I am fostering a macaw that was taken from a hoarding situation. The prior owner lived the bird but didn’t give him much of a varied diet. The cage was filthy and devoid of anything except 2 perches. My experience has been in smaller birds (I current have a conure, 2 quakers, 18 finches, 2 parakeets & 5 java sparrows) In the 6 days I’ve had him, he’s been eating lots of everything I give him - my birds get a lot of variety.

He’s a gorgeous bird but he looks raggedy. I know his diet was bad and that affected his skin and feathers. Other than improving his diet and adding some extra supplements (I use The Missing Link Avian Color and Shine for all my birds) is there anything I can do to help get him back to normal? I didn’t want to freak him out right away so I haven’t given him a spritz shower yet but he’s loosening up so I am going to see if he will tolerate it when I give the other birds their Sunday baths.

I have an appointment with an avian vet in 2 weeks to get everything else checked out.

His owner named him Big Bird but here his name is morphing into BB, Big Boy, Biggie, Big Butthead. I

Hey everyone! I am planning on doing some upgrades to my bird room. I’m in the design stage of building walk in, indoor enclosures for my rescue macaws (hyacinth and Honduran scarlet). Both of them have some handicaps so I want to build something custom to help them navigate and give them more space than their current cages have.

I have been around macaws my entire life so I know how destructive they can be. As it currently stands, I am planning to build it mainly out of untreated 2x4/plywood and tile it for easy cleaning/bird proofing. I am also going to include plexiglass windows and a wire roof/doors for ventilation. Does anyone have experience building enclosures out of similar materials? If so, I’d love to hear your experience and see photos for inspiration.

First off, I'm not a Macaw owner. I've had some experience with parrots, but I've never owned one myself.

So my question is about behavior. Recently I went to my car dealer for routine maintenance and was just hanging out. The dealer has brought in his two parrots and they now live in the dealership in a large habitat roped off from customers. One macaw is clipped so he sticks around the habitat, the other flies and likes to explore the building.

So right after we got there and were killing time, this parrot plops down on my shoulder. Like I said, I've had some experience and animals don't freak me out, so I just let him chill and walked around and he was happy to go along for the ride. (He is apparently a glasses thief and kept mouthing mine, but I'd take them off before he got too frisky.) I talked to him gently and just let him be, and after a while he got bored and took off to cause trouble elsewhere. But he kept coming back, and landed on me several more times. (My husband who was with me got a visit from him once, but he didn't seem all that interested in him and flew off after a bit.)

So after I looked at cars I was sitting in the dealership, and this parrot landed on me again. I told him hello, and he leaned down and revealed a hazelnut in his beak. He showed it off for a second, then dropped it in my lap. I tried to give it back to him but he refused.

Was this a gift? Was this a catlike "Here, I brought you a dead mouse, friend!" thing? I'd like to think it is, because apparently this guy really liked me. :) Not being a Macaw owner I'm not super familar with their behaviors.

Thanks!

Hello macaw parronts, I am a prospective bird owner, who has been doing research for 2+ years. I have visited birds and taken care of them but I have never had a hands-on expierence with anything bigger than a green cheek conure.

GCCs are what i have been looking at due to their disposition and availability. However, recently i have been looking at macaws. Specifically greenwings. I have heard about them being mellow, and they are quite beautiful and seem like very good family members.

I have been paying careful attention to diet, attention-needs, space, toys, price, and training during my research. So no need to ask me too much about those qualifications.

But other than that, what are your thoughts? I have never owned a bird but I am sure that I know what i am getting into. Would you still discourage it?

Thanks!

Hey everyone, I recently took on the challenge of rehoming a 20-year-old Severe Macaw named Django. For the last 8 years, he’s lived with just one woman, but she was struggling to care for him due to her age, so I decided to step in.

However, I’m finding it really tough to build his trust. Some days are better than others—he’ll take treats from my hands and even climb onto me for food—but when I’m moving around him or reach into his cage to refill his water/food, he gets scared and becomes very defensive. He shows the same behavior outside the cage too, being wary of me unless I’ve got a treat to offer.

I’m looking for advice on how to help him feel more comfortable and secure. The bites are painful, and I just want him to feel safe and start trusting me. Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

What do you feed your macaw? I’ve had Ozzy, a military macaw, for about 8 years. We’ve never had a problem getting him to eat anything, but lately it has been more of a struggle to get food for him. We’ve been feeding Brown’s Tropical Carnival Macaw Big Bites. It’s just getting so that it’s not always in stock nearby when I need to get more.

Anything similar, or better, that you would recommend for him? If it were up to him I would just fix him a plate of every meal I eat.

Hi everyone this is our new female macaw we got 3 days ago.. she is exactly 4 months old today, weights 750g… I offered her every possible food… she picks up everything but spits it up every time even nuts… I’m weighing her every time I’m trying to feed her she had 740g yesterday I forced her to eat nutribird A19 yesterday but she is spitting it today again.. she managed to eat only 20g.. her poop looks normal.. what else can I do???

Came from some stressful homes, let’s reverse those self destructive behaviors with love and zero stress!

Hi all!

Looking for some advice. We were looking to get an electric griddle, but I see they're all nonstick. Does anyone have any recommendations for bird safe electric griddles? Thanks!

