I have been seriously pondering getting my birds wings clipped... but so many people are against it! Once, Moon got loose, and it was horrible! My mom was screaming at me, Moon was flapping around, and the family cat was looking hungry. Moon flew all the way up to the celieing then went head on into another wall. She plummented to the ground, and I frantically scooped her up to find a tiny bead of blood on her head. I watched her for days, and it healed up fast and she was shocked that night but the next day she was fine. This happned about a year ago, and Moon still stinks at landing and cordinating were she is going. I know that all of this will stop if she is clipped, but I dont want to destroy the bond I am begining to make with her...what do you guys think? Pros and Cons on getting your keet clipped?

there are so many posts on this subject do a search

yes hath is right I know we had a huge one going with everyone's opinion, do a search for sure

 

In a nutshell it depends what you are looking to accomplish. Everyone had different views, very heated debates.

 

In my opinioin it depends what you are wanting to achieve with the birds. I can't say NO or YES but what I can say is you need to do what is best for your birds in your home and situation.

 

I know there are people on this board that clip their birds wings because they have their ceiling fans all the time because of the climate they live in they do it for the birds safety.

 

There are those that have aviaries that have no need to clip.

 

There are those that want a tamed bird in the home and to acheive that will clip and then let them grow the wings out.

 

We have 3 cats we are extremely careful about locking them up so my two can fly. I will tell you Pretty is no clipped a good flyer but if Mollii the cat wanted him she would get him period because she has the ability to jump and on different furniture.

 

Both my birds where clipped when I got them. But way back I had 1 tiels, one was unclipped and I tamed him the other I did clip because I couldn't even get near her.

 

These are my thoughts.

 

 

Oh yes and this is a good post to read about stating opinions http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/index....unce&f=33&id=30

Ooh, this could open a can of worms, couldn't it? Let's all agree to disagree and go from there.

 

You will not lose any bond you are creating just because you trim the wings. Yes, (most) birds are meant to fly. We all know about birds such as ostriches, kiwi, etc that do not. But where are they meant to fly? Outdoors. Bring them indoors, and all of a sudden there are a host of hidden dangers that are not in the realm of experience for a wild animal. And birds are not domesticated. They are not equipped during evolution to live in people's houses. They don't care about electric cords or hot stoves or ceiling fans. Not found in their natural habitat. Household cleansers, lead weights, or fumes from nonstick pans? Don't care - not found in their natural habitat. They don't know to be wary. Mirrors? Windows? Not exposed to those things in the savannah or rainforest either. And walls and ceilings?????

 

In my opinion, you do need to retain some way to control that which you tame and enforce boundaries of what is acceptable and what is not. This may sound harsh, but for most people I think it is a reality whether you like it or not. Just as dogs are trained to behave in an acceptable manner (don't pee on the carpet) and cats are as well (litterbox training, scratching posts as opposed to your best furniture) if you have birds in the house you need to be able to get them in their cage when you want, and keep them out of danger to the best of your ability (in other words - YOU define what acceptable behavior is for you and others in your household). You should also ideally be able to handle them to some extent. (This is not meant to turn into a discussion about free will or who should or shouldn't be allowed to have pets. It is just my way of trying to explain my opinion.) If you need to trim your birds wings to accomplish this, then trim them. If you are concerned for your bird's safety and are able to better moderate and control the situations your bird will ultimately find itself in, and trimming is the best way you can accomplish that, then by all means do it. Better that than to find a dead bird because s/he flew out of the room and into a ceiling fan, or down the hall and out the door just as someone is coming into your house. If you don't feel your bird needs the additional restraint of a wing trim, then don't do it. Some people trim their birds wings, tame them in the amount of time it takes them to molt back in, and let them keep flight after that. Others keep them trimmed all the time. Mine have complete flight capabilities, and retain it because I can always catch them no matter where they go, and they will always step up when I tell them to. I have what I feel is an acceptable amount of control over my birds, and feel I can ensure their safety even though they can fly. They love to fly. LOL, they hardly ever do it, but they love it. I would hate to take that gift away from them. It may sound harsh, but it is a gift - I can trim them at any time if I feel it necessary to keep them safe and retain as close to instant control as I am comfortable with. They would not love me any less if I did. And if due to some unforseeable circumstance I felt it was in their best interest to have clipped wings, they would have clipped wings. I may be in the minority, but to me the real issue is not birds are meant to fly always and everywhere vs. birds must be trimmed for these reasons.... It is what is best for the bird in the situation I have placed them in?

