Soon-to-be macaw owner

[OliveLuna]

Hi, my name is Laura. I am originally from NYC but now live in Texas. I have two two-year-old African Greys, a female Congo named Luna (4/14/06) and a male Timneh named Ollie (5/25/06).



I am soon to adopt BB (or BeeBee if it's a girl), a blue and gold macaw that is about 2.5 months old. It's still feeding out slowly and probably won't be ready to go until at least October, which I'm fine with. It's such a sweet little thing. I visit the parrot store every couple days to socialize with it. It loves to crawl up my chest and rest its head and neck on my shoulder and make small "aww" noises. lol



What will it be like owning a Macaw with 2 Greys? They have their own "birdie room" where I can contain their mess (and noise, when necessary...haha).

[kellywess]

Due to the "dustiness" of your two Greys it may not be a wise idea to house them in the same room with your new little macaw due to the fact that macaws are prone to respiratory and lung problems.

[OliveLuna]

Originally Posted by kellywess

Due to the "dustiness" of your two Greys it may not be a wise idea to house them in the same room with your new little macaw due to the fact that macaws are prone to respiratory and lung problems.

Thanks. Does it help at all that we have filtered central air on about 16 hrs a day? Or will it still be a major issue?

[my-africangrey-echo]

I don't have an answer for you but wanted to say what a beautiful flock you have! Who doesn't love baby faces.

[FoxersArtist]

I would HIGHLY suggest purchasing a HEPA air purifier if you do not already own one, for your health and the birds. Buying a purifier that is not a HEPA system will not have a small enough filter to catch all of the tiny flakes of dander and will do little good in the company of pet parrots. Please do not buy something that uses an ionizer to "clean" the air as these will scar your parrots lungs. Your central air system is very helpful in delivering fresh air but it will not filter out the dander the same way.

My experience with african greys is that they tend to think that they are the end-all-be-all of the bird world (especially congos) and when they see another thing with feathers they automatically assume that they are above giving it recognition and usually just ignore it - or try to verbally taunt it from across the room if interaction actually does occur. I worked with an african grey earlier this year who, upon meeting a new bird, leaned toward me quivering his wings and announced "Scary!" He obviously thought he was the only parrot alive.

Your macaw may seem relatively gullible compared to a grey, but don't let his good nature fool you. Macaws are super smart, playful, fun loving, and those that learn to talk can be quite the jabber mouths. If your greys talk you may find yourself among very chatty company! Many macaws like to belt out with a very loud, off key version of opera singing so I hope your african greys like "music."
-Anna

Originally Posted by OliveLuna

Thanks. Does it help at all that we have filtered central air on about 16 hrs a day? Or will it still be a major issue?

[kellywess]

"Rabbit Air" makes very very good air purifiers that can be used in homes with birds. We have one and it has made a world of difference since we purchased it.

[huntress]

Is it me or does that baby B&G have STress Bars ALL over it?

[kellywess]

He does, but isnt it normal for baby birds to have stress bars? I always thought that it was.

[my-africangrey-echo]

Originally Posted by huntress

Is it me or does that baby B&G have STress Bars ALL over it?

What are stress bars?

[FoxersArtist]

Hummmmm. I feel a little dumb for not being very observant. They look like stress bars to me. If the baby was handfed in the store, that could have been enough stress to do it. I might also ask about the type of formula that was given.
-Anna

Originally Posted by huntress

Is it me or does that baby B&G have STress Bars ALL over it?