Budgies that cant fly..

[debbies]

just a quick question for those of you who have budgies that cant fly-do you let them out of their cages and do they cope with it ok?
im trying to tame my 2 non flyers, they will tollerate my hand near them,but sometines get flustered & climb down the bars, occasionaly falling off the lowest perch.
would it be safe to let them out in a very safe room-or would they get realy stressed by not being able to fly to safety?
cheers.

[Shirls]

Hello Debbie - I have a budgie that doesn't fly very well, he has no tail feathers. I have had him for four months and I let him out of the cage. He often gets into scrapes and lands on the floor or in shelves and odd places. He is quite a large budgie, so having no tail feathers does hinder him because of his weight I think! I have tamed him (in the cage with millet hehe) so when he lands in awkward places he just steps up onto my finger and I put him where he needs to go. I offer him different places to step down and he chooses where he wants to go. He doesn't seem bothered by it all, but I must say he is a very laid back bird. Perhaps some other members can tell you their experiences with birds that don't actually fly at all.

[Shirls]

Welcome to the forum BTW!!!

[skysmum]

Hi Debbies, i have two non flyers and they do come out. As long as its safe, they love to totter around and can run faster than any of the others . More ofter than not i put the cage on the floor and they mooch around like that feeling more confidant that they can run to safety, just be very careful where you walk around of course.

[birdguhl]

Hi Debbies,

I have two birds, and one, Berry, has become a non-flyer (or at least very dodgy flutterer) in the last few months due to loss of flight feathers. My heart is in my mouth if he comes out as seems at first to think he can still fly normally but he can't get very far and doesn't make very good decisions about what to land on - e.g. Christmas cards - poor love! I have had to pick up and put him back twice now which he didn't like but he was getting exhausted and I was worried he'd hurt himself. Most of the time he chooses not to come out despite loud calling from his companion who is a great flyer and seems almost to being showing off at times. I am trying to gradually encourage him to come out and regain confidence at being out of the cage by just climbing around as he could still have fun outings without actually flying. We are in the early stages of this - see 'Lunch in the conservatory' for pic of current set up. I am going to start putting treats on top of the small cage and then on the top of the big one to see if he gets the idea. Meantime Woody will still swoop around but he needs the exercise he has is very fond of his food!

Good luck with yours. Have they always been non-flyers? If not, they will need to learn their new limitations and I guess there are risks as part of this but then you can minimise these and I would say that the alternative of keeping them in all the time has risks too. If they have never flown they will probably just be fine getting around in whatever ways they can.

[Hezz]

As long as you supervise their outings, especially to start with, Debbie. If they have favourite toys, you can put these down on the floor for them to explore. They will feel more comfortable if you are sitting on the floor too, and not towering over them. My first budgie, even though a great flier, used to love a forage around on the floor - just make sure you know exactly where they are if you need to walk around.

[debbies]

thankyou all for replying.
you've put my mind at ease that they will be ok coming out- i kept thinking they would end up having heart attacks due to not being able to get up out the way.
neither have flown, the best either can manage is a very undignified drop off a low perch
Eric love balls & mirrors, whereas lucy prefers food, so i'll block off any gaps between kitchen worktops & put them on the floor in there and see how we get on, might get them one of those wooden gym things to use when out of the cage aswell?
i will let you know how they get on & post pics of them exploring!

[Hezz]

Sounds good. Can't wait to see them.

[Rachael Kellett]

My Holly is a non flyer, I have had her for just over a year and I got her from a lady who no longer wanted her. She tried to claim that Holly had had her wings clipped which is why she couldn't fly but when I saw her I knew that wasn't true. Holly has one wing that is at an odd angle, possibly a break when she was younger or a defect but she can't fly at all. She doesn't let that stop her though She tends to launch herself, from any height, any where. It used to scare me half to death when she would throw herself off my shoulder to the floor! I'm almost used to it now although there is the odd time she catches me unawares.

Anyway my point is that I try to treat her just like the other budgies, with the exception that she has her own cage She comes out to play like they do and has baths with them I think you just need to make sure that the cage is set up so that your budgie can get around easily enough. My Hollys' cage isn't too tall so if she falls, which she is known to do on a regular basis haha, then she won't hurt herself. And that the gaps between perches are easy for her to jump. Its all about adapting but still letting them have freedom