Sorry for the super long post but this is a difficult decision for me, so please dont judge. I havent really formed an opinion on flighted vs clipped...and being a new bird owner I want what's best for my birds, but it's not always clear what that is--especially not knowing the pitfalls. No amount of reading others accounts and advice can prepare you or cover every situation.
I got Liesl from a breeder after 6 months of looking to adopt a rescue locally with no success, and 3 long long months of waiting for her to be weaned and ready to come home with me. During this time I was on the forum getting educated, asking questions, reading up on how to be the best possible parront. As a developing baby, I decided to leave Liesl flighted so that she could gain much needed skills during the crucial first year, plus--we have a dog. Being able to get out of harms way seemed like a good idea.
When I went to pick up Liesl, a rescue/rehome came my way--call it kismet, karma, whatever--but Brittany graciously allowed Wrangler to come home with me as well. In addition to being heavily plucked, including huge holes in his primary feathers, no tail feathers, etc...Wrangler was clipped. I didn't think that would be my initial preference but that's how he came to me. So i have one clipped, one flighted.
This is the hard part...
I lost Liesl last month. It tore me apart and I still blame myself. She was harness trained, an absolute must for flighted birds imo, and it proved to be a very smart move on a few occassions where she decided to take off and test her skills. She was fairly comfortable at home, she would sometimes fly from the top of her cage, out of line of sight from me and land in the living room--sometimes on the stair rail, sometimes on the curtains, sometimes hanging off a picture frame, but that was her learning curve. It was part of our routine to go hang out in the living room (i spend 90% of my time in the room with their cages) and I'd read and she'd nap on my shoulder--bonding one-on-one time, and getting familiar with new surroundings. I had just come from upstairs giving her a shower--which she loved--and towel dried her a bit--but she was far from dry--and sat down on the sofa with her on perched on my shoulder. The sofa is line of sight to her cage in the next room, but about 30 feet away. She decided to go to her cage and took off. Not usually a problem, except wet birds are heavy, and dont fly well. She couldnt get loft and crashed into the floor, breaking a wing. I rushed her to the vet, she had surgery the next morning but died from the trauma a few hours later. Please dont think Im looking for condolences or sympathy--I just need to accept my part in this and move past it. The only reason im recounting this history is that it's important in terms of how I work with Wrangler. Wrangler came from a neglect situation and passed through 4 homes in 2 months. He was separated from his flock mate of 5 years (Ruby), gained a new mate (Pinto), was reunited with Ruby, separated from Ruby and Pinto (he still calls Pinto's name), united with Liesl and then lost Liesl. His insecurities are legitimately earned.
Wrangler is thriving, though he still has massive insecurities and is really only comfortable in or on top of his cage. Handling is limited because of his hormonal issues (no, my hand is NOT your mate), and he refuses to be touched anywhere other than his beak. He steps up like a champ and likes my shoulder, but it's all on his terms. When Im home he has an open door and he's in the cage as much as he's out of it. Ive been working on taking him to new environs...be it the bedroom, the garage, etc...to help him learn that he's safe with me and build confidence, but it's not unusual for him to "jump ship" when he's had enough---and that can be 3 minutes or a loud noise. He used to hit the ground pretty hard--with no tail and not much wing, so I really had to be careful and watch body language to catch the signs BEFORE he jumped. Carpeted rooms weren't so bad but hardwood floors or cement aren't ideal for a bird that can't land. I have perches in just about every room in the house now, which helps, but he can, and does, still jump to the floor every now and then if he wants to go back to the safety of his cage. Even the kitchen counter that is 6 feet from his cage is a no-go zone as far as he's concerned. He wont stay on the counter perch for more than a minute or two before trying to get back to his cage. We spend several hours a week outside on his tree perch. He's gotten very comfortable with it and it's his second home but as his ability to fly improves, this will become an issue. Right now he's not inclined to jump off of it--for some reason he's afraid of the top of the patio table, and Im perfectly fine with that--but he has jumped to the yard once or twice, from my shoulder.
Wrangler's feathers are growing out. His secondaries have been in for over a month and he's gotten a few new primary wing feathers but they are still not fully developed. More are on the way. He's dropped 3 of the clipped feathers in the last week and is up to 4 tail feathers with more sprouts visible. When he jumps from the kitchen counter, his landing prowess is clearly improved and he does his "wingercises" several times a day. I had hoped to have him harness trained by this point so growing in feathers wouldn't be an issue...but he's a long way from that point. Based on his progression, or lack of, in certain areas, I feel he would be safer to not be flighted until he has acclimated better--and harness trained. Dont get me wrong, he's doing wonderfully well, but he isnt the intrepid explorer that Liesl was. A flighted, insecure bird is a recipe for disaster and I've already lost one bird.
The question is...I need to clip him, for his safety--at least for the near term. When do I do this? Do the feathers need to be mature? How many need to be in for it to be effective? The only information I've found is relative to fully feathered birds, not one coming back from severe plucking. He has more existing and unclipped primaries on one side, and the clip does not appear to be equal. While I've read that birds will often lose the corresponding feather on the other wing to compensate, but he hasnt done this. One wing has a huge hole in the middle where he's missing about 1/3 of his primaries (he came this way, its not new) the other wing seems to be more intact. Can they be clipped in intervals as they come in or do they need to be done all at the same time? As I said at the beginning--I dont take this lightly, and it's a difficult decision that's compounded by Liesl's death, but I think it's best for Wrangler before he gets enough capability that he can get away.
