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Clip Once = Permanent Damage?

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Clip Once = Permanent Damage?

Postby Arshia » Sat Jun 16, 2012 10:54 pm

Many parrot breeders clip the parrots' wings. I'm worried it may sound rude to request a batch of parrots remain unclipped until I buy one.

So would a parrot that once had its wings clipped - even after the wings were allowed to regrow - face much difficulty after a while, or would it still have the same potential to fly?

What about on an emotional level - will it face any permanent damage psychologically?

:swaying:
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Re: Clip Once = Permanent Damage?

Postby marie83 » Sun Jun 17, 2012 4:26 am

The feathers will grow back, the problem is sometimes it can take a while as they won't all grow back at once so the other feathers wont be supporting each other so they are more likely to break before they can grow back properly.

Birds can learn to fly despite being clipped before fledging, however I don't think they will ever fly as well as a bird thats been allowed to fly all its life. Although Harlie wasn't clipped, she was never allowed to fly until I got her as a rescue. She can fly now but she is appauling at it compared with the ones who have been flying all their lives. It took her ages to learn to land properly and even now it has to be something really sturdy otherwise she misses and flutters to the floor. She is also rubbish at turning and has to give herself plenty of time and circle. My others can turn on a hairpin in a split second. Even 6 years on she is still pretty pathetic at flying by comparison.

If I were you I would ask the breeder anyway, if he isn't willing then ask if you can go and choose one before he clips them. If not find a different breeder who will leave them flighted even if you have to wait longer, it will be soooo worth it. At the end of the day you are paying for the bird so you should get what you want.
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Re: Clip Once = Permanent Damage?

Postby Maria » Wed Dec 19, 2012 4:47 pm

really interesting.

I got my parrot when he was about 4 months old, from the parrot shop. He'd been weened off formula, onto pellet food by then.

I never knew his background as to flying before I took him home. But the "Pretty Wings" trick and exercise I'd taught him developed into him flying around the house also, thereby learning and knowing that he could fly. Pretty wings became an interaction game for him. He thought it was a fun thing to do, as he was responding, seeing how happy and excited that made his mommy. LOL. It was the cutest thing.

First, I would flap my arms, while I would keep repeating, "Pretty Wings", "Pretty Wings!". This was either while he was on top of his cage, or on his parrot tree stand. He would look at me. Then at times I would have him on my arm, and raise my arm up gently, saying, "Pretty Wings" a few times. Then back on the stand, and repeating, with him watching me flap my arms (as if they were my wings). Eventually, when he was on his cage or his stand, and I would say pretty wings flapping my arms, he would respond with flapping his wings. When he got to THAT stage, I would clap, praise him, scream, "YAAAYYY!!! GOOD BABY! OOOHHH BOOOY!!". And by that, he knew I was excited and happy, with that response I gave when he responded by actually flapping his wings when I would say pretty wings. From there, when I would say pretty wings, and he would flap, and I'd do my excited, praising him response, he would then do that happy response, saying, "YAAAAYYYYY!!!!". At this point, he's responding to my excitement, and to my praising him, and also thinking it was fun - this kind of interaction. The graduation then was that he would actually take off, flying, circle around up in the air, around the room, then back down onto his cage or stand, instead of just doing it stationary on his cage or stand. Once he flew up and made the circle in the air, then landed back down, he would then turn around and look at me for the praising reponse, and I would go "YAAAAYYYY!" and clap and all that, and he would go "YAAAAYYYY!" Then I would say pretty wings and flap my arms again, and he would repeat, flying up into the air, circling once around the room, and landing back down, and "YYYAAAYYY!!!!". This is also how he seemed to grow into learning that he could fly, and get to me when ever he wanted. Even when I called him from another room, his name, and said, "come on, come on", he would come flying from one room to another to get to me.
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Re: Clip Once = Permanent Damage?

Postby friend2parrots » Wed Dec 19, 2012 5:31 pm

Maria wrote:First, I would flap my arms, while I would keep repeating, "Pretty Wings", "Pretty Wings!". This was either while he was on top of his cage, or on his parrot tree stand. He would look at me. Then at times I would have him on my arm, and raise my arm up gently, saying, "Pretty Wings" a few times. Then back on the stand, and repeating, with him watching me flap my arms (as if they were my wings). Eventually, when he was on his cage or his stand, and I would say pretty wings flapping my arms, he would respond with flapping his wings. When he got to THAT stage, I would clap, praise him, scream, "YAAAYYY!!! GOOD BABY! OOOHHH BOOOY!!". And by that, he knew I was excited and happy, with that response I gave when he responded by actually flapping his wings when I would say pretty wings. From there, when I would say pretty wings, and he would flap, and I'd do my excited, praising him response, he would then do that happy response, saying, "YAAAAYYYYY!!!!". At this point, he's responding to my excitement, and to my praising him, and also thinking it was fun - this kind of interaction. The graduation then was that he would actually take off, flying, circle around up in the air, around the room, then back down onto his cage or stand, instead of just doing it stationary on his cage or stand. Once he flew up and made the circle in the air, then landed back down, he would then turn around and look at me for the praising reponse, and I would go "YAAAAYYYY!" and clap and all that, and he would go "YAAAAYYYY!" Then I would say pretty wings and flap my arms again, and he would repeat, flying up into the air, circling once around the room, and landing back down, and "YYYAAAYYY!!!!". This is also how he seemed to grow into learning that he could fly, and get to me when ever he wanted. Even when I called him from another room, his name, and said, "come on, come on", he would come flying from one room to another to get to me.


