How do you know when the pigeon is healed?

[Brooke]

I found my pigeon, Raven, with a broken wing. It has been set for about two weeks and it seems to be healing really well. She can lift it and hold it to her side now, though it looks a little stiff compared to the other wing. I would like her to continue wearing the bandage but she won't. She keeps taking it off, and goes crazy if it's on. Do you think that it has healed enough to let her keep off the bandage and in a bird cage so not to fly and use the wing? I kept it off today and kept her in her cage, so not to move the wing very much. Please let me know how you can tell when a wing has healed. Thanks.

[fred128]

Brooke,
A broken bone takes about three weeks to mend so losing the bandage at two weeks is a bit too premature. However, if she keeps taking the dressing off, it isn't doing much good anyway so unless you can put it back on so that it stays on, you might as well leave it off. This is going to take time. If she can fly, it won't be for a while. She's going to need a lot of time to rebuild muscle strength. The wing is stiff because there has been a lack of use. If you intend to release, please make sure that when that time comes, she can not only fly straight but has lift. If not, she's not going to be releasable.