Looking for new addition

[CaliCash]

Recently I have thought about adding a new member to our family. Our Eclectus passed away and we have begun looking, nothing pressing that we get a bird at this minute, as I want to make sure it’s the right fit. I’ve read the good bad and the ugly with almost all the breeds of interest and I keep coming back to Macaws. I have a few favorites, but understand the descriptions here and elsewhere are generalized. The Green Wings, Harlequins and Yellow Collared Macaws are at the top of the list. That said, those mini/smaller YCM are crazy hard to find. We are looking into rescues too, and hope we are able to find that new member at a rescue that just so happens to be a bird that’s friendly with our human family members(maybe not all equally, but at least somewhat). Cockatoos where and still are up there, but they just seem to be all over the place and very needy. Our Eclectus was extremely sweet and I had him since he was a baby. He loved me and my wife the most, but definitely was good with our kids, and of course that interaction was supervised, but still he never drew blood, and was easy for us to read. He talked and sang up a storm, but the one thing we decided we wanted in our next bird was one that was more playful, and animated. I enjoyed the size of our Eclectus and would like our next bird to be his size or bigger, hence the large and mini Macaw choice, over the smaller conure type size. Would you all say I’m going in the right direction in terms of birds listed? Is it true the hybrids truly can have the best of each side? Am I asking for a Unicorn of a bird?(friendly, not a one person bird, animated, medium to large size).

 

[T. gillii]

Hey if you're in Cali check out exotic birds by Fran in cypress. They have a yellow collared Mac named chichi

My photo

 

[Fia Baby]

I have both a macaw and a cockatoo, but have never had an eclectus. I think these 2 species will be much more animated and vocal than an eclectus - make sure you have a clear picture of that in your mind. Both of mine can be very demanding. My macaw is even more so than my cockatoo (I have an eleanora and a greenwing, both females). They want to be out, with us, at all times. They can handle being in their cages just fine as well, but given their choice it's always out with us. They can also be very destructive without supervision. My cockatoo is always at her liberty, but my macaw would have the house demolished in a short time. I think macaws are very easy to read, but many people think cockatoos can be unpredictable. My cockatoo is pretty friendly with strangers, especially if they sweet talk her first, but my macaw will not go to strangers until she's good and ready. She can be quite scary to new people. My macaw also startles much more easily and is much more reactive. If I have a new person over I have to be holding her or she'll let out one of her signature alarm calls, and that sound is... upsetting. I love both of mine dearly! As far as getting the "best of both species' - I really think that's just a marketing ploy, but both blue and golds and greenwings have very nice temperaments, so I think a hybrid of these 2 is a safe bet for that reason.

 

[sunnysmom]

Maybe try to go to some rescues and meet some birds? You never know what bird will "click" with you. I said I would never have a cockatoo...... I was wrong.

 

[Zara]

check out exotic birds by Fran in cypress. They have a yellow collared Mac named chichi

:O They named a bird ¨Vagina¨?! (not sure if that will get censored out of the forum)

Maybe try to go to some rescues and meet some birds? You never know what bird will "click" with you.

Great suggestion

Good luck expanding your family Mike

 

[CaliCash]

Thank you everyone!

And that’s hilarious about ChiChi’s name.

We had the chance to get to a hybrid shop(rescue, but also a bird store). Luckily they had an Umbrella, Green wing, Blue and Gold, Military and a Scarlet. It was great to interact with the different birds, The overall generalizations on breeds seemed somewhat accurate, but definitely some differences. Our favorites were the Blue and Gold and the Military. The Cockatoo was actually the owners and not for sale. The military was very calm and gentle, but went to a good home while we were there and the blue and gold went to a home mind after we left. Great to actually see the different birds and play with them. Cockatoos are still an option, but we are leaning towards a Macaw, perhaps a hybrid or BG or Military. Makes me wonder what a Miligold might be like, again, understanding very bird is different. The Scarlet was a one person, woman only type of bird and had a crazy temperament.

I’m not in a major hurry, so thank you all for the replies and information. It’s definitely helping us narrow things down. Going to keep researching and get overviews from more on the Hybrids, like the Miligold that would be a mix of our current two favorites.

 

[OK Mike]

We were actually looking for a Scarlet Macaw when we found Blu. We had looked for rescues but here in Oklahoma they are few and far between. Our Avian vet is very active in the Oklahoma Avicultural Society and he steered us to a bird fair hosted by them. Blu and his day older sister were in the first booth we visited. They are Verde Macaws, crossed between a Buffons and a Scarlet. I had not even considered a hybrid at this time. The sister was already sold and going to her new home in Dallas, TX that day. The breeder got Blu out of his cage and let me interact with him. That was all it took. We bought him, a cage and a play stand on the spot. We waited almost 3 months for him to be weaned off of hand feeding and went to Wichita, KS on a Saturday to pick him up at the breeder's home. He has turned out to be a very gentle and talkative companion. He has definitely bonded to me but allows my wife to handle him if I'm not around.

The day I met Blu:

 

[CaliCash]

We were actually looking for a Scarlet Macaw when we found Blu. We had looked for rescues but here in Oklahoma they are few and far between. Our Avian vet is very active in the Oklahoma Avicultural Society and he steered us to a bird fair hosted by them. Blu and his day older sister were in the first booth we visited. They are Verde Macaws, crossed between a Buffons and a Scarlet. I had not even considered a hybrid at this time. The sister was already sold and going to her new home in Dallas, TX that day. The breeder got Blu out of his cage and let me interact with him. That was all it took. We bought him, a cage and a play stand on the spot. We waited almost 3 months for him to be weaned off of hand feeding and went to Wichita, KS on a Saturday to pick him up at the breeder's home. He has turned out to be a very gentle and talkative companion. He has definitely bonded to me but allows my wife to handle him if I'm not around.

The day I met Blu:
View attachment 301233

Thank you for letting me know your story. Blue looks like an amazing family member and a wonderful surprise for you. I noticed it can be hard in certain areas to find rescues that are close by. We found one that was 5 hours away, but I’m about to relocate for work anyway, so this time is for researching and learning as much as we can and in a few months once we are settled in our new home we will be adding a new feathered family member. Hopefully they’ll be some rescues close by in that area, but for now we are trying to get in front of as many types of birds as possible. The bird fair sounds really cool too and I’m going to keep an eye out for them. We got our Eclectus as a baby and he was dream around our kids, extended family and friends, and I think part of that was from how much we socialized him and perhaps part of his breed traits. Thanks for your reply and sharing that amazing photo of you and Blu! He’s a handsome guy.

 

[EkkieLu]

My ekkie Sergei is still the most gentle, loving, calm, awesome talker who has never even nipped anyone in his whole life playful well socialized bird I have met! How old was your ekkie when he passed?

 

[CaliCash]

My ekkie Sergei is still the most gentle, loving, calm, awesome talker who has never even nipped anyone in his whole life playful well socialized bird I have met! How old was your ekkie when he passed?

That’s pretty much how our Ekkie was. Yours sounds wonderful too! He was six years old. I was told it was a bacterial infection, one day he was fine and the next day he passed. The only odd thing we noticed the day before was that he puffed up a bit the night before and was gone the next morning.

 

[EkkieLu]

Awe. That's heartbreaking. I would be crushed without Sergei. He practically lives on my shoulder.

 

[EkkieLu]

I take him everywhere!