Clipping only one wing?

[lemonypickett]

Does anyone have any experience with the one-wing wing clip? I have heard that it makes for a soft landing, and the bird stops trying to fly as it can not go where they want.

What do you guys think? Also, will Eddie hate me forever for messing with his wings? He has that very mild clip now, which he flies faster and stronger everyday. (Maybe that is from the super diet he is getting now :D )

[linda040899]

Clipping only one wing should never be done, as it amounts to what I consider cruelty. Flight feathers do more than allow a bird to fly. They contribute to the bird's sense of balance and Eddie will be a very unhappy camper if you clip only 1 wing!!

How many flight have been trimmed on each wing? I usually start with 4-5 and see how well the bird can fly. Each bird is different so I tend to be conservative when I start. Keep in mind, you don't want to eliminate flight ability, just limit where he can go and how far. If he's a strong flier, which it sounds like, you may have to clip 6-7 but try doing it slowly and seeing what your results are each time.

[lemonypickett]

Oh No! I do not want to be cruel to Eddie.

Ok, I have the name of an avain vet I will call tomorrow.

I have a number of a mobile vet, do you think that Eddie would find it less traumatizing if he gets it done at home, or will he be wary of strangers in the future?

I was thinking in the summer it might be fun to get him traveling with me, I would hate for his first experience in the car to be going to the vet!

[Janie]

Never, ever!

[linda040899]

You could really do this either way. All of my birds like traveling in my car and none seem to associate it with going to the vet's office. If it's cold where you are, the vet coming to you would be safer.

Make sure you tell your vet exactly what you want done and watch while it's being done!!!!! We've had community members' birds have wing clips done by vets that were absolutely shameful! Never, ever assume that your vet will do what you want without hearing the game plan from you.

[lemonypickett]

Thanks Linda,

I will watch carefully, and hopefully get her to show me how to do it. The girl in the vets office told me that this vet has amazon grays and some other birds that she keeps personally, so I hope that she is knowledgable.

The girl answering the phone said she sees many birds a day, so I would hope this is her forte. I guess I will have to see.

So, to properly articulate this to her what do I say to describe EXACTLY what I want done? I want to limit flying, but no hard landings.

[Janie]

Back when my vet was doing the clipping, he would clip a few and see how much lift-off they got and if it was too much, he'd clip one or two more. We always left his office with the perfect clip...... just enough left so that they could fly up about 3 feet and could easily glide down, never with a thump on landing. I clip them now, something I swore I'd never do, when they get too sassy for their own good. :D

[lemonypickett]

That sounds like the perfect way to get the right clip.

[Z28Taxman]

Make sure you tell your vet exactly what you want done and watch while it's being done!!!!! We've had community members' birds have wing clips done by vets that were absolutely shameful! Never, ever assume that your vet will do what you want without hearing the game plan from you.


I'll second that. Ditto's last wing clip (3 years ago) was done by a vet (more like butcher). His little wings were just stumps and he couldn't fly for a year. He was like a rock with feathers. That vet is lucky I wasn't the one who took him in or Ditto wouldn't have been the only one with flapping stubs. >:

After that I vowed he'd never be clipped again unless it was absolutely necessary. Fortunately he's glued himself to me and refuses to be bad. :)

[jayme]

I want to shave half my head and grow half a beard.

[thebubbleking]

Woa where that come from jayme? lol
I had my breeder show me how to clip wings and now i do it myself i get more control and can fine tune the trim.
For me the hard part is both boo and sunshine need to be clipped the exact same and have the same ability to fly or glide because if one or the other has more flying ability the other will get upset and the one who can fly better will tease the other lol

[Mydoona]

my vet said only one wing needs to be clipped and he charges double for two wings....is he a con-man?

[wilkiecoco]

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HE IS ON THIS ISSUE!!!!!!!!!

I haven't clipped kiwi's wings for over a year now, but NEVER EVER just clip one wing. Any vet that wants to charge double for two wings seems to be only in it for the money, and not concern for the bird. Is there another avian vet near you, cause I would be leary about this one.

[Janie]

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HE IS ON THIS ISSUE!!!!!!!!!



DITTO to that!

[LauraO]

Clipping one wing is cruel and it sounds like this vet doesn't know what he/she's talking about. Clipping one wing cripples a bird and makes it dangerous for them. With a modified clip they can stear and glide to the floor or whereever. With one side of their wing clips they can't move or maneuver, and if they get startled and jump up to fly they can crash and hurt themselves.

>:

[lucky melatonin]

it's awful! do not do this. the guy that clipped francis's wings for the first time did this and i didn't know any better, but found out real quick how bad it was. not only does it look weird, but francis couldn't fly barely at all, and when he did it was really bad (he'd do a round-about because he couldn't fly straight). it got to the point where i wouldn't even let him fly and i'd just go get him because i didn't want him hurting himself.

[Buy A Paper Doll]

my vet said only one wing needs to be clipped and he charges double for two wings....is he a con-man?

This is insane. Seriously, I would find another vet that knows more about birds.

[NickyBeth]

It's funny. Sometimes what we READ is different than what we are TOLD.

I was told by my last vet to ONLY clip one wing, and to alternate which wing I clipped. But my last lovebird was so timid and shy -- I let his wing feathers grow back after that first clipping. And let me tell you, they didn't clip much that first day. He was still able to fly up to my 16 foot ceiling and get stuck up there for two hours!

Now I know better. Two wings, baby!