 

**edit**

I just noticed you have cats and rats. Whatever you decide to do, please make sure those animals are not allowed in the vicinity of your budgie. You have some other factors to consider that a lot of the rest of us here do not. I don't have any other pets besides my birds, so I don't have to factor other animals into the equation.

Edited July 22, 200618 yr by Rainbow

Thank you all for the advice. I realized I do have many variables that would equal to the sum of Moons wings cut. We have ceiling fans always on becasuse of the hot humid weather of Tennessee. Dont worry, my rats are in my room and I never let them go near Moon. I know rats are natural predaotrs that could easily pick off a budgie. Also Moon is on a bird stand- away from the cats and dogs. When I have Moon out I put them in a room until Moon is back in her cage. Our dog is a pomerainian- she always keeps her distance from Moon at all times. I will do a search. Im sorry, Im kinda new here. I think I will eventually have her wings cut, though... even though the guilt would haunt me. I will let them grow back. I hear that you only have to cut one wing. Thank you for the advice.

cutting one wing is bad advice because it throws off their balance and they can't go straight and crash. Cutting both wings is the best that will let them fly and come down straight. So please if you do, have both done. Here is an article to read http://www.birdsnways.com/wisdom/ww19eii.htm

Oh, the article I read said to clip just one wing...sorry. I am still very wishy washy... I might not clip her wings.

yes there are some out there that say that even pet shops and people but when you think about it common sense wise the bird if tried to fly would not be able to keep her balance and would not be able to steer themselves. Merlin is clipped and he can go exactly where he wants because of the equal clipping

I've had my Scooter for a week today, and I have not had him clipped. When I got him, he had no prior training. Within the first 3 days he was understanding the "UP" command and he is now pretty much fully finger-trained. I've already started letting him out of his cage. He'll do a couple laps around my bedroom before landing on the ceiling fan and start chirping away. I think if you have a room that is bird safe and are able to tame them, I don't feel clipping is necessary. I read that it's easier to tame them if they are clipped cause they depend on you more, but I've had no problems training him. It's very easy to get him to go back in his cage if I want him to. Even if he is up to high for my finger, I just use one of his perches and he gets right on to let me take him back to his cage. Birds were meant to fly, and I think if it is at all possible, they should retain that ability. As long as the bird is not in any danger of course.

Would you believe we've just been having this discussion over on another forum. Personally I have a mix of clipped and unclipped depending on training, personality and circumstances for the bird. As well as the buds I have ringnecks and a lorikeet. I feel this is a personal choice and one must examine their lifestyle, the individual bird and then make a choice. Just my 2c worth.

I have 13 budgies and a mixture of clipped and unclipped birds.

 

I have been able to work with all of my budgies that came clipped. And to this day, even though their feathers have grown back, I can easily get the to step up and return them to their cage.

 

But four of my budgies came unclipped and I have never been able to tame them. In fact they seem terrified of me and have remained "wild". I've been feeling bad for them because they haven't been able to have out of cage flight time. When they are out of the cage, they are terrified and smash and bang into things. In most cases, I need a net to get them back in.

 

So this week I clipped them. And I have made a ton of progress with them. Not only has Daffy been out of the cage for the first time, she is stepping up onto a perch and onto my finger. And I've only been nipped a few times. Puddin', Beka, and Star are coming along too. I don't plan on keeping their wings clipped. I'm just doing this so they can get used to me, the perch, and my finger for step-up.

 

Once they grow back in they will be able to soar with my other (previously clipped) birds.

Interesting thread. And a valuable one at that!

 

I have been tossing and turning in thought about whether to have my little boy's wings clipped or not, even before finding him..

My decision is to have them clipped at the vet's - whilst getting a general check-up, claws and beak trimmed (if needed)and picking up additional budgie minerals and advice. This will have to happen after Easter though..

 

When I was a little, we had a budgie that the petstore owner only clipped one wing - this caused our budgie (Cheeky) to fly in circles andhe couldn't get anywhere unless he ran onthe ground or we carried him. Thankfully we had no other pets at the time! It helped him bond with us, but I hated seeing him try to fly and get nowhere. So I agree with what Elly said - clip both!!

Good post to resurface both my boys where clipped when I got them and then I let them get flighted which was awesome. It does give them more independence and I do believe you really need to work with them more to keep them behaving. Pretty got very naughty at one point .

