Update on Stitch! (and question on claw clipping)

[cml]

Just wanted to give an update on Stitch as we've had him for nearly a month now:

Step up works like a charm, so does flight recall. He nearly always flies to me when I call him.
He is fine with me touching his wings, I can hold them for as long as I want, he knows he will get his treat (I reckon this will be very good for the flight harness training). I did start harness training but we ran into some problems, at first it was fine and he was super nice and we got it on, on the first try, but the next time we had problems. We are working VERY VERY slowly now, and have gotten to the point were he will put his head through the small hole in the harness almost by himself (thanks Michael for your videos with Kili).
He's really gotten a hang of target training as well, which Ive used a little for the harness training.

We had a few problems with Stitch starting to bite my fiancée when she asked him to stepup, but she is doing more training now and it isnt much of a problem atm.

What worries me now is that his claws has become very long, to the point that the tip of the toe doesnt touch a flat surface when he is standing on it. I will of course clip them, but I am nervous about this! Ive tried to read up as much as possible, but theory and practice is to different things.
I have also realised that the perches that I collected from the forest were to small in diameter and thats probably, along with that he is eating pellets for staple diet now, what has made his claws grow. We've got alot bigger perches now!

Anyway back to clipping, has anyone got any practical tips? Stitch is fine with being on his back for a while, but he doesnt really care for a towel.

Sorry for the long post ^^.

SAM_0595.JPG (145.89 KiB) Viewed 3757 times

Hello from Stitch (and Ragnar the axolotl)!

[liz]

That is a beautiful picture.

I have used a course emery board for emegency tips. If you can handle him - even let him see you doing your nails - you could do a little everyday until the are the right length.

My hands are not steady and my eyesight is damaged from medication. I would never have the nerve to clip.

My cat, Fancy, wants her nails done when I do mine.

[Michael]

Don't do it until you've at least seen someone else do it. Cutting too far can make them bleed. It's important to have the right tools for the job. It's not just about how to cut but also how to restrain and make it least stressful. Try to find a good vet or groomer to do it the first few times.

[cml]

That is a beautiful picture.

Thank you!

Don't do it until you've at least seen someone else do it. Cutting too far can make them bleed. It's important to have the right tools for the job. It's not just about how to cut but also how to restrain and make it least stressful. Try to find a good vet or groomer to do it the first few times.

Aye, I know, the plan is for me to hold him down while why mother who convienantly lives just a few minutes away, will do the clipping. When I was young, we have had alot of different pets, like rabbits and cats, and my mother clipped the cats' claws every week. She should be able to do it on a parrot as well, its the same principle, dont clip too far or it will bleed. I wont try it until I have seen her do it a few times, at least that's the plan. The idea is to just clip the tip, and work our way up over the coming weeks/months as the pulp is reclining. I just want a few tips incase there is something we can do to further ease the experience for stitch!

[cml]

I am guessing that a vet will towel him as well? We do have a great bird vet about 15min tram ride away, but wont that experience be worse than just a quick clipping here at home?

As mentioned above, my mother is great at clipping, what is more likely to be a problem is me restraining him with a towel. I dont want Stitch to develop a phobia for towels. So what do you think, will it be better to take him to a vet the first time, and then get him used to towels in the coming weeks, or is it less a traumatic experience to just get it over with here at home?
It feels like one of those decesisions which you cant know which course is the best.

Also, I have read that taking a bird to a vet can potentially be a bad thing, as other birds which might have been sick have been there. Is this something to be concerned about?

Cheers,
CML

[liz]

What is Stich looking at?

[Michael]

Personally I wouldn't use a towel at all (not advice for your situation by any means, depends on a case by case). I prefer to hold the bird with my bare hands because then I can hold the head and feel exactly how much I am squeezing. It is forceful enough to serve as restraint but not too hard. There is less chance of the parrot slipping out this way as well.

I had Kili clipped professionally many times before I started on my own. But by the time I got Truman I had enough experience and opted to do it personally from the start. The one advantage the owner has clipping the parrot over a professional is time. The owner can take his or her time even to the extent of just clipping a single nail per day. The professional places are generally in a rush and will just restrain them hard, go snip snip snip and be done. It gets the job done but you can just imagine the stress it puts the bird through. When you do it yourself, you can stretch it all out, give breaks, play, serve rewards, etc. This is much less overwhelming than someone else doing it.

If you haven't already, I much recommend hand taming the parrot and being held in the same manner as it will be during clipping. I suggest practicing this frequently for at least a few months in a positive way before the first time it is applied aversely. I think a huge mistake most people make is letting the first time a parrot is toweled or restrained be the time it needs treatment/grooming. With a bad start like that, it will be damned hard to ever overcome that and make it ok. Here's an article/video about some ideas for toweling and handling training a parrot:

http://TrainedParrot.com/Toweling

[cml]

If you haven't already, I much recommend hand taming the parrot and being held in the same manner as it will be during clipping. I suggest practicing this frequently for at least a few months in a positive way before the first time it is applied aversely. I think a huge mistake most people make is letting the first time a parrot is toweled or restrained be the time it needs treatment/grooming. With a bad start like that, it will be damned hard to ever overcome that and make it ok. Here's an article/video about some ideas for toweling and handling training a parrot:

http://TrainedParrot.com/Toweling

Yes I understand that and thank you for taking time to answer. The problem however is that his claws are too long NOW.

I do understand the principle of using positive reinforcement and ideally I would like to do just as you said, make him used to the idea before doing any grooming. However,he is already unbalanced on a flat surface and I dont think waiting months is going to be good for him, which is why I asked what I should do =).

Stitch is young, he is 4 months old and has been with us for about 1 month. He is really handtame and used to being handled, but we havent tried anything like grooming before and I dont think he is going to like it .

What can be done to prevent him from stressing out, and which way is the best to go about it?

And Liz, Stitch is looking at one of our axolotls, Ragnar.

[dohcsvt]

My birds are not as tame as Stitch appears to be and they have no problem allowing me to clip them while holding them with your bare hands. I think it is a trust thing. Stitch is very beautiful, I wish you the best of luck!
Ottis

[cml]

I have decided to take him to the vet the first time, and then work as much as possible with toweling at home, as to be able to clip him myself the next time.
Cheers for any input.