DEFLIGHTING TECHNIQUES IN BIRDS

Deflighting

          Deflighting in birds is done to prevent the escape of captive birds/pet birds from the aviary. This will makes the bird completely fails to fly/ temporarily, so that we can prevent the escape of pet birds from our supervision.

Deflighting can be done by 2 methods:

1. Temporary arrest
2. Permanent arrest

TEMPORARY ARREST:

            Temporary method of arresting one bird's flighting nature by some materials which are available with our hand. By arresting one wing, so that the bird cannot be able to balance.

1. Brailing- brails are nothing but a piece of tiny ropes of clothes/ stainless steel foil used to cover the bird's wing. This is one of the method of temporary flight restrain, by which one wing is tapped over the body for a period of 1 week. So that the bird lost its balance to flight. By this way we can control the escape of bird from aviaries. For long period restraining we can change the brail from one side to the other wing.
 

   

  

properly fitting a brail & radiograph of brailed wing

use of cloth brail to tie

    2. Wing clipping/feather clipping- feather clipping is a pain less procedure, where the feathers which are responsible for birds to fly is cut off (primary feathers 10-12). Both the wings are evenly cutted, even a small height variation may cause great catastrophic damage to the bird.

cutting out primary feathers

PERMANENT ARREST:

           By doing some operations, we can prevent the birds from flighting permanently.

Pinioning- Removal of all or a portion of the wing below the wrist.

removal of portion of a wing

• Wing amputation- wing amputation is a permanent & irreversible method of deflight in birds, by this method end of the wing is amputated. carpal or metacarpal bone is cutted.



amputation in different kind of birds

• Tenotomy- Severing the extensors of wing. We can use thermocautery instrument to sever the tendon. By the application of local anaesthetics and ethyl chloride to freeze the skin surface.



wing extension property is reduced in tenotomized bird

• Tenectomy- Removal of a portion of the extensors of wing.
•  

  

  olden day removal of tendon in swans

• Patagiectomy- Removal of the patagial membrane at the position of radius and humerus bone. Care must be taken while removal of patagial membrane, because there will be more nerve & blood supply to that area.
• Joint ankylosis- Making some holes in the distal extremity of ulna, carpal and meta carpel bone with the help of stainless wire & tied together to avoid the bird from flying.