Lovely Linnies Aviary

olutely nothing more important for the healthy emotional and intellectual development of a young parrot than abundance weaning and fledging ( learning to fly). My babies are "abundance weaned" meaning I continue to give the chicks handfeedings while offering them solid foods to try, such as millet or softened pellets. The birds are allowed to stay on handfeedings until they themselves decide they are ready to eat solid foods and drink water on their own. This technique leads to birds with more stable physical and psychological health. Supplied with a variety of foods ranging from fruit and vegetable tidbits, to pellets that should be available at all times, the birds continue to be hand fed. A properly weaned bird learns to trust humans through the actions of it's caregiver. It gains self confidence, learns to accept different foods readily, and is comfortable in a changing environment. While initially abundance weaning is exclusively needed for nutrition, eventually it turns into the need for emotional comfort. It goes beyond the mere satisfaction of nutritional requirements and implies love, caring, and emotional support. It implies knowledge of the early stages in their maturation and the birds' individual changing and very specific behavioral patterns. The other component to successfully growing up is learning to fly. Their sense of self confidence and emotional well being depends on it. They must be able to maneuver and land safely. While the pure act of flying is a vital part of their development, it has been suggested that letting them learn to fly may even impact their eating habits. When a bird gets ready to fledge, it will instinctively reduce it's food intake. That is to lose some of the accumulated baby fat and make it lighter. It has been suggested that our birds must fly to lose their focus on losing weight and regain their normal appetite. Even though we may later clip their wings in order to protect them from injuries or escaping, they must fly first. Once we decide to clip them, we have to make sure to do it correctly. There are very clear guidelines on proper wing clipping which are based on body weight, size and general agility, and are different for every species. Properly clipping is important and won't harm the birds self esteem; doing so improperly can be devastating, physically dangerous, and cruel. I do not clip wings unless specifically requested to do so, and then it's only a slight clip after they have learned to fly.