Wing clipping question, what are your expiriences?

[cochinGurl]

Hello, thanks for taking the time to click on this thread. So Im going on a 300+ mile road trip with my Serbian HIghflyer pigeon Dale. Hes my only serbian, and im going on this trip to buy some from friend of mine. Im taking dale because Im getting a mate for him, and it would suck to drive that far and bring back a partner he didnt get along with. He is used to riding in the car, and he can free roam it most of the time with his diaper on. He is very special to me, and I would hate to loose him, so i am going to take the precausion of clipping his wings for the trip. My question is a little general. What are your overall experiences with wing clipping and do you have any tips? also i was wondering how much it cuts down on their mobility, how far can they fly with no primary feathers?

 

[DraigAthar]

I have a pet parrot, and I keep her wings clipped so she doesn't accidentally fly out an open door or window. I clip all of the primaries. Her flight is limited to down - she can flutter to the floor if she falls off a perch or something, but she can get no lift to fly up at all. I've been clipping her wings for years, so it's just normal grooming for us. The only concern is if you clip a blood feather. If that happens, a bird can bleed quite seriously, but all you have to do is have pliers standing by. If you clip a blood feather, you pull the shaft out completely and the bleeding will stop. It's no fun for you or the bird, but it prevents more serious bleeding. That said, I've never clipped a blood feather, they're usually easy to identify and avoid. I guess I've never heard of clipping wings on a pigeon, but then I've never owned a pigeon! Parrots can climb everywhere to get around, so her mobility is not really limited. Would a flightless pigeon have a hard time?

 

[Hokum Coco]

An other way to render a bird flightless is to put dish washing detergent on the wings. I heard of this method I never actually done it.

 

[larrylofts]

better to clip just one wing

 

[laughingdog]

Id suggest wrapping or taping the wings,or use rubber band just around just the flight and maybe tail feathers. pigeons can actually fly still with one or both flights clipped. plucking the flights stops them mostly from getting any decent lift or distance. pigeons are a lot lighter than parrots, and clipping my parrots wings when i had them, worked better but they could even fly some or would hurt themselves trying, and also theyd be freaked out. i never wing clip any bird anymore, and find they do a lot better if i need to, to pluck primary flights only, then they cannot navigate to fly up or far, and they dont seem to freak out. also plucking then you dont need to worry about blood feathers or problems due to if they escape, as a healthy bird will then regrow the feathers soon and not then have to wait three to six months maybe or a year for flying ability again. also clipped feathers can split, exposing to infection and bleeding out over night and die, and or cut the bird's face/eyes and sides ect, as cut feathers can be sharp. Ive had parrots, pigeons, chickens, and even raptors (ravens falcons ect), and never had any good experiences wing clipping. i have a good amount personal and professional experience with these and other types of birds, in rescue/rehab, pets, training, breeding, ect.