Lay it one me. **Sad Update**

[MILITARYMACAW]

Hello everyone. I'm Brian and I've adopted a young female Military Macaw. Her name is Sister. I joined Avian Avenue as an additional resource for learning about Macaws and development of parenting/ownership skills. Facts are below. Any feedback regarding foods, toys, supplies, etc. would be greatly appreciated.

DOB: 4/28/18

What I received.
DIY toys *all metal appeared stainless steel except one washer was galvanized. I discarded them all after discovering as a precaution.
Zupreem FruitBlend Flavor (for parrots and Conures)
Browns Tropical Carnival Small Hook bills
*Previous owner told me to wait until she was larger to buy the kind produced for Macaws. He said she would have difficulty eating the "blends" intended for her kind until she gets older.
He was also feeding her frozen vegetables. Corns pees and carrots.

She seems to prefer the pellets over the seed and nut mix, which I understand to be a better choice. I bought broccoli, squash, zucchini, green beans, and carrots from the produce section. The carrots were the most popular. I've read that I should continue to serve carrots, but to reduce the quantity to encourage the other vegetables.

He has never taken her to a veterinarian before. Through word of mouth and phone calls made, I have chosen one, and was able to get in this Saturday.

She is eating, but i am not sure how much. I saw her drink water today (had her two days). I have been giving her distilled water each morning after washing the bowls. I guess i should say replacing the old water with new. Water and food are available at all times. I have also been removing all the food and replacing it with new each morning.

Is any of this overboard or not enough?

How often should I offer the opportunity for her to bathe? I assume it should never be forced only offered?

Also, any tips on how to make the transition better for her would be helpful. Should I being spending extra time with her or should I give her more time to herself as she acclimates to the new environment?

 

[Shezbug]

Welcome to the Avenue Oh, I would really love to see pictures of your macaw and so would the others so just a heads up that you will be expected to share at least a couple pics of your treasure

 

[Shezbug]

I really hope you did not throw out your stainless steel toys as you will be able to find out which ones are definitely SS and which ones are not. SS toys are brilliant
The pellets are a much better option (health wise) for the birds. I would continue to serve the carrots and put some extra things for your bird to try, I cut all my birds veg up really small (like rice size) so if there is something that is his favorite it will be rather difficult for him to only pick the one thing out of a mix of veg that is in such small bits. He always ends up with his favorite bits and a few other bits of veg or grains at the same time. I leave pellets in the cage all the time for my bird but only give him fresh stuff for a few hours at a time, I give the fresh stuff then take it out before the veg and grains start to spoil. Also veg is much more important for your baby than fruit is.....fruit is full of sugar.
Great move making a vet appointment already
Can I ask what is the reason you are serving distilled water? I have not heard of that before but I am curious about it.
Some birds like to bathe daily some do not. Some like the kitchen tap, some like the actual shower and others may only ever be ok with a spray bottle.....I suggest offering your bird the opportunity to shower with you if you are up for that. Make out it is the best thing in the world and you are having fun, sometimes they can not help themselves and they come over to join in, sometimes they will not be impressed at all. You will get to know your birds moods, likes and dislikes pretty fast as they do not tend to hide their feelings about these things much.
To transition her into your home you pretty much just want to go on with your normal routine as this is easier than the bird learning a false routine then having to re adjust to the actual routine you are used to.
She is young so she will be much more accepting of new things than an older bird would be. How is she reacting to your company? If she does not seem stressed then interact with her, if she seems a little scared and unsure maybe give her a few days of quiet reading and chatter with you before expecting too much from her. Read her body language and let that guide you. Does she ask for comfort feeds? My boy will be 1 year old next month and he still asks for and gets comfort feeds.....I love spending this time with him.

 

[geff]

A little trick I have used to get the birds to eat new foods is to show them the food in a bowl, and put a little in my mouth, and make sounds as if I am really enjoying it. And not allowing them to try it. Then repeat again some ten to twenty minutes later, it sometimes works, and can be a dreadful taste experience for me. Palm oil is a taste I dislike tremendously. So after the Palm oil ran out, changed to Coconut oil a bit more pleasurable to the palate.
I does work on some birds quite well. They're keen eyed critters and pretending to eat doesn't work. Unfortunately.

 

[waterfaller1]

Pet birds should be bathed daily

 

[Hankmacaw]

Welcome to AA.

Congratulations on your new baby Military. Military's are my second favorite macaw.

I don't recommend Zupreem Fruity pellets. They have too much sugar/coloring in them and birds many times develop a habit where they eat only one color. Eating Zupreem fruity will also color their poop, so you can't really tell what is going on. I always recommend Harrison's, Rowdybush and my GW has started liking Caitec Oven Bites pretty well. She gets a mixture of Harrison's High Potency and Power Treats. Along with a few Lafeber Nutriberries and Caitec Oven Bites. Please don't ever feed your baby peanuts (Aspergillosis and aflatoxins). Good nuts for macaws are walnuts, pistachios, almonds and pine nuts for a treat and training.

The veggies are great and keep in mind that orange/red colored vegetable have lots of vitamin A and Vitamin A deficiency is the most often diagnosed illness in parrots. You can add some leafy dark green vegetables like Kale, Swiss Card and Romaine lettuce for added Vit A and Iron and protein from the Romaine lettuce.

