UPDATE

[Crazy4parrots]

So I was chosen to teach a Macaw what i teached Baylee by an organization who just rescued it.. Its an amazing opportunity i’ll try my best but i will given 3 months to make it possible and work only once a week with it I think its too little time... but still i need advice also I still don’t know what type of macaw it is...haven’t met it yet... but i want tips on what to do and what NOT to do... they sadly dont take into account the fact that Baylee have been 7 years with me and in that time we have built strong bond... And they think that 3 months its enough to teach it...

 

[sunnysmom]

Once a week doesn't seem like a lot of time to work with him. Will they let you work with him more often?

 

[Crazy4parrots]

Its a green wing macaw and my teacher said i'll have to train an specific person to work with him during the week while im not there... it will be once a week....also i was told i have to reset its cage and make it better for him to live in it and gives the proper instructions to its caregiver about what he needs to eat... types of toys...etc.

 

[Crazy4parrots]

I have to make his life better... some tips about how to do that for a green wing macaw? Anyone? I was worried that it wasnt enough time.. so i told my teacher my thoughts and she said i only have to improve his enviroment, change his diet... tell its caregiver whats the right diet....

 

[Crazy4parrots]

Can anyone tell me tips? About Green Wing macaw!!

 

[Crazy4parrots]

So my fiancé he wants to adopt a macaw as you know and since im going to help one he told me maybe the destiny wants us to adopt this one i told him maybe destiny only wants us to just learn what to do and what not to do...

 

[Macawnutz]

It's hard to give tips when we don't know the current situation. What is his environment like now? What is he eating now?

 

[Crazy4parrots]

He/she is in a small cage i was told it is a green wing but the picture i saw it looks like an hybrid of a red scarlet macaw (in my country we call it tricolored macaw) with a green wing macaw... it have the colors of a red scarlet macaw but also the green from the green wing macaw... his/her diet is sunflower seeds :/ and its alone on weekends because they don’t open on weekends... cage is round shaped...too.. i don’t have a proper cage for a macaw right now but I think i can offer it better diet , quality time on weekends and weekdays, my situation is better than what he/she have there... he/she is surrounded by dogs because its a Rescue Dog/Cat center they are used to have dogs and cats but not birds usually birds get freed “because they belong to nature “ this one was going to suffer the same fate when they confiscated it... but the new director asked my teacher what she should do because she read once that they can die if freed.. so my teacher told them im going to send you a student that have bird knowledge and can help you to make the macaw life better. I just found this macaw hybrid page! Macaws - Hybrids page Very interesting!

 

[Shinobi]

What is the birds history?
did it come from a good and loving home or from a abusive and neglect home.
was the bird an indoor or aviary bird?
Does the bird bite or is hand tamed?
Was the bird well socialised?
Was the bird fed well?

The treatment of an animal determines how it will react to a new environment. If a bird has been treated badly in it's prior home, then it will most likely be highly stressed and scared when placed in it's new environment. This will make the bird hard to handle. A large amount of time will be required to interact with the bird to gain it's trust.

However If the bird has been treated well in it's prior home, it will still most likely be stressed and scared when placed in it's new environment and the bird could still be hard to handle. But the bird should respond to interaction quicker.

 

[Crazy4parrots]

I already said it was confiscated by the National Guard...

What is the birds history?
did it come from a good and loving home or from a abusive and neglect home.
was the bird an indoor or aviary bird?
Does the bird bite or is hand tamed?
Was the bird well socialised?
Was the bird fed well?

The treatment of an animal determines how it will react to a new environment. If a bird has been treated badly in it's prior home, then it will most likely be highly stressed and scared when placed in it's new environment. This will make the bird hard to handle. A large amount of time will be required to interact with the bird to gain it's trust.

However If the bird has been treated well in it's prior home, it will still most likely be stressed and scared when placed in it's new environment and the bird could still be hard to handle. But the bird should respond to interaction quicker.

