Very small deal

[Mikaela]

I know yall are like, 'So what'? But for me, this is a pretty big deal. I have always disliked having to load my babies up, take them to be clipped (nails and wings)... the whole thing took a day, a lot of stress for everyone and was just a pain.

I decided today that I didnt want to do this for the next 50 plus yrs. Using the 10 secondary upward technique, I clipped all of my babies

Baby was the worse, of course. But, we made it through. He was so
freaked out he was breathing hard, poor thing. The others were fine.

They all turned out looking, actually, a heck of a lot better than some of the cuts they have gotten from the pros. It turned out tight and nice. Not all jagged. They can flutter but no distance or height... perfect!

This is such a big deal for me. Its hard to get some things done down here in the Keys, its very rural. I havent found anyone I trust yet so I had to suck it up and do it. Now, Im glad I was forced to. No more trips to the breeder (exposure to other birds et cetera).

If anyone else is considering tackling this, here is a diagram of the technique I use and favor:



Its nice to share these little things about me and my babies, didnt realize I missed it until I sit down for a minute to log on. Its nice to share and grow!

Sidenote: During our shower this morning... Baby's ring was very visible, as were a lot more pin feathers! I have some silly pics of him and Peaches morning shower. Let me know if ya wanna see them!

[kyria]

We always want to see pics

A note to those new to birds, Mikaela has had experience with birds and learnt much over the years. There is a little more to wing clipping than just knowing what to cut, there are complications that can occur and you really need to know alot about birds before you attempt stuff like this, eg. blood feathers, to know what they are and what to do if one is cut, watching out for picking at trimmed feathers once the bird is clipped (as many birds pick and pluck at the newly cut feathers) etc.



Good to hear that you now know enough to take extra steps in the self care of your fids darlin

[Lauren]

Glad you feel happy sharing stories Mik. I think we all know how good it feels when we take small steps to reach a bigger goal with our lil ones.

Of course we do want to see pics!

Angie, couldn't of said it better.

[Mikaela]

You got it, I'll post his 'after my wings were done' shower images... featuring Peaches! He is so ratty though! I wouldnt want him posting my high school picture and thats how I feel like I'd be doing him.

YES, this IS NOT for the faint at heart. Its tramatic to some degree because I have to towel the baby. Should have named mine Hannible. But certainly as Kyria said, a lot goes to wing clipping besides trimming secondaries. One wrong clip and birdie go bye bye to Rainbow Bridge

See, they have 'blood feathers' and no way to clot. This is why we say leave it to the pros unless yo self knows! I know how to 'see' blood feathers. If you arent there... DONT even think about it!

Shower images in photo forum! I seen addicts beg less lol. We LOVE pics, gawd.

(Sorry girls, forgot to add the 'dislosure for idiots' that I had to be so sure to include as admin. Didnt mean to make your jobs harder. I havent been posting in ages have forget we arent all on the same plain. I would have fell over dead with a broken heart if someone scissored their baby and it went bad. Dont need that!)

[kyria]

always a way to stop the bleeding, there is the magical flour paste applied thickly, or the much harder and very (need to do it correctly) pull of the blood feather and paste or a "very" quick trip to the vet

Blood feathers are not only a problem from clipping wings, birds can injure or break them by accident, so its always good to know how to stop the bleeding.

A good thick covering of cornstarch or flour ;

http://www.exoticbird.com/gillian/bleeding.html

More info on blood feathers (this page is quaker related but gives you an idea about what blood feathers look like , and is general info for all birds);

http://qp-society.com/qpserc/bloodfeathers.html

Wow and while we are at it with the care of our fids check this out about toys, zinc, wood etc. ;

http://qp-society.com/qpserc/fun.html

[Gemstone]

I always will take Amazon to the vet for a clip, but he hasnt needed a clip since his first one when he was 7 weeks old, he just getting flight feathers back one on each side, i will take him to the vet when he can get off teh ground by himself.

But way to go mik for doing it yourself.

[Mikaela]

Yes, of course you can stop the bleeding, my point was they cant. We must know how.

[nichole123]

I always clip my birds wings and nails myself but for work I had to be "certified" to do it on the store birds so that's where I learned it. To many times I see NEW and OLD bird owners try to do it themselves when it only costs about $5 around here and they end up either killing or seriously injuring their babies. Blood feathers broken, toenails to short to grip, wings too short to glide to the floor, some people even think it's ok to clip the tail feathers so they "fit in the cage"! Just a warning out there for everybody, at least have a vet or professional show you how to do it the first time. I'm not lecturing you or anything, I'm sure you know what you are doing, I'm just letting other people know that they need to be educated before they take to cutting anything!

[kyria]

Good extra advice nichole, thankyou

I took mine to the vet the first time they needed clipping, $45 each charged a standard vet visit for exotics. She showed me how, then I read alot more after that and learnt as much as I could before it becane time to do it again. I clipped our tame fids to gain a calm experience and now I can do my whole flock if need be.

Some are clipped some are left flighted.

Our jordan had been done by the breeder and I am not sure how many of you remember the terrible clip he was given. He had just cut straight up the wing like he was a chicken. So short he cut the coverts and all .. we were lucky jordan didn't have any long term issues from it. So glad we rescued him from that breeder. I did report him but never found out what happened.

When we first brought Jordan home




as they grew back and we clipped him correctly



Now he has full flight and has had for a few months.


Don't worry it was a set up easter shot and we didn't let him get the chocolate

[Lauren]

That is shocking Angie. Makes you wonder what these breeders are doing with birds if they can't even clip wings correctly.