Great post Ella.
If your parrot escapes...
You may recall reading threads of people losing their parrots.
You express your sympathy, but think, "it'll never happen to me"
To be honest, thats exactly what I thought, but even the most cautious parrot owner can have an accident.
All it takes is one slip up.
A window half open, forgetting to close the cage door...
It's all too easy to lose your beloved pet, no matter how hard it may seem.
So I decided to make this thread to help prevent your bird escaping and retrieve it if it does.
Prevention:
Whats better than curing a disease? Not catching it in the first place!
It's just the same for birds.
The only thing better than finding a lost parrot is not losing it in the first place!
Common mistakes:
* Leaving the window open. The gap may seem small, but intelligent parrots can open it further, and get out!
* Using mosquito screens. They may seem a good way of having the window open, but parrots can gnaw through them no problem.
*Cage doors. Parrots are highly intelligent. They can open cage doors if the want to, so you may want to consider a lock.
* Other creatures. Cats, dogs, and boisterous kids can knock over bird cages.
*Cage stands (my worst enemy)
Cage stands can seem safe, but if they aren't sturdy enough, they can fall over. Make sure your stand is very strong.
Common excuses:
My bird's tame, he'll never fly away!
Even if you think your bird is tame and attached to you, he could still fly away.
My budgie was the friendliest little thing, but once in the big wide world his mind was on overload. He forgot about me, and just flew, thinking I'd come and get him like I always used to.
For some birds, this may not be the case, but do you want to risk it?
He would come back to me....
Maybe he would, but there's a big chance he wont.
He's used to having you around him, and come to get him.
Once he's outside, he may forget you and just fly away.
Parrots aren't homing pigeons, they have no sense of direction.
Once their far from home, they don't know how to find their way back.
He couldn't possibly open the cage door...
All I can say to this one is, yes, he possibly could!
I'm careful, It won't happen to my bird!
That's exactly what I thought, but oh how quickly things can turn from good to bad, then from bad to worse...
But you can prevent it if you are very careful, but we're not all perfect, and mistakes can happen, so don't think they definitely wont!
Wing clipping:
I'm not going to say too much, because if I was to completely describe the pro's and con's it would take pages and pages.
Wing clipping helps to reduce the risk of the bird flying away, but for smaller birds, a gust of wind can carry them away even with clipped wings.
They can also learn to use the feathers they have left so that they may be able to fly a short distance.
You may think think your birds flightless, then suddenly he's up in the air and a breeze is carrying him far way!
Wing clipping makes bird owning a bit safer, but it also denies them the power of flight, which they were born to do.
If you decide to wing clip, for god sakes do it properly! There is nothing worse than a messy clip, or hurting the bird in the process.
Before you make a decision do lots of reseach.
If you clip, and decide it was a bad move, the feathers will grow back in the next moult, so I suppose it's not a decision that'll stick with you for the rest of your bird's life.
My view:
my thoughts on wing clipping are mixed.
If I'd clipped my budgies wings, he'd still be here with me, on I shoulder as I write this...
But then I think, would I rather my budgie had a happy, but short life, doing what he loved? (flying)
Or a long life where he was not able to do what he loved. And I know how much he loved to fly...
So I couldn't give you a straight answer on how I feel.
Ways to prevent your bird escaping:
*Leave no doors or windows open.
*Keep the cage in a safe place.
*Maybe teach your parrot to say your phone number.
*Make sure the cage stand is safe and sturdy.
*Use a lock on the cage door.
*BE VERY CAREFUL!!
If the bird escapes
Its hard to be a perfect bird owner, and accidents will happen.
If something happens and your bird escapes, its important to act fast.
Tame parrots cannot survive in the wild! They can only survive a few days without food. Don't waste even minutes!
Why did it fly away?
It must be the most common question unlucky bird owners ask themselves, and it's quite hard to answer.
My view is that, when your parrot was inside the house it could fly wherever and always find you.
In the wild, it may think the same.
The parrots brain is on overload! So much space, fresh air, trees....
It's all hard to resist for the poor parrot.
it just fly's and fly's.
If you see the bird...
Always have it's favorite toy, and call it down.
Find bird calls and play them, or if you have another bird of the same species, get them to help by calling the escapee.
Hopefully it will come to you, but it may not.
If it fly's off....
Ask people to help you out.
Don't waste time, ask someone to print and stick up flyers.
Have people in different areas calling the bird.
Look in all the likely places the bird could be.