I doubt it was well fed people in my country don’t have the mentality that birds need fruits, veggies and seeds they think that only canaries eat seeds mainly they think all birds are like that... ie Sammy’s owner spend 2 lbs of seeds in 8 days. Because she thought it was better because she didnt had to prepare anything. And thats the 90% of how people here think
thanks to forums like this one and articles i have read i learned way back in 2012 what was the best diet for birds.. most people let themselves be guide by sellers in pet stores and many sellers doesn’t even know what/why they are selling something...
Most people that have macaws here in my country they leave them on the backyard in a cage never let them out...actually it is like this with all birds... many people are afraid of Baylee’s beak bite a 9 yo little girl that came to my house once told me “aww your bird is soo cute i want one but only to keep it in its cage and watch it all day”
They saddly dont ask questions when confiscating an animal especially if its a symbolic animal like the red scarlet but they dont know the difference between an hybrid and a pure one! :/ they get surprised that i take Baylee to the vet and said that i’m crazy lol oh and they think her cage is big cause they keep their birds in carrier sized cages... when i bought Baylee’s cage i was asked “are you going to put 10 lovebirds in it” i said “no, only one” the guy said “what a waste of space” thats what they do here buy a bigger cage only to put more birds in it!!

 

[Crazy4parrots]

@Macawnutz @Hankmacaw @macawpower58

 

[macawpower58]

I was going to answer, but at first thought better of it as I didn't want to scare you.

But...since you've tagged me.

As for food, I'm guessing human stuff that is easy to acquire is the best idea, especially if you want the present owners to continue. Pellets and special diets are well and good, but only if available and the owners want to go the extra mile (for the birds life). Nuts, fruits, veggies, beans, veggie based pasta, greens, etc...can be a healthy diet if given a wide variety. Home made corn bread with other veggies cooked in is often liked quite well. Some seeds are fine, but they're like chips.... treats, not a meal.

I'm not sure what you are supposed to be teaching him (remind me what you taught Bailey).

First, you have not realistically been given enough time. Will they allow longer, and more interaction? Hopefully this bird is longing for interaction, but don't bet on it.
Second, trust. You first must earn trust, or at least toleration. Can the bird fly? And if so, when out of the cage will he be in a safe environment? Or is this all 'in cage' work?

I'd actually go slowly and allow the bird to dictate what needs done. You may end up not teaching him a thing, but if you can better his life, and make his caregivers realize he's a thinking, emotional being, you'll accomplish much.

Once you give a few more facts, more advice can be given. Until we all understand the birds area, and level of trust, it is going to be hard to advise you.

 

[Shinobi]

I already said it was confiscated by the National Guard...

I doubt it was well fed people in my country don’t have the mentality that birds need fruits, veggies and seeds they think that only canaries eat seeds mainly they think all birds are like that... ie Sammy’s owner spend 2 lbs of seeds in 8 days. Because she thought it was better because she didnt had to prepare anything. And thats the 90% of how people here think
thanks to forums like this one and articles i have read i learned way back in 2012 what was the best diet for birds.. most people let themselves be guide by sellers in pet stores and many sellers doesn’t even know what/why they are selling something...
Most people that have macaws here in my country they leave them on the backyard in a cage never let them out...actually it is like this with all birds... many people are afraid of Baylee’s beak bite a 9 yo little girl that came to my house once told me “aww your bird is soo cute i want one but only to keep it in its cage and watch it all day”
They saddly dont ask questions when confiscating an animal especially if its a symbolic animal like the red scarlet but they dont know the difference between an hybrid and a pure one! :/ they get surprised that i take Baylee to the vet and said that i’m crazy lol oh and they think her cage is big cause they keep their birds in carrier sized cages... when i bought Baylee’s cage i was asked “are you going to put 10 lovebirds in it” i said “no, only one” the guy said “what a waste of space” thats what they do here buy a bigger cage only to put more birds in it!!

I didn't ask who confiscated the bird or the mentality of the people of your country and no where on this thread did you mention the National Guard. The only country I could find that has a place called Parrotdise is in Hawaii. This one of those times when I would like to say what I'm thinking, But the rules say otherwise.

 

[macawpower58]

I think 'Parrotdise' is just a play on words. As living in paradise, parrot style.

 

[Crazy4parrots]

I think 'Parrotdise' is just a play on words. As living in paradise, parrot style.

That’s correct!

