To Clip or Not To Clip...Floor Walking

[Elvenking]

I have read that I should discourage floor walking and clip my Grey's wings once he learns how to fly. What is the community thought on this? I hear it's dangerous to let them fly because they can get hurt...and\or get away if you ever go outside with them. And floor walking can lead to chewing on the wrong things or getting into wires and such. Penny for your thoughts. Thanks.

[Spinner]

By all means, search the forum regarding clipping. It always generates a nice debate.

 

My opinion (you asked):

Don't clip unless there's a medical reason or a specific danger to the bird or family. Birds use their wings for much more than just flying around, including hopping around, jumping up on things, jumping down, balance, etc.

 

I don't believe there is any inherent danger of a bird flying. I would be interested in hearing what you hear about the danger of flying.

 

Another point is that even a clipped bird WILL get away from you outside if not properly harnessed. Clipping does not prevent flight, it just makes it much harder for the bird.

 

The only danger I see in floor walking is the potential to step on them. They will get into wires and other dangers if we dont' pay attention to them - walking, flying, or not.

 

So....Don't clip. Let your bird walk. Keep your bird harnessed outside. Pay attention to your bird at all times.

 

Where's my penny?

 

Have fun!

[Luvparrots]

Oh this is a hot topic! When I got my grey she was clipped by her breeder. I had to wait a year for those feathers to grow and both Ana Grey and I were not happy campers! She did a lot of floor walking and my bare toes were constantly being pinched with her beak so I would pick her up! She would constantly flap her wings and jump off her cage and hanging perches trying to fly. It was heartbreaking. She is now totally flighted and she and I are both happy. She flies to the room I am in or back to her cage at her leisure. I can call her and she comes flying! It is a joyful thing to see you grey flying, totally independent and happy! Clipping is a personally choice, I hope you will try to let your grey remain flighted unless it becomes hazardous to your grey's health.

[Dave007]

In upper right hand corner where moving cube is, type in Wing Clipping in SEARCH FORUM. Get a beer, pull up a chair and get ready.

[Elvenking]

Yeah...this is a touchy area of concern. All the books I read say to clip him...and that includes my breeders recommendation. Just due to the fact that they can tend to misjudge walls and such...although he seems to be improving his landing greatly. Also, I like to have him out of the cage and worry about him just wanting to fly all the time. Most of the time its not a problem.I really do not want him to get hurt in anyway though. My intuition tells me not to clip him...just because if I had the ability to fly, I'd want to keep something like that.

 

Will he develop this, "I am the king of this domain" complex if I let him keep his flight? I really, REALLY don't want him to get hurt too. He started at 10 WEEKS....I was amazed. ONe day he stopped going down and began going up.

 

I will query other threads though....sorry...I am new. <br><br>Post edited by: Elvenking, at: 2010/02/05 00:33

[Dave007]

Nothing to be sorry about. It's asked a lot and there's great responses. Probably more than you can imagine.

"""I am the king of this domain""""

 

He's simply a bird who's been given some body parts in order to go from one place to another.

 

"""""I have read that I should discourage floor walking and clip my Grey's wings once he learns how to fly.""""

 

Well, if he's clipped, floor walking is what's left.

 

Flying is more appealing and a floor becomes less attractive.

 

Al the baby birds bang into things when they start to fly. It normally hurts the owner more than it does the bird. Birds were born to fly. When a child learns how to walk, he's gonna fall, right? When he learns how to ride a bike, he's gonna fall and scrape those knees, right?

I know that when I was a kid I went through all of those things and I turned out alright, at least physically. Mentally, well that's another story and it didn't have anything to do with wings, walking or riding a bike.

[Luvparrots]

You should know Elvenking that the two gentlemen answering this thread are both well-respected breeders who are always generous with their knowledge and expertise for which we are truly grateful!

[danmcq]

Elvenking wrote:

My intuition tells me not to clip him...just because if I had the ability to fly, I'd want to keep something like that.

 

Your intuition is correct.

 

Most the books and people that just automatically state to clip your bird is the very old school of thought. This is probably due to people in early years that bought a parrot thought of it more like a puppy or other flightless critter.

 

It is my personal belief more birds are harmed every day due to being clipped. They will jump off their cages for example and split their keel. They can not flee from a cat or dog coming at it. They can not flee from an object falling towards, like a person on a ladder...yes this really happened. A person was up on the ladder hanging something the bird was down on the floor watching and he fell on it. A flighted bird would have been gone before he hit the floor. The bird obviously was killed instantly.

