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Re: Hows about an amicable disagreement?
Posted by Emma on 6/02/05

> Well,my main "pet" birds that are part of the family,everyone knows
> well,are my 3 macaws.Beaker is a rescue,I don't clip her,her wing is
> missing on one side and she couldn't fly anyway.As far as Cookie and
> Sarge go,it's simply not workable.I have ceiling fans,low
> windows,when I first got them both,they were both unclipped and
> crashed into so many things.They were also both fairly wild,Sarge
> (Scarlet) is outright aggressive at times.It's just a case of
> weighing the pros and the cons,and in the long run,for my birds,the
> safest thing to do for them is keep them clipped.And I don't regard
> it so strongly as them "suffering".They get plenty of exercise,they
> get plenty of attention,and I clip their wings myself,it's not a big
> traumatic deal for them.Heck my daughter has more of a fit getting
> her hair cut.For me,it's the responsible thing to do.
> The first day Cookie was here he took off across the living
room,and
> this is irony again,I have HUGE cages for them but my living room is
> teeny,ha,and crashed into the window on the other side.He actually
> knocked the A/C loose from the window.Had the AC gone out,the bird
> would have too! Stuff happens,unfortunately we can't control
> everything.
> Oh,one other point that pro-flight people make is about
> predators,and how they are safer in the air than on the ground,and
> that is simply not the case either.I have seen many a hawk,and could
> tell you stories that wwould turn your hair white,that will snatch a
> colorful little meal out of the sky.


Thanks Robin :)

It's nice to hear from someone who obviously looks after their birds
very very well. I guess with parrots it's kind of different to a small
cockatiel. Do you clip your birds so they can't fly at all? Or just to
stop them getting wildly out of control? Because I guess what I have a
horrible fear of is birds sitting in their cages and then out on their
playgyms with nowhere to fly to. I read that is very important for the
birds to keep their pectoral muscles strong to aid cardiovascular
activity. I mean I could never clip Lucky, he's just too strongly
spirited and I see the joy he gets from vrooming round and round the
conservatory. Seeing as Lucks was a rescue from my aviary with his
feet, his climbing ability is somewhat impaired. I don't really see
how I could take away his only other means of transport.

I still retain my belief that where possible, birds should remain
unclipped, even though I am aware this carries risks. I mean when
you're driving a car right, you COULD crash. You're most probably not
going to but the risk is there. For me that's kind of what clipping is
like. I can either give him the chance to fly with risks or I take it
away from him. I chose to let him fly.

Thanks anyways for your detailed response, and I'm sorry about the
poor little robin :(

Posts on this thread, including this one

• Hows about an amicable disagreement?, 6/02/05, by Emma.
• Re: Hows about an amicable disagreement?, 6/02/05, by Michael L.
• Re: Hows about an amicable disagreement?, 6/02/05, by Emma.
• Re: Hows about an amicable disagreement?, 6/02/05, by Robin P..
• Re: Hows about an amicable disagreement?, 6/02/05, by Emma.
• Re: Hows about an amicable disagreement?, 6/02/05, by Robin P..
• Re: Hows about an amicable disagreement?, 6/02/05, by Emma.
• Re: Hows about an amicable disagreement?, 6/02/05, by Robin P..
• Re: Hows about an amicable disagreement?, 6/02/05, by Fran.
• Re: Hows about an amicable disagreement?, 6/02/05, by Emma.