Harness size

I am wondering what size harness to get for a Red Fronted Macaw.

Since Valentino is not due to come home until December and now it is too cold to walk with him outside anyway I have time to harness train him until the weather gets warm enough to take him outside.

Someday I would like to train for free flight. I will need to find a mentor for that step though.

Thank you for any input.

Noblemacaw

If you get an Aviator Harness you want a Medium (450-600gm) for a Red Fronted macaw. I'm not sure about other brands.

Too cold outside for you or for him?




[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13XmlniLKd4]Charlie Flying Outside - YouTube[/ame]

I live in Minnesota so yes it will be too cold for him by the time he comes home. However the past 4 days have been in high 50's to low 60's but the bottom will drop and temps will go back to normal range of 30's for the high on Friday.

Valentino is due to come home early December. By then it will most defiantly be too cold to take him outside. I will use this time for bonding and training. He will be taught for recall and I will have to exercise him inside with flying. Down the road I would LOVE to train to free fly him. IF I can find a mentor to help train me and Valentino to safely do this I will move forward with the training but for now I will fly him indoors only and always use a harness with him outdoors. Valentino's wings will never be clipped. I have lived with flighted parrots for over 20 years and have adapted my home for flighted birds to live here.

Thank you for posting that cute video of your parrot outside. HOW ADORABLE WAS THAT? I really enjoyed watching it.

Noblemacaw

I posted that video to show you that parrots can enjoy the winters outdoors! Not for a long stretch of time, but for short bursts! They have feathers to keep them warm, so Valentino may enjoy it for 5-15 minutes at a time! As long as he's healthy, he'll be ok! If you do free-flight train him, then he may enjoy the outdoors for a longer period of time during the winter! With all that exercise, he'll be creating even more heat!

In all the reading that I've done, I've heard it's best to get birds you plan on free-flying at an age prior to them weaning, then free-flying them outside to get them accustomed to the out doors. Even if you don't get him flying outside in the winter, the more exposure he has to a variety of situations, the better! And the sooner you can get this started, the better it will be for him later on!


I do know of some groups and links you may be interested in! Facebook, yahoo and articles!

I actually can see taking him outside until it gets below zero on sunny non windy winter days. In Jan and Feb would probably be way to cold for my feathered friend though.

I know Wendy does free fly her birds but I am not sure about the babies. I did ask her not to clip his wings at all so to keep him flighted. I know other owners ask her to give them small wing clips but I have always had my birds flighted. RFM have the reputation of being one of the most skilled flyers even as babies so I am not to terribly worried about him flying clumsy like as a baby.

My first order of business is to help Valentino adjust to having to be shipped to my home and spend time bonding with him. Each parrot is different and I have had parrots accept me right away, working with them for three weeks and the hardest was my Eclectus Joaquin. It took me almost 2 months to help him adjust, gain confidence and be happy in my home.

I am hoping to connect with people locally who free fly their parrots and know what they are doing. If I cannot then I will need to teach myself how this is to be done.

Noblemacaw