Shiva flew away :(

So we usually put the birds in a cage outside when the weather is nice. I'm at work right now and my stupid fiancé opened the cage door while she was in the cage and she flew out. I'm so livid and sad right now I don't know what to do. I want to beat that boy until he's black and blue but I know it was an accident... So right now she's in the tree in front of our house. I can't leave work so I have to trust that he is trying everything in his power to bring our budgie home.

hope all works out, keeping our fingers crossed, let us know

Can your fiance put your other bird in a smaller carrier/cage within a larger cage to try to lure Shiva in? He can also try to put millet (or whatever Shiva loves best) in Shiva's cage and hold the cage up to her and see if she'll go in. Or he can put the cage near her with fishing line or dental floss on the door and walk a ways away and pull the line to close the door when she goes in to eat.

I hope you get her back. But don't give up. I've recovered birds several days after they've gotten out.

Oh no! :affraid: How long til you are off work? I hope he can get Shiva back for you. Let us know how it turns out, we'll be hoping for the best.

Maybe he could use a favorite treat to get Shiva home (as Roz suggested).

If you don't recover her tonight, leave her cage with the cage door open outside where she can easily find it. I've had birds fly into their cage and be there in the morning. Don't put the cage on the ground. Elevate it on a table or something.

Our rainbow lorie had one toy, a set of neon colored links, that she would go bananas over. When she got out and flew into a tree we took those out, stood back from the base of the tree, and shook them and she practically dive-bombed us. I know the loris are a little crazy and obsessive, but is there anything Shiva enjoys playing with, like a bell or something that could make noise?

Also, she might be a little freaked out right now and too scared to come down. By the time you get home she might be calmer, bored, and ready to go back to the food and toys.

Fingers crossed for you!! Let us know how it goes!!!

my fully flighted cockatiel was out flying for a week when she got out on the way home from the sitters. We put out a sign in the ground saying we lost a bird with our phone number so it stood out and people would notice it when they drove by. Sure enough a couple days later we got a call that a lady had seen a yellow bird in a local park. The first time we tried to get her we were unsuccessful. The two days after that we finally lured her down using her favorite treat cup and wrapped her up in a scarf. that was one hellish week.
I hope you can get shiva back!! If she isn't flighted she might be more reluctant to fly down, can someone get up there without scaring her? best wishes and don't give up

Good luck and be patient.
Once Mango (not tamed budgie) fly out from our apartment, we somehow had him in the net, but we was lucky, he was still in the building.
It's dark already, so it's a big chance your budgie gonna be scared and stay in one place.
I keep fingers crossed, you'll have a good news for us.

Oh NO, I can't imagine how you are feeling right now. It's bad enough to be helpless and not able to do anything when you're at home, but to be helpless and not able to do anything when you're AWAY from home is a terrible feeling.

Keep us posted, and in the meantime Bucky, JJ and I will be sending Shiva "Fly Down" vibes.

Oh noooooo, hope you get her back :affraid: :affraid:

I've had this happen before, it was a horrible freak accident. This is why I keep my birds clipped while my kids are still so little and things happen. I am so so sorry.

WOW, I know you are worried wish I had some great advise .

Any updates on this??

So I worked until 11pm last night so I had no chance of trying to get Shiva back. This morning there was no sign of her. My fiance said she was sitting in the tree all day but by nightfall she disappeared. So needless to say I dont think my bird is coming home. Ive left food out for her, her favorite toys, and also have the baby sitting outside in her cage as well. I have a feeling Shiva is gone for good. I actually got her as a stray bird so she has escaped before from someone else's home. Im really sad about it, but this has proven my point to my fiance about keeping our birds' wings clipped. It was a hot debate between us and this hit the nail on the head for me. He's trying to get back into my good graces of offering to buy the conure Ive been wanting, but I dont know if I can just "replace" Shiva so soon.

Don't give up yet!! Wait a few days, put ads up everywhere, you really never know.
Did you put food in a cage outside for her to see?

I don't think this has to do with wing clipping, I think it has to do with human responsibility.
This was clearly your fiance's fault, not the bird's, so why punish the bird by taking away something we KNOW they absolutely love.

Sucks to lose a bird.

There's been debate on other forums about wing clipping. Some people view it akin to animal abuse. I'm of the view you can't control all the household members, especially if you have/want kids, can't control visitors, etc. So in some households it is safer and a richer life for the bird to be clipped, which is the case in my household. Makes for a very miserable marriage if you're fighting constantly about closing doors so the bird doesn't get out, putting down the toilet lid so the bird doesn't drown, etc.

There's "In a perfect world" and then there's "In the world we live in".

patdbunny wrote:

I'm of the view you can't control all the household members, especially if you have/want kids, can't control visitors, etc.