Thx. Janet
I got Liesl from a breeder after 6 months of looking to adopt a rescue locally with no success, and 3 long long months of waiting for her to be weaned and ready to come home with me. During this time I was on the forum getting educated, asking questions, reading up on how to be the best possible parront. As a developing baby, I decided to leave Liesl flighted so that she could gain much needed skills during the crucial first year, plus--we have a dog. Being able to get out of harms way seemed like a good idea.
When I went to pick up Liesl, a rescue/rehome came my way--call it kismet, karma, whatever--but Brittany graciously allowed Wrangler to come home with me as well. In addition to being heavily plucked, including huge holes in his primary feathers, no tail feathers, etc...Wrangler was clipped. I didn't think that would be my initial preference but that's how he came to me. So i have one clipped, one flighted.
This is the hard part...
I lost Liesl last month. It tore me apart and I still blame myself. She was harness trained, an absolute must for flighted birds imo, and it proved to be a very smart move on a few occassions where she decided to take off and test her skills. She was fairly comfortable at home, she would sometimes fly from the top of her cage, out of line of sight from me and land in the living room--sometimes on the stair rail, sometimes on the curtains, sometimes hanging off a picture frame, but that was her learning curve. It was part of our routine to go hang out in the living room (i spend 90% of my time in the room with their cages) and I'd read and she'd nap on my shoulder--bonding one-on-one time, and getting familiar with new surroundings. I had just come from upstairs giving her a shower--which she loved--and towel dried her a bit--but she was far from dry--and sat down on the sofa with her on perched on my shoulder. The sofa is line of sight to her cage in the next room, but about 30 feet away. She decided to go to her cage and took off. Not usually a problem, except wet birds are heavy, and dont fly well. She couldnt get loft and crashed into the floor, breaking a wing. I rushed her to the vet, she had surgery the next morning but died from the trauma a few hours later. Please dont think Im looking for condolences or sympathy--I just need to accept my part in this and move past it. The only reason im recounting this history is that it's important in terms of how I work with Wrangler. Wrangler came from a neglect situation and passed through 4 homes in 2 months. He was separated from his flock mate of 5 years (Ruby), gained a new mate (Pinto), was reunited with Ruby, separated from Ruby and Pinto (he still calls Pinto's name), united with Liesl and then lost Liesl. His insecurities are legitimately earned.
Wrangler is thriving, though he still has massive insecurities and is really only comfortable in or on top of his cage. Handling is limited because of his hormonal issues (no, my hand is NOT your mate), and he refuses to be touched anywhere other than his beak. He steps up like a champ and likes my shoulder, but it's all on his terms. When Im home he has an open door and he's in the cage as much as he's out of it. Ive been working on taking him to new environs...be it the bedroom, the garage, etc...to help him learn that he's safe with me and build confidence, but it's not unusual for him to "jump ship" when he's had enough---and that can be 3 minutes or a loud noise. He used to hit the ground pretty hard--with no tail and not much wing, so I really had to be careful and watch body language to catch the signs BEFORE he jumped. Carpeted rooms weren't so bad but hardwood floors or cement aren't ideal for a bird that can't land. I have perches in just about every room in the house now, which helps, but he can, and does, still jump to the floor every now and then if he wants to go back to the safety of his cage. Even the kitchen counter that is 6 feet from his cage is a no-go zone as far as he's concerned. He wont stay on the counter perch for more than a minute or two before trying to get back to his cage. We spend several hours a week outside on his tree perch. He's gotten very comfortable with it and it's his second home but as his ability to fly improves, this will become an issue. Right now he's not inclined to jump off of it--for some reason he's afraid of the top of the patio table, and Im perfectly fine with that--but he has jumped to the yard once or twice, from my shoulder.
Wrangler's feathers are growing out. His secondaries have been in for over a month and he's gotten a few new primary wing feathers but they are still not fully developed. More are on the way. He's dropped 3 of the clipped feathers in the last week and is up to 4 tail feathers with more sprouts visible. When he jumps from the kitchen counter, his landing prowess is clearly improved and he does his "wingercises" several times a day. I had hoped to have him harness trained by this point so growing in feathers wouldn't be an issue...but he's a long way from that point. Based on his progression, or lack of, in certain areas, I feel he would be safer to not be flighted until he has acclimated better--and harness trained. Dont get me wrong, he's doing wonderfully well, but he isnt the intrepid explorer that Liesl was. A flighted, insecure bird is a recipe for disaster and I've already lost one bird.
The question is...I need to clip him, for his safety--at least for the near term. When do I do this? Do the feathers need to be mature? How many need to be in for it to be effective? The only information I've found is relative to fully feathered birds, not one coming back from severe plucking. He has more existing and unclipped primaries on one side, and the clip does not appear to be equal. While I've read that birds will often lose the corresponding feather on the other wing to compensate, but he hasnt done this. One wing has a huge hole in the middle where he's missing about 1/3 of his primaries (he came this way, its not new) the other wing seems to be more intact. Can they be clipped in intervals as they come in or do they need to be done all at the same time? As I said at the beginning--I dont take this lightly, and it's a difficult decision that's compounded by Liesl's death, but I think it's best for Wrangler before he gets enough capability that he can get away.
Thx. Janet
