Hello from South Africa!

[Macayla]

Greetings

My name is Macayla and I joined this forum after being directed here a million times when I search bird related topics on Google.

My boyfriend recently surprised me with the most adorable Senegal Parrot (Marley - 3 months old), after we randomly wandered into a pet shop while on our way into a mall, I saw her there and held her and immediately fell in love. We left the shop and I have to be honest, I was feeling depressed because I already felt so much love for her. My boyfriend told me we can't get her but then showed up at my work 2 days later with her one of the happiest days of my life.

We have had her for almost a month so far and she just has the most amazing personality, she is very happy go lucky and full of energy, she can't wait to get out of her cage to play with us or just to relax on one of our shoulders, she really is a loving bird. Although, she can get feisty at times when she sees something she wants (eg. my cellphone, TV remotes, food etc.) I think she hasn't actually realized that she is indeed a bird and not a human baby haha

Anyway, I could go on about her all day, apparently she is all I talk about these days (or so I'm told). I have ONE issue that I am facing and am completely torn between what is right and what is safe. I originally decided to keep her wings un-clipped as I believe it is unnatural and just sad to stop a bird from doing what it is meant to do, fly. But, I was experiencing a lot of trauma with her as she would sometimes fly into a wall or a door etc. I became very paranoid as I just can't stand the thought of her getting hurt, so I made the terrible decision to have her wings clipped (I know, shameful). HOWEVER, I would love for nothing more than to have her be able to be free to fly around our home, but without her being in danger of getting harmed.

This brings me to my question, I have been doing a lot of research and am STILL unsure of how to go about this.. You see, we live in an apartment so unfortunately, there isn't oodles and oodles of space for her to fly around in. As much as I don't want her to never have the experience of being a flighted bird, I am terrified that she will continue to fly into things. How do I give her the freedom to fly without getting hurt? I would like to try the training process that Michael did with Truman in his Youtube videos but I am not sure if it will work in limited space?

PLEASE help me! I would really appreciate all the advice I can get.

[Pajarita]

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your new baby! My advice is simple: don't worry about it and let her learn on her own. People usually mistake the fumbling flight of a baby for danger but it's not and it doesn't really last very long. Flight is instinctual for birds and you will often see a little baby flapping his wings furiously even when he is not fully fledged but it also requires a lot of practice to be perfected. Babies fall many times before they learn to walk and, even when they do, they stumble and fall all the time but, slowly and surely, they learn and, by the time they are 2 years old, they are running, jumping, dancing and climbing all over the house. Well, it's the same with baby birds, they need to practice, bump into things, land on their bottom, etc but, slowly and surely, they learn and can land on a dime and make a perfect U turn in a real small space and at the last minute.

Unfortunately for your bird, you interrupted the learning process so it will take much longer for her to learn when she grows out her primaries. And an apartment is large enough for her to learn with no problem so don't worry about that.

[Harpmaker]

Welcome to the forum!

I know just how you feel. When my little Meyer's Parrot started flying after being clipped shortly before I got her, she stopped by running into walls. Hard. She had no ill effects, but I was advised by an avian vet to buy/build a flight cage to give her a safe place to fly. Within a week, she was landing reasonably well. Now she can hover like a humming bird and flies around self-designed obstacle courses for fun. Have faith in your baby. She can do it.

[Macayla]

Hi there,

Thank you so much for the advice. I have shown my boyfriend your posts and we have decided that we will let her feathers grow out again and let her learn to fly, we will also be looking at building a small "aviary" in our back garden as our flat is the one of the lucky ones with it's own little backyard.

I feel that it is the right thing to do for her, even though everyone else thinks I'm mad. I have never met anyone that has flighted parrots, they all believe in clipping for the safety of the bird and so that it can't fly away if a window or door is opened by accident. But I hope to prove them wrong. I'd sleep a lot better at night knowing that my baby has the best life possible.

Thanks again.

[Wolf]

Clipping a birds wings will not prevent it from flying away through an open door or window. Nor will it prevent it in any other situation where the bird has access to the outside. As another member put it let's think safety for birds and not clip for safety. I can not think of any valid reason to clip a healthy bird as clipping them to ensure their safety is an illusion at best as it actually places them in greater danger than the issues that clippers are trying to prevent. This is due simply that flying is a birds main means of locomotion and they simply can't move near as fast on foot to escape injury or death from predators or people stepping on them and they can't even save themselves properly from falls.
These concerns don't even begin to address the various physical or psychological problems that are directly caused through clipping their wings.

[Macayla]

Hi Wolf,

I have done more research into the subject of clipping VS. flighted - & have decided to let her feathers grow out again, then with the help of Michael's videos, I will do everything I can to help the process of her learning to fly safely.

Unfortunately, I took the advice of someone who has had years of experience with different types of birds and thought I could trust his judgement. I know now that I was wrong to do so but I have not had any experience with birds myself, I thought that what I was doing at the time was right, in order to protect my parrot from getting hurt (I wasn't all that concerned about her getting out and flying away as I am extremely paranoid so I triple check that when she is out of the cage, there are no escape routes to the outside world).

In all honesty, I wasn't even planning to get a bird, I was going to get a guinea pig but changed my mind when I saw her in the pet shop and bonded with her. So I actually had no idea what I was getting myself into, not to mention that the staff at this particular pet shop clearly do not care about their animals as they didn't explain anything about the type of parrot she is or the requirements to take care of her etc. BUT, luckily I am an avid animal lover and have common sense, so I started doing research on Senegal parrots and have continued to do so practically every day since we got her. I want the best life for her and I want her to be a bird, I want her to be able to fly because lets be honest, it is in the nature of birds to fly so who are we humans to decide otherwise.

Thank you for sharing your opinion with me, though. I like to hear from actual people with flighted birds because it is not a common thing for people to leave their birds un-clipped on purpose where I'm from. So it is a great help for me to get as much advice as I can as I want nothing but the best for my baby, but safety will always come first.

[Wolf]

I am glad to hear your opinion and most definitely agree on the safety first issue. I also agree that you should listen to others that have had birds for longer than oneself. I love that you are researching thing for yourself. There are no experts when it comes to parrots as we just do not know enough. There has been a lot of progress in the last 20 years or so, but it is always best to accept what you read or what you hear from others as a suggestion and nothing more. Listen, read and then make up your own mind.

[Macayla]

There are no experts when it comes to parrots as we just do not know enough. There has been a lot of progress in the last 20 years or so, but it is always best to accept what you read or what you hear from others as a suggestion and nothing more. Listen, read and then make up your own mind.

I absolutely love this statement. So true. & I think people should do their homework before purchasing or adopting a parrot. I never thought I was a bird person as I was scared of getting bit but also because I had never experienced any interaction with a bird (besides my friend's Cockatoo chasing me and a Pigeon chasing me at a Bird Sanctuary - LOL). Then you go to a pet store and the staff make no effort at all to educate people on the birds they're buying, it's just a sale to them. Then the buyers end up not actually wanting their birds because they're a lot more maintenance than a puppy so they leave the bird in it's cage for all eternity or give it away to another unsuspecting person. But I am so glad to have found this forum as I have learnt so much already (in less than a month's time) and I am doing everything I can to make life better for my parrot.