new owner questions & wing clipping

[cf1ny]

My red sided Eclectus male was purchased from the breeder at 3 weeks. The purchaser hand fed it until 2 1/2 months. She then immediately quit hand feeding and switched to seed. He cried like a baby and she was told to get rid of the bird or move out. At just 3 months I purchased him and renamed him Kiwi. He is my first bird. I feed him pellets, a little seed, fresh fruits and veggies. It seemed to me that he still needed to be hand fed so I soak about 10 pellets in a little water overnight. The next morning I warm them and hand feed them to him. He eats 7-10 and then quits. He eats his regular pellets, a little seed and fruit and veggies during the day and seems to be doing fine. Is there any thing else I can use for the hand feeding?

I live close to Cornell University Veterinary School and made an appointment for him to be checked over and clipped by an Avian veternarian. I had a two week wait. In that time I encouraged him to fly and he got very good at taking off and landing. He would fly from his cage and find me. If my arm did not get extended to perch on he would land on my head. When I took him to Cornell I told the vet I did not want him to fly as I I did not want to lose him. The vet left the first two flight feathers and then clipped the next 8 under the coverts on one side. I questioned the one side and she said, "If you don't want him to fly then only clip one side."

After I got home he was playing on the floor and could still get up to 6 feet high and fly. He could not turn to the right and it caused him to have accidents. I was afraid he would get hurt so I asked my son (he has a cockatoo and a blue fronted Amazon) to clip the other side. He left the first two and clipped the next eight about half off.

The next day I had him outside and he flew about two hundred feet straight out made a right hand turn and flew another five hundred feet and went into the trees about thirty feet up. I started running immediately but fortunately my husband kept him eye on him and saw where he went. We went to the area he went into the woods. When I called him he said haw haw and was about eight feet into the forest and sitting on a branch about 4 1/2 feet up.

My son then clipped the first two flight feathers (he wanted to do that before but I said do the left side the same as the right). He no longer can fly. What a scare.

I am looking for a really good play gym or play stand for him, any suggestions?

I enjoy reading all of your questions, answers and comments.

[Sashagirl]

Whether your Kiwi is clipped or unclipped it is not wise to take him outside unprotected without a harness or some other kind of protection.Just because his wings are clipped this doesn't mean that he can not fly.I learned this same lesson years ago with Tippy one of my CAG's luckily I acted quickly and was able to catch her.It's a lesson we should all learn.Is Kiwi still being handfed?You could also give him warm oatmeal and that will help him.

I am owned by 7 Eclectus.

Marcia

[my-africangrey-echo]

Originally Posted by Sashagirl

Whether your Kiwi is clipped or unclipped it is not wise to take him outside unprotected without a harness or some other kind of protection.Just because his wings are clipped this doesn't mean that he can not fly.I learned this same lesson years ago with Tippy one of my CAG's luckily I acted quickly and was able to catch her.It's a lesson we should all learn.Is Kiwi still being handfed?You could also give him warm oatmeal and that will help him.

I am owned by 7 Eclectus.

Marcia

I agree 100% with Sashagirl!! And please never let someone only clip one side again. You are just asking for an injury when they can't sit evenly. Also if you only clip the outer 5 flights he will be able to glide but not take full flight unless of course if he is spooked outside. Please learn form your experience and never take him out without a harness on. Read my post on harnesses and go from there..

[jenseits]

Just because he is now clipped correctly doesn't mean he can't still fly away. Please don't take him outside without a harness. Trust me, a little wind or a little adrenaline is all it'll take to send your bird (even with his new clip) back up into a tree again. He may be clipped, but he's capable of flying better than you think.

p.s. your vet made a mistake clipping only one side - that's really outdated thinking. Please don't let them do that again; it can cause serious injury.

p.p.s. I recommend Wayne's Bottle Brush gyms. They're awesome.

[cf1ny]

I am still hand feeding him. That is why I would like to know of something besides the soaked pellets that I could hand feed.

[Sashagirl]

There are also hand weaning pellets that work well.I think Scenic makes them.Don't use the colored ones because of how sensitive Eclectus are to dye and color.That is what I used when I had to wean a few of my Eclectus.How old is he now?Are you weighing him to keep track of his weight?Have you been to Eclectus Parrots There are a lot of helpful things there to help you.

Marcia

[cf1ny]

He was 14 weeks when I took him to Cornell and he was 14 oz. That was two weeks ago. I have not weighed him since. I will this week. He is eating well. He likes the watered down pellets and the regular pellets and the fresh fruit and veggies.

Thanks for the info on the harnesses and Wayne's Bottle Brush gyms. I will check both out.

[loyallyroyal]

Isnt he a bit young to be that severly clipped? It doesnt sound like he had enough time to become an avid flyer and learn how to land well, how sad. It also sounds like he had a rough time being weaned, pulled off completely one day, sounds like your boy has had a rough beginning.

hope things start going smoother for you and your baby

[cf1ny]

In the two weeks I had him before he was clipped I had him flying very well. I thought that taking him to Cornell University Vet School and having an Avian vet clip his wings was the best. Yes, I think he is over clipped. Thank goodness they will grow back in.

[Ina246]

I feed Jezz baby food and oatmeal with a syringe. We do it for extra love. She is not a super fan of me but loves DH. I was told it would help out with bonding. But she does like it. Maybe it will work.