 

Birds fly every day with out running into things. They are masters of flight. If they weren't, you would see birds dead all over the place from flying into tree branches, telephone poles etc. They actually process vision 4 times faster than humans. Thats why they can be flying 30 miles per hour through a tress and swoop and swerve through it. A human would hit dead smack on the first branch at that speed.

 

The birds respiratory and cardio-vascular system is entirely built around flight and the oxygen flow required for it. A clipped bird is not nearly as healthy or coordinated as a flighted bird.

 

Your Grey will learn fast, just as you have described he is already.

 

Hope this helps in your dicision. :-)

[dhorje]

Let your bird fly. He will be happier this way.

[bigbird519]

i too have been doing much research on the pros and cons of flight. here is my ? i am more concerned about the german shepard/ shiba inu mixed dog that i have. harley (my dog) is two years of age and very quick. i dont have the grey as of yet. (still doing research) and i am not wanting to kennel the dog, or cage the bird for long periods of time. how long does it take a grey to learn flight? also, is this a major disadvantage to adopting a five year old bird?

 

found this on the web, thought i could post it here. lots of interesting stuff on the pros and cons to clipping flight wings. as of yet i am not sure of my opinion.

http://www.parrothouse.com/pamelaclark/feathersandflight.html

[Elvenking]

Man...what a tough decision. I love my bird dearly...and it's only going to grow. I love to see him fly. I just really pray he doesn't hurt himself somehow. Paramount to me is that this bird is safe and happy. I will try to let him fly for a while. He is super beautiful in flight.

[Elvenking]

BTW...can anyone tell me how well the birds handle harnesses, direct me toward a recommended method to do this...and tell me if the birds mind this treatment. I would like to take him around at times...and should I leave him flighted...I would like to know my options.

[rbpittman]

Will wait for my penny - in the meantime here are my thoughts...

 

I have two greys - one clipped by the bird shop before brining her home. She has since lost all of those flights that were clipped and the new ones are in - now we are waiting for the flight. She has managed two "controlled flights" resulting from her jumping from her cage - the first resulted in a landing on the floor, the second she flew to Beau's cage and landed on his porch. Today she did what I consider to be her first actual flight - she climbed on my laptop monitor and went up and out the door into the hallway, misjudged the corner of the wall in the hallway and semi-gracefully came down. She's determined to try and I'm determined to let her. Beau is my baby, and he has a wing that was damaged due to an illness. He's now regaining flights and secondary feathers so it will be some time before he will regain his flight. Beau is a floor walker because of this, and I worry more about him being stepped on than I do about Dixie flying. I also have 3 dogs - and they run the other direction from the birds, or look up and then lay back down. The key to a bird - flighted or not - they can get away when outside - so they must be harnessed. Dangers in the home - cooking and they land on the stove, of course if one is not flighted this makes the probability higher if they are sitting on your shoulder or a playstand nearby. Ceiling fans, windows, and open doors, exposed wires, hot water and a multitude of other things that can bring harm. It comes down to you as the human being diligent and observant and protecting your baby - flighted or not.

[Elvenking]

Okay...by the way...My Bird is going to fly...period. I can't imagine defying what I feel in my heart. What can I say I have a weak spot for this. When I saw him flying around tonight..and kind of giving me a work out really. He just looked like he was having fun. No friggin way...I am not clipping him.

 

Post edited by: Elvenking, at: 2010/02/05 09:21<br><br>Post edited by: Elvenking, at: 2010/02/05 09:25

[Jane08]

Glad you made a decision and are not going to clip. Believe me the joy you will get and he will get out of the flying far outweighs everything else. It is truely magical.

 

In no time he will be zooming around cutting corners, swooping, doing incredible air manouvers and you will wonder why you even worried about him hurting himself, he is much safer being able to control his body and fly.

[dhorje]

Glad to hear you are not going to clip. My Grey has been harness trained since she was 4-5 months old. She is 1.5 years old now and it was pretty easy for her to accept the harness. It took me less than 1 week to get her on the harness. With the harness, she enjoys lots of outdoor flights.

[pearllyn]

Hi Elvinking!

So glad you are going to let your baby keep his wings - it's what mother nature intended!

Alfie has a harness too - no problems accepting it, although on the odd occasion she doesn't feel like having it on and we respect that. She does enjoy coming out for walks with us and the dogs though.