 

[Crazy4parrots]

I didn't ask who confiscated the bird or the mentality of the people of your country and no where on this thread did you mention the National Guard. The only country I could find that has a place called Parrotdise is in Hawaii. This one of those times when I would like to say what I'm thinking, But the rules say otherwise.

I live in Venezuela... and the National Guard here dont ask anything so the people that have the macaw right now don’t know nothing about the bird’s past...

 

[Crazy4parrots]

I was going to answer, but at first thought better of it as I didn't want to scare you.

But...since you've tagged me.

As for food, I'm guessing human stuff that is easy to acquire is the best idea, especially if you want the present owners to continue. Pellets and special diets are well and good, but only if available and the owners want to go the extra mile (for the birds life). Nuts, fruits, veggies, beans, veggie based pasta, greens, etc...can be a healthy diet if given a wide variety. Home made corn bread with other veggies cooked in is often liked quite well. Some seeds are fine, but they're like chips.... treats, not a meal.

I'm not sure what you are supposed to be teaching him (remind me what you taught Bailey).

First, you have not realistically been given enough time. Will they allow longer, and more interaction? Hopefully this bird is longing for interaction, but don't bet on it.
Second, trust. You first must earn trust, or at least toleration. Can the bird fly? And if so, when out of the cage will he be in a safe environment? Or is this all 'in cage' work?

I'd actually go slowly and allow the bird to dictate what needs done. You may end up not teaching him a thing, but if you can better his life, and make his caregivers realize he's a thinking, emotional being, you'll accomplish much.

Once you give a few more facts, more advice can be given. Until we all understand the birds area, and level of trust, it is going to be hard to advise you.

I will have to work with him/her in 1 month *sigh* going 1x per week i wish they let me more time but apparently nope... I was told at first 3 months but they think 1 month is more than enough ( they don’t know anything about birds, they told my teacher that if they are smart then he/she should learn fast like a dog)... I taught Baylee to work as a Therapy Bird with people that have disabilities... i have taught her written words, written #s from 1-10, a few written names... all in all she so far knows 43 words (36 words and 7 names) she also ID Geometric Figures (3), the 3 primary colors... Thats what I taught her in 3 months BUT it was thanks to the fact that i have her since 7 years ago and she trust me! They are fascinated by my work with Baylee and they want me to do the same with the macaw...
With the macaw its a different story I haven’t built a trust with it... and be it 1 month or 3 months its too little time for that.
Just today i was told the fact that it was toweled just to get it in the cage where it is right now...that tells me its not tamed.

 

[Crazy4parrots]

what type of human stuff? @macawpower58 don’t worry the info you’re giving me I will use it to improve this macaw’s life and to future reference for the macaw that my fiancé wants (if its not this one) if it depended on him he would go for a Hy but i told him no thats too big!

 

[macawpower58]

Human stuff as in healthy food you'd eat. Not specifically for parrots.

Toweling does not mean he hasn't been handled. It could just mean he is frightened and mistrustful of the person handling him. Most birds will fight if stuffed in a cage they do not know.
I really hope you'll connect with this bird, it's just too soon to tell.

One thing to remember is bribery. It can work wonders with recalcitrant birds. On first meeting takes different treats with you. Become a treat machine.
Take nuts, some fruit, maybe cheerios, etc... If you can find that one thing he loves, you've got a start.

If he won't take it from you, if he throws it on the ground, then just drop a small treat in his dish and step back. Eat some in front of him showing him how wonderful it is.

Let us know how the first day goes.

Oh, and take your phone, find some good songs with a rapid beat and good rhythm. Most birds love to sing and dance.
You never know what he'll connect with. Of course you singing and dancing in front of him may make everyone think you're cuckoo!
My birds like that song about putting a ring on it. Gangum style is another they dance too.

 

[Crazy4parrots]

So i saw her today! Its a Green Wing macaw! It was confiscated because previous owner broke her left wing so that she couldnt fly.... indeed she doesnt fly and she has had that fracture for at least 20 years... she doesnt pluck which is good. We dont know how old she is she was at least 20 years with previous owner before that she belonged to the previous owner's mom so at least 30-40 years old... she already created a bond with the person in charge in fact she let this person pet her beak, head, feet and wings but when this person is there she doesnt let anyone near her and she lunges... but she is a total love with everyone when the person is not there.