wesleyfay
Checking out the neighborhood
- Joined
- 1/25/23
- Messages
- 2
Hello, first time posting, but have read so many great posts so far!
My husband and I recently took over care of my family's 17 year old Hahn's Macaw, Kiwi. She has been living with my parents for all of her life up until now, and due to my parents change in work schedule we decided to take over her care so she has more daylight time with people.
We got Kiwi before she had feathers and hand-fed her. We would get her out of her cage a few times a week growing up, but once my brother and I left the house she mostly stayed in her cage. She was always in the dining room or living room central to the action of the house and loves being part of the conversation. We moved her to our house (about 3 hours from my parents) in October '22, and she now lives in our office and is with me all day while I work from home. I've transitioned her to Harrison's High Potency Fine from a diet of mixed seeds, fruit loops, and the almonds and tortilla chips my dad would give her daily. She now loves her Harrison's and we don't give her any people food. I'm starting to introduce fresh vegetables to her as treats to make them more exciting, and am refreshing "step up" and getting her out a few times per week - for which she is rewarded with a veggie Nutriberry.
Since I'm with her all day, I've noticed a few disturbing habits: In the morning, the first thing she does is get a bite of her Harrison's, mixes it with water, and then goes to regurgitate on her toy. (It's a series of rings with pony beads that she likes to crack off). I bought the toy recently, so I don't think this was something she did before. She shows other sexual behaviors like rubbing her butt on anything she can in the cage and making baby sounds. I removed a soft Bird Buddy (the cage-side ones) that my parents had as soon as I noticed her behavior, and have removed or rearranged other larger toys in her cage that she has shown sexual behaviors with. Unfortunately, I'm removing more and more toys! I've tried very hard to keep toy materials fun to destroy, but not too shreddable as to be seen as nesting material. We only pet her on the very top of her head, and if she gets too "snuggly" I stop petting her and walk away. She was molting for the winter when we moved her, and when her new feathers started coming in I noticed she's been over-preening slightly.
Overall, I'm afraid she is preparing to lay an egg, and I'm worried she is getting more and more bored as I remove the toys that seem to be contributing to her sexual behavior. I've been tracking how much she's eating, and making sure to not leave any extra food in her bowl. She's going to bed and waking up with the sun, so over 12 hours of sleep, and is in a quiet room with the door closed at night.
I would love suggestions on how to reduce her sexual behavior, "safe" toys and games I can incorporate with her that will keep her busy, and any other activities or change in my behavior that I can do to help her.
Thank you in advance for your wisdom!
My husband and I recently took over care of my family's 17 year old Hahn's Macaw, Kiwi. She has been living with my parents for all of her life up until now, and due to my parents change in work schedule we decided to take over her care so she has more daylight time with people.
We got Kiwi before she had feathers and hand-fed her. We would get her out of her cage a few times a week growing up, but once my brother and I left the house she mostly stayed in her cage. She was always in the dining room or living room central to the action of the house and loves being part of the conversation. We moved her to our house (about 3 hours from my parents) in October '22, and she now lives in our office and is with me all day while I work from home. I've transitioned her to Harrison's High Potency Fine from a diet of mixed seeds, fruit loops, and the almonds and tortilla chips my dad would give her daily. She now loves her Harrison's and we don't give her any people food. I'm starting to introduce fresh vegetables to her as treats to make them more exciting, and am refreshing "step up" and getting her out a few times per week - for which she is rewarded with a veggie Nutriberry.
Since I'm with her all day, I've noticed a few disturbing habits: In the morning, the first thing she does is get a bite of her Harrison's, mixes it with water, and then goes to regurgitate on her toy. (It's a series of rings with pony beads that she likes to crack off). I bought the toy recently, so I don't think this was something she did before. She shows other sexual behaviors like rubbing her butt on anything she can in the cage and making baby sounds. I removed a soft Bird Buddy (the cage-side ones) that my parents had as soon as I noticed her behavior, and have removed or rearranged other larger toys in her cage that she has shown sexual behaviors with. Unfortunately, I'm removing more and more toys! I've tried very hard to keep toy materials fun to destroy, but not too shreddable as to be seen as nesting material. We only pet her on the very top of her head, and if she gets too "snuggly" I stop petting her and walk away. She was molting for the winter when we moved her, and when her new feathers started coming in I noticed she's been over-preening slightly.
Overall, I'm afraid she is preparing to lay an egg, and I'm worried she is getting more and more bored as I remove the toys that seem to be contributing to her sexual behavior. I've been tracking how much she's eating, and making sure to not leave any extra food in her bowl. She's going to bed and waking up with the sun, so over 12 hours of sleep, and is in a quiet room with the door closed at night.
I would love suggestions on how to reduce her sexual behavior, "safe" toys and games I can incorporate with her that will keep her busy, and any other activities or change in my behavior that I can do to help her.
Thank you in advance for your wisdom!