Please help me out if you can...

I'm having a problem. I can afford this macaw and I would love to bring him to a new home. My parents don't though. Yes I am unfortunately still living with my parents. She will be 100% my responsibility and will be in my room. I have experience with birds but my parents are worried about the following things:

-How many times do they go to the vet?

-Worried about biting/claws, can they damage furniture? If so how do you avoid

-How much space does the cage take

-How often they go to the bathroom how big it is

-Every year we go to a summer house and they don't know how to bring the big cage there

-How much noise do they make

Honestly, I am no where near worried about adopting this bird but personally I believe my parents are worried about the beak size thats it

My friend, sorry, but the answer to any one of those questions is a deal breaker!

What do you mean exactly?

Kaons said:

I'm having a problem. I can afford this macaw and I would love to bring him to a new home. My parents don't though. Yes I am unfortunately still living with my parents. She will be 100% my responsibility and will be in my room. I have experience with birds but my parents are worried about the following things:

-How many times do they go to the vet?
generally at least once a year for a yearly checkup, which can cost $100-$200, but sometimes (especially younger) macaws can get sick with infections and may need of get medication and blood work, vet visits can be very pricey, several hundred dollars.

-Worried about biting/claws, can they damage furniture? If so how do you avoid

yesss, macaws loveeeee to chew anything and everything. You avoid this by properly training them to chework toys and offering a lot of them. Expect to spend several hundred dollars a year on just toys alone. Many get their Macaws play stands to keep them in an area away from furniture. They need constant supervision when outside the cage though, as they like to get into everything, just like kids. Don't forget those huge beaks! If not properly trained, a macaw can and will bite and draw blood.

-How much space does the cage take

a macaw cageso are usually at least 5-6 feet tall and 3 feet wide.
They're huge and also cost at least $600- $2500 for the better, quality made ones.

-How often they go to the bathroom how big it is

Macaws like to projectile poop. It will get on the walls and floors and will need to be cleaned on a constant, daily basis. Parrots are incredibly, incrediby messy and you will be cleaning every single day.

-Every year we go to a summer house and they don't know how to bring the big cage there

you can buy a travel cage fit the way there to transport but parrots generally don't do well with being moved around houses ,
They can be very sensitive and reactive to change.

-How much noise do they make

a macaw scream can be heard for 2 miles in the wild, so they are EXTREMELY LOUD, especiallyin the morning and evenings, it's as loud as a 747 jet and will haunt your dreams.

Honestly, I am no where near worried about adopting this bird but personally I believe my parents are worried about the beak size thats it

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My advice to youu is to wait. Owning a macaw is a huge responsibility, they live 50-80 years and require daily attention, training, toys to play wirh and socialization, as well as regular vet care. It will cost you thousands, not hundreds of dollars if you have no cage, toys, etc. Also they need to eat an incredible amount of food, made daily of fruits, veggies, legumes, grains, nuts, etc every single day, for 60 years. Only adults with the means to provide care should own mavaws. Lifetime commitment!

Yes, wait for the right time. Macaws need lots and lots of space and enrichment.

A macaw is not a good bird if your parents are worried about loud and messy. My macaw is actually fairly quiet, but my neighbors have occasionally joked about how sassy she can be, as evidenced by what they can hear from a mile or so away. She doesn't get loud often, but when she decides to party, she doesn't hold anything back.

Speaking of not holding anything back, we've got a light hearted joke competition going on at my house to measure just how far from her cage she's ever managed to get poop to land. Her current record is 4 feet. We also quite lovingly say that she expresses her artistic side in the form of projectile poop wall art. There's plastic hanging on the wall behind her cage for this very reason. But still, we clean up poop pretty much all day, ever day.

Her regular cage is about 6 feet long, 6.5 feet tall, and 3.5 feet wide. Her travel cage is 3 feet by two feet. She's good in that for a week or so, but can tolerate longer as long as she's out and active most of the time during the day. We frequently take her to my MIL's house, and she travels well in her travel cage in the back of the SUV or the middle section (seats removed) of my minivan.

