A parrot named Wei Wei was injured after repeatedly falling to the grounds due to its wings being cut off.
But, thanks to this amazing 31-year-old veterinarian, the bird now has a second chance of doing what it knows best- soaring up high in the sky.
The 12-week-old green-cheeked parakeet Wei Wei has been given the chance to fly again with these prosthetic wings.
The vets from the Unusual Pet Vets located in Brisbane, Australia fitted the bird with new pair of feathers and within hours, it was happy and flying up in the air.
According to veterinarian Catherine Apuli who performed the procedure, the serious wing cutting has agonized the bird and made it unable to fly without crashing down.
Amazing Vets Saved the Parrot by Making Him Prosthetic Wings
Dr. Apuli made the bird prosthetic wings from feathers that were donated to the clinic and were also cleaned, sterilized, and dried.
According to Apuli, the primary flight feathers which are the big feathers at the end of the wings have been traumatized. This can lead to pain, bleeding, aggressive behavior, and self-induced feather plucking.
The procedure was necessary to avert further physical injury and to help the bird regain its flying ability for its optimal physical and mental health.
It was done by cutting off the base of the feather to allow the placement of a wooden toothpick where it’s stuck in place using glue.
Wei Wei was done given a light anesthetic to make sure it stayed calm while placing the feathers properly.
Then, the bird was placed in the heated room for several hours and then encouraged to fly. After several tries, Wei Wei was up and flying and happy to be able to do it again!
The Controversy Surrounding Bird Wing Clipping
Wing clipping is often done by bird owners to restrict the bird’s flying and to protect the ones kept indoors from injuring themselves on ceiling fans or by crashing into windows.
But, this is a quite controversial practice and experts explain that there’s no scientific data showing that the birds with clipped wings are safer than those whose wings aren’t.
Unfortunately, in Wei Wei’s case, the feathers have been cut too short and a lot of them have been trimmed.
Consequently, the bird had heavy falls to the ground.
Sources:
