Macaw info

Are you talking about large macaws or minatures? My sister had a minature and he was very cool, but could be very loud and VERY messy. He was very friendly though and liked the attention. Another friend had one at a standard size and only liked women. He could be very agressive though with some people and fine with others. I have another friend that has two large macaws in a very large enclosure. They are about 25 years old and were okay with humans until they reached sexual maturity. At that point they became very agressive to humans and territorial.

All in all, they are very cool but you've a lot of issues to deal with. First they are VERY messy, secondly they need A LOT of attention or you'll have a feather plucker in no time and you'll need to socialize your parrot or you'll have a little monster. Plus they live for quite a long time, you'll need to keep that into consideration.

While I know that seemed quite grim, they are incredible creatures. I personally love african greys. They can be truly rewarding but make sure you know what you are getting into!
 
The best advice i can give is to find somewhere that you can spend time with the species you are interested in. Not all macaw species are the same, they all have different personalities. Blue and golds, hans, and greenwings make the best campanions from my experience.
Make sure you know what you are getting into as well. This is going to be an animal that, if well taken care of, will in all likely hood out live you. They are a big commitment and unlike other animals they are never really tame in the traditional sense. Chances are you will be bit, I have the scars to prove it.
Macaws are awesome animals but they are not the pet for everyone. Get educated and make sure you are sure for your sake and the animals.
 
hey!,
yep so far the info has been pretty spot on
Loud, very loud, messy, very messy
alot like chams in regards to being handled, I would look into a baby, and take the time wiith socializing, just like anything else.

Kind of a rule of thumb, albeit general....
The prettier the bird, the less they talk :p
a grey can have a vocabulary of a 1000 words, a macaw, not so much. Cockatoos have warm gentle hearts but eat all wood in sight!
anne
we used to raise large birds, but it was a long time ago, next door to me is a large bird store/sanctuary. If you need names of books, let me know, I can walk next door and talk to them, cause I forgot most everything I knew!
 
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Thanks all for the information.

Anne, I would love the names of books I could read.. I have the book The Parrot Problem Solver by Barbara Heidenreich, but I want more. I want to be as well educated on them as I can before making a decision to adopt one from the Florida Parrot Rescue. I will attend one or two of their events so I can meet the various species of parrots and various types of macaws. I know that they are not for everyone so I am not just set on having a Macaw; I am also interested in the mini macaws, cockatoos, amazons and african greys. I want a parrot that will fit my lifestyle, and I know that any of those would make me very happy.
 
Well, I would have to say I am very partial to greys. And parrots are definitely not for everyone. Most people don't realize how sensitive these birds are and how long-lived they can be. So glad you will understand what you are getting into! Too bad you are so far away - I'd lend you my grey for a bit as a "test bird." He's 17.

4d11a8c3.jpg

Deb
 
Deb, he is beautiful! I love the fact the greys are one of the more interactive species..that is something I really like about them, but they lack how majestic a Macaw is.. Idk, I have to meet each parrot type in person before making a decision. I have seen a Hahn's macaw before, and they are cute! Couldnt handle it though
 
I think if you are looking into a rescue bird, you will know which one is for you when you see and interact with it. It will be a wonderfully rewarding experience for you! And if you think I can be of any help in the future, please remember to ask!
 
I will most definitely ask for advice. I was told by someone here on the forum that it is best to let the bird choose you, rather than you choose it. Kind of like in Avatar, you'll know.
So far I am doing all the research I can and speaking to the Florida Parrot Rescue for advice. I want to have a happy, healthy parrot :)
 
i will talk to them tomorrow and pm you
Deb, love your Grey!, and another good point... Most people don't realize they have to make arrangements in their will, since they can outlive us if taken good care of :)
anne
 
i was just about to say that anne! one of my grandmas friend had a macaw since she was like 20 years old and she is now somewhere in here 80s i think and the bird is still healthy as he could be and she always makes sure that she goes and updates her will so her daughter will get the bird.
 
SonTigerPantherCham said:
i will talk to them tomorrow and pm you
Deb, love your Grey!, and another good point... Most people don't realize they have to make arrangements in their will, since they can outlive us if taken good care of :)
anne
Click to expand...
Thank you very much Anne! :)
I have taken that into consideration, which is partly why I want to adopt one. From the Florida Parrot Rescue, most birds are over 15 years old (Macaws) so that would mean I'd be the only owner. But yes, I would have to put him/her in my will.. kind of weird to think about that, me only being 20 lol

danibug23 said:
i was just about to say that anne! one of my grandmas friend had a macaw since she was like 20 years old and she is now somewhere in here 80s i think and the bird is still healthy as he could be and she always makes sure that she goes and updates her will so her daughter will get the bird.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the help Dani :)
 
I've actually trained macaws and treated macaw health issues for years. I'm suprised to see a thread about them on this forum! Haha. I could write you a whole book about them but i'll try to make it practical for a forum post..

It varies upon species but most macaws, if they are in the correct health conditions, live about 50-80 years. There have been reports of up to 90-100 years but those are quite rare, as with humans that live around 110 years in rarity. They are by far the most intelligent animals i have ever witnessed.. at least as far as is detectable by us (it's difficult with many animals when we don't speak the same language :p)

My macaws know 8 colors, 24 objects, 6 physical tricks, 45 receptive word-concepts, count to 6 so far, and can get a peanut out of a gladware box in 4 or 5 seconds. Haha. They learn quicker than any other animal i've tried to teach stuff to. They are also very interesting, you can get lost watching them for hours with their behaviors just interacting with stuff.

