Path: utzoo!utgpu!cunews!cognos!stewartw
From: stewartw@cognos.UUCP (Stewart Winter)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Re: Pet Macaw Questions
Message-ID: <9592@cognos.UUCP>
Date: 1 May 91 21:43:18 GMT
References: <1970001@hpgrla.gr.hp.com>
Reply-To: stewartw@cognos.UUCP (Stewart Winter)
Organization: Cognos Inc., Ottawa, Canada
Lines: 61

In article <1970001@hpgrla.gr.hp.com> robertm@hpgrla.gr.hp.com (Robert Moss) writes:
>  I am thinking about getting a macaw and am interested on any feedback from
>other macaw owners.  I plan on getting a baby, but I am not sure whether
>I should go for a 5 week old, or a 3 month old (partialy weaned) bird.

   Buy the older baby.  They will bond to you just fine, if they have
been socialized at all properly.  The risk with the younger babies are
greater (less time for congenital problems to show up, etc.)  If you
go for the younger baby, be very careful to have a contract which permits
you to get your money back based on the results of an autopsy (not great
protection but better than nothing).

>    Hyacinth:    +Mellow,+Intelligent,+Puppy dog like temperment,
>                 -Price
  There rarity does mean it should be considered for breeding.  You
may be able to find a breeder who would be willing to trade your bird
for another baby once it is mature, but do you want to go through that?

>    Green Wing   +Mellow,+Intelligent,-Easily frightened,
>                 -Needs lots of attention
>    Blue & Gold  Reference with which above +,-'s compared to

  I find greenwings and B&Gs to be fairly similar ... if you talk to
enough people you will hear that (a) B&Gs are great, greenwings not as
nice  and  (b) Greenwings are great, B&Gs not as nice.  I think the
main consideration is that GreenWings are larger birds (which means
a bit louder, a bit stronger, a bit more ...)

>    Scarlet      -Nippy with strangers,-Family oriented bird,-Noisey,
>                 -Susceptible to personality problems,
>                 -Needs lots & lots & lots of attention

   Scarlets tend to become a one person bird, and are more aggressive,
but I've seen some nice ones too.  Don't forget that Scarlets (like the
Hyacinths) are on CITES I (endangered) ... and although somewhat more
common in nature, their habitat is rapidly disappearing.  They are NOT
bred as often in captivity (percentage wise) as Hyacinths because of
their temperment and females seem hard to come by.  Also, far too many
scarlets (personally I think one is too many) are being hybridized.  I
suspect that in the long run, they will be rarer in captivity than
the hyacinths.

  I'm wondering why militaries aren't on your list.  You might also
consider the 'mini' macaws.  Although smaller, most are similar in
many ways.

>Also, I am questioning cage sizes.  Some cage manufacturers sell 24" x 36" 
>macaw cages, while others say 36" x 48" is required to keep the tail feathers
>in good shape.  The median is on the order of 28" x 44".  So what is the real
>scoop (I know bigger is better, but what is a realistic size).

   I'd say 24" in any dimension is a bit small.  We have our pairs in
3x5x6 and they are quite content.


   Stewart
-- 
Stewart Winter               Cognos Incorporated   S-mail: P.O. Box 9707
VOICE: (613) 738-1338 x3830  FAX: (613) 738-0002           3755 Riverside Drive
UUCP: stewartw%cognos.uucp@ccs.carleton.ca                 Ottawa, Ontario
The bird of the day is .... Illiger's Macaw                CANADA  K1G 3Z4