The Part That's Not Easy

The worst part of raising any kind of animal is when you loose one. Yesterday I came home after being out of town for a couple days for business to find my best hen (Lucia) hanging from the aviary netting.

She must have been spooked by something and got her foot caught in the netting and was unable to get free. Her 3 remaining chicks are in a brooder and hopefully one or more will be a hen.

Guess my lesson here is to consider lights in the aviary (to discourage predators) and make sure that all birds have their flight feathers clipped. I've not done that recently and they are getting a little too much lift. If you've not done this it's very easy.

Flight feathers will grow back so you have to do it a couple times a year. On India Blue's they are the longer brown wing feathers. Be sure to only clip one side. The goal it to keep them off balance so they don't have a lot of lift. If you clip both sides they will learn to "flap harder" and not be discouraged to fly.

Of course DO NOT clip your free rangers. They need to fly.