Hi, Well I've had Ruthie almost six months now. She is a 8-10 yr old greenwing and my first large bird. She seems to trust me now and I'm just wondering when people refer to "playing with their birds" what exactly that entails? Would like details please and thank you to all in advance!
How do you all play with your Macaws?
- Thread starter Lynn57
- Start date
Sunset_Chaser
New member
- Sep 25, 2014
- 1,000
- 2
- Parrots
- Bella (B&G Macaw)
2 Yellow Naped Amazons,
8 Lovebirds,
2 Green Cheeks,
2 Sun Conures,
2 Indian Ringnecks,
2 Quakers
I have a Blue and Gold macaw named Bella and when I "play" with her we just hang out. She loves to be petted, head scritches are better than treats in her opinion! Pulling her wings out, (this is awesome if you want to clip your birds wings as they are so used to you playing with them that you don't need to restrain for wing clipping 
) She likes me to pet her feet and kind of like holding hands (trust me, nail trims are soooo much easier if you can just grab their foot and start trimming) It took alot of patience to get her to let me do this but now she's like "Eh, whatever" and actually seems to like sitting by me and having me play with her toes. Depending on the day she will roll over in my lap and stick her feet up in the air and let me pet her tummy too. We work on tricks too during playtime. If the phone rings she will say Hello, I let her answer the phone for me sometimes and everyone gets a big kick out of it. She will also wave bye bye and if you give her some food from your plate or something she will say, Mmmm, this is good!
) She likes me to pet her feet and kind of like holding hands (trust me, nail trims are soooo much easier if you can just grab their foot and start trimming) It took alot of patience to get her to let me do this but now she's like "Eh, whatever" and actually seems to like sitting by me and having me play with her toes. Depending on the day she will roll over in my lap and stick her feet up in the air and let me pet her tummy too. We work on tricks too during playtime. If the phone rings she will say Hello, I let her answer the phone for me sometimes and everyone gets a big kick out of it. She will also wave bye bye and if you give her some food from your plate or something she will say, Mmmm, this is good!
Selestine
New member
- Jun 18, 2013
- 572
- 0
- Parrots
- My beautiful SI Eclectus Zephyr and my handsome B&G macaw Vandal, daughter's Sun Conure Loki and son's GCC Blaze
Hmm... my macaw is still a baby right now, but..
He likes to lay on his back and have me rub and play with his feet. And he likes if I dangle a toy over him and he'll kick it / grab it with his feet and drag it to his beak. He likes to hold my finger in his beak and roll it around with his tongue.
As for my other three birds, who are more grown up.
My eclectus likes when I hold his beak between my fingers and shake it back and forth (gently). He will hold my finger in his beak and shake my finger. He also likes me to tap his beak and pull my finger back really fast, and then he tries to catch it in his beak. I can't play that game with the conures because they get too excited and bite too hard, but the eclectus loves it and is very gentle playing it.
They all like to play fetch. The conures like me to roll a little tinkly ball and they chase it. The eclectus likes to throw crap and make me fetch it
They also all like to play tug of war with things, but mostly only if I let them win and they get to pull the things out of my hands after a suitable fight.
He likes to lay on his back and have me rub and play with his feet. And he likes if I dangle a toy over him and he'll kick it / grab it with his feet and drag it to his beak. He likes to hold my finger in his beak and roll it around with his tongue.
As for my other three birds, who are more grown up.
My eclectus likes when I hold his beak between my fingers and shake it back and forth (gently). He will hold my finger in his beak and shake my finger. He also likes me to tap his beak and pull my finger back really fast, and then he tries to catch it in his beak. I can't play that game with the conures because they get too excited and bite too hard, but the eclectus loves it and is very gentle playing it.
They all like to play fetch. The conures like me to roll a little tinkly ball and they chase it. The eclectus likes to throw crap and make me fetch it
They also all like to play tug of war with things, but mostly only if I let them win and they get to pull the things out of my hands after a suitable fight.
Timothy
New member
- Aug 16, 2014
- 475
- 0
- Parrots
- Blue & Gold Macaw [Maya] // Sun Conure Baby [Zippo] // 2 Lovebirds [Nibblet & Nellie]
When i play with my bird, i make sure there are no strangers around, because she gets rowdy. She loves company but when there are new people in her presence she can get little rambunctious.
(So no showing off for us)
I will sometimes get on all fours and set her on the carpet or tile, and let her chase me. she LOVES to chase me. If i put my hand down on the ground near her, and wiggle my fingers and pretend my hand is a spider, she will run after it, wings up and all, its hilarious.
You need to trial and error buddy, every bird s different. and i mean different
If you find something she doesnt like, cross it off the list.
If you find something she likes, slowly experiment with it.
and key word is slowly
6 months isn't a whole lot of time, and you don't want to undo wht you've accomplished.
