Checklist for new Macaw...

[ParrotJoe]

Hey all, as some of you know I will be adding a new member to the family soon and like many others, would like to be totally prepared for when the time comes. I know 2 more heads are better than one, so I encourage you all to add any ideas you can for things to have before you bring home a new bird.

I realize some birds may have special needs that others don't so if its something specific for a certain species you can just say so. I'm personally still deciding whether to take home a Blue and Gold or a severe, but I seem to be leaning much more towards the Blue and GOld, so if you know anything that would be a good addition for macaws i'd be especially interested. I'll try to keep the list updated as much as possible.

Without further ado, the(UPDATED 8/22) list:

1) Bird Cage
2) Bird Playpen / Playground perch type thing
3) Pellet food
4) Seed Mix
5) Flour or Cornstarch for blood feathers
6) An avian vet
7) Toys
8) Scissors and Nail Clipper
9) Rope Perch, Wooden Perch, and Concrete or rough surface perch ( to put in cage)
10) A large swing for inside cage
11) T-stand in neutral area, good for training
12) Cardboard boxes to put on bottom of cage until baby isn't so clumsy
13) A towel preferably same color as parrot for getting him accustomed to toweling
14) Nutcracker
15) Needle Nose Pliers for plucking blood feathers
16) Pet Carrier for Vet Trips / Travel
17) Recipe for FID foods

Optionals

1) Harness for travel and going outside
2) Flight cage 15-20ft long , 6 feet wide
3) Large SHower Perch
4) SPray Bottle for bathing and / or preventing bad birdy behavior
5) Shop-Vac! (wet / dry vacuum cleaner)
6) Nature Sound CD’s for when bird is left alone
7) Grapefruit Seed Extract from health food stores, great for cleanups
8) a big boing


These are the ones I could think of off the top of my head, any I'm leaving out?

[Tiki]

Books about macaws..........try Ebay!

[LissaKokoKiwiKaseySam]

Sounds like you've got the beginnings of a good list,but remember that the cage/playstand/ rope perch requirements are quite different for a BG over a Severe!!


I don't have a severe, but know several folks who do. The Outlaw is owned by both BG's and a Severe. Maybe she can tell you about Chi Chi..she doesn't talk about him much.

I will make ONE small recommendation about caging. Large birds = long tails. A cage that is 24" deep is too small for a BG. Narrow cage = trashed tail. Try to get one that is at least 30", or preferably, 36" I know that Island cages makes a nice deep cage, as does YML. These are particular brands that I own, and I'm happy with them.


As for a spray bottle, I prefer one of those pump type garden sprayers for bathing- holds more water, and you don't cramp your thumb soaking them down. Some folks use showers.... I prefer to use the stall and a T stand with the sprayer...my fids prefer it..

Good luck!

[Stizby]

I, too, will soon be bringing home a fully weaned macaw. Mine is a male blue & gold and I have been busy acquiring things for my baby. Your list looks pretty good, but I will tell you what else I have gotten for mine:

A large, 6-foot long boing that I have suspended over the play gym. I went to my local hardware store and purchased a foot long piece of 2-inch pvc pipe to thread the chain to the boing through that attaches to the hook in my ceiling. This will prevent my bird from climbing up to the ceiling and chewing it up.

A large shower perch

A large swing for inside the cage. I have purchased an extremely large cage, a picture of which I will attach to this post. I observed the adult macaaws in the large outdoor aviary at my breeder's and saw how much they enjoyed their swing and decided I had to set one up for my baby. The swing I got is y-shaped -- a branch that splits into 2 branches on one end. There is a chain suspended from each branch that I have hung from the ceiling of the cage. You will want to make sure that there is sufficient space inside the cage for the macaw to swing away on his swing. The macaws at my breeders all swing from side to side rather than back and forth. Does that make sense? The only exception is her hyacinth, as he likes to swing back and forth like we humans normally do.

T-stand set up in a neutral area of the house -- away from the cage and playpen area. This is where you will want to engage in some training sessions with your baby.

