Concern About Wing Clipping (Method of Toweling Poppy)

[Giannine]

I just took Olive in to a local bird store to get her wings clipped but want Poppy's done in our home because she is far more jumpy and fearful. I spoke with the woman about how she will approach Poppy when she comes on Sunday as far as how she will physically get her to clip her wings and she told me she will bring her own towel and towel her in her cage and that there will be screaming (Poppy). I asked her if that wouldn't make her more fearful than she already is and she said I could be out of the room so that it wouldn't be associated with me.

 

This just doesn't seem to be a proper approach to a fearful/timid bird and seems as if it would traumatize her. Poppy is very jumpy for some reason and seems to get overstimulated easily. She grunts in excitement sometimes just by my talking to her. When we walk through the house to go upstairs to my bedroom or another room, she often flies off of my hand because she is startled by seemingly nothing. I don't know why she is like this as our household is relatively calm and even calmer than some with less kids. My kids are not allowed to yell, run, or create any other type of chaos in the house. Any ideas for what I can do to help her be less fearful and what are your thoughts on this woman's method to getting Poppy to clip her wings?

 

I am afraid Poppy will bite me if I try to get her to give to the woman and she has never been toweled. She also has not been in a carrier/crate since I picked her up from the airport so even trying to get her into one of those to take her to the vet to get her wings clipped would be pretty bad...

[neoow]

Don't be surprised if this thread sparks a rather healthy debate about wing clipping.

 

I don't like the approach suggested by the woman here. Having watched Alfie get clipped when he was young in a similar way, I decided it was far too stressful for him to ever consider having it done again. Only reason I had it done in the first place was because I was following what I now consider to be bad advice from the place where I got Alfie from. They suggested lightly clipping one wing then waiting a few weeks and lightly clipping the other. I followed this advice then realised Alfie was a strong enough flyer that once he sorted his balance issues out he could fly just as well as he could before the clip. So for me, it made no sense to continue. Alfie screamed the place down when they toweled him and I personally felt it was unnecessary stress for him.

 

I worry that with Poppy being a fearful/timid bird it will be extra stressful for her. Apparently there are ways to train a bird to get used to being handled in a towel (according to Barbara Heindenreich) but obviously this would need lots of careful and patient training with Poppy. Similarly, getting her used to going into a carrier should be possible... with lots of time, patience and reassurance.

 

Personally, I wouldn't risk setting Poppy's progress back by having a stranger walk into the home, towel her and clip her wings especially if she's a timid bird anyway.

 

I'm not sure what to suggest to you here though. How old is Poppy now? Is she able to fly or still learning? I'd be cautious of having her wings clipped if she's still quite young and hasn't fully learned to fly yet. (Apologies, I forget how long you'd have her now! Time zips past so quickly!)

[Giannine]

It's ok. Everyone has a right to their opinions and every person's situation is different. I have 7 other people in my home and we have a Boxer who is constantly being let outside through the sliding glass door which is directly across from Poppy's cage—she is in the living room and it is in the dining room. I cannot risk losing another bird to flying outside as we did with Olive. Thankfully we found her. My birds cannot get outside with their wings clipped so it is a necessity for my household.

 

I did call yesterday and cancelled. There is no way I am going to put Poppy through that. She is 15-months-old now. We got her last August. For now, I don't know what I am going to do. I don't even know how to get her into a carrier to get it done at a vet...I suppose that would require toweling. The other issue is keeping my house cool when it's hot outside. We always keep the sliding glass door open all day but have been having to keep it shut since the birds gained their ability to fly again.

 

Poppy is an okay flyer. She could definitely get somewhere if she needed to. Olive is a better flyer.

[Luvparrots]

My greys are unclipped and are great flyers. I have screens on all doors and windows and my family know to knock and quickly enter. The greys are use to being "stepped up" by me when it is time to return to their cages. They normally do some flying around before complying. I assume they want to get some energy out before being "locked up".

Edited August 11, 2017 by luvparrots

[Greywings]

Glad you canceled for now at least they way you describe her she would likely not react well to that stress. Just preach caution about open doors and windows, if flighted they at least have more ability to avoid predators if they should get outside.

[KevinD]

Grey's are supposed to fly, thats how God made them. I know everyone's situation is different, but your grey didn't decide to move in with you, you decided you wanted a grey.

 

My advice is dont clip them at all, just make sure they cant hurt themselves.