Good Luck and hf
(So no showing off for us)
I will sometimes get on all fours and set her on the carpet or tile, and let her chase me. she LOVES to chase me. If i put my hand down on the ground near her, and wiggle my fingers and pretend my hand is a spider, she will run after it, wings up and all, its hilarious.
You need to trial and error buddy, every bird s different. and i mean different
If you find something she doesnt like, cross it off the list.
If you find something she likes, slowly experiment with it.
and key word is slowly
6 months isn't a whole lot of time, and you don't want to undo wht you've accomplished.
Good Luck and hf
Last edited:
Birdman666
Well-known member
- Sep 18, 2013
- 9,904
- 272
- Parrots
- Presently have six Greenwing Macaw (17 yo), Red Fronted Macaw (12 yo), Red Lored Amazon (17 y.o.), Lilac Crowned Amazon (about 43 y.o.) and a Congo African Grey (11 y.o.)
Panama Amazon (1 Y.O.)
Both my big macs love to rough house. The claw is a game we play where I dangle my hand over their head, tell them "I'm gonna get you." Then grab their face/beak and wiggle it, while they "beak me" in return. Also make your fingers into a "mouth" and beak wrestle. These games usually involve rolling/flopping around on my lap... with lots of happy squealing and birdie laughter. (Usually because I start laughing.)
The spider game is a good one... mine just grab my fingers anymore.
Maggie (my greenwing) likes toddler games like peek a boo.
She plays ball (with a wiffle ball.)
She can throw with either hand or her beak. Doesn't catch very well, but will play fetch. (My amazon does this one as well.)
She plays tug of war with a rope. (dog toy) Sometimes she'll let you pick her up and swing her by the rope.
She gets down on the floor and chases Sarah around the house like a puppy...
Maggie hangs upside down and "beak wrestles" with my face, nose to beak.
She also sometimes grabs my car keys, runs off with them, and tries to play keep away/Can't catch me... (My red front has been known to obsess over my car keys as well.
My red front also sneaks up on me, pinches me, and then runs away laughing... (That's her version of the "chase me" game. She starts it.)
There's an odd whispering game that she actually initiates with us, where she'll whisper something to someone, and you whisper something else, and then turn her head and whisper something else to someone else in the room, and back and forth around the room we go...
And then there is also trick training, and doing their tricks for you "showing off" they're like proud little kids... look what I did!
Anything that involves your mac being the center of attention, really, will be enjoyed, and will become a bonding thing...
The spider game is a good one... mine just grab my fingers anymore.
Maggie (my greenwing) likes toddler games like peek a boo.
She plays ball (with a wiffle ball.)
She can throw with either hand or her beak. Doesn't catch very well, but will play fetch. (My amazon does this one as well.)
She plays tug of war with a rope. (dog toy) Sometimes she'll let you pick her up and swing her by the rope.
She gets down on the floor and chases Sarah around the house like a puppy...
Maggie hangs upside down and "beak wrestles" with my face, nose to beak.
She also sometimes grabs my car keys, runs off with them, and tries to play keep away/Can't catch me... (My red front has been known to obsess over my car keys as well.
My red front also sneaks up on me, pinches me, and then runs away laughing... (That's her version of the "chase me" game. She starts it.)
There's an odd whispering game that she actually initiates with us, where she'll whisper something to someone, and you whisper something else, and then turn her head and whisper something else to someone else in the room, and back and forth around the room we go...
And then there is also trick training, and doing their tricks for you "showing off" they're like proud little kids... look what I did!
Anything that involves your mac being the center of attention, really, will be enjoyed, and will become a bonding thing...
Last edited:
thekarens
New member
- Sep 29, 2013
- 4,022
- 6
We play the same game as birdman described with "the claw" and beak wrestling. We also dangle a toy over Zoe while she's on her back.
We always make sure to play these games very gently because she can get worked up if we're too rough and clamp down, which isn't much fun.
We always make sure to play these games very gently because she can get worked up if we're too rough and clamp down, which isn't much fun.
FreedomAndForgiven
New member
- May 9, 2013
- 197
- 0
- Parrots
- Lucy (B&G Macaw), Phoenix (Camilla Macaw), Gizmo (Goffin Cockatoo),
Rita (Military Macaw),
Mango (Goffin Cockatoo),
Phoenix loves it if he is hanging by his beak, and you say "I'm gonna get the belly", and then tickle his belly he flaps his wings and wiggles around. Lucy, and Phoenix love to play peek a boo and will grab their beaks like they're covering their eyes yank it off, and say "Peek a boo". Rita loves playing under the covers on the bed. Lucy also likes to hang from the front of your shirt while you walk around, and look at things. Rita is the least playful out of our macs but she is our newest mac rescue, and we're having to teach her how to play.
i am really interested on seeing how u play with them, by any chance u have clips or a youtube channel?
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