Opinions Please.....disappointed

[MissyMe83]

Well, the DNA results came in for the B&G that I have paid for and it's female. The breeder and her son both thought for sure it was male, so that's what I was expecting and wanted.

I feel that I bond better with male birds over females and just like their attitude and disposition better than females, but I've never interacted with a Macaw. My experience has been limited to cockatiels, conures, pionus, and amazons.

The breeder had two siblings and I have emailed her back to inquire if she DNA'd the sibling and if he/she was already spoken for as well, so there's a chance that I could still get a male.

I was hoping to get some feedback from Macaw owners and their preference. In your experience what are the differences between the two? I know it all depends on the bird, but do any of you tend to bond better with one sex rather than the other? Is it something that I should consider or just go with the flow and stick with the female?

Thank you for your input!

 

[crimson]

if you are looking for a specific sex, it's best to get a dna test, prior to purchasing any bird.
Often breeders will do this for their customers at the buyers expense.
I never ever guarantee the sex of my birds, but do offer a 'best guess' but make them aware it is not definite, or offer a dna test at their expense.
Here it only costs, $12.00, which is really inexpensive, and 99.9% accurate
chances are the other macaw is a female as well --it's a 50/50 chance
sorry, I cannot comment on the personalities of the macaws, as I don't own one.

 

[tab_xo]

Aww sorry about the disappointment!

I was in the same boat as you, we went to the breeders, they had 15 babies, and all were girls, except 2 and both the boys were sold... and then in case they pulled out, they were sold again!!

I only wanted a boy, i have always had male animals, i dont know why, i just prefer them, especially with horses!

But we still went down, i held a few, there was a girl who seemed to like me straight away, she sat on my chest for about 2 hours giving me kisses! But of course i still wanted a boy..

I had NO idea what to do, then there were 2 eggs which had just hatched, then they were both girls again!

2 months later, for some reason both the people pulled out of the deal with Fargo, so of course i said we will have him!

If Fargo hadnt come back on sale, i would of got that female who liked me from the start, they have the same personalities, its all just the individual bird, some females might be incredibly cuddly, some might not!


I know it sounds silly, but i let fate decide, i said if there are no boys, then obviously i was meant to choose the girl... and i think it WAS fate that BOTH people pulled out of the deal with Fargo, and i ended up with him..


If you particularly want a male, then you could just wait for another one! But if it isnt a huge deal, then go with the flow!

The main reason i did not want a female, was because they might lay eggs, that was the only difference, and i am much better at naming male animals

The females at the breeders were all incredibly friendly, where as Fargo who was the only male left was the feral one

If the other 2 siblings turn out to be a boy, then it was meant to be!!

Good luck!! I really know the disappointment, my heart dropped when the breeder told me the 2 which had hatched were girls again!

 

[MissyMe83]

if you are looking for a specific sex, it's best to get a dna test, prior to purchasing any bird.
Often breeders will do this for their customers at the buyers expense.
I never ever guarantee the sex of my birds, but do offer a 'best guess' but make them aware it is not definite, or offer a dna test at their expense.
Here it only costs, $12.00, which is really inexpensive, and 99.9% accurate
chances are the other macaw is a female as well --it's a 50/50 chance
sorry, I cannot comment on the personalities of the macaws, as I don't own one.

Yeah, her best guess was that it was male and I requested and paid for the DNA test, but she wanted to wait until it's feathers on the stomach came in as she said those would be less painful to be pulled for testing.

Tab,

I feel the same as you. I've just always preferred male pets to females and didn't want to have to worry about egg issues in the future. I actually wanted a male Amazon, but Violet came along and I decided that I'd give it a shot. While I love her and wouldn't trade her for the world I wonder if we wouldn't have a better bond if she was male. I also have to wonder if it's not meant to be... according to the breeder she is the sweetest and most cuddly of the two, but my instinct says that it could be a different story once she matures a bit, so I'm torn.

