Hahn's Macaw or Conure?

[AJBirds]

Hello

I'm new to owning parrots but I love birds! I fostered a wild baby owl for a little while - that owl taught me just how loving birds are, and I can't believe I haven't gotten another bird yet!

I do love intelligent birds, and in an ideal world I'd get myself an African grey - but they cost more than a car here in Australia.

For now, I'm thinking of getting a baby Hahn's macaw or a conure. I work from home, for myself, and am ready to slow down work for a month to help the new baby get adjusted. I really want to be a good parront. But, I am worried that a Hahn's macaw might be too much for a newbie, no matter how determined... so a conure could maybe be an alternative. I'd consider a cockatiel, but I have a dust allergy and I don't want to risk allergy aggravations.

What are the kind of things I should be ready for with a Hahn's? The breeder I'm considering lets you visit the babies before they're ready to go home with you, so they can get used to you. (I'm so excited!) I've read about people getting hairline fractures from being bitten, which worries me a bit, but I'd be careful with body language, etc. (And the idea of fear/getting hurt never crossed my mind with my sweet owl - I'm only reading about bites online.)

I can't wait to get my own little parrot and make it part of my family

 

[Grraarrgghh]

Hi AJ,

I would browse some the Hahn's-specific threads in the Macaw forum here to get some advice on their behaviour, noise level, etc.

Not owning either, but reading a lot about birds, I would be shocked if a Mini-Macaw was easier to care for than a Conure. Parrot-wise, Conures are well known as easier to care for "beginner/intermediate" parrots (note that no parrot is truly a beginner bird, this is all relative to the scales of difficulty that exist within bird ownership in general). Mini-Macaws, being larger in size and part of the Macaw family, will be more difficult to handle overall (bigger bites too!). That isn't to say it would be a huge gap in difficulty, but if you have never kept a companion parrot previously, it might feel like an insurmountable leap. That said, their noise levels would probably be comparable.

 

[Doublete]

I've never had a macaw.
But I do have a green cheek conure. He's beautiful and very quiet. He chirps and makes noises but doesn't scream, at all. He loves to be where I am but does entertain himself as well. Super fun little bird.

 

[Ann333]

I've never had a macaw, but I've heard them scream. My green cheek only screams in the morning some days when the wild birds outside are being extra noisy. My conure is my first bird and I could not be happier with him.

 

[AJBirds]

Thanks Grrrraaarrrgh, Doublete and Ann

Yes, I'm prepared for a macaw to be difficult, but their intelligence attracts me. The trouble is, I can't seem to find good breeders here for conures, but I've met a lovely Hahn's breeder who truly cares for her birds.

I'll keep looking, but fingers crossed for good things either way

 

[Weezerj]

AJBirds,

I'm almost in the same boat, trying to choose between a caique and a yellow collared macaw.

One of the things that's leaning me towards a caique is that I can readily find breeders here and spend time with the caique before it is weened.

As for the difficulty of a mini macaw, I wish I could give you some answers, because it would really help me with my decision if I could.....I have read a ton online and it doesn't really seem to clear it up for me. There are a lot of contradicting statements out there (not this site, but the internet in general)

Good luck, tho I am sure you would be happy with either choice

 

[Birdman666]

Six of one, half dozen of the other.

They're both similar in personality, smart, playful little clown birds. I love both species, so, I can't advise you to go with one over another on this one.

Play with a few. Find one that also finds you, and you've got your bird....

 

[Selph85]

You mentioned being worried about a bite. Mini-macs can have a big bite, but being a bird person comes with the certainty that at one point or another, a bite will occur. You can't let the potentiality of a bite disuade you from being a parront, as you put it. Mac bites are certainly bigger than conure bites, but in my experience they tend to hurt less. It more pressure, whereas a conure bite is sharper in quality.

Noise level wise, macaws are gonna be louder than conures. Hahns are on the smaller side, and have tiny voices, though I'm sure they could still screech, but then again so can a conure. Mac's typically have 10-20 sec bouts were they just have to get it out. Which isn't bad at all, considering I've seen other species like cockatoos that will just scream for hours on end. Screaming won't be an issue with proper enrichment and socialization though.

Both species are highly intellegent, maybe the Hahn's will be a bit more so, they tend to have a better vocabulary, though that isn't a guarantee and should never be a true factor in owning a bird.

No parrot is truly a beginner, and it boils down to how much you are willing to educate yourself about them. Hahn's are just like their bigger cousins, and their personalities show. Conures are goofballs and can be quite affectionate.

Both are great companion birds overall. Both have ups, both have downs. I'm a mac person, so my opinion is biased!

 

[Birdman666]

A hahn's mac is about the same size as a conure...

There are MACAWS and then there are macaws... and a conure can be just as feisty as a mini mac. And a hahn's bite pressure isn't that much different, they just have that sharp, pointy little beak. You just have to file the tip of the beak during normal grooming, so that it is rounded off, and not quite so pointy. It's a grooming issue.

Mini macs don't bite all that much harder than a conure. And if they're bonded and bite pressure trained, they tend to not bite at all. That is a training issue.

 

[AJBirds]

Thanks everyone! Birdman666, I find your comments on biting and beak filing especially reassuring

I've met a breeder whom I really like; she runs a bird boarding establishment and has an avian vet on staff, all her chicks come with full blood-work done etc and I can tell she really cares about her birds. She's got a hahn's chick that's socialized with young children (one of my concerns! What happens when I have human chicks?) and was very reassuring about bites being a training/human issue, which I liked. (My husband's already named the chick, so I feel like we have to get her now...)

I met a hahn's chick at a pet shop, but the pet shop man was ignoring the bird's body language (chick was looking away, physically walking away from the hand) and forcing the bird to step up. A sweet chick (although strangely neglected at the pet shop) but a little beaky. This was at one of the most reputable bird shops here

I've almost made up my mind to get a hahn's from the breeder - she's so lovely to her chicks! (Haven't found any good conures breeders.) Trouble is, hubby and I go on holiday mid-May for 3 weeks and I can leave the bird with the breeder, but I worry the bird might get issues from that...

I'm already internet window-shopping for cages and bird gyms