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Thread: Aggressive macaw, pls help

 

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  1. #1
    Junior Member
    SecereMacaw2004's Avatar


    Aggressive macaw, pls help

    I have a male severe macaw named Buddy. I don't know how old he is, I don't know anything about his past, and I don't know what he has been through. He doesn't have a leg band and all I know is that he's a rescue. He can step-up and sit on my shoulder without any issues and he has times when he's a good bird but he is aggressive towards anyone else and anything else. I want to be able to pet him and hold him without worry but he'll try to bite if you do. He usually lunges out at people except me and often screams for hours, even if we ignore him. I've tried teaching him tricks such as target but he just attacks the stick and breaks it. I've heard severe macaws are more on the wild side and tend to be more nippy than other parrots but he's almost impossible to work with and I just need some advice. Thank you.

  2. #2
    Super Moderator
    Dragonlady2's Avatar


    Parrots

    Willy-Eclectus, Oliver-alexandrine, Mookie-Senegal, Bella- Australian King, Joey and Peewee- Barrabands, Peachiegirl-Peachfront conure, Pepper- crimson belly conure, Peanut-plum head, Babyblue-parrotlette, Harry and Louie-canaries.
    Welcome to the forum! Yes, I have heard the same thing about Severe macaws.

    How long have you had Buddy? Where did you get him?

    How long is he out of his cage daily?

    Depending on how long you have had him, it may be an issue of needing more time to settle.

  3. The following user likes this post:

    PlaxMacaws (04-19-2020)

  4. #3
    Junior Member
    SecereMacaw2004's Avatar


    I have had Buddy for almost a year now and we got him from a guy who rescued birds. Buddy is usually out of his cage all day and gets handled regularly.

  5. #4
    Senior Member
    PlaxMacaws's Avatar


    Parrots

    B&G (Jack) | MM (Maynard) - RIP | Hy (Zaf) - RIP | GW (Salsa) | NC (Bozley)
    As Helena has recommended, my suggestion would as well be to give Buddy sufficient time to settle in to his environment and become acclimated to those around him. I wouldn't force him to do anything, nor would I attempt to handle him until he feels a bit more at ease. It would be best to allow him to build a sense of security first. And by the way, it's normal for them to pick a favorite person... it's also fairly common for them to show aggression toward other humans in a household.
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  6. The following user likes this post:

    Dragonlady2 (04-19-2020)

  7. #5
    Super Moderator
    Dragonlady2's Avatar


    Parrots

    Willy-Eclectus, Oliver-alexandrine, Mookie-Senegal, Bella- Australian King, Joey and Peewee- Barrabands, Peachiegirl-Peachfront conure, Pepper- crimson belly conure, Peanut-plum head, Babyblue-parrotlette, Harry and Louie-canaries.
    Very often a parrot who doesn’t have a mate will pick a human to be its mate. If Buddy has picked you as his mate, he will try to chase off anyone that interacts with you. As well, be cautious when he is on your shoulder and others get in your space. Buddy will expect that if his behaviour towards them doesn’t get them to leave, he may bite you for not also getting that person to leave.
    One of my conures has picked me to be his mate. If my husband comes into the room while he is on my shoulder, my conure will first try to poop on him. If that doesn’t work, he will bite me. I always make sure that my conure is nowhere near me if anyone comes in the room.

    One thing to remember is that parrots, to some degree, are still considered wild animals, not pets. As long as their mating hormones are there, they will act like a wild animal seeking a mate.

    There are ways to try and reduce the behaviour by having them on a strict light/dark schedule. My birds get up at 7 am and are covered in a quiet room at 7 pm in the winter and 8:30 in the summer. I also try to keep the temperature around 68 to 71 degrees F. Longer daylight hours and warm temps encourage hormonal/mating behaviour. No mushy foods.

    Is the cage located in a living room or family room?
    Last edited by Dragonlady2; 04-19-2020 at 07:56 PM.

  8. The following user likes this post:

    PlaxMacaws (04-19-2020)

  9. #6
    Junior Member
    SecereMacaw2004's Avatar


    His cage was located in the living room but we recently moved it to the dinning room since that's where everyone hangs out and I figured it would help a bit with the screaming since he's closer to me. Would you suggest moving the cage back to its original location or is the dinning room fine?

  10. #7
    Super Moderator
    Dragonlady2's Avatar


    Parrots

    Willy-Eclectus, Oliver-alexandrine, Mookie-Senegal, Bella- Australian King, Joey and Peewee- Barrabands, Peachiegirl-Peachfront conure, Pepper- crimson belly conure, Peanut-plum head, Babyblue-parrotlette, Harry and Louie-canaries.
    Which room does he scream the most in?

    Does he have any foraging activities in his cage? Like a piece of pine with holes drilled that can be filled with a nut that he has to work to get out. Sometimes birds will scream if they are bored.

  11. The following user likes this post:

    PlaxMacaws (04-19-2020)

  12. #8
    Junior Member
    SecereMacaw2004's Avatar


    For Buddy it doesn't matter what room he's in, if no one is giving him attention he'll just scream and keep screaming. He has a big toy made of yarn and wood blocks that he can chew on and sometimes we give him paper and cardboard.

  13. #9
    Super Moderator
    Dragonlady2's Avatar


    Parrots

    Willy-Eclectus, Oliver-alexandrine, Mookie-Senegal, Bella- Australian King, Joey and Peewee- Barrabands, Peachiegirl-Peachfront conure, Pepper- crimson belly conure, Peanut-plum head, Babyblue-parrotlette, Harry and Louie-canaries.
    Will he watch cartoons or listen to music? Some of my birds respond to either one by watching or listening.

    Just a couple of things. Buddy might have been rehomed because of his screaming. Some birds, once they get into this habit, have huge difficulty stopping. Secondly, when trying to retrain a screaming bird, it can take a very long time of consistent responses to change behaviour. Just one time of changing your response can undo what has been accomplished.

    These are just some suggestions. Try the cartoons, music, sitting and reading to him, one of my birds likes to watch me play games on the iPad. It’s about finding positive ways to pay attention as opposed to responding to the screaming. You have my sympathies. I hope you are able to see some progress with him soon.

  14. The following user likes this post:

    PlaxMacaws (04-28-2020)

  15. #10
    Junior Member
    SecereMacaw2004's Avatar


    Thank you so much. I really hope Buddy and I make some progress. Thanks for the advice.

  16. The following 2 users like this post:

    Dragonlady2 (04-20-2020), PlaxMacaws (04-28-2020)

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