Set up a cage in your garden, with food and water (with the door open of course!)
Don't give up.
If you can't find him on the first day, try again the next.
Theres a good chance he could come back if he's tame.
The importance of notifying people:
If someone finds a poor parrot, hungry and lost, they will often take it to someone who's knows about birds.
Hopefully the've seen the flyers.
If they haven't the might take it to the vets or an animal shelter.
All animal places need to know! You don't want them thinking no one owns the bird and re homing it!
When to give up.
It sounds harsh, but you can't search forever.
Keep searching and sticking up flyers for maybe a month, then you'll have to just hope.
If worst comes to worst....
There will always be a few cases where the bird is never found.
Don't jump to conclusions.
The bird might not be dead.
There is a good chance someones picked your bird up, and decided to keep it.
Don't start thinking evil thoughts about someone having your bird. At least he's safe, sometimes that's all you can hope for.
Hopefully this has helped you prevent your bird escaping, and will help you if it ever does.
You express your sympathy, but think, "it'll never happen to me"
To be honest, thats exactly what I thought, but even the most cautious parrot owner can have an accident.
All it takes is one slip up.
A window half open, forgetting to close the cage door...
It's all too easy to lose your beloved pet, no matter how hard it may seem.
So I decided to make this thread to help prevent your bird escaping and retrieve it if it does.
Prevention:
Whats better than curing a disease? Not catching it in the first place!
It's just the same for birds.
The only thing better than finding a lost parrot is not losing it in the first place!
Common mistakes:
* Leaving the window open. The gap may seem small, but intelligent parrots can open it further, and get out!
* Using mosquito screens. They may seem a good way of having the window open, but parrots can gnaw through them no problem.
*Cage doors. Parrots are highly intelligent. They can open cage doors if the want to, so you may want to consider a lock.
* Other creatures. Cats, dogs, and boisterous kids can knock over bird cages.
*Cage stands (my worst enemy)
Cage stands can seem safe, but if they aren't sturdy enough, they can fall over. Make sure your stand is very strong.
Common excuses:
My bird's tame, he'll never fly away!
Even if you think your bird is tame and attached to you, he could still fly away.
My budgie was the friendliest little thing, but once in the big wide world his mind was on overload. He forgot about me, and just flew, thinking I'd come and get him like I always used to.
For some birds, this may not be the case, but do you want to risk it?
He would come back to me....
Maybe he would, but there's a big chance he wont.
He's used to having you around him, and come to get him.
Once he's outside, he may forget you and just fly away.
Parrots aren't homing pigeons, they have no sense of direction.
Once their far from home, they don't know how to find their way back.
He couldn't possibly open the cage door...
All I can say to this one is, yes, he possibly could!
I'm careful, It won't happen to my bird!
That's exactly what I thought, but oh how quickly things can turn from good to bad, then from bad to worse...
But you can prevent it if you are very careful, but we're not all perfect, and mistakes can happen, so don't think they definitely wont!
Wing clipping:
I'm not going to say too much, because if I was to completely describe the pro's and con's it would take pages and pages.
Wing clipping helps to reduce the risk of the bird flying away, but for smaller birds, a gust of wind can carry them away even with clipped wings.
They can also learn to use the feathers they have left so that they may be able to fly a short distance.
You may think think your birds flightless, then suddenly he's up in the air and a breeze is carrying him far way!
Wing clipping makes bird owning a bit safer, but it also denies them the power of flight, which they were born to do.
If you decide to wing clip, for god sakes do it properly! There is nothing worse than a messy clip, or hurting the bird in the process.
Before you make a decision do lots of reseach.
If you clip, and decide it was a bad move, the feathers will grow back in the next moult, so I suppose it's not a decision that'll stick with you for the rest of your bird's life.
My view:
my thoughts on wing clipping are mixed.
If I'd clipped my budgies wings, he'd still be here with me, on I shoulder as I write this...
But then I think, would I rather my budgie had a happy, but short life, doing what he loved? (flying)
Or a long life where he was not able to do what he loved. And I know how much he loved to fly...
So I couldn't give you a straight answer on how I feel.
Ways to prevent your bird escaping:
*Leave no doors or windows open.
*Keep the cage in a safe place.
*Maybe teach your parrot to say your phone number.
*Make sure the cage stand is safe and sturdy.
*Use a lock on the cage door.
*BE VERY CAREFUL!!
If the bird escapes
Its hard to be a perfect bird owner, and accidents will happen.