Gather up some boxes and put them in the bottom of your cage to soften the falls of your new baby. Your baby will still be learning how to handle his growing body when you first get him and will no doubt lose his grip at one time or another -- especially while playing. Boxes at the bottom of the cage will cushion those falls. Once you see that he has become sure footed, you can pull out the boxes.

Shop-vac! Your macaw is likely to be a messy bird. I finally broke down and got a shop vac after unclogging my vacuum cleaner for the millionth time after trying to clean up the mess around my birds' cages. My umbrella cockatoo has to be the messiest bird on the planet! Trust me, save yourself the headache now and go get a shop-vac. They are not terribly expensive for a small house-sized one but oh, so useful! Mine is a 8-gallon one.

I have gotten a towel in a rich blue color to match the color of my baby. You want to get your bird used to being towled so that he is not traumatized when the vet or groomer needs to towel him. My macaw is my 5th bird and I have gotten each of my birds used to being toweled at a very young age. I always get a towel that is close to the color of the bird. I will first use the towel to lay on the floor, put a few toys down on it and then sit on it with my macaw baby and play with him. Once that he sees that the towel is not a threatening item, I will try to pick up an end of it and lay it over his back/tail or over his foot. I will gradually increase the amount of towel over him until I have him nearly all covered and then pick him up with it. The whole time I am doing this, I will be giggling and making happy sounds so that the baby feels reassured. I will keep working with him and the towel until I can hold him with the towel around him. This all takes place in small, small increments and only as fast as the bird is comfortable. I have done this with all my birds and none of them are freaked out when I towel them. At the vet's office, I will insist on toweling my birds and hand them to the vet as I can do it without them being stressed by it.

I highly recommend Sally Blanchard's "The Beak Book".

Nutcracker -- the beaks of young macaws are kind of soft (despite the fact they can give you a pretty good bite). You will need to crack any hard-shelled nuts given to your baby during the first year of his life.

I don't know if this is your first bird or not, but if he is going to be alone during any length of time during the day, you may want to think about getting some nature sounds CDs to play while you are away. I have 5 that I have my stereo shuffle and play when I leave in the morning. Sometimes I will leave a radio on instead of playing the CDs just to mix it up a bit. Also, I have a tv in the kitchen that I have progammed to come on for 1 hour in the afternoon. This will come on after the CDs have been done playing for a while and being in another room, adds a different dimension to what the birds hear.

I am sure there are other things that I have forgotten. Because I already have 4 birds, there are things I have on hand that I have not had to purchase for the baby. I am trying to think of those, but beyond the above, I really can't think of them. I am sure others will jump in with ideas.

Here is a photo of the cage I have set up for my macaw which shows my umbrella cockatoo and yellow nape amazon inside. I have been allowing them to play on the swing and inside the cage in the evenings after I get home from work. It will give you an idea of the swing I have inside.

[The Outlaw]

OK, you're off to a good start. However, let's make one correction: no baking soda, you want either flour or corn starch for the blood feathers or toe nails. You should also keep a pair of needle nosed pliers or hemostats in your first aid kit in the event you have to pull a blood feather. I have posted what to put into your first aid kit either in archives or as a sticky. Please check that list.

Chi Chi isn't in a flight because I keep him clipped. If you are truly talking about a flight cage (one that allows him to fly) I'd think it should be 15 to 20 feet long and about 6 feet wide. If you simply mean a cage to live in, think in terms of housing an amazon parrot" 36 wide x 24 deep x 54 high. Don't forget a swing. Macaws LOVE swings.

Oh, you'll also need a pet carrier for vet trips and travel. I also highly recommend that you order or pick up some Grapefruit Seed extract (GSE) for general cleaning. Its odorless, really cuts poop and is a good disinfectant. Better health food stores carry it or you can order it at www.naturade.com.

I won't even go into the pellet contraversy, but please remember that to thrive ALL birds require fresh foods.

