to fly or not to fly

[imzadi]

I have recently gotten a 5 month old quaker. I have cats and I am concerned about him being able to escape if he is out when the cats are around. he currently has his wings clipped and so far, the cats have considered him a curiosity, not a toy, but you never know. I am willing to put up with whatever precautions or problems flying may cause, but I want him to have his natural defense against predators should my cats ever take the opportunity.

I kind of also think it is only fair, if he is safe, to let him do what comes naturally. What could be greater than being able to fly?

[4HAND]

Please keep him flighted.Under the circumstances he would be a sitting duck if he couldn't fly.
Tena

[PowerBBS]

Hmmm take a ball of yarn put it on the ground next to your cat (don't touch it). Does your cat play with it? When it gets bored and stops playing with it, take it and un-weave it a bit so that you can now swing the ball in circles above/around the head of your cat - don't flail it about like it's a weapon, just do it like you wanted the cat to play. Does it attack it? Is the cat more interested in the flying ball than it was interested in the still ball on the floor? Does the cat only swat at the yarn on the floor, yet actually attack, chew and claw at the swining ball. My point is that the mobility of an object tends to bring out the attacking nature of a cat more than a stable object.

Pretty neat experiment huh. This being said if your bird does learn to fly. You'll have little control of where it flies to (and that could be directly into the jaws of your cat). The flying nature will most likely instill your cat into developing it's predatorial instincts even more. Meaning the excitement may teach him to actively hunt your fids.

Now, don't get me wrong, all four of my fids are FULL FLIGHT. And we don't have cats and I still see it as very dangerous sometimes as I just have no control where they land and the fact that they're flying in the house so who knows what they'll run into. So I'm not actually apposed to flighted birds. I just see more danger in letting them fly around with your cats versus having hand control of them at all times.

I'd say let them fly if they were outside, but they're our pets and hense live inside so the "natural" flying ability just won't develope normally. However the natural ability for your cats to be predatorial is hereditary and genetic. Cats are the most successfull predators of all land predators. I grew up with cats and many times they've brought home a dead feathered "food gift" to our front door.

Honestly, I'd keep the wings clipped so that you could have at least some control your fids (especially around the cats). Just take the extra pre-cautions to see that your fids never get out alone. As trust me. All our fids fly, and we have no control where or when they decide to take off. Just a regular household wood creek makes our two smallest (Autumn and Chucky) fly a couple laps around thru the kitchen and into the living room. I think you want control in this case. Flight means a loss of control

Just my opinion though.

[4HAND]

A clipped bird can and will fly,the only difference is that a clipped bird cant gain altitude.They can only fly in a downward trajectory[sp].Trapped on the floor,with no way to ascend back up to the safety of a cage.
Tena

[imzadi]

He came with his feathers trimmed. I am trying to decide whether to let them grow and I tend to agree with you, but I am not experienced and want all the facts.

I see two very different opinions. The concern I have is that Pickles jumps down from my shoulder anyway, thereby landing on the floor where he could be predated by the cats. they have shown only cursory interest and do not pounce right away, but study the situation for a while. We have chickens outside that tend to attack the cats, so they are wary. If he could fly, he would be able to jump out of the way if they attack.

[4HAND]

Possibly,but don't let your guard down.Even if fully flighted,the odds are still on the cats.Not all birds will flee from a cat.Some will pick a fight they can never win.
Tena

[Nazir's]

This is a hard one but I think that I would probably keep my bird flighted in such a situation. Either flighted or not, the bird and your cat should not ever be trusted together alone in any area. And all precautions should be taken to keep them apart.

[birdlady49]

Originally Posted by Nazir's

This is a hard one but I think that I would probably keep my bird flighted in such a situation. Either flighted or not, the bird and your cat should not ever be trusted together alone in any area. And all precautions should be taken to keep them apart.

Agreed. Keep him flighted but YOU be the one in charge! If your cats are out and about, your bird should be caged. When YOU restrict your cats' movements, then take your bird out. Don't leave it up to your bird to make a decision like that!

[charlieandmom]

I respect everyone's opinion but personally I would clip the wings. I have tiels that are flighted and every time they get spooked they get to flying around I always afraid there going to hurt themselves. I recently added my quaker he has his wings clipped now and I think I want to keep them that way. I have cats also and you know what they say curiosity killed the cat. They have never bothered my birds but they look awful hard at them sometimes at least when Charlie flies or calls him self flying he is always in my reaching distance. Just my opinion. Just remember also that cat saliva can kill a bird.

[Nazir's]

Originally Posted by charlieandmom

I have tiels that are flighted and every time they get spooked they get to flying around I always afraid there going to hurt themselves.

I have one flighted bird and one bird that is not flighted. I worry more about the bird that's not flighted as her movements are very liomited, clumsy, and her falls are much more dangerous than the one that's flighted. It's her instinct/natural reaction to fly when she get's spooked but could easily fly/fall to her death if the predator was above or beneath her. She doesn't seem to be bothered by not being flighted but personally, I prefer being able to call my birds to come to me knowing that he or she can. When I tell Clover (my flighted bird) to come, he comes. When I tell him to go, he goes. When he's spooked he can get away fast and safely. Whereas, my non-flighted bird tries to get away when spooked but is not be able to go anywhere far or fast. I also think, if ever an emergency, I might need to call my birds and have them come to me quickly. Clover would always get to me much faster than Iris. Most times Iris tries to fly to me, but she falls not too far from her leap and I have to meet her half the way to pick her up.

I've just adjusted to living with birds and have birdie proofed my house (i.e. no ceiling fans on while the birds are out, the fids must be confined to a room or their cage when cooking, and all dogs confined while birds are free, etc.). It's working out for me and I feel a lot more secure with a flighted bird (in house). My biggest concern when it comes to flighted birds is that I don't trust taking Clover (flighted) outside as I do with Iris (non-flighted). Iris and I would just hang out in the back yard but I'd not ever try that with Clover.