Vet bills: I'm not sure how much my vet bills run for any individual bird in my house. So far we're at around $6000.00 this year for everybody. Charlotte takes one medication that's $120/mo. If a bird stayed healthy, you'd probably only spend a couple hundred bucks a year at the vet's, but if they get sick, prepare to spend thousands.

I don't have any problems (usually...there have been some exceptions), with birds chewing on furniture and walls, but I also have parrot paradise set up. There are large play stands or play gyms in almost every room of the house. There's a birdie super highway set up across the ceiling. I'm a housewife and MrC is retired, so we're home and interacting with the birds all day every day. They don't get bored often.

One last thing. Macaws are amazing birds, but so are budgies, and every size of bird in between. Honestly, I have just as much, if not more fun playing with my son's budgie and lovebird as I do playing with any of my larger birds. If I'm being totally honest, I might have a slight favorite in the budgie. He's such a little character, with all the attitude of my macaw packed into a 30 gram body. Don't limit yourself to bird species right off the bat. Go out and meet and play with birds of as many species as you can. Perhaps the perfect bird for you is a species you never even thought to consider.

I just borrowed this from another thread, not to sway you towards wanting a Cockatoo, but to point out the requirements with a large bird!
That room is his! Those toys are his! Except for sleep times(hopefully), this is 24x7!

[ame="https://youtu.be/IjqA0w0aM5c"]Max Has Road Rage - YouTube[/ame]

Macaws are very messy, are very high maintenance, very expensive to own, are really loud, can bite really hard, can damage anything they can get their beaks on. Your parents' concerns are valid and indicate that a macaw is absolutely the wrong pet for their home. Wait until you own a house of your own.
In the meantime, volunteering at a rescue would give you access to some birdie friends, without the responsibility of owning one, and you would learn so much about what actually having one would entail.

Regarding the Summer Home. We also have a second home, a year around cottage that we spend more time at during the Summer and lesser in the Winter.

Both places have pretty much the same stuff; cages, play stands, toys, etc... We have found that it is just easier to duplicate them, then it is break it all down, load - unload and reassemble.

As you may have picked-up within the above Posts, they talk about Mini-vans and SUVs as their transportation of choice. The larger the Parrot the more these choice become a must have.


Vet Care: Very well covered above. The only thing missing is the emergency 'runs' to the Vet Clinic! When your Parrot becomes ill, it happens very quickly, which means near everything is dropped and its a mad dash to the Clinic!

Regarding the Vet. Parrots require Vets that have very special training. They are Certified Avian Vets (CAV) that have taken additional studies, past specific testing and have the documentation to prove that they have the training to provide general and advance care for Parrots. There are also Avian Qualified Vets (AQV) that since graduation, they have taken addition course study in Avian Care and can provide general Avian Care and some advanced care. As a Group, they are far less common than traditional Vets.

Prior to obtaining a Parrot you need to locate the nearest Certified Avian Vet (CAV) and then determine if there are any Avian Qualified Vet (AQV) in your area. It is not uncommon for the nearest CAV or AQV's to be hundreds of miles from your location. Some are very lucky to have them near by.

When there are none closer than 300 miles, you may need to consider a Larger Animal Vet that has 'Farm Animal' training. This means that they have the training to care for 'Farm Birds.' Although not the same as Parrots, it is better than a Vet that 'only' has training in Cats and Dogs. Commonly, this group of Vets provide general care and will have contact with CAVs or AQVs that they will send you too if care requires.

You should maybe change your species of parrots. Get an apartment type of parrot


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I don't think you should get a macaw or cockatoo until you're an adult. They cost thousands of dollars, need a huge cage, vet care, hours of attention each day, have a big beak and could cause you to need stitches, are loud, messy, and destructive. However, you might be able to take care of a smaller parrot like a cockatiel, budgie, or conure. They still require vet care and attention, but are not as loud, messy, or expensive. They still need a large cage but not that of a macaw, their beaks are small and can't cause much damage, and still have wonderful personalities and are intelligent, can learn tricks, and are very affectionate. I promise you, cockatiels, parrotlets, budgies, quakers, conures, etc. have just as much personality and are great pets without the cost, mess, noise, and bites. But you may not be ready for a bird, and that's okay. You can get one when you're living on your own, there's no rush. Smaller birds can live up to 25 or 30 years, and big ones can live 80+ years. These birds are a lifetime commitment, and you might not be ready for that.

before answering any of your questions, your parents said no. guess what that means? (hint: it means no) it's their house and it's up to them what goes on in it, you don't get a say.

