To clip or not to clip

[Elvenking]

It's a decision I think a lot of parrot owners have to think about at some point & not a very nice one. Also like other people have said it is down to your own personal situation in the household etc. Before getting my grey Murphy I had an Amazon who was clipped so when getting Murphy I had to make the same decision over again & decided not to clip this time. The main reason I decided not to, was he was only a 12 week old baby & fortunately I had educated myself on greys a little before hand & read on here that you shouldn't clip a growing baby as Dave007 has said until at least 8 months old. I had also read that clipping greys can cause some of the behavioural problems associated with greys like feather plucking so again I didn't want to take that risk.

 

I have now got used to having a flighted bird around the house & it's quite nice knowing he has the freedom to come & go as he pleases, if I'm in one room he flies in to see me & then follows me out. If he's hungry he flies back to his cage for some food on his own accord. Now I'm not saying it's great all the time, there has been one occasion when I felt like clipping him. One time my little one year was having her lunch in her high chair & Murphy decided to try & land on her head but fortunately I was sat right there & managed to deflect him away before he caused any damage. He just missed her face by a nats whisper with his talon nearly catching her little eye. I'm not sure if he was trying to get to her food or what but at the time the thought crossed my mind that I may have to clip, I thought if he's going to start doing that all the time, I can't be having that! I thought about it long & hard & decided against it, thinking I'll just keep him in his cage while feeding my Daughter but he hasn't done it since. He can also get very annoying at times when he wants to be everywhere you are. There are time when I'm just trying to watch TV in the evening & he's a persistent little fella & keeps on flying down to me over & over & sometimes your not in the mood for it. I have to remind myself that he is still just a baby & wants tickles off his Dad (me).

 

LOL...I so feel those moments you refer to of getting your patience tried by a flighted grey. They can get going and test your patience quite well. Sometimes I will be on my computer and I get the fly-by ear twaeks to come and play or just to pay attention to him. Or like you say...they just bounce from location to location like a pinball sometimes. But the most wonderful thing is how much they really want to be with you...all the time. I guess any blessing can be a curse at the right moment. All thing considered, I'd rather see Issac being the playful child of a bird he is. He deserves the choice to fly.

[reggieroo]

Thank you all, and <--> lol im not sure how to make the arrow go downward haha, thanks for the great advice, i will definately read that post!! I am at work now and want to make sure i get quiet time to read it lol Also Question to Reggieroo, you said in your post that you had a one year old. How does your AG handle a baby around? Does Murphy mimic her cries? LOL i heard that if you had a loud household, then your ag will be loud as well. Is Murphy pretty loud? Loudness doesnt bother me, but the crying like my two year old over and over might get kinda anoying LMAO!!! Just wondering, i guess i could have posted this else where, but thought since you had written me advice, id just ask ya here LOL Thanks again!!!

 

We're always here to help when we can. To be honest with you our little one year old daughter Ella-Rose doesn't cry very often at all & our house isn't really that loud considering I have quite a large flock, two cats, one German shepherd, me, Kate, Ella-Rose & Murphy. He's pretty quiet for a parrot (at the moment), I had a screaming problem for around 7 months but that is now history & he doesn't mimic any household noises at all. All the noises he makes are an attempt at human speech which he is working on daily & some sweet little whistles & a few oddities that I can't work out what they are but they do make me laugh. The only time he gets quite loud is when I'm trying to watch TV & he wants to be heard. :rolleyes:

 

LOL...I so feel those moments you refer to of getting your patience tried by a flighted grey. They can get going and test your patience quite well. Sometimes I will be on my computer and I get the fly-by ear twaeks to come and play or just to pay attention to him. Or like you say...they just bounce from location to location like a pinball sometimes. But the most wonderful thing is how much they really want to be with you...all the time. I guess any blessing can be a curse at the right moment. All thing considered, I'd rather see Issac being the playful child of a bird he is. He deserves the choice to fly.

 

So true!

[Tamara]

LOL ah, i totally cant wait for the screams, lol. I saw a video with an Amazon, or something and it TOTALLY mimicked an infant scream, to the TEE!! LOL you prob saw it, it was on here. My two year old is a little whiney girl lol and Im hoping my new little baby grey wont pick that up. But if it does it does lol Im expecting to have four children when i do get my grey. My 2 year old, my 3 year old, my baby grey and my husband! HAHAH its ok though. I have lots of patience and thankfully time to give

Thanks again!!!!!!!!

[Azzie]

So right when you say they sometimes test your patience. Ripping keys off the keyboard if I am on the PC, shredding my book if I am trying to read, biting the phone if I am on it etc. In spite of all that, personally I would never clip any of my birds, and take away the one thing that makes a bird unique, its ability to fly. As well, a few times Cleo's ability to fly has saved her from nasty falls from her boing, when she's been a little too enthusiastic with it. Also, when she gets a fright, her ability to fly to a safer spot is worth it to me, keeping her flighted. It is such a natural thing to do for birds, that it would just be cruel (in my opinion) to take that ability away.

[harmar]

When I got sasha he was about 4 months old and was already clipped. He became fully flighted about 2 or 3 months ago(he is 17 months old now).

I still have a hard time figuring out if I preferred him clipped or flighted. Flighting, he can come to me when he wants, he can get to where he wants, don't have to worry about him falling... However he can get to where he wants is also a huge con. Always getting into mischeif. He would still obviously get into mischief being clipped, but not as bad... Also have to be SUPER careful about the door to outside.

I am pretty sure I prefer him flighted, but I am going on a trip in a couple months, so my parents will look after him.. pretty sure they would rather he be clipped...

[Elvenking]

Now here is an observation that I think maybe others might share. My Grey, Issac, is the only Grey that I have ever seen fly! I ahve seen many Greys...all clipped! It gives me an additional appreciation for what I see when issac is flying from perch to perch. It really is amazing to see a parrot fly! I love it! (Right now...LOL)