Thats the reason I am so adamant about keeping our birds clipped because we live with two roomates who tend to leave every door possible open and my fiance (dont get me wrong i love him to pieces but...) is extremely forgetful. Ive told him numerous times that when Shiva is in the outside cage that you do NOT open the doors to the cage at all until you bring the cage inside to put her to bed (Not even to change her food or water). It was his negligence that lead to her flying away. The only problem is, Shiva was not a tame brid so I highly doubt she will come back. We only had her for two months so I doubt she became comfortable enough to feel like our home was hers. I just hope he has learned his lesson because this sort of event is very hard for me to forgive. Losing a pet is like losing a family member to me no matter how tame that animal is.

I keep my birds clipped because of my kids.

People argue that clipped birds get stepped on. I don't allow my birds to randomly wander on the floor either, so getting stepped on is not a concern at my house.

I would never let my birds wander on the ground unless I was watching them like a hawk and no one was home. The only time my birds get on the ground is when the baby tries to fly off my shoulder and crash lands or she breaks out of her cage and runs (well more like waddles) as fast as she can across the floor to my bed to bite my ears.

patdbunny wrote:

Sucks to lose a bird.

There's been debate on other forums about wing clipping. Some people view it akin to animal abuse. I'm of the view you can't control all the household members, especially if you have/want kids, can't control visitors, etc. So in some households it is safer and a richer life for the bird to be clipped, which is the case in my household. Makes for a very miserable marriage if you're fighting constantly about closing doors so the bird doesn't get out, putting down the toilet lid so the bird doesn't drown, etc.

There's "In a perfect world" and then there's "In the world we live in".

We too clip I would never forgive myself if any of my pet birds got to a breeder cage or another birds cage that was more territorial. Feet get removed this way, and this is just 1 of the many dangers...my Jack's are the best watch, dogs they run screaming when a bird even the baby tiels go to ground LOL

I was so sorry to read about this! I don't know if it is any small consolation, but at least it sounds as if Shiva has done this before and survived to tell the tale... hopefully if she doesn't come back, she's off to a good home.

I plan to keep Scooter clipped for the same kind of reasons patdbunny and flappinhappy described. I tried letting Scooter grow his flights out, and he just gets into trouble. Scotty's are grown out right now, but he seems to have very little interest in using them. But even so, I'm paranoid about doors and would be uncomfortable taking them, especially Scooter, outside without restraint. Even well-trimmed, with a startle or a breeze or both, he can go quite some distance. Clipping limits range and makes it much easier to keep track of them, but unless it's a very severe clip it doesn't completely guarantee they stay grounded. And a very severe clip carries its own risks, if they can't land gracefully they can get hurt falling. It's enough to give one an anxiety disorder.

So I vote for clipping AND remaining vigilant.

I'm so sorry to read about Shiva.
Coldtrance, from what your situation is it sounds better to clip birds for their own safety.

ScooterNScotty wrote:

I was so sorry to read about this! I don't know if it is any small consolation, but at least it sounds as if Shiva has done this before and survived to tell the tale... hopefully if she doesn't come back, she's off to a good home.

I plan to keep Scooter clipped for the same kind of reasons patdbunny and flappinhappy described. I tried letting Scooter grow his flights out, and he just gets into trouble. Scotty's are grown out right now, but he seems to have very little interest in using them. But even so, I'm paranoid about doors and would be uncomfortable taking them, especially Scooter, outside without restraint. Even well-trimmed, with a startle or a breeze or both, he can go quite some distance. Clipping limits range and makes it much easier to keep track of them, but unless it's a very severe clip it doesn't completely guarantee they stay grounded. And a very severe clip carries its own risks, if they can't land gracefully they can get hurt falling. It's enough to give one an anxiety disorder.

So I vote for clipping AND remaining vigilant.

We don't harness Ducky AND I'M NOT ADVOCATING THAT OTHER DO WHAT WE DO, BTW. I raised him from a chick and he's used to traveling since he was 4 weeks old. We haven't found anything that startles him into "flight" mode yet. Not saying that he won't ever get startled into taking flight, but giving the bird tons of socialization experiences helps with the startling flights and makes them more predictable. We do have a carrier at all times and I'm beyond hyper vigilant about noticing his body language and our surroundings. When in doubt, he's in a carrier; if there's even a mild breeze, he's in a carrier. Usually he's in a carrier when we're walking around in public with him unless we're stopped somewhere and I've scoped the surroundings; generally my back is against something so nothing can sneak up behind me and startle him (sounds like spy vs. spy stuff!).

So, those of you who can't get your birds into harness, I think getting the bird out in a carrier is still a wonderful socializing experience for them and something to be considered.

I'm using the carrier method for Merlin to travel and to get him full sun, at least until I can get him to come within 50 feet of me when I have the harness in my hands. He is fine if it is lying there, but freaks out whenever I try to put it on him. I am trying to let his flights grow out, and so far, so good. However, if he starts to be a danger to himself or others, I may need to.... :affraid: clip (there I said it).


.......Hey anybody notice how nice it is to have this conversation without having people trying to tear each other apart, instead using common sense and respect for each other? I could get used to this.

Coldtrance, I am so sorry for your loss. I will continue to hope that Shiva will remember the safety and the love and will return home at some point. Luck to you, for her safe return