Mac Attack

[BirdieDad]

Proud dad of a Ruby Macaw, she is a little over 5 months old and we have been together about 3 weeks. She (sexed by DNA) has a clean bill of health from her AVN with blood work. Since we have been together she has become rather obsessed with me. At first she would scream whenever I would leave and I would just have to let her scream non-stop without going into the room, now that has ceased. Also I introduced foraging toys and and let her spend more time doing that. The foraging helped a ton.

I leave for work and she is with my wife all day and does fine. When she hears me come home she goes crazy, she will literally jump from her perch or from top of the cage into my arms, and just wants to snuggle and play all day. She will come wherever I am if possible. I absolutely love playing with her, since the screaming has stopped...lol. But I am afraid I am setting her up to be a needy bird. Even if I miss time with her I would rather she grow up healthy than dependent on me.

Should I refrain my visits with her? Any suggestions? Should I only do hands off training/interactions?

Thank you!

 

[wrench13]

I would let your wife be the provider of the 'special' treat what ever that may be. You already hold 'favorite person' status, and thats good, now you want to boost up your wife's Hot Cha Cha quotient. You do that by using one word......Bribe. Every time she passes the cage or stand, drop a little piece of the favorite treat in the food bowl, or even create a small metal treat bowl for this purpose. Metal, so she hears the clink of the treat being deposited. This is how we elevated my wife, Geri, to a close second in the status category.

 

[SailBoat]

Well stated above! Just assure that your dear wife places the treat in the bowl.

FYI: Socialize your Parrot... 'Near' any poor Human that shows up at your home should be introduced and 'if possible' your Mac on their arm...

NOTE: Any resistance on her part is a No Good for that Human.

Pass the Birdy is a Great Game!

And here I believed that this was going to be a Big Mac thing...

 

[Birdman666]

These are pair bond birds. In the wild you see them in flocks of 30-40 birds, but they are always paired up 2 by 2.

In captivity they tend to have a favorite person.

YOU are obviously IT.

 

[BirdieDad]

Thank you so much for all of your responses. I have a question:

I have an amazing relationship thus far with my Macaw. Although she wants to be grafted to my skin, and with the "shutdown" I leave her out of her cage almost always. When I go back to work is this going to be a major issue? She can be out with my wife, but she just tolerates my wife. Prior to the shutdown I spent time with her in the morning and when I got home. Should I pull back to create more of an "independent bird"? She is in the hyper baby stage and quite mischievous. I enjoy playing with her and we are successfully engaging in bite pressure training. My AVN recommended I leave her in the cage all day sometimes and ignore her to get her used to being alone, I find this hard advice to follow as it seems cruel.

 

[fiddlejen]

Since I do phone work and my Sunny can be LOUD, I have to keep her in her cage now for WFH. The routine of course is a bit different than if I were leaving for work -- but I do make it a routine. (I put on aquarium video instead of classical radio for one.)

If you don't Haveto cage your bird to do you work that is great -- but you might want to setup a routine for doing so. Maybe not an all-day-one-day thing, but maybe for example three hours in the morning on Tues & Thurs, and 4 hours afternoon Weds & Fri -- or something like that?

And, put a routine with it (something you can maintain or modify) once back to regular work -- such as particular music or video during the time, a specific treat or even just a specific regular food or toy given right before starting the alone-in-cage time, etc.

She will probably object for a day or two but then adjust.

I started WFH Last week. Thurs was my first full day & Sunny was mostly quiet and good Thurs & Fri. Then the weekend came. MOnday was really difficult for her to re-adjust to me working-but-home, but by Tuesday she was fine again. So if you give your macaw a structured Away-From-You time, she will probably adjust quickly, only with a day or two of making you feel guilty.

 

[BirdieDad]

Thank you so much. I will try this. She has been doing well within the cage so far. Every time I put her in I fill up the foraging stations with a little food. Not sure if this is the right thing, but seems to keep her engaged. I am always open to whatever can make her life better. The only thing I fear at this time is puberty/maturity. We have a small family (wife and I) and so when this "social distancing" is over I need to find ways to keep her socialized. I tried car trips to local stores but she gets car sick and we are still working on the bird harness. She is not a fan and we are going super slow...she just playfully bites at it but if I try to slip it on then she backs with a firm, "No, thank you."

 

[KevH]

Buy parrot wizards harness training DVD its perfect for getting harness trained nice scarlet you have there good luck

 

[ParrotGenie]

Well stated above! Just assure that your dear wife places the treat in the bowl.

FYI: Socialize your Parrot... 'Near' any poor Human that shows up at your home should be introduced and 'if possible' your Mac on their arm...

NOTE: Any resistance on her part is a No Good for that Human.

Pass the Birdy is a Great Game!

And here I believed that this was going to be a Big Mac thing...

Yep socializing works well for curbing aggressive behaviors towards other. People may have to take a bite, or two but teach them how to handle and not to panic if bitten is also key. Keep the macaw away from safe spot cage as they will be more tolerable to other people and less likely to attack people, or other family member. Also curb any Hormonal triggers like petting under wings, Cuddling and nesting behaviors.

 

[Laurasea]

What a gorgeous baby bird!!!

 

[BirdieDad]

Thank you so much! She is very sweet. My only problem is that when I am around she is mean to my wife. She is nippy and does not want to be touched. However when I not around my wife says that she is the nicest baby bird you have ever seen. So we are working on that...