Georgie for tax

Hello, fist time owner here, i am a young zookeeper that's in love with birds, (mostly parrots) i've made a lot of research on parrot and even get a formation with a long time owner that have a looot of parrots to be ready to take care of one

I found a 9yo blue and gold to be rehomed and really liked him right away. (He wasnt suppose to be a rescue like didnt seems to have any other prob than not beeing able to fly, i went to visit him in his previous home and seems to be an "easy bird" (good with people and children, not so shy with new people, previous owner could put him in his back... )

I have him for a bit more than 1 week, (yes pretty new) and he is a very good bird, but seems to have some mental issues, (dont know if its because of the rehoming or solething else) and seems to not like when we get a hand close to him (i think his previous owner didnt let him a lot a choices in their interactions)

I know it will take time to get us use to each others, but we have one issue

It's not the fact that he scream a lot that is bothering me, cause (even tho his previous owner told me he is a quiet bird), i knew macaws are loud and very talkative. It doesnt bother me when he scream during the day (he did a lot for the first days but he is more calm now) it's the fact that he screams a lot in he evening. Like, a lot.

And i don't understand why is that. My mom says he is like a child that is anxious about the night, could it be ? If not, what else can it be ? Does your macaw does the same ?

And most of all, what can i do to reduce it ? I dont want to isolate him before puting him in bed, but maybe i will have no choices ?

I dont know why he screams, he have food, toys, and we are near him.

I think it may be because he is frustated of not being able to fly (he didnt have space in his previous home. So he can still learn, i'll try to teach him. For now, when he is in position to take flight, he can't do it and end up hiting his own wings with his beak) or juste because he didnt do a lot during the day and is not exhausted enough ?

Also he preen a lot, i've never see a bird preen so much, he hold his tail when he does so his tail feather are a bit ugly.

And he dont have an other macaw friend yet, but i plan to adopt another macaw, but not before having a good bond with him, he lived alone for all his life so it can be hard to introduce another one. But he have a dog friend. His previous owner had a dog and i have one too, and i feel he like the dog compagny.

Thank for reading me i know it was a bit long (and english is not my first language so i might have done some mistake)

(He have a big cage (1m/1m/1.80m) and love to be on top of it )

If you have any tips on what i can do to reduce it, or if you live the same thing with your own, i would mive to read you. Thanks again and have a good day

Thanks for allowing me to post, have a great day!

Just curious, how often and at what does your blue and gold (or other macaw) hiss at?

My B&G, Annabel, will hiss at existing, and also if she’s on me and I breathe, she’s very specific about her environment. Lololol

Why are Hahns Macaws so aggressive sometimes and then sometimes can be nice? Been bitten a few times by my girlfriend’s Hahns Macaw and then sometimes he’s just chill.

(Answered!) Hi, I've been invested in birds since i was 13 years old (im 21) and ive been researching and engaging with all sorts of media and research surrounding birds. One pattern i have noticed is that people with macaws will vehemently swear that owning them is a nightmare and to please not do it. but then i see posts and videos and read stories of people being so so happy with their macaws. i even met a stranger on accident who was walking her macaw and the macaw, although young, looked incredibly healthy.

i guess im just a bit confused.

im being told by every source imaginable to please dont adopt. but then those very same sources will show that it is possible to own a macaw and have both parties be happy. is there something i am missing here? i know that media can be filtered, and they are not showing us everything that goes on. but if thats the case, why are the birds still healthy and why wouldnt you show the more realistic side of things if you were trying to sway people away from them? and also, wouldnt it be better to adopt a macaw in need than have it be put down or rehomed to someone who has no idea what they are doing?

can someone who owns a healthy, happy macaw please explain to me the reality of this?

(Answered! but feel free to keep sharing and add pictures. i just might not respond asap)

Hey!

So, I just started a birdsitting job for the next week. I'm a few days in, and I have been following the owner's instructions.

Issue is, nothing on their list checks out?

Most of their list requires telling the macaw what to do (Blue and Gold one, to be specific). Issue is, it doesn't seem to listen at all, doesn't even respond. It just repeats the command and dances. It took 6 hours to get it in its cage to go to bed last night, and when I texted the owners for help, I got no response.

Doesn't help that the house is a zoo. They have 4 guinea pigs, 8 fish, 8 frogs, a golden retriever, a springer spaniel, and the macaw. None of the animals get along and I can't figure out how they even got this far. Some of these animals weren't even on the list they gave me.

Anyways, I've been doing my best to keep them all entertained and happy, especially the macaw. It's been keeping me up at night in spite of my best efforts. It will wait for me to be in the room and then it will begin screaming. I've been trying to reinforce being quiet by leaving and not giving it attention when it screams, but nothing is working. I give it as much out of cage time as I safely can (8-10 hours a day, 6 on the lower end). I talk to it. I feed it periodically, and I keep it stimulated. I don't know what I'm doing wrong.

I have 5 days left on the job and I don't know how much more I can handle. I'm gonna keep doing the job, don't worry, but it will involve a lot of screaming into a pillow. I have ASD and the screaming (Not just a few times a day like normally, I've cared for macaws before. This one is near constant, especially its distress call because it's apparently afraid of certain smells) is a sensory hell. I have earplugs and noise cancelling headphones, and I can handle a few screams like a normal macaw does, but this is constant, and it always waits until I'm right there. It's worse when I'm not in the room with it.

I know why they struggled to find a sitter now. I feel bad asking for help, but they won't respond and this is the best I can do.

I just need some advice here. Thanks!

Is this a tiny mutation? (6 month old macaw)