Nice picture by the way - your grey looks so sweet!

And you can put my penny in the next animal charity box you see!!

[Spinner]

I believe that's the right choice for your bird. Having done both, I know the full-flight birds seem happier and much more coordinated.

 

You asked about harnesses. I use an aviator harness exclusively when I take my greys out. They know when it comes towards them that they're going to get to go outside. They are absolutely giddy about it. I even take them on errand runs with me during the winter/cooler months - it's a pleasure for them and for everyone that sees them.

 

Keep the questions coming! Your grey is all the better for it.

[JungleDreamz]

LMAO DAVE! haha

 

"In upper right hand corner where moving cube is, type in Wing Clipping in SEARCH FORUM. Get a beer, pull up a chair and get ready."

 

{Feel-good-000200BB}

[Elvenking]

Pretty much when I read some post about how they prepare to fly by judging many different aspects about their ascent, push-off, and flapping....I was like....no friggin way I am gonna take that away from him. He is just getting used to it..and he is already good at it.

 

Also, it is simply crazy how much I love this bird. And I have only had him a little over two weeks.

[Xtreme575]

From someone who currently has a clipped parrot, I would suggest you made the right choice! I wish everyday that my parrot could fly. He just seems to yearn for it so much. I see him lowering his wings, leaning forward, wanting to push off and go for a flight. Instead he lands on my coffee table before he slides across it and bounces to the floor. It's so sad.

 

As soon as he molts, I will let him regain the freedom that was stolen from him without my consent. My vet now lectures me on him being overweight, I don't know how else I can exercise him. He has a hanging gym that he loves and climbs all over, what else could I do without flight for exercise???

 

I also use the Aviator Harness, I saw with my own eyes, a slight breeze and even a clipped bird can't help it, they are off to the wind! The harness has saved us a few times. Also, the harness comes with a "training" DVD on how to get your parrot used to it. It also has and extendor that you can purchase if you want to allow him "more" flight than the standard leash length that comes with the harness.

 

Enjoy the flights, and remember, there are some of us waiting to see our babies join the mile high club!

[Elvenking]

Yes...it would totally break my heart to see my little boy (well hardly little ) float helplessly to the ground where he used to effortlessly fly. I am glad I have so much support in my decision. It was right at 10 1/2 weeks when he first took flight. It was quite scary the first time...he just kept going up to my vaulted cieling with me running underneath him with my arms out waiting for the fateful plummet. But he was okay, just a bit amazed at himself seemingly. After that...he took a few more crooked flights. By the fourth one...he was purposefully landing on furniture...and last night....directly on top of my head. I was thinking....oh god....don;t poop now. Because they like to poop after flight sometimes.

 

It's fun...I have waited all my life to have a real parrot like this, and I am enjoying it more than I ever thought.

[Dave007]

You asked about a harness---you should have no trouble with it. Your bird is extremely young and will easily accept it. The ideal time to start using a harness or getting a biord used to a harness is when he/she is very young. All you need to do is follow the directions and make sure it fits right--You'll get a medium sized one that's made for greys, amazons and small cockatoos.

Get the right one. We recommend that you get the FLIGHT AVIATOR. Any other type is similar to a dog style harness. Usually, a person either uses it to keep a bird on their shoulder or to just walk the bird on the sidewalk. It's only 5 to 7 ft long and heavy and has metal clasps all over it.

The flight aviator doesn't and has an option to add more length to it as time goes on. There are no clasps to it. It's very light weight. The price is between $34 to $39 although they can be gotten a bit cheaper if you find one on sale.

[KdK]

I have been thinking very hard about this same matter since Vree hurt himself....wondering if having his feathers unclipped might have helped him some how from falling in his cage and hurting himself.

 

I will not have his wings clipped again (provided it is okay for him to fly once he's recovered of course).

 

It is interesting to read everyone's opinions.

[Janfromboone]

Tobie was clipped when I bought him and I believe that clipping him so young was the cause of alot of feather chewing problems he has had. Also he has had injuries from falls. He is just now beginning to fly. He has already learned to wear an aviator harness because even though he was clipped I would take him for long walks and thought he might startle and fly enough to get into trouble. Go very slow getting them used to the harness and it should be fine. Putting it on can be difficult at first, but don't give up. If they seem fearful of it then slow down even more. I am looking forward to watching his flying skills grow. Already I'm pleased that the falls are a thing of the past.