Hi Everyone! First time parrot owner!

[jsueldo]

Hello everyone! My name is Javi, and I am entering the wonderful world of being a parrot owner for the first time! I will be receiving my beautiful baby greenwig macaw in about a month ^_^

I'm a newbie, so best believe i'll be looking to all of you for advice!

 

[antoinette]

Hi Javi
Welcome to our wonderful forum
What may you decide to get a Greenwich Macaw?, I am just curious
Enjoy the forum

 

[GaryBV]

Welcome Javi - we're glad to have you on the forum - boy you are really going big for your first bird lol

 

[jsueldo]

@antoinette

I have been looking into getting a bird for some time now. So I finally went to a breeder nearby to ask some questions about what bird to get and look around. Turns out she had this beautiful 5 month old Macaw. We just immediately connected and it was love at first sight!

So yes @GaryBv I am going big I guess! But after leaving that day I knew that was the bird for me!

 

[MikeyTN]

Welcome to the forum!!!! There's plenty of macaw owners in here including me, ask any questions you may have.

 

[strudel]

How exciting, can't wait to see photos when you get him.

 

[BruceV]

Congrats and welcome! Macaws are great birds.

 

[Birdman666]

I have a 16 year old greenwing that is my constant companion...

I'll give you my version of Greenwing Macaw 101, take it for what it is worth:

The big thing about greenwings is socialization from an early age... Do that and they will go to anyone. Don't do that, and you will be the only person who can handle your bird.

Macaws are pair bond birds. In the wild they pair up. If allowed to pair up in captivity, you can get "bird mate" issues. You want to be the parent bird, the teacher, and the protector, the DAD, NOT the bird mate. The significant other in your life will appreciate not being treated like "the other woman" by a bird.

Greenwings can have dominance issues, especially the males, the way you stop that is to stop it. The bird is not in charge. You have to be big bird.

You can accidentally train a bird to bite, and to scream. DON'T!

You are taking on a bird that, if he ever used his full bite pressure, could easily bite through a human arm... (not to worry though, they rarely use their full bite pressure.) The important thing is to sit down with the bird on your lap and teach them, at an early age, not to use bite pressure on people, and not to use his beak to communicate. You do this by simple beak play games.

ALL macaws, even the tame friendly ones, will test... The lunge thing is actually a test, and a form of play... if you don't jump, and if you take it as a sign of playtime, it becomes exactly that. If the bird does the lunge bluff thing, and you start flinching... or if you accidentally teach the bird that you are afraid of it, and THE BIRD CAN GET IT'S WAY BY BITING YOU... you are setting yourself up for what is called the terrible twos... [which are often actually just the period where you have to correct your training mistakes.]

You raise a macaw the same way you raise a human toddler. With boundary setting, nurturing guidance, and lots of love and attention. Do that, and you will have a lifelong companion, and you will discover that these birds are amazingly playful, and have the capacity to love that is astounding...

I say it all the time. "How is it possible to love a damned bird this much?"

THAT is what it is like to live with a properly trained greening!

As a cautionary tale: I also did rescue and rehab...

More than once I have seen a dominant male greenwing take over a house, scream and bite to get it's way, and then end up miserable, and locked in a cage, unloved, and unable to be handled...

Then they called me to "get this thing" out of their house. "What were we thinking?!"

DON'T BE THAT GUY!!!

DO THE WORK... IT'S SOOOOO WORTH IT IN THE END!

I don't want to overwhelm you with this, it is amazing. But there is work involved.

 

[jsueldo]

@Birdman666

Wow! Thanks for taking the time to write all of that for me… Kind of overwhelming but really good advice! I'll do a ton more research on beak training and to make sure to NOT teach my bird the wrong way! If you wouldn't mind, when the time comes I would love to ask more advice on bringing up my baby the right way!

 

[TessieB]

Welcome! This is going to be a loooonnng month!

 

[Birdman666]

@Birdman666

Wow! Thanks for taking the time to write all of that for me… Kind of overwhelming but really good advice! I'll do a ton more research on beak training and to make sure to NOT teach my bird the wrong way! If you wouldn't mind, when the time comes I would love to ask more advice on bringing up my baby the right way!

I honestly wish more people would tell new bird owners where the pitfalls are, so that they can avoid them...

So much of what happens with these birds are just simple training mistakes that are easily corrected early on.

 

[jsueldo]

I honestly wish more people would tell new bird owners where the pitfalls are, so that they can avoid them...

So much of what happens with these birds are just simple training mistakes that are easily corrected early on.

I've been reading a ton of stuff on the forum for the past few days to really educate myself on life after purchasing a Macaw.

I've read the good and the bad. I understand that having a macaw is going to take a lot of work. I'm willing to put in the time, but before I fully commit to bringing this amazing creature home I had a couple of questions.

How much time realistically do I have to be with the bird? It's not that I don't want to be with the bird, but I am a full-time student and my hours seem to be something like 9-3. My fear is that too long of a window for my bird to be alone? My family will also be out during this time so is this a problem?

Like I stated before, I myself personally is new to the world of birds. Me and my Dad will be the ones primarily taking care of the bird and he has some experience but i'm new. Am I making too big of a leap going straight for a Macaw? Or would I benefit from starting out with a different bird and getting a Macaw down the road…

All in all, i'm willing to put in the work, but am having second guesses due to the overwhelming amount of information I have been receiving. Is a newbie like me out of his league with this macaw?

 

[Birdman666]

I am a single dad. I have a teenage daughter. I work full time and then some for a law firm. I have a house to take care of. AND I have five birds, two of which are macaws...

So, if I can do all that and keep five of them healthy and happy, you and your dad should do just fine, between the two of you, with one bird.

No, you're not taking on too much. I just think that not enough of the "there is work involved" stuff is emphasized by breeders trying to sell a bird....

Macaws are attention oriented.

The first order of business on bringing this bird home, is to pattern it.

This is when we sleep. This is when we eat. This is when we get up. This is your time with your people. This is the time you need to entertain yourself. This is when we go to sleep. They do well with a structured routine, not so rigid that any deviation from it turns them into a nervous wreck (anyway, unlike some birds, greenwings are not prone to becoming nervous wrecks.) but the same basic daily routine is good.

My rule of thumb with a macaw is that they need AT LEAST 4 hours out time PER DAY. and that is minimum...

Mine is out 24/7, but she is trained NOT TO SEARCH AND DESTROY...

Until that happens, it is so not a good idea!

 

[jsueldo]

Thanks for the insight, that makes me feel a lot more comfortable now.