really getting lift, due to missing flight-feathers #2 and #3 on each side. However she recently dropped one clipped feather from each side, so I expect to start seeing real flight sometime soon.
I am hoping that once she can fly for real, I will not have to actually clip her. NOT so much for her benefit, but because Jefferson-budgie believes EVERYONE should be able to fly, he's going to be so happy once she starts, and I would hate to disappoint him.
However, Jefferson-budgie also believes in NOT returning to his cage when asked. If I have to return to work, I am willing to take the risk of leaving the budgies out, trusting them to remain within the curtains of their designated room, because flight is So Important to Jefferson. And I'm willing to take that risk with Calliope-budgie as well, because I cannot clip one budgie only.
But I'm not willing to take that risk with Sunny. Partly because she is a bit more clumsy, and more importantly because she is Much Less timid. Parrot-safe for unsupervised, highly-flighted, timid budgies is managable. Parrot-safe for an un-supervised, curious, slightly-clumsy conure is far, Far Beyond my minimalizing-abilities!
Hopefully my workplace may allow work-from-home to continue. However, if not, and if Sunny learns from Jefferson to resist return-to-cage, then clipping will be necessary.
Also, if I just can't get her to stay within my sight when out-of-cage, then clipping may also be necessary. (See above comment re parrot-proofing.) Again, I hope it does not work out this way. I have read lots & lots about training, and perhaps once she is really flying, perhaps I will be able to do recall-training with her. We shall see.
More than flying, I am also worried about hormonal changes. I am hoping my sweethearted Sunny does not transform into a monster. I already do all that I can to avoid potential hormone-triggers. Currently with my second-shift hours and work-from-home, I darken the room & cover cages at my lunch break which has been early recently. I feel guilty darkening the room at 4 pm but Sunny loves it, she is happily getting upwards of 14 hours sleep nightly. And then, if it's a weekend & if she can convince me to sit quietly, she happily spends half of her waking hours sleeping on my shoulder. She sleeps way more than a cat!
So anyway. Just like last year, I missed her hatchday. Seems to be one of our busiest days at work. So these are my contemplations now. I am praying she remains my loving orange sweetheart as she heads into her third year of life.
I know this means we are heading into difficult, or more-difficult times, right? But I am hoping and praying so much that she does not change, or not too much.
She is still not fully-flighted, due to the timing of her last broken-feather-necessitated clip. However, ever since that last clip, so does go where she aims. And recently she's been maintaining height pretty well. Not yet really getting lift, due to missing flight-feathers #2 and #3 on each side. However she recently dropped one clipped feather from each side, so I expect to start seeing real flight sometime soon.
I am hoping that once she can fly for real, I will not have to actually clip her. NOT so much for her benefit, but because Jefferson-budgie believes EVERYONE should be able to fly, he's going to be so happy once she starts, and I would hate to disappoint him.
However, Jefferson-budgie also believes in NOT returning to his cage when asked. If I have to return to work, I am willing to take the risk of leaving the budgies out, trusting them to remain within the curtains of their designated room, because flight is So Important to Jefferson. And I'm willing to take that risk with Calliope-budgie as well, because I cannot clip one budgie only.
But I'm not willing to take that risk with Sunny. Partly because she is a bit more clumsy, and more importantly because she is Much Less timid. Parrot-safe for unsupervised, highly-flighted, timid budgies is managable. Parrot-safe for an un-supervised, curious, slightly-clumsy conure is far, Far Beyond my minimalizing-abilities!
Hopefully my workplace may allow work-from-home to continue. However, if not, and if Sunny learns from Jefferson to resist return-to-cage, then clipping will be necessary.
Also, if I just can't get her to stay within my sight when out-of-cage, then clipping may also be necessary. (See above comment re parrot-proofing.) Again, I hope it does not work out this way. I have read lots & lots about training, and perhaps once she is really flying, perhaps I will be able to do recall-training with her. We shall see.
More than flying, I am also worried about hormonal changes. I am hoping my sweethearted Sunny does not transform into a monster. I already do all that I can to avoid potential hormone-triggers. Currently with my second-shift hours and work-from-home, I darken the room & cover cages at my lunch break which has been early recently. I feel guilty darkening the room at 4 pm but Sunny loves it, she is happily getting upwards of 14 hours sleep nightly. And then, if it's a weekend & if she can convince me to sit quietly, she happily spends half of her waking hours sleeping on my shoulder. She sleeps way more than a cat!
So anyway. Just like last year, I missed her hatchday. Seems to be one of our busiest days at work. So these are my contemplations now. I am praying she remains my loving orange sweetheart as she heads into her third year of life.