If something happens and your bird escapes, its important to act fast.
Tame parrots cannot survive in the wild! They can only survive a few days without food. Don't waste even minutes!
Why did it fly away?
It must be the most common question unlucky bird owners ask themselves, and it's quite hard to answer.
My view is that, when your parrot was inside the house it could fly wherever and always find you.
In the wild, it may think the same.
The parrots brain is on overload! So much space, fresh air, trees....
It's all hard to resist for the poor parrot.
it just fly's and fly's.
If you see the bird...
Always have it's favorite toy, and call it down.
Find bird calls and play them, or if you have another bird of the same species, get them to help by calling the escapee.
Hopefully it will come to you, but it may not.
If it fly's off....
Ask people to help you out.
Don't waste time, ask someone to print and stick up flyers.
Have people in different areas calling the bird.
Look in all the likely places the bird could be.
Set up a cage in your garden, with food and water (with the door open of course!)
Don't give up.
If you can't find him on the first day, try again the next.
Theres a good chance he could come back if he's tame.
The importance of notifying people:
If someone finds a poor parrot, hungry and lost, they will often take it to someone who's knows about birds.
Hopefully the've seen the flyers.
If they haven't the might take it to the vets or an animal shelter.
All animal places need to know! You don't want them thinking no one owns the bird and re homing it!
When to give up.
It sounds harsh, but you can't search forever.
Keep searching and sticking up flyers for maybe a month, then you'll have to just hope.
If worst comes to worst....
There will always be a few cases where the bird is never found.
Don't jump to conclusions.
The bird might not be dead.
There is a good chance someones picked your bird up, and decided to keep it.
Don't start thinking evil thoughts about someone having your bird. At least he's safe, sometimes that's all you can hope for.
Hopefully this has helped you prevent your bird escaping, and will help you if it ever does.
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1 - 10 of 10 Posts
Thanks for the helpful information. It would be nice if we didn't have to think about this but unfortunately we do. I've read about many birds escaping. I think we cannot be too careful!
Oh thank you!
I found some of this on a website but forgot to check it
I will edit it.
Hi everyone, I'm new to Talk Parrots , i just thought i would tell you about one of my Indian Ringnecks escaping her aviary, it was a couple of months ago now, i have two ringnecks one male and one female both green, i got the 4yrs ago they were being neglected, kept in a small aviary over crowded with several different breeds of parrots, and none of the birds even semi tame, well i have had them both all these years with no escapes or any problems at all then ,a couple of months ago, i have walked outside and seen this green bird flying around, at first i was like oh its just a 28 (Australian Ringneck) no it was my girl Indi having a great time flying around free!! after much panic (from myself), me and my partner caught her mate Marlie and put him in a smaller cage inside their aviary and Indi came back and got back in to see her boy friend and i quickly shut the door, Yay i was so happy to get her back, then the next day i walk outside and there she is again out of the aviary, so we caught Marlie again and got Indi back in again, she was digging holes under the aviary!!! she had never done it before so now we have bricked the floor of their aviary, and problem solved!!
Just thought i would share that with you all, its also some thing to consider when thinking about escape proofing.
Thanks everyone
Just thought i would share that with you all, its also some thing to consider when thinking about escape proofing.
Thanks everyone
Lovely story!Hi everyone, I'm new to Talk Parrots , i just thought i would tell you about one of my Indian Ringnecks escaping her aviary, it was a couple of months ago now, i have two ringnecks one male and one female both green, i got the 4yrs ago they were being neglected, kept in a small aviary over crowded with several different breeds of parrots, and none of the birds even semi tame, well i have had them both all these years with no escapes or any problems at all then ,a couple of months ago, i have walked outside and seen this green bird flying around, at first i was like oh its just a 28 (Australian Ringneck) no it was my girl Indi having a great time flying around free!! after much panic (from myself), me and my partner caught her mate Marlie and put him in a smaller cage inside their aviary and Indi came back and got back in to see her boy friend and i quickly shut the door, Yay i was so happy to get her back, then the next day i walk outside and there she is again out of the aviary, so we caught Marlie again and got Indi back in again, she was digging holes under the aviary!!! she had never done it before so now we have bricked the floor of their aviary, and problem solved!!
Just thought i would share that with you all, its also some thing to consider when thinking about escape proofing.
Thanks everyone
I just love it when they have happy endings.
I'm sure this advice will help others.
Thank you :smile:
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