this is such a wonderful story! its amazing how closely parrots watch us, isn't it? birdie do as birdie see, definitely! :)
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Re: Clip Once = Permanent Damage?

Postby Michael » Wed Dec 19, 2012 6:34 pm

Arshia wrote:Many parrot breeders clip the parrots' wings. I'm worried it may sound rude to request a batch of parrots remain unclipped until I buy one.

So would a parrot that once had its wings clipped - even after the wings were allowed to regrow - face much difficulty after a while, or would it still have the same potential to fly?

What about on an emotional level - will it face any permanent damage psychologically?


What's rude is clipping parrots in the first place. It leads to permanent mental retardation and possible feather damage. I have a bird that was clipped once and one that never was. Huge difference. If a breeder won't sell you an unclipped parrot, then they don't know what they are doing and you shouldn't bother with them.
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Re: Clip Once = Permanent Damage?

Postby friend2parrots » Wed Dec 19, 2012 8:48 pm

Michael wrote:What's rude is clipping parrots in the first place.


exactly - well put!

also, clipping permanently damages the baby bird's growing heart and lungs, because the baby bird does not get to exercise the muscles in these organs to the same extent that properly fledged babies do.

I agree with the posters above - steer clear of breeders who are not willing to respect what you want for your baby bird.
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Re: Clip Once = Permanent Damage?

Postby Maria » Fri Dec 21, 2012 5:50 pm

friend2parrots wrote:this is such a wonderful story! its amazing how closely parrots watch us, isn't it? birdie do as birdie see, definitely! :)



YYYEEESSSS !!!! And now he says "Pretty Wings!" "Pretty Wings!" LOL :hatched:

Birdie do as birdie see -

He does peekaboo too!

He says peekaboo and hides his head/eyes down behind the branches on his tree. Because mama kept saying peekaboo, and hiding her eyes behind the branches on his tree! Adorable! He knows this is part of his play/quality time.

And he screams "YYYYAAAAYYYY!" when he comes up, revealing his eyes, just like "mama" does LOL.

Here's how this goes. He'll be on the tree, I'll come over to other side of tree, and start saying peekabooo while hiding my eyes, putting my head down hiding my eyes behind a branch on the tree. Then after a few seconds, I'll reveal my eyes, lifting my head up, clapping, and saying, "YYYYAAAAYYYY!!!" When I started doing this, after a while, as soon as he seen my eyes with my head coming up, he would then say "YYYYAAAAYYYY!" looking at me.

The graduation:
All of a sudden, he'll want to get close as he can to me on the tree, so he starts stepping down to where I am, comes to the same branch I'm hiding my eyes behind, and he stands on it, close to me. Then I put my head down hiding my eyes behind the branch again, saying, "Peekaboooo"; and as I'm doing it, while he's on the same branch, he puts his head down with me, hiding his eyes behind the branch too, at the same time. This results in us coming up at the same time, both saying "YYYAAAYYY!!!!" together, while I'm clapping, and he's looking at me. Picture it. It's adorable. He's so interactive.
Maria
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Re: Clip Once = Permanent Damage?

Postby Pricey_boy » Fri Dec 21, 2012 9:04 pm

Ou could have a look at them and choose one and ask him not to clip the 1.i don't think it would be rude to atleast ask
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Re: Clip Once = Permanent Damage?

Postby Maria » Mon Dec 24, 2012 3:14 pm

Pricey_boy wrote:Ou could have a look at them and choose one and ask him not to clip the 1.i don't think it would be rude to atleast ask


Exactly. I agree. I would not be rude to ask for the bird which you picked out to be yours, to ask the breeder not to clip that particular bird, per your preferences.
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Re: Clip Once = Permanent Damage?

Postby cag40oz » Fri Jan 25, 2013 12:12 pm

So my 10 week old i just got a week ago was clipped by the breeder. She clipped five wings on each side. However, he can still fly somewhat. He flies off his cage to me and when he is on his play stand he will fly over to the couch. I would say that he can fly about 7 - 10 across the room. He just cant really fly up that high, only about 4 feet. Is my baby going to be affected for the rest of his life. Of course I didn't do much research about clipping before I got my bird and when the breeder told me she clipped him already I didn't think anything about it.

-Chris
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