Handling a breeding pair

[Rfarabaugh]

Hi,
I am getting my first pair of b&g's. They are around 17 yo, and haven't been handled for a long time. What would be the best way to begin handling them? The male is very defensive of the female, which I understand is normal.

Is it recommended to separate them for training sessions, or would this just cause stress? This is also my first breeding pair, so I'm not sure if separating them is even an option.

Thanks
Robert

 

[Birdman666]

I am getting my first pair of b&g's. They are around 17 yo, and haven't been handled for a long time. What would be the best way to begin handling them? The male is very defensive of the female, which I understand is normal.

ARE THESE BREEDER BIRDS, OR PETS?!

BREEDERS GENERALLY DON'T GET HANDLED. TURNING A PAIR OF BREEDERS INTO PET QUALITY BIRDS?! UUUMMMM... EXTREMELY DIFFICULT IS A MILD WAY OF PUTTING IT!!!

Is it recommended to separate them for training sessions, or would this just cause stress? This is also my first breeding pair, so I'm not sure if separating them is even an option.

MACAWS MATE FOR LIFE. COMING BETWEEN A MATED PAIR WILL LIKELY MAKE BOTH BIRDS ANGRY, UNHAPPY, AND DIFFICULT TO DEAL WITH...

THE MALE WILL LIKELY GET BETWEEN YOU AND THE FEMALE. KEEP HIS DISTANCE WITH YOU, AND FORCE HER (WITH HIS BEAK) TO KEEP HER DISTANCE EVEN IF SHE WERE INCLINED TO COME TO YOU...

WHAT IS IT YOU ARE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH, AND HOW ARE YOU PLANNING TO GO ABOUT IT?

 

[RebelAngel]

And this is why we decided NOT to rescue the 17 year old retired breeder macaw we found recently.

His mate, a scarlet, had already been rehomed. He was not a happy bird at all!

 

[Birdman666]

And this is why we decided NOT to rescue the 17 year old retired breeder macaw we found recently.

His mate, a scarlet, had already been rehomed. He was not a happy bird at all!

Scarlet's tend to be short tempered and beaky to begin with, but a Scarlet that has had HIS MATE taken away from him?!

Yeah, right. Good luck with that!

Handle that one in one of those attack dog protection suits...

 

[RebelAngel]

He was a B&G and his mate was the scarlet. But yes, attack dog protection suit for sure! He was not a happy camper stuffed amongst a bunch of noisy birds and a couple of boarder B&Gs and a screaming cockatoo. Oh how we wanted to bring him home, but alas, it was not meant to be for us. If we had acres and a large aviary for mishandled macaws, we would have brought him home, but we do not.

 

[Birdman666]

He was a B&G and his mate was the scarlet. But yes, attack dog protection suit for sure! He was not a happy camper stuffed amongst a bunch of noisy birds and a couple of boarder B&Gs and a screaming cockatoo. Oh how we wanted to bring him home, but alas, it was not meant to be for us. If we had acres and a large aviary for mishandled macaws, we would have brought him home, but we do not.

Separating bonded pairs and selling them off is just not something you do! Those birds have a husband/wife bond.

And breeder birds... the interaction factor just isn't usually there.

 

[RebelAngel]

I agree Birdman. They were bonded and I'm sad they were separated and not sold as a PAIR, be it breeders or aviary birds.

 

[Rfarabaugh]

Birdman, thanks! that is what I was looking for. This is not only my first b&g, first breeding pair, but also my first birds altogether. So I am checking with the experience of the forum members to head me in the right direction.

I'm sure I will be posting other questions as they come up.

 

[Doublete]

Wait... Your first birds AND you plan to breed? Thus sounds like a poorly planned idea...

 

[Rfarabaugh]

Lol, I tend to dive right into things. Fear not, I have a lot of good resources

 

[JerseyWendy]

If you've never handled any big macs, and this is your first experience with them, my only advice would be: Do NOT attempt to handle a bonded pair - it may very well have an unhappy ending. :54:

 

[amjokai]

Yikes! Sounds like a recipe for losing fingers. Handling tame macaws can be hard.... Much less a breeding pair who hasn't been handled for 17 years!

