To be honest, "cartoon birds use their wings as hands to various degrees" is just one of those things you gotta get used to.
That would be dumb and awkward for completely different reasons, namely that their wings don't make any goddamn sense. It's not a coincidence they're in the "flying Pokemon whose 3D models just sort of hang in midair" club.Just imagine Salamence or Skarmory trying to do that stupid salute with its wings, that's how dumb and awkward it is.