At six months she may need a comfort hand feeding now and then, so keep some baby bird formula in the freezer for those times.

We really, really need to see pictures of her.

 

[jmfleish]

Welcome to the avenue. I agree with everyone else, pictures please! It's great that she is eating pellets and don't feel like you can't offer her healthy human food choices as well, the more colorful the better. I would stop the distilled water as it doesn't have certain minerals that are needed. Tap water should be fine as well as bottled water if you feel more comfortable with that but if you are drinking the tap water yourself, it should be fine for her as well. Congratulations on your new companion!

 

[Sarahmoluccan]

 

[sunnysmom]

Welcome to the forum! Some birds need time to adjust. Some want human attention right away. My guess is since she's a baby, she's going to want interaction right away. You just kind of have to base it on how she reacts. Also, I give my bird a bath once a week. I actually would do it twice a week but with my work schedule it doesn't work. It's not recommended to give a bird a bath in the late afternoon/evening because you want them to be dry when they go to bed so they don't get chilled.

 

[Fia Baby]

She'll enjoy eating some mashed, warm sweet potatoes from your fingers. You can add some mashed banana, almond or sunflower butter, or anything good you can think of. It will be comforting to her and a good bonding experience for both of you. She'll grow to like showering with you as well, if you let her. My green wing loves this activity, and they can get pretty rowdy! Start by letting the indirect spray hit her, so she won't be over whelmed. She's a baby, so spend as much time as you can with her, but make sure some of that time is spent showing her how to play with her toys, so she'll be open to doing this when she's on her own. Take her all around the house, let her sit on everything, take her in the car, work on picking up her feet and giving her nails a gentle swipe with an emery board and start asap on getting her to accept a harness. Think of everything you'll need her to be comfortable with as an adult, and introduce it now, while she's young and open to new things without fear. I'd love to see pictures - militaries are gorgeous. I'm not sure why they're not more popular...

 

[Fia Baby]

As for food, I like Golden Feast Golden 'obles, but if you go that route you'll need to supplement D3. TOPS is another good choice, but I'm not sure how easy it is to get in other states. It's made in Oregon.

 

[MILITARYMACAW]

Thank you for all the input. I will post some pictures by the end of the day. I would definitely describe her behavior as needy not reluctant. She wants me to pet her, she wants to be close, and scream in my ear.

Can I ask what is the reason you are serving distilled water? I have not heard of that before but I am curious about it.

As child that its what we always did for our pets. I was surprised that some people hadn't heard of doing it. Que the google search! Apparently, it has become debatable, and the word is NOT to give your pets distilled water. Distilled water does not contain chemicals added by water treatment facilities, but good minerals are removed in the process. As for the pictures... I will send some for viewing purposes , but are there any closeups you guys would like me to post for more of a evaluation perspective.

She moves her head up down slowly often. Almost like she has xray vision and is scanning me. Is this a Macaw thing or unique to her?

 

[Fia Baby]

That slow head-bob is how she begs for food. Even though she eats on her own, she's still quite young and has gone through a big transition. It's her way of asking for some comfort and security in the way of food. The warm, mashed sweet potato mixture will be perfect for this. You may also hear her making a "gronk" type sound - that's also begging.

 

[MILITARYMACAW]

Instinctually begging because she is a baby or my body needs food I’m starving begging?

 

[Hankmacaw]

Begging for food, because feeding is comforting and she has just gone through a disturbing experience - moving to a new home where everything is strange and the human isn't familiar.

You should get a scale to weigh her. Get one that weighs in grams and weighs up to five pounds. Then weigh her every morning for a week or so, so you can get a baseline on her weight and how much she is gaining. Rapid weight loss is one of the very best ways to get an early warning about your bird being sick.

I serve my Macaw Spring Water, because you just never know when something has gotten into the public water system that will harm your bird - also Spring Water has all of the trace minerals in it.

 

[Peachfaced]

Welcome!!

just a heads up that you will be expected to share at least a couple pics of your treasure

You've learned well!

 

[Fia Baby]

She looks adorable in your icon photo! And yes definitely about a scale. A digital baby scale works great, and you'll just plop her down on the pad and she won't mind a bit.

 

[Peachfaced]

She looks adorable in your icon photo! And yes definitely about a scale. A digital baby scale works great, and you'll just plop her down on the pad and she won't mind a bit.

That's my go-to method. I've seen ones with perches on them, but those scare my birds. I just bribe them with a snack and they sit still long enough to get the weight recorded.

 

[Fergus Mom]

Welcome - can't wait to see photos!

 

[MILITARYMACAW]

Update: No interest in the sweet potatoes. Ill try again tomorrow. She didn't seem to show any interest in the vegetables today either. My right ear hurts. If i get too far from the tree she hops off and comes running after me. Today has been quite the test! She only appears to be quiet when we stare at each other. Excuse me for not knowing the correct term, but how often should i see her "working" her feathers over/grooming herself? Yesterdays business looked like what id see on my car, today's way less color more watery. Im going to have quite the poo pic album for the vet by Saturday.