Macaw Nest

[jacksmom]

Ok, my builder is late, so here is a pic of the nest...there is a long saga of the bonding processes of these two I don't have time to tell, but I did too much talking on here today and not enough pic posting!

Paris is on the box, Jack is on the perch. Inside the nest is some very finely shredded cardboard...she shredded it herself. Anyone have any other ideas for nesting material? They seem to like to break it up themselves...

 

[JerseyWendy]

Perhaps some soft wood they can chew and put it in there?

I found THIS website, but honestly don't know how accurate the info is.
Macaws

This must be SO exciting for you.

 

[MikeyTN]

The only bedding I like to use is Kaytee's Pine small pet bedding. Walmart used to have something similar years ago in their large economy bags but they changed the product and it's all the rough stuffs now. I don't like the paper bedding like some people started using. To me they do not make good nesting materials. I have a high hatching rate but I mist the eggs on a daily basis until they hatch so the paper wouldn't work good with it but the bedding I use does just fine. I've been doing the misting for many many years and I find that it helps as your bring humidity around the eggs which it helps them big time. Some females will dip themselves in a bowl of water and go back into the nest to sit on the eggs.

 

[U2gal]

Aspen is the only safe wood bedding I would suggest using. Pine and cedar cause respiratory issues.

 

[jacksmom]

Maaaaybee some inaccuracies in there, JersyWendy...but all in all a GREAT reference...more information about macaws all in one place than I have found anywhere else! Thank you so much!

Hmm. Yes. I remember that from my small animal days working in pet stores, aspen being the safest from respiratory issues. Birds can be very prone to respiratory infections, so I can see shredded/dusty almost any wood being a bad choice...

Unless...they shred it themselves. My guys make giant toothpicks...the smallest about a regular toothpick, the biggest made for the giant in Jack and the Beanstalk, lol. No dust.

Pine is the softest safe wood I can think of...good thing I live in NC, home of the Carolina Pine. I generally do not use pine branches from around here because they are messy with all the bark, and hard to clean...instead I go for the crepe myrtle, and smooth bark safe woods. This time, though, maybe I will strip some bark from some smaller ones, and allow her to make her own with the twigs.

Thank you sooo much for the tip about misting...the only eggs I have ever hatched before have been small birds such as finches, and I couldn't GET them to stop having three or more babies at a time doing nothing but providing a nest box. I put a bunch of cardboard and thick brown paper in there (no printing), and she is going to be soooo upset when I vacuum out all her hard work, I am sure...but the last thing we need is sticky moldy paper at the bottom of the box!

My other idea was palm...since this is what they would use in the wild, and there is a windmill palm growing outside our house, lol...bake some palm leaves, you think?

Yeah, very exciting! I watch the camera a lot! I think I will go nest material collecting/sanitizing before I start work!

 

[MikeyTN]

Aspen is the only safe wood bedding I would suggest using. Pine and cedar cause respiratory issues.

What do you think birds use out in the wild? They use whatever tree hole they choose and usually chew the bedding to dust.

Out of years of breeding I really do prefer the product I suggested cause its really soft. Before they start using it I would pad it down and mist some water on it.

 

[sodakat]

I asked this in the other thread: how long have they been together and have you seen them mating?

 

[jacksmom]

I haven't, Sodakat, in fact they are not even well bonded. I have an email out to my vet asking basically if I maybe moved to early (if my birds need something, I am in great haste to provide, lol) and if so this box will have to come down so we don't encourage any chronic laying without the happiness of true love! Will keep you posted!

I wanted to get something they could have fun "making" themselves, but I do like the softness aspect of the product you recommended, Mikey...maybe they will allow me to sprinkle this as a layer on top. What do I think they use in nature? A palm tree!

Btw, even though I may have to remove the whole box and send Jack back to his corner...the palm bark was great!

 

[sodakat]

Well, my unasked for opinion and advice is, if the nest box inspires Paris to lay instead of inspiring her to mate, let her sit on the eggs until she loses interest, then remove the nest box until you observe mating/pairing behavior.

Chronic egg laying seems an unrealistic worry at this point, considering she hasn't laid even one egg.

Is that box big enough for her tail?

 

[jacksmom]

Always love anything designed to help, Sodakat...and that sounds like a good idea. Having never laid an egg once in all her ten year old life, it does seem unrealistic this would become a problem. However, someone on another forum made me question what I thought reasonable...hence the vet message lmao. He tolerates me, though, because I run a reef shop and non profit events as well. And I brought him turtles when I was 13, lol, and had some as pets. (33 now)

The bonding is fascinating. They test each other the same way they test us humans. They are cracking me up daily as I watch them on the camera, and I feel pretty good that every day they stand just a LITTLE bit closer before one of them goes into the "testing game"...

 

[U2gal]

Aspen is the only safe wood bedding I would suggest using. Pine and cedar cause respiratory issues.

What do you think birds use out in the wild? They use whatever tree hole they choose and usually chew the bedding to dust.

Out of years of breeding I really do prefer the product I suggested cause its really soft. Before they start using it I would pad it down and mist some water on it.

The wild isn't a cage indoors in a breeding situation.

Do a google search on pine and cedar causing respiratory issues when its in the form of bedding.

 

[Parro]

they can shred some newspaper into small pieces and scatter it all around the nest, it will be comfy for birds especially if babies occure. also, if they lay eggs, if their mother doesnt care for them much. you can plug a light bulb in a hole in the box so it will provide heat for the babies when their mother is off doing something else. remember: CHOOSE A LIGHT BULB WHICH DOESNT PRODUCE SMOKE AT ALL! this can choke the birds

 

[MikeyTN]

Aspen is the only safe wood bedding I would suggest using. Pine and cedar cause respiratory issues.

What do you think birds use out in the wild? They use whatever tree hole they choose and usually chew the bedding to dust.

Out of years of breeding I really do prefer the product I suggested cause its really soft. Before they start using it I would pad it down and mist some water on it.

The wild isn't a cage indoors in a breeding situation.

Do a google search on pine and cedar causing respiratory issues when its in the form of bedding.

I've been using it for the past 16 years so I don't need to google it. I'm saying through experience not google search.

When you pad down the bedding and mist it. It eliminates a lot of the dust. Indoor is no different from outdoors, they still sit in the bedding inside a tree hole! Trust me I know! I studied wild birds and I bred for years.

 

[MikeyTN]

they can shred some newspaper into small pieces and scatter it all around the nest, it will be comfy for birds especially if babies occure. also, if they lay eggs, if their mother doesnt care for them much. you can plug a light bulb in a hole in the box so it will provide heat for the babies when their mother is off doing something else. remember: CHOOSE A LIGHT BULB WHICH DOESNT PRODUCE SMOKE AT ALL! this can choke the birds

And the latest google search would say newspaper harbors asperglosis....so that's something to think about!

 

[U2gal]

Its not the dust that causes respiratory problems in Pine and Cedar bedding, but the oils and the chemicals that are excretes when in a bedding type of form.

All-in-all, I'd still recommend ASPEN.

And stay away from Kaytee products...

 

[MikeyTN]

I guess we just have to agree to disagree....

I personally knows what works best for my babies and higher rate of eggs hatching on it then other types of bedding. I've tried them all on the market. So whatever the poster chooses is up to her. I haven't had a bird with respiratory issue yet!