Kylie
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Posts: 186
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wings
May 26, 2008 12:05:50 GMT -5
Post by Kylie on May 26, 2008 12:05:50 GMT -5
ok well its been almost a year since alli was born...she turns a yr on june 16th (10 days before mine)...and this is her second moulth since ive had her...i was getting worried because her wings were clipped when she was a baby after her first flight...and since then her wings hadnt grown in...i have never had to clip her wings...but they are finally growing in now...so i have a few things i want your thoughts on...
number one...with the problem with her wings growing so slow...how long do you think it will take for them to fully grow in...she was given a baby cut of 5 feathers...then a few months after i got her, they cut the remaning 2 for an adult cut...i just looked and shes missing 9 on one side...and 8 on the other...but im just wondering how long it will take hers and if i should be worried about them not growing in properly...
and also...i want your guy's thoughts on if this is a good thing for her. i dont want to clip them again, and have to worry about them not growing in for another year...and if i clipped them again...do you think i would make the problem worse...she has strong muscles in her wings from hanging upside down and always flapping her wings in her cage (acting like a monkey) and she is extremly bonded to me...so i dont think i have to worry about her becoming nasty because she has more control over herself now...i was going to let ceily's grow in...but about halfway throu...she became nasty towards me and i had to clip her and she calmed down...i hate having their wings clipped...but i have to worry about it because i live in an apartment...and i have cats...but i also think that alli would appreciate the fact that i am giving her back flight...and i am considering buying a flight harness and a flight line for her...the line is the same used in falconry...only i can get one that weights less because she is smaller than a hawk...and the ones i am looking at are made for parrots only...and i could take her somewhere and she would have about a 20ft line to fly around...would just have to watch for hawks...and the harness would be for just general walks outside and in the pet stores...
but do you guys think my thoughts are correct? im looking for your opionions (spelling) on all this. hope to hear back from you all. thanks.
-kylie, alli, and ceily
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wings
May 26, 2008 17:08:35 GMT -5
Post by Smiley on May 26, 2008 17:08:35 GMT -5
Hi Kylie. Like you said, the reason for her wings taking so long to grow back may be caused becuase of the fact that she was clipped young. But it may not also.
When it comes to people clipping there birds wings,I believe it really has to be there own prefernce.. ITmay be abit dangerous with cats in the house, that is something i would be worried about, but then again the Free Flighht is a great idea. LIke I said it really depends on the bird and the owner.
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wings
May 26, 2008 20:57:50 GMT -5
Post by Phill on May 26, 2008 20:57:50 GMT -5
Conures can take up to and longer then 12 months to grow back. How will they handle a harness, do you think you could get one on. (on the bird not you )I would buy one now and start training. See how things go. Plus too would they fly after one another and have fights.. You have to write down all teh good and bad points.. Count them up and see which have more points.
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Kylie
Site promoter
Squawk!
Posts: 186
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wings
May 29, 2008 10:01:43 GMT -5
Post by Kylie on May 29, 2008 10:01:43 GMT -5
i didnt even think about harness training now...and glad to hear that her wings are normal...thanks!
so im guessing a small would work for alli? the petiete is for 50-99 grams...and the small is from 99 to 120 i think...last time alli was weighed she was 99grams.
and also, im not worrie about them chasing each other...i tried letting ceily's wings grow out...and she had a real bad dominace problem about half way thru and got nasty. so i had to clip her. but alli's wings are growing out nicely...their are straight and not frayed unlike ceilys. lol. i look at her wings everyday cuz im so excited...she doesnt like me looking much...but i always give her kisses and thanks for letting me see the pretty "baby wings" lol.
thanks so much for all the thoughts...im still giving it thot...i get paid today...so i may go and pick up a harness.
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Kylie
Site promoter
Squawk!
