To fly or not to fly

If you haven't read it already, you need to (in this context) go read the notes on household hazards., When a birds is flighted, all of these hazards are magnified and made more of a concern. Additionally there are issues of collisions with windows, ceiling fans, walls, hard floor landings, and a host of concerns about escape through open doors and windows.

Escape is often a death sentence for a pet bird. A captive bird is simply not equipped (even if you live in the tropics) for life in the wild. And where most folks live, the temperatures and food supply are all wrong. And what about all the traffic (your bird has no idea about cars, roads, or the world outdoors in one of our cities.).

All pet birds should have their wings clipped. There may be rare exceptions for people who have secure aviary settings or can in some other way can keep their flighted birds safe. I have heard of one too many "accidents" involving flighted birds - the latest being a wonderful blue and gold macaw who was being handled in a back yard, but then flew over the fence and in front of a car and was killed.

So, you ask ... how do I keep my birds wings clipped?

The best thing is to learn to do it yourself. It isn't that hard and you (one would hope) care for your bird more than anyone, and your bird trusts you. Perhaps the worst thing to do is to take your bird to a pet store and have them do it, unless you really really know the person involved. I have seen some pretty rough handling by pet store people. A good bird vet is not a bad option, but beware if they have some semi-skilled "helper" do the trimming. If you have a good vet who has some bird handling talent, great ... and get them to teach you how to do it. Other than that, you must know someone else with birds who can show (and help) you.

I clip all of my birds wings myself and I don't need to restrain them with a towel to do it. Both of my macaws and cockatoos will perch on a stand (or my arm) and let me pull their wing out with one hand and clip feathers with the other. My amazons are not so cooperative, but I am working with them to allow more handling. I can clip my double yellow head, but I usually suffer a bite or two in the process. My other amazon will need to be held, and a second person will need to help to do the whole thing quickly and safely.

Watch out for blood feathers. A blood feather is a new feather that is still in the process of growing. It will have blood (and nerves!) in the feather shaft and clipping it will hurt your bird and may be life threatening as it may be unable to clot and stop bleeding. If you don't know what a blood feather looks like, have someone show you and be sure you know how to recognize and avoid clipping them. The feather will mature in a few weeks and be able to be clipped.

The goal of a trim is to shorten the last few (maybe 5) feathers on a wing (the primaries) so that the bird can still almost fly when you are done. This requires some judgement and each bird requires a different clip. I have seen some awful hack jobs where the primaries have cut far too short by someone hacking them all off with a big pair of scissors. Birds like this will fall like rocks and hurt themselves when they hit the floor. Even clipped birds will be motivated enough (such as when scared by something) to try to fly now and then. Be aware though that if such a bird is outdoors on a windy day, with the help of the wind he very well may be able to fly!! I avoid taking my birds outdoors on windy days, or at least am very careful about it.

If all this is new to you, you should be aware that clipping a birds wings is both painless and temporary. What is done is that the long flight feathers (called primaries), are shortened using scissors. This is as painless as us getting our fingernails cut. (not so if they are young blood feathers). Additionally, every bird molts once or twice a year, dropping those old cut feathers, and growing a new set of full length ones, and this requires the whole thing to be done at least once a year. Accidents happen when birds grow more feathers than their owners realize and suddenly rediscover their ability to fly!

There is a surgical procedure called pinioning, which I cannot imagine any ethical vet would ever do to a parrot. This would render a bird permanently flightless, but it is seen from time to time, especially on birds from latin american countries.

Some enlightened bird owners do allow their birds to grow their feathers out and have flight privileges. This is not something to take lightly, think everything through before hand. What if someone forgets the bird is out and opens a door or window? What if the bird is on your shoulder and you absent-mindedly walk outside? (Yes I have heard of heartbreaking stories like this).

There is something to be said for allowing an intelligent animal that is plainly engineered for flight to be able to enjoy that capability. The trick is to be responsible and not reckless and foolish in doing so. My feelings here are that the vast majority of birds and birds owners would be happier keeping their pets wings clipped, myself included.


Have any comments? Questions? Drop me a line!

Tom's parrot pages / tom@mmto.org