This is all great and every thing, right? Sure! But they are insane! :D No joke though. Macaws have been recorded often to self-mutilate if you dont give them extensive attention and "stimulation" each day. If they are cooped up in a cage more than 6 hours a day (when they aren't sleeping) they will get angry and attack you in punishment for it. Not all but most. Most that have not been abused, unlike chameleons, do want to be on you and do want attention and handling. A macaw that is not attended to many hours a day will likely slam its head up against the cage and pluck all its feathers out until it is near-death. It is unfortunate but you can't just lock an intelligent creature in a tiny jail its whole life, ya know.

Also as curious as they are, they want to explore every thing. And.. they don't have hands. So.. they explore with their beak. That means, they can't be in the cage all day.. but if they roam around your house freely all day, they will eat the walls up (mine have done that) crack tv's (mine have done that) snap keyboards (2 of them), etc. Haha.

Any way, they are very interesting, but some thing like a macaw should only be considered if you have huge amounts of free time and can dedicate it to them.


Example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4WxJJqk3S4

I had some errands to run this morning/this evening so i couldn't take them out and exercise them like I usually do. This is how much energy they have stored up..
 
CunningMoss said:
I've actually trained macaws and treated macaw health issues for years. I'm suprised to see a thread about them on this forum! Haha. I could write you a whole book about them but i'll try to make it practical for a forum post..

It varies upon species but most macaws, if they are in the correct health conditions, live about 50-80 years. There have been reports of up to 90-100 years but those are quite rare, as with humans that live around 110 years in rarity. They are by far the most intelligent animals i have ever witnessed.. at least as far as is detectable by us (it's difficult with many animals when we don't speak the same language :p)

My macaws know 8 colors, 24 objects, 6 physical tricks, 45 receptive word-concepts, count to 6 so far, and can get a peanut out of a gladware box in 4 or 5 seconds. Haha. They learn quicker than any other animal i've tried to teach stuff to. They are also very interesting, you can get lost watching them for hours with their behaviors just interacting with stuff.

This is all great and every thing, right? Sure! But they are insane! :D No joke though. Macaws have been recorded often to self-mutilate if you dont give them extensive attention and "stimulation" each day. If they are cooped up in a cage more than 6 hours a day (when they aren't sleeping) they will get angry and attack you in punishment for it. Not all but most. Most that have not been abused, unlike chameleons, do want to be on you and do want attention and handling. A macaw that is not attended to many hours a day will likely slam its head up against the cage and pluck all its feathers out until it is near-death. It is unfortunate but you can't just lock an intelligent creature in a tiny jail its whole life, ya know.

Also as curious as they are, they want to explore every thing. And.. they don't have hands. So.. they explore with their beak. That means, they can't be in the cage all day.. but if they roam around your house freely all day, they will eat the walls up (mine have done that) crack tv's (mine have done that) snap keyboards (2 of them), etc. Haha.

Any way, they are very interesting, but some thing like a macaw should only be considered if you have huge amounts of free time and can dedicate it to them.


Example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4WxJJqk3S4

I had some errands to run this morning/this evening so i couldn't take them out and exercise them like I usually do. This is how much energy they have stored up..
Click to expand...

That is a lot of good info! Thank you.

I am also intrigued by African Greys.. Do you have any info on them?
 
I don't work with them much, so not explicitly, but from a few anecdotal observations I would say that they have a less severe "insanity factor" (the insanity factor is interesting but tedious to deal with, :D ) along with less energy, and their beaks are much weaker so that limits what they can destroy. I'm not sure if they are more or less intelligent than macaws but they are definitely in the top 5 for birds. And maybe top 10 or so intelligence for all animals (irene pepperburgs research).

I'm not certain if they still have strong emotions like macaws that would try to punish you if you didn't give them attention all day, haha, but if you really want an intelligent and interesting parrot but you don't have the resources and time you need to dedicate to macaws, I would propose a stronger reccommendation to the african grey.

If you are also interested in them "talking", i can give some info on that too. African greys can, and often do, mimic english very well. Most of them don't mimic english until 1-2 years old though. Macaws CAN mimic english extremely well.. but oddly enough I find that they do not care much to try. Of course macaws can mimic english and there are plenty videos showing them doing so, but most of them that I have observed do not care as much about mimicking english. I can't explain why. Haha. But that doesn't mean they aren't vocal.. they are more vocal with their own language.

Example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xuq72wADpg0
 
I went to the sanctuary today and she helped a little but not much. She told me about 2 books, oddly birds for dummies is one. She said it had alot of useful daily info on macaws. The other was a smaller book just titled "Macaws".
They did have a Hyacinth macaw there which i thought unusual.
I can continue the hunt if you like :)
Anne
 
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SonTigerPantherCham said:
I went to the sanctuary today and she helped a little but not much. She told me about 2 books, oddly birds for dummies is one. She said it had alot of useful daily info on macaws. The other was a smaller book just titled "Macaws".
They did have a Hyacinth macaw there which i thought unusual.
I can continue the hunt if you like :)
Anne
Click to expand...

Thank you very much Anne! I will go to a bookstore and get the books and hopefully find something else interesting.

Do you have any info on African Greys?
 
I have had macaws, cockatoos, conures and greys.
I know greys arent the most colorful but i really like them. Cockatoos are the absolute clowns of birds imo. Can be very cuddly and silly and talkative. But they all require ALOT of room and attention.
 
I am trying to decide between a macaw and a grey since both seem to be what I want. I think the grey is a great choice as well because they are smaller than macaws.

Anybody in So. Florida have any of these that I can meet?
 
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