Wing Clipping Advice Please

[mister_lee]

Learning to deal with a baby bird requires a lot of patience, sorting through conflicting advice and band-aids

I'm a clipping proponent. Whether or not to clip is a very personal decision and will be different from person to person. I have a small house with a lot of hazards and find clipping to be the best way to keep my birds safe.

I have a Jardine's and a Red bellied and have found that both are much, much calmer when clipped. I felt bad about it initially, but I have not experienced any additional aggression due to clipping, in fact quite the opposite. Both of my birds are extremely calm and loving when clipped, but aggressive terrors when fully flighted, attacking faces, getting tangled in people's hair, and generally being unpleasant. After the Jardine's damaged his beak flying into a wall we decided he's safer not flying.

That said, make sure your bird trusts you before you start to clip. as others have mentioned a bird that is scared has 2 choices - fight or flight, remove flight and you get thrashing, broken blood feathers and painful bites.

I generally allow my birds to fly for a few weeks after the clipping has grown out to ensure they do get to work their muscles up and don't experience any kind of muscle atrophy but once the aggressive behavior starts again I have them clipped.

Your mileage WILL vary. I recommend experimenting and finding what works for you and your bird. If your bird's behavior is causing you stress, that stress will transfer back to the bird and compound it. Sometimes it will be you compromising, sometimes it will be the birds. In my case they had to lose their ability to fly to make the household calm enough to make everyone happy.

Good luck!

[Sabauda]

When our Senegal came to us at 11 months, I assumed the best thing to do would be to clip. Our vet came over and strongly encouraged me not to, as the little Poi bodies are so very heavy, and we have hard tile floors. Even with all his feathers, he hits the floor pretty hard.
I told the vet I was concerned about having a hard time catching him if he flew up to the curtain rod, etc. You-You was still very shy with us, we had only had him about 4 days. The vet said, "but he wants to be with you, where else would he go?", and amazingly, at that moment You-You flew down from the curtain rod to the vet's shoulder. Just like that, and started nibbling his ear. I was sold!
You-You stayed in the living room at first (he now explores other rooms, but is never allowed in my kitchen, which fortunately has a door.) He had one minor accident with a mirror, but very quickly learned excellent navigation, even when flying, as he usually does, very very fast. He generally takes 5 or 6 turns around our large living room in the morning, which he clearly really enjoys, and does not fly much at all for the rest of the day, other than to come to me. It's a beautiful sight to see him fly so skillfully and with such obvious joy. In the evening he will fly up and down the hall when locked out of the kitchen. I put him in his cage before my husband comes home, to avoid accidents with the front door, which is at the end of the hall in the area outside the kitchen door where he tends to "hover".
Good luck with Bumble....what a wonderful name!