BGM Aruba

[Alsquared]

I may as well start a new thread on this page, as I will be posting quite often, once Aruba comes home...(2/10/08)

Right now she is only 6 months old, still at the pet store, which is taking great care of her. I visit every 3 days or so. When I pick her up I'm trying to keep her on my forearm/wrist, but she still tries to sneak up to my shoulder. She does it very "subtly", i.e., she loses her balance, then hangs on with her beak, then climbs up to the back of my neck. I've tried to discourage her by the "step-up" ladder method but obviously the staff at the pet store hasn't caught on, and I'm stuck with a macaw sitting on the back of my neck! UNSAFE!


It doesn't help that she's a natural klutz - she almost fell off the side of her cage trying to retrive a foot toy...I'm wondering if it's simply a fid foot strength issue.

 

[zarafia]

All young birds can be clumsy, she will grow out of that. It sounds like she has begun training you. That whole losing her balance and ending up on your shoulder shows you how clever she is. One way to help discourage her from leaving your hand is to bend your elbow and keep it down while holding her and your hand up. I would encourage you to teach her it is Ok to hold her toes while you are holding her. She might resent it at first so start by just touching her toes with your fingers and then progress to holding her toes for a few seconds, she will catch on that this gives you control over her, so you be the adult.

 

[TexDot33]

another great way to control a mac is to hold them on your forearm bent 90 degrees at the elbow right against your belly/chest doesn't give them any where to go and you will then be in control.

Also I have found that if I have a long-sleeved shirt on I will tend to take it off when handling a mac, reason being that if your sleeve starts to roll around your arm they tend to lose their grips and then they start to grasp (with beak) or they will start to try to dig their talons in harder ... no sleeves, no slippage safer for everyone.

 

[Alsquared]

Thanks, zarafim, that "elbow down, wrist up" technique worked today! Haven't tried the toehold yet, since she's still unsure of her balance and didn't want her to freak out. And Tex, you were correct - a bare forearm is more comfortable for her. I have a skinny forearm, and today she was steadier and I could tell her grip is getting stronger. I put her on my husband's beefy forearm, and she wasn't as steady. She leaves nail marks on my arm, but her nails are well-trimmed, so it's not painful.

Overall, she's doing well, LOVES peanuts in the shell (how many is too many per day? I want to use them as a training tool, but if she eats too much she gets diarrhea.) Still molting (when will she be fully molted?)

I'm currently unable to post pics but will do so when the forum admin allows.

Thanks to both of you!

 

[TexDot33]

Als, I have put the request in for your account to be made fully active, but our ADMIN seems to be a little absent lately ...

I learned that trick like 2 months ago ... it's a new one in my book, but yet it makes so much sense ... can't wait to see some great pics ...

 

[Alsquared]

As for the run up to your shoulder issue, hold your arm at an angle in close to your body. It makes it that much tougher for him to run up there.

Well..about that close to the body thing...again, she'll cuddle, then start to use her beak to start climbing up your shirt. If I'm not quick enough w/the ladder method, she'll be on my shoulder in no time. I'm learning her body language quite well, and teaching hubby the same, so we'll see!

THX for the advice, Birdman!

 

[Alsquared]

OK...Tomorrow's the BIG DAY! I'll be picking her up from the pet store and trundling her straight to the avian vet - about a 20 minute ride. I've purchased a carrier that's big enough to hold her (it's more like a rabbit cage, but the regular cat/dog transporters weren't long enough for her tail).

My question: it's REALLY cold here in Cleveland, OH (single digits) so I'll heat the car up & cover the cage with a blanket when I put her into the back of my car. Should I keep the blanket ON during the trip to the vet/back home to keep her from freaking out and/or freezing, or will she get motion sick/scared from not being able to see anything?

Thanks!

 

[TexDot33]

I know a lot of Macaws who love car rides ... I don't know that it's physically possible for a bird to get "motion sick" per se (I mean, think about it, does it make sense to evolution to make a creature that can fly prone to motion sickness). And look at it this way, you are subjecting her to a new experience on your first day together (what a great parront you are going to be!). I think that she will be fine in the car, without issues. Might be best to position her so that she can see you though.

I would (and do with my guys, I'm from New Hampshire and single digits would be a heatwave for us ), however, warm the car up adequately to ensure Aruba's comfort. I don't think that the blanket will be necessary in the car, but it's a great idea when you get out!

I am so excited for you, as soon as she settles in you need to post up pictures, there is nothing sweeter than a baby mac face!

:50:

 

[Alsquared]

Thanks, Tex...Yeah, the motion sick thing was a leftover thought from my late dog, who would barf after any car trip longer than a half hour. Obviously, in the wild, birds fly & then perch on swaying branches! DUH!:smile056: I'm so stupid....

OK, I'll put her in the back seat as opposed the trunk area (I've got a Subaru OutBack - a kind of small station wagon) so she can see me and I can comfort her. The trunk area is more level but since she has a perch in the transport cage she can hang on despite the imbalance on the back seats. But I will definitely heat up the car first & cover the cage when going in & out.