Now for the rest!

Birds have to go to specialist Avian vets, specialist means $$$$ so if you can't afford your own place you can't afford a vet bill. They have to go once a year but the slightest change means a run down to the vet meaning more money for what may be nothing! Or worse yet for your wallet they could be ill resulting you waving goodbye to more money than a student spends on tuition!

Yes they bite, they have a mouth. That beak is solely designed for crushing some pretty tought nuts. Tougher than we can break so yes they can bite and inflict damage. Some people who have been attacked have had to get reconstructive surgery to put their face back together (extreme but always prepare for the worst)

Noise, oh lord they are loud. Their call can be heard for miles! To the owner of a mac who figured out how to scream a heavy metal concert would easily be described as a quiet night.

well do you want often they poop or how often it seems to be they poop? Roughly every 20 minutes but it can feel like every time you look at them.

cage space? The biggest room in the house might suffice. Most homes are not suited to them pure and simple just because of their size.

Either they have another cage at the summer house and join you going in a carrier or you don't go anymore. You can't leave them alone whilst you're off doing whatever.

you SHOULD be worried. You're not ready for a bird, you're not ready for any IMO you're nowhere near mature enough yet. You may not like it but that's the truth, I assume you're in school still. What do you do about friends? About college? About moving into a tiny studio apartment or share a place with people? What do you do about finding a job? What do you do when you are at that point where you're struggling to feed yourself? what do you do about your parents who very importantly have told you already NO. I can tell you this, if I had a child who asked for a pet and I said no. If they came back with that pet I would be marching them back to where it came from to give back and the entire drive I would be thinking up some punishments that would violate the Geneva conventions rules on cruel and unusual punishment. quite possibly I'm hammering the point home a little hard but you get the picture. Don't mention it anymore, take the no as a no, research, learn, volunteer at a shelter (extremely helpful in finding a job) mature, grow as a person, find a steady job, find a home for yourself, get your crazy early 20's out the way and settle into life. Then think about a bird. You may find yourself in a position like myself where you are taken in by the smaller fids opposed to the big flashy ones.

I have too agree with everyone else. I have two plus an African grey in my den the macaws rule the room. I'm retired and their a handful messy lowed as hell when one goes off but when both go off look out.

I'm having a problem. I can afford this macaw and I would love to bring him to a new home. My parents don't though. Yes I am unfortunately still living with my parents. She will be 100% my responsibility and will be in my room. I have experience with birds but my parents are worried about the following things:

-How many times do they go to the vet?

GROOMING USUALLY ABOUT TWICE A YEAR. FIFTY BUCKS EACH. WELL BIRD EXAM ONCE EVERY TWO YEARS FOR ME AND ABOUT $250. (Mine are healthy.)

-Worried about biting/claws, can they damage furniture? If so how do you avoid

CLAWS WON'T DAMAGE THE FURNITURE, BUT THAT BEAK CERTAINLY CAN TURN FURNITURE INTO TOOTHPICKS. YOU AVOID IT BY BITE PRESSURE TRAINING THE BIRD, AND ALSO BY BUYING/MAKING FOR THEM PLENTY OF TOYS THEY CAN CHEW UP. MACAW TOYS COST ABOUT FIFTY BUCKS EACH, AND A MAC CAN GO THROUGH A HUGE TOY IN A MATTER OF DAYS TO WEEKS.

-How much space does the cage take

MY BIG MAC CAGE IS SEVEN FEET TALL, THREE FEET WIDE, EIGHT FEET IN LENGTH.

-How often they go to the bathroom how big it is

MULTIPLE TIMES A DAY, BIGGEST IN THE MORNING.

-Every year we go to a summer house and they don't know how to bring the big cage there

PROBLEM.

-How much noise do they make

THEY ARE JET ENGINE NOISE LOUD.

Honestly, I am no where near worried about adopting this bird but personally I believe my parents are worried about the beak size thats it.