Posts: 186
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wings
May 29, 2008 19:22:55 GMT -5
Post by Kylie on May 29, 2008 19:22:55 GMT -5
hey guys, i was just reading an article about clipping wings vs. not clipping wings and i thot it was kind of interesting. the lady who wrote it breed african greys, and she did a small experiment...she gave her babies of different clutches their first clip later and later in life, and she noticed that with the birds who were clipped later rather than earlier, that there was a personality change in them that was better than the babies who were clipped young...she also went on to mention that she now doesnt clip her babies, and sends them to homes trained to come on call...i was wondering if you guys had any ideas about how to go about training alli to maybe do this. shes got some lift to her flight, but not much. so i could stay within "fluttering" distance lol. just start with a step up, reward her, and inch back until she would have to jump to my hand, and then keep inching back...and by starting this now, i would be working with the speed her wings grew, and by the time she was fully flighted, she would hopefully be good at it. i know...it sounds kind of weird. but i know it could work cuz i can do that with ceily...only she will be on the ground or a table, and i tap my fingers on the table and say come here and she comes running back to me.
and on looking at the good vs. the bad...the only bad im worried about is the cats...and i live in an apartment. a good that i just recently thought of and im hoping my thinking is correct...is that maybe if she can fly...she will gain some independence from me and not be so attached to me. also, i worry about her wings not growing right. and i would love to give her back one of her natural abilities and let her fly. also...i have such a fasicnation with looking at a fully flighted bird and the way their wings cross over each other, and make the bird look more sleek and areo-dynamic. idk...just a small fasicnation i have. lol.
but ya, was just wanting more thots on the training to come when called...my only guess would be to train almost like you would in falconry. start a small distance, and reward with food. but ive been putting a lot of thought into this, and i am still researching it, and getting my own feelings straight about it all. but i think she would love to fly and i would love to be able to let her. if there was a "super wing grow" medicine i could give her, flight would be her birthday present on june 16th. lol
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Kylie
Site promoter
Squawk!
Posts: 186
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wings
May 30, 2008 22:52:10 GMT -5
Post by Kylie on May 30, 2008 22:52:10 GMT -5
ok well i looked up the weight sizes on the harnesses...last time alli was weight was back in january and she weighed 99grams...the average sun conure weight is 120grams...the petiete harness is for birds 100grams and less...and small is for birds 120-130 grams...any ideas? got paid today...and hoping to get one tomorrow...also...as a way to get her used to it...would be it a good idea to just leave the harness part on (leave the leash off) when she is out of her cage? hope to hear from you guys before work tomorrow. lol. and i cant decide...bright orange...or bright red? maybe lime green? haha
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wings
May 31, 2008 4:00:24 GMT -5
Post by Smiley on May 31, 2008 4:00:24 GMT -5
The harness should come with an instructional DVD? I think it is, the aviator harness, and it gives you great tips on how to get the bird use to it. I think she will like the harness idea. I would maybe get the smaller size, and then tomorrow ask if it doesn;t fit if you can bring it back for the bigger size
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Kylie
Site promoter
Squawk!
Posts: 186
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wings
May 31, 2008 8:19:31 GMT -5
Post by Kylie on May 31, 2008 8:19:31 GMT -5
yea...haha way to much confusing info on these things...lol...i know the fitting guide said the small is for larger conures like jendays...and a sun is about the same as a jenday...but i will talk to my bird lady there today. im bringing the girls in with me so she will be able to help me more with alli.
haha i dont think she will like the idea at first...i can picture her acting like a cat when you put a collar on them...rolling around bitting at it...lol...but i do think she will enjoy once she learnes the purpose of it. haha
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Kylie
Site promoter
Squawk!
Posts: 186
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wings
May 31, 2008 20:55:54 GMT -5
Post by Kylie on May 31, 2008 20:55:54 GMT -5
ok well i picked up a harness today....bad idea...alli wanted nothing to do with it...i tried putting it on her 3 times, and i took my time, talked softly to her...but it was like putting a collar on a cat...she fought it the whole way...but when she managed to make it up to my shoulder and i heard her panting, thats when i quit. wasnt about to give her heart trouble. lol...so i took the thing back...and used the money to buy her one of her favorite toys...i feel like a horrible mommy now...oh and i got bit by her for the first time today...didnt break skin...but left a bruise on my hand the size of a dime...and i think she pinched a vein...lol...it hurts..
any plan b?
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