 

When Pretty passed away I had Merlin checked out to make sure he wasn't sick and at the same time debated to clip his wings since we were there. I did do it because I didn't want to have to chase him.

 

I believe all circumstances are different, situations are different, example my budgie is a pet. There are also pet budgies that are not clipped and then you have aviary style instances and if I had an aviary my birds would not be clipped but others may chose to do so.

Edited April 7, 200718 yr by Elly

I would base clipping on the individual bird. My first budgie, Pip, came to us already clipped - the breeder we bought him from had clipped him for me (I was only 10 years old when I bought him with my birthday money - the best £10 of birthday money I ever spent!).

 

Smudge, I tried to let out unclipped, but he was such a nervous bird, he just headed for the curtain rail and freaked out if you tried getting him down, so I had him clipped so I could get him more socialised to humans and so he wouldn't hurt himself in a mad panic. Alas he died suddenly 6 months after I got him, so I don't know how this would have worked out in the end.

 

Holly - my current feathered friend, I have never clipped. Why? He was so easily tamed, and so desperate to be with me, that when I took him out of the cage on my finger, it was about 10 minutes before he even noticed that he wasn't in his cage anymore.

 

All birdies are different, so what works with one, might not necessarily be best for another.

I freaked out, and decided not to get Cosmo clipped just yet. But I still think he needs his little wings clipped to help him settle in/ tame.

You can do a search and even go to the FAQ's and find 2 discussions about it. There is really nothing to freak out about . I just got Merlin's clipped for safety and taming purposes. The avian vet did it so fast that it was clipping a fingernail. He adjusted to his situation quickly since he was flighted for at least a year with Pretty.

okay, cool!

I used to clip our first budgies' wings without worry, but now I am so sooky and worry my head off that I will clip too far! So avian vet - here I come! (The surgery where I had Cosmo booked into, giggled at his name! : haha!)

Chucky is my indoor budgie, she is clipped. This is for 2 reasons. 1 we lost our first budgie buddy because we didn't clip his wings. He was very tame but one day just took off and before we knew it he was out the back door never to be seen again. It tore my heart out and I cried constantly for a week. I had to have a week off work. I never want to feel like that again. Our house unfortunately does not have security doors and accidents happen.

 

And the second reason is for safety as other members have said. We have open rooms, none really suitable for free flight. It would just be too dangerous for her.

Our avian vet said exactly the reason you mentioned Chucky on why he believes indoor budgies should be clipped. Excellent points.

Well, I got Cosmo clipped! Glad I did too. There are so many areas here at home that he could fall into but I can't do much about to 'plug'. Also, the visitpaid off - found out he had mites from the pet shop!

Good glad all went well, they will get those mites all treated for you

i think wing clipping helps a lot in taming but im not sure if i should or should not.

Edited April 22, 200718 yr by Marlony

It is a personal decision and reading everyone's thoughts certainly helps with the decision making process for sure. The wings to grow back and after they are tamed down you can certainly keep them flighted. Some birds need to stay clipped and some don't. As I was walking my dog a couple days ago I was thinking how similar it is to wing clipping. Just because my dog loves to run around and play doesn't mean I should keep him off his leash because "that is his nature" it is not safe (an of course against the law). Many owners clips for safety reason others for taming and some don't clip. Good luck in your decision.

I don't tend to clip my budgies, becuse I love watching them fly around and enjoy themselves, but i will clip, if their training requires it. For instance, when I got Arkady he was 7 weeks old and a real solcialite, He was tame with in 2 weeks, there was no need for me to clip him. However Emmett, my newest budgie, is about 4 or 5 months (I think), and has never really been touched by a human, so i clipped his wings, to make him easier to tame. Then I will let them grow out.

I agree with all the pros and cons of clipping, but as far as in the house pet budies go, I think clipping is a worthwhile consideration. for all the reasons people have already mentioned. My Casper had always been unclipped, and whilst it took an age for him to be comfortable with my hand in his cage, he did get to the point where he would step up onto my finger, sit on my shoulder, say a few cute phrases etc. Unfortunately though, I lost him during the week, when he was out for a fly and he misjudged a landing, hitting the wall on an awkward angle.

 

When I eventually bring myself to get another bird, the fact that it will be an indoors bird, and my first-hand experience of losing a budgie to the dangerous environments which are our homes, will, i think, lead me to having its wings clipped... I don't want to have to see another happy, healthy bird die if i am in a position to prevent it.