WingClipping--Part 2---objective/ neutral

[Dave007]

Possible Disadvantages with a Flighted Bird

 

 

There are some serious considerations and some true disadvantages to keeping a flighted parrot. They are not, however, those most often alluded to by those who warn against flight. Many times we hear of the dangers of keeping parrots flighted in the home. The usual dangers cited are windows, kitchen appliances, electrical cords, the toilet, etc. In truth, however, parrots are "learning machines," quite capable of learning about windows and other household hazards.

 

It is true, though, that the owners of flighted parrots need to be alert and aware of potential losses. Many who keep parrots believe that these birds are always on the alert, ready for an opportunity to escape. Nothing could be farther from the truth. If treated well, our parrots do not want to escape or to fly away from home. It does, however, occur frequently by accident but most people will say it was an accident. A typical scenario occurs when the owner does not pay attention to the bird's location in the room, and opens the door to walk outside. The parrot flies to the owner's shoulder as the door opens, is startled by the sudden exposure to the outdoors, and takes off in flight. Or, the parrot sees the owner outdoors and attempts to fly to the owner through an open door.

 

Other losses through injury or death occur when a flighted parrot chooses to perch atop an open door...and someone closes the door quickly. In some cases, death comes when a transparent partition is closed, never having been closed previously. In one instance, the home had a sliding glass door that separated two rooms. This door was always open. The parrot had long been flighted and enjoyed a routine pattern of flight in the house for exercise. One day, someone closed the door. Baby parrots who are just fledging, do not, as a rule, have the muscle development that allows them to injure or kill themselves when running into windows, a fully flighted parrot, in good shape, can certainly kill himself flying into such a partition, just as wild birds do when flying into windows.

 

Anyone who elects to keep flighted parrots can not be absent-minded. They must maintain an awareness of the parrot's location in the home at all times, travel through doorways carefully, and think through any actions likely to impact the flighted bird. For instance, the operation of a ceiling fan can mean the death of the flighted parrot, if the owner absentmindedly turns it on without thinking of the ramifications.

 

Second, as previously stated, in order to live companionably with a flighted bird, it is necessary to provide instruction about where the bird can perch, and where it must not perch. This takes some time, effort, and patience. For those who do not enjoy animal training, or have not the time to learn appropriate techniques, wing clipping is suggested. Only the owners can make that choice. Flightedness is of no advantage to the parrot who is always kept locked in a cage in order to prevent his getting into trouble. He is better off able to climb around his cage and alternate perching sites.

 

Another possible problem is injury by going into unknown territory. No one knows what will happen and a person can't always anticipate what the bird will do in that unknown territory. Problems may loom.

 

Last, a disadvantage of major proportions is the difficulty of finding alternative care for the flighted birds when you must leave town. There are few care-givers who are knowledgeable enough to be able to handle a flighted parrot, and the option of leaving the bird in its cage throughout the owner's entire absence is obviously an undesirable one.