Wing Clipping

We can perform wing clipping on some feathered friends, however it is a service that requires consideration. We recommend that you think about and discuss with your avian veterinarian the reasons you are clipping them, and what you hope to achieve.

There are many differing opinions on whether you should clip your bird’s wings and the best technique to use.

What to Consider Before Booking Your Bird in For A Wing Clip

It is important to consider your bird’s environment and how not having the same level of flight might impact them. It is also important to note that once a bird’s wings are clipped, it will generally take between 3 and 18 months for the feathers to grow back, so think carefully before deciding to have this performed.

The Technique We Use to Clip a Bird’s Wings

There are many out-dated wing clipping techniques used which can result in significant damage to your bird’s physical and mental health. It is in the best interest of your pet bird that this procedure be performed by someone with experience.

At The Unusual Pet Vets, we generally use a technique that involves removing the back of the vane from between 4 and 10 primary flight feathers. This technique leaves the primary flight feathers long, and facilitates normal grooming and preening behaviour. It also prevents your bird from gaining lift and providing thrust to fly upwards.

The technique we use leaves the secondary flight feathers in place. These are responsible for a controlled landing, should your bird fall and need to prevent itself from injury.

Having no sharp edges on the primary flights (as you often have when traditional wing clips are performed) means that the bird does not generally focus its preening on the damaged, frayed edges of the feather. This has long been thought to be one of the triggers of feather destructive behaviour or feather plucking.

Booking Your Bird in For A Wing Clip

You can make an appointment online today for your bird’s wing clipping by selecting your nearest clinic from our Booking page.

If you have decided to have your bird’s wings clipped, or would like to have a more detailed discussion about the pros and cons with one of our vets, make an appointment with your local Unusual Pet Vets team.

To make an appointment, give us a call or book online.

Other Services

Nail Clipping

Are your pet’s nails getting a little sharp? Many pet’s, particularly those kept indoors, often don’t wear down their nails as they naturally would if they were out in the wild. Over time this leads to them becoming sharp and overgrown. Some nails will even curl back on themselves and start to dig into your pets foot which can be very painful.

We recommend regularly nail clipping for rabbits, guinea pigs, ferrets, many birds, some reptiles as well as some rats.

We offer free nail clipping with any consultation as well as a service on its own (without a consultation) for a small fee. To book your pet in just give us a call.

Microchipping

All exotic pets can be microchipped. We routinely microchip snakes, lizards, birds, rabbits, ferrets, guinea pigs, rats and even turtles.

As part of the microchipping procedure, we register the unique code with a national registry so that when a lost or displaced animal presents to our clinic, or any clinic for that matter, the first thing we do is scan them using our microchip scanner. The lucky pets are reunited with their rightful owner, but those that are not microchipped often never find their way back home and are re-homed.

Vaccinations

Ensuring your pet is up to date with their vaccinations is very important to prevent deadly diseases. Vaccinations involve your pet having a small injection under their skin that allows their body to become familiar with the inactivated disease particles. That way if they are ever exposed to the real disease, they are ready to fight it.

Currently, in Australia, there are no commercially available vaccines for parrots, reptiles, amphibians, guinea pigs, rats, or mice. However, we routinely vaccinate rabbits and ferrets, and recommend it an important part of their preventative health program.

General Health Checks

Exotic pets are very good at hiding signs of illness. Therefore, regular health checks are essential for your unusual pet’s health and happiness. While it is interesting and exciting, it can also be difficult to know whether your pet is healthy and that their husbandry requirements are being met.

When it comes to exotic pet health, there is a large amount of misinformation out there. But our knowledge and experience extend past the norm. We are the trusted experts when it comes to the health and wellbeing of extraordinary animals.

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