I did get a response from the breeder and the other baby is still available at this point. I asked if I could go ahead and pay for that baby to be DNA tested as well and then make my decision based on the results as long as she doesn't sell him/her in the mean time. I think that's fair, so hopefully she does as well and I'll have some more time to ponder and the chance at the sibling being a male.

I'm still open to other suggestions/opinions though : )

 

[MikeyTN]

I've always gotten along better with male animals too....Doesn't matter for them to be cats, dogs, birds, whatever. But there's a few girls that's really good with me like Lola and Nico. Girls are better with my partner....But over all I really don't care as I love them regardless of sex. Some of my girls are actually sweeter then the boys! Between Willie and Lola, Willie is the cranky one....lol....Lola is still young and crazy....

 

[Alwese]

Did you know that they can do DNA testing on the EGGSHELL that the bird came from to determine if it is male or female? I was hoping that my B&G Kayko was a female, but he turned out to be just a small boy. Other macaws can certainly tell right away if it is a female. There is this guy with a female Military named Annie that does the same thing I do of taking my birds out in public. Boy, does Clifford ever know that that is a hen and profiles with his wings up every time he sees her. I would think having a hen would be a little scarier with egg binding issues that may have to be addressed at some time, but after having three males for a decade I think now I would like to have a hen just to see if I could get them to mate and enjoy that area of macaw ownership. One macaw Scarlet hen I know of doesn't speak at all. I had heard (I don't know if it is really true) that some hens to not speak.

 

[JerseyWendy]

If your heart is truly set on a male, I'd say wait for one, so that you won't be disappointed deep down inside. Tab explained it pretty well.

3 of my 4 fids are boys, and Hunter is THE most predictable one (the female). She is also the cuddliest one. She'd be on me 24/7 if I'd let her. :54: Of course she's not a Macaw...

But I, too, had my heart set on a male when I was looking for my first big mac. Niko had a sibling who was SO much more outgoing than Niko. The breeder's prediction was that Niko was the girl and the sibling the boy. Turned out they were both boys, lol.

 

[MissyMe83]

Thanks for the input...New twist is that a family is coming Sat to visit and they want a B&G. The breeder now asked if they want the female based upon her personality if I'd be okay with giving her up while waiting for the results on the sibling.... Ugh! Now I feel like I should go with the DNA'd female solely on her great personality or risk losing the bird that's more friendly and out going (presently) and ending up with the sibling that could also be a female and not as friendly.

I need to decide before Saturday.

 

[JerseyWendy]

How old are the chicks currently?

Did you see where I wrote that Niko's brother was WAY more outdoing than Niko. Niko was quite shy in the beginning, but as he grew and got to know me all that changed completely.

Listen to your heart....then you can't go wrong.

We have quite a few members here with the sweetest and snuggliest FEMALE macaws. (Steve, aka Blackhawk007 with their Ruthie, Kendra with her Rosie, Blanca with her Savannah, just to name a few)

 

[U2gal]

I prefer female macaws. Male angry hormonal macaws are not fun.

Female macaws IMO/experience have better temperments, even during hormonal times.

 

[brianlinkles]

My breeder prefers females in macaws, they are less aggressive once sexually mature. I would say go with the personality of the bird. Don't worry about the sex. If the bird interacts well with you then I say go for it! I always like females because I can think of female names better! LOL No seriously, I think you would be very happy with the female. However, if you think that you will always have "buyers remorse" then I would wait!

 

[Pinkbirdy]

My Harlow [is female] and the best bird !! IMO your getting a just weaned baby and its the bond you develop not the gender. So I think things will be fine

 

[MikeyTN]

When Willie went into his full hormone, my goodness he bit me real good and was absolutely vicious towards me. He was into the dogs at that time....I usually back up when he's in full hormone swing cause I can't handle him during that period. But once he's out of it, he's back to himself.

Lola, I'm not sure what her hormone is like but she's a persistent little booger....lol....IF she decided she wants to feed my hand, that is what she's going to do no matter how I discourage her to not do so....I have to hide my hands under pillows...lol....

 

[MissyMe83]

Okay Okay..... I'm going with the female!! Thanks everyone!