flying problems

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amourdeparis
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Joined: Thu Aug 19, 2010 7:56 am

flying problems

Post by amourdeparis »

I recently got a 3-year old alexandrine parakeet. He seems to be in good health and is fully feathered. His wings are not clipped. However, he can't really fly. Whenever he tries, he crashes into the wall and tires very quickly. What could be the problem? He was handfed. Could he have been clipped before he learned how to fly? Is there anything that I can do to make him a better flyer? Please advise. Thank you.
jean19
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Re: flying problems

Post by jean19 »

he's had is wings clipped or stayed in a small cage and never really learned to fly .
how does he land ?? if he land correctly ,i think , he will become better just by practising
amourdeparis
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Re: flying problems

Post by amourdeparis »

He always crash lands. It's quite traumatic for him. :-(
julie
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Re: flying problems

Post by julie »

I would have him clipped again and let him have plenty of on top of cage time, when he holds on with his feet and starts flapping encourage him to do it. Doing that makes his wings nice and strong. When Mika starts going nuts and doing the flapping while holding on we say go go go to him to encourage him to do it.
julie
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Re: flying problems

Post by julie »

also with teaching him to land try standing a short distance from his cage or another place he can land and having him sitting on your hand or arm slightly move so he flies off of you and onto cage. Gradually move back a bit so he has to fly further and gets used to landing properly. You can safely do this with his wings clipped and by the time they grow out again he should be landing better.
jean19
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Re: flying problems

Post by jean19 »

i'd try the idea of julie , but with is full wings at first .
julie
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Re: flying problems

Post by julie »

amourdeparis wrote:He always crash lands. It's quite traumatic for him. :-(
This part worries me thats why I would clip first and treat him like a fledgling. I wouldnt do a full clip though.
amourdeparis
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Re: flying problems

Post by amourdeparis »

He does not fly much. He would rather perch on my hand or on the cage. I'm mainly concerned about his sensing of direciton while in the air. He seems as blind as a bat. I notice that his grip is quite strong--as if he were afraid of falling. His landing has improved significantly within the last week. I think that he could be overweight. I'm not sure about that because he's my 1st alexandrine. I am controlling his weight more carefully. His secondary flight feathers appear worn.

Thanks for all your help.
jean19
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Re: flying problems

Post by jean19 »

leave him the time to get used to flying and you'll see how they manage perfectly , even in the small space of our house .
i've had the chance of letting my COCO fly in a room the size of a football ground , it was marvellous i was very astonished by seeing , plunging , turning ... all that at full speed , he really enjoyed it .
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