I'll post pics soon!

 

[Alsquared]

SHE'S HOME!!!

She didn't mind the 40 minute car ride to the vet (was confused at being in the carrier, tho) and HATED the vet exam. They toweled her and turned her on her back - she made little sound but struggled fiercely. She has bruises on her cheeks where they held her.

She was pretty cool when she got home - just looked around for a few minutes like "Where the he** am I?" then put her in her cage & took a well-deserved nap.

HELP!! She ate some and wanted out of her cage, so I put her on her playgym. She ate some more, but by this time it was dark...and she was giving me a "hiss,hiss,hiss" that sounds like a cat barfing up a hairball, and biting, but not hard, so I put her back in the cage. Do parrots cough?

What a day!

 

[Auggie's Dad]

Do birds cough? Sure, but there are a couple other things this may have been.

What seems most likely, especially if it was right after eating was that she basically was coughing it up. Birds GI tract is a bit different than ours. They collect recently eaten food in their crop which they can cough up latter. Often they do this as a "gift" for their loved ones in a mating display. Sometimes they do it just to get the food down right (mouth to crop, crop to mouth, back again till it "sits right"). Was she bobbing her head up and down while doing this? If so, this is probably what it was. Though this wouldn't often be described as a "hissing" sound.

Birds CAN also just hiss... for reasons and in ways similar to that of a cat, its not common, but if they do they are REALLY P'ed off.

If none of this sounds like what it was you should keep your eye out and if there's any doubt call your vet.

 

[TexDot33]

Commonly if your bird is coughing, it is just mimicking sounds ... but hissing is common too ... was there lunging involved ... if Aruba is lunging now PUT A STOP TO IT ... lunge - *BAM* birdie on the floor with your back turned to her ... DO NOT ALLOW LUNGING.

I am not really concerned at this point ... give her a few days to settle in .. I bet she is really befuddled at this point ... give her some quite attention over the next few days, let her acclimate to the new environment, let her feel out the flow of the house, let her get used to the new schedule ... she'll settle in before long ... and when she does, be ready, cause she's going to test you, and if you fail these test, well, let's just say you better be ready to NOT fail ...

:50:

 

[Alsquared]

Her "hiss" sounds like Jason from the Friday the 13th movies..."heh heh heh" but no "ha ha ha"...it seems to happen when she's overstimulated. Not overexcited, just too much going on at once. For instance, I took her for a tour of the house today on my wrist and she was all up, neck-stretching, looking around, then did the "heh", got antsy and started to chew on my fingers. (No, she wasn't catching her balance - we were perfectly still.) So I removed her beak, quietly told her no, then put her back in the cage w/the door shut. She had been out all morning so I figured a rest was in order.

Overall she's settling well - eating, drinking, playing with toys, napping. I made a mistake this morning (well, hubby did) of taking her out of her cage before I got ready. At this stage, I don't like to leave her unattended out of the cage while I'm upstairs, so after 20 minutes, I had to try to get her back in. She was NOT happy, and I perfectly understood why - but I had to be firm (even when she scratched my finger w/her beak after a step up request and drew blood - but I've had worse from cats) and the lure of an almond helped.

This is one of my cats, China (the biter) who was a bit curious about Aruba, but is scared of her 'cause she's so big. So far both cats ignore her, but they're a little jealous of the attention. This was too funny - my other cat, Egypt (yes we have a theme going) is a hunter, and was sitting on top of a dining room chair just EYEBALLING Aruba in her cage. He's a good hunter but a notorious fraidy-cat. Anyway, I had just put Aruba on her perch, and her back was to him. She decided to turn around, but being unfamiliar w/the perch, lost her balance and flapped her wings. Egypt LEAPT OFF the chair and took refuge under the piano, with an expression that said, "What the he** was THAT???"

Hope the pics come thru.

 

[Tracy842]

She looks great and it sounds like things are going quite well. Don't forget more pictures!!!

 

[Alsquared]

Hope this pic comes thru...Aruba doing what a macaw does best!

 

[TexDot33]

very cute ... they are great shredders aren't they ... no need to buy a document shredder when you have a Mac around the house! :lol:

 

[Alsquared]

I am such a bad parront...7 months old and she has a drinking problem...

 

[TexDot33]

Great pic ... how long did that bottle last anyway?

 

[Tracy842]

I am such a bad parront...7 months old and she has a drinking problem...

The first step is admiting you have a problem.

She looks great!!!

 

[Alsquared]

Tex, that bottle is still perfectly intact. She just likes to try to get the last drops of water out of it. She's not much of a power chewer at her age. She is a junk food junkie, however. Anything fruit? YES! Nuts (she'd sell her soul for a peanut), birdie bread? YES! Any veggies? Well, she likes carrots, and has nibbled some Romaine lettuce...I realized that any new food should go in her food bowl. If I hand it to her on her perch she thinks it's some weird toy and drops it.

Tracy, I don't have the problem, Aruba does! I guess I should not become an enabler...