I suggest you invest in a pair of scissors (rounded tips) and nail clippers. Even if you don't clip yourself, its essential that your bird be protected from disease wherever you have it done. Some groomers aren't careful about dissinfecting between clients. Just take you own clean instruments with you and you won't even have to worry.

[LissaKokoKiwiKaseySam]

oh, and you guys are gonna need recipes- cuz of course all good birdie moms and dads COOK for their fids!! You will find lots in the recipe section of the board.

A couple of favorites here are Lissa's kitchen sink rice and beans ( quite a few BB members use this recipe with equal success), Murf's mash, Outlaws' Spinach fritata... take a peek at that section and let your imagination run wild!!

[Stizby]

By the way, the cage for my macaw I was able to purchase off e-bay for $469, including shipping! If you are considering a larger cage, I would encourage you to check out e-bay as the cages there are much, much less expensive than the ones you will find in the petshops and, if you research carefully, just as good in my opinion.

[The Outlaw]

Stitzby:

Congratulations on your new macaw, too. Is it a mini also? I ask because I think the cage you have in your photo while quite nice, it looks a bit shallow for a larger macaw. If its a Redfront or smaller, that will be fine, but it its a Military or Blue and Gold or larger it has to be deeper or else the tail will be trashed real quickly. I know first hand: I had that happen to my youngest male BG. The smallest recommended cage for a BG is 3' x 4' x 6'. They need lots of space to spread their wings and move that long tail. I also have lots of other birds, (an Eclectus, Severe, YN Amazon, 2 Greys. a Quaker and 4 Blue and Golds) and I realize that cages look huge. However, once you hang a swing, 3 toys and perches, they shrink up pretty darn quickly.

Perhaps your cage meets those requirements and its simply a camera angle. In any event, you'll fall head over heels in love with your macaw. I must confess, that though I think my birds are all exceptional, my BGs are my most favorite.

[yehudasf]

BS"D

Parrot Joe:

8) Caclium Block to Chew on ( not sure if this is good to have, need input)

If your macaw's diet is going to have 30% (or more) pellets, do not provide any extra calcium. Macaws are quite prone to d3 toxicity, & any of the "better" formulated pelleted diets provide sufficient vitamin d. It is also important to consider what a "better" pelleted diet should NOT contain, No preservatives, no artificial flavourings or colourings,& no sugar. I've been fortunate to have been a companion to Macaws for > 40 years, & I have reared Macaws for > 30 years. My favoured brand of pelleted food, as a portion of an overall varied & healthy diet, is Harrison's High-Potency Coarse Bird Food. After the Macaw in question is fully grown, 4 - 6 years in the case of the great Macaws, if they are not breeding, the pelleted component is switched to Harrison's Adult Lifetime Coarse Bird Food. Others may recommend different brands, as long as they are nutritionaly sound, organic (a real necessity in my view), free of extraneous ingredients, & all ingredients certified as "Human Grade", brand name is of little concern. A last point that should be made, pellets should never be the sole constituent of any Macaw's diet. Fruits, vegetables, greens, meat (well cooked), bones (mine love to crunch them & get at the marrow), eggs (cooked), & generally some of whatever you are eating, excluding avacado (aflatoxins near the pit), chocolate (theobromine), caffiene containing beverages, anything carbonated (birds cannot burp, the gas could be severely damaging, or fatal), or of course, alcohol. I wish you & your psittazen-companion-to-be a long, healthy & loving life, together.

[Stizby]

Hi, Outlaw!

I just went and measured my cage. From the back corner to the front it measures 41 inches deep. From corner to corner, it measures 52 inches. And it is 60 inches from top to grate. So, I am hoping that my macaw's tail won't get trashed inside it. What do you think? The swing inside is 30 inches wide and the baby will have just over 10 inches on each side to swing it sideways, which is the direction I am thinking he will go, based on watching the adults at my breeder's. I am getting a B&G, by the way. Did the cage look this big from the photo? I can't tell because I am influenced from having the cage right in front of me. Again, Outlaw, I would value your input.