If you've never had a bird do you know how to handfeeding? How to socialiZe the babies?
How are you going to get the babies out of the nestbox. My cockatiels and green cheeks try to eat me when I go into their boxes a macaw actually could? Have you been taught when to pull/why to pull and what to do if you have to pull babies. Macaws who aren't raised correctly develop serious behavior and psychological problems; do you know how to avoid messing up their little brains?
I hope you have a REALLY good mentor because it is not easy, in fact it is down right HARD heartbreaking, exhausting, crazy! I have no life during breeding season! NONE of i miss a feeding my babies die or can have nutritional deficiencies. They are so very fragile.

. Even baby macaws bite. They don't know how to control those big beaks yet. Have you been bitten by a bird who can break your finger yet? It's not fun. Imagine that bird PISSED OFF SNAPPING AT YOUR FACE OR ARMS BECAUSE YOURE TRYING TO CHECK ITS NEST.
Which you will have to check the nest TWICE a day during breeding season to make sure the eggs are okay and then that there are no problems with the babies.

Also if you have never had a parrot before you've never known the love of a parrot before so I'm a little concerned with your reasons for wanting to breed macaws.
They are expensive so I hope it is not for the money because the more expensive the bird the more expensive the upkeep and the more time effort and level of difficulty they are to breed and raise. This isn't something you just wake up one morning and decide to do...


To put it into perspective. Most parrots are rehomed the first time by the time they are two...
Then most will be rehomed 5-8 times in their lifetime.
I have a parrot who was rehomed 6 times in his life before he came to me. HE IS ONLY TWO?!
How are you going to feel if your baby macaws are rehomed like that? What if they have to be rehomed like that because YOU didn't raise and socialize them correctly?

I just hope you take all of this to heart and really research and find a breeding mentor to really teach you.
But make sure it's a breeding mentor who is ethical and does things correctly.
Do you know what it would take for it to be done correctly so that when you choose your mentor you aren't choosing a bird mill? If not I suggest you start researching what you should look for in a breeder, then research the psychological ramifications of force weaning and look at pictures of crop burns and read about what can happen if they are handfed wrong. Bad handfeeding KILLS babies in a split second!!!!!!!

Ok off the soap box now.

I do want to breed macaws some day but I have to LEARN and build more experience before I would buy a pair And I am an experienced small breeder and am currently raising my own blue and gold and have handfed day one babies. I'm smart enough to know the level of experience you need to raise macaws is not one a beginner or even someone who has been breeding small birds for a year is ready for. I'm thinking minimum two years of breeding parrots for me cause I have AMAZING mentors *the ethical kind* I wish you good luck but I don't see this ending well.

 

[JerseyWendy]

^^^^^^^^
BRAVO! And THANK YOU for this! :worship2: :emoticonc :respect:

 

[Rfarabaugh]

thank you everyone for the great advice. I do have a good breeding mentor, the person who sold me the birds. She actually said it would be a good idea to join this forum. I'm sure with her guidance, the advise from this and other forums, and my common sense, I'll enjoy this pair for the rest of my life. Today is day one, they are settling in fine, and amazingly enough enjoying treats, and talking. The previous owner is experienced, and has raised several clutches from this pair. I will keep you all posted on how they are doing.

Amjokai,
I do appreciate your suggestions, comments and concerns. I'm sure for most, this would not be a good idea, but I'm not most

 

[Allee]

They are stunning to look at. Best of luck to you and the birds. Please do keep us updated.

 

[Birdman666]

I'm glad you have an experienced person to show you the ropes. As you can tell from the prior replies, there's a lot to doing this the right way. And its very easy to accidentally kill or maim a baby big Mac...

I have personally witnessed the damage inexperienced hand feeders have done to baby birds, as have others on this board. This is very much a hot button issue for that reason.

 

[Rfarabaugh]

Thanks again birdman. I want the best for my birds and their inherent offspring. Some of my questions may seem outrageous, but I like to verify what I'm being told from multiple sources, so at times it maybe that I'm using the forum as a validator to information I've received elsewhere.