Two Neglected Macaws

I wrote this up very quickly, on a Reptile Forum no less. This account is my personal experience with two birds poorly taken care of, but one; we struck a strong bond. Enjoy.

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I guess "cool" and "unfortunate" are two different matters all together.

The Macaws I've worked with were abused or neglected, some severly. The worst case I came in contact with was a neighbor of the owner (who moved) wheeled in a tiny cage that had barely room for a large bird to extend its wings fully, let alone able to support TWO Macaws in the same enclosure.

There was a nervous Green Wing and an even more terrified bird - a Red Fronted Macaw. Red Fronteds are similar to Militery Macaws and MUCH smaller in comparison to a Green Wing, Blue and Gold or a Scarlet.

We immediately seperated the two, allowing each to have their own space, and left the cage doors open the day they arrived. The neighbor had imformed us that the birds were hardly let out, were fed strictly sunflower seeds and peanuts. For caged birds, this diet is a highway to hell for obesity, since sunflowers are high in colesterol, and peanuts are not their native food item. (Peanuts are also high in fat, and any bird can quickly "imprint" and will refuse to eat anything else). She, the neighbor, also said the birds were punished by having a spray bottle squirted at them...

Well, hell, if I was locked in a cage all damn day, with someone else, and fed garbage, I'd snap back too!

Anyway, after much pain to the fingers, and patience, my staff and I got the Green Wing sociable again in about a month. It especially liked the salt water fish we had. The Red Fronted? Unfortunately, it was very obvious he (it) was tramatized, and DID NOT trust people at all. I remember when I approached its cage to change its water, and offer dried papaya, Brazil nuts, cashews, and some veggies to offer variety, the bird lunged at me, and the door hadn't been opened yet. When I was able to open the door, with much effort, and fend off the animal, I encountered lots of knicks and bruises along my fingers. The scars are still there today, after five or so years.

The end result was, after three months, I had become the soul caretaker of the Red Fronted because everyone else seemed to afraid by its imposing nature. But three months of working with the bird, and it was finally socialable. So much that the Red Fronted favored me over the staff, and let me flip it over onto its back and scratch its soft, green tummy, while the animal would actually blush, and close one eye. It had crossed over the bridge and trusted people again. (Can't say I liked when the Red Fronted regurged food and tried to feed me... Though it's a VERY affectionate display for any bird to do such a thing - it's gross!

In short, I can't help but boast that when the new owner came into the store to have the Red Fronted's nails trimmed, she remarked once when I asked if the bird liked anyone else, "No, Sammy just likes his Mother."

"May I try and hold Sammy?" I asked innocently.

"Sure but don't complain if he bites."

I hid a faint grin, knowing all that we had been through with each other, reached out my hand, and command in a firm tone, "Step up!"

Sammy cocked its head, as if he was shrugging its shoulders. He stepped up onto my hand, and like clockwork, I flipped him over slowly and stroked his tummy. Sammy still remembered me after several months of not seeing him, and the dumfounded expression upon the lady's face was exceptional.

I haven't seen Sammy in years now but to work with such an amazing animal, I remember him fondly, and delight at telling his story to friends and such.

This was a really interesting piece and I have a high respect for anyone who can put themselves through being bitten and chewed to help such a magnificant creature. Did you tell the woman why the bird was so friendly with you afterwards? Just a few typos...

exstend Should be extend

I had become the soul caretaker of the Red Fronted because everyone else seemed too afraid by its imposing nature.

I hid a faint grin, knowing all that we had been through with each other

Sammy still remembered me after several months of not seeing him

and delight at telling his story to friends and such.

Oh, I was chewed up all right, lol. Not to mention bruised, bloodied, and pooped on, though we don't have control over that, now do we?

It is quite scary. It took many months to form that mindset to not "show" fear and be completely dominant, kinda like the alpha. Their beaks are capable of dislocating or breaking a bone. So, you imagine... Their beaks are designed to break Brazil nuts, among other hard-to-crack nuts.

But thank you very much. I guess I never actually take an account what I've done for several of these Macaws to really "see" the greatness in it. It's my job, and my first priority is always the animal's health and care. But many thanks again.

Yes, she was given an in depth, verbal, background about the animal by the owner of the store at the time, me, and the few others who helped in areas they could. She was told how Sammy was crammed with another Macaw, his angry temperment and the amount of time it took to rehabilitate him, his diet, including treats. She was also told the basic machanic of Macaws, since he had never owned one. Macaws are closely connected to the mindset of a two year old, and are damn intelligant. Which unfortunately is a fault for those who never worked with such an animal. Their memory is exceptional, most are playful, hence why the "nipping game," is so popular with them. They love dramatics, so when they hear a yelp or scream, in the Macaws's point of view, "Wowie! Let's see if I can't get that same effect by biting her again. This is fun, testing her!" Basically, and it truely sucks, lol, but I've learned to actually not pull my hand away, and let the animal apply pressure. Fortunately, I was trained by an experienced person (before she took her leave), and she taught me a couple of methods to "tell" the animal "I'm in charge, and you will not have control over me." This techniques were never abusive or harmful to the animal's health, (like some morons...).

One method is, never put the animal on your shoulder. It will be above your eye level, thus, in the bird's mind, it now is the alpha. Think wolves. So when the bird is on my arm, it's always below, so I'm looking down at it, not vice versa. Another method is, and it's only used in cases were the animal is causing lots of pain, LOL! While the beak is firmly clamped, I I gently squeeze pressure on the toe. As the animal applies more pressure, my pressure is matched a tad more than it. The harder the animal clamps down, the more its toe is pinched, until finally, the bird let's go. There have been some cases where the pain was just too unbearable, and I just had to pry the beak off, and start anew in the trust game.

Well, thanks for the critique, Kitty. I fixed the errors. Cheers!