att Macaw breeders

[nibbler]

Im talking out of frustration here, and I apologise for being blunt, and im expecting a huge backlash but there is something about bird breeders that I find so damn frustration. Why is it, each one will tell you (regardless of what breed it is) that their breed is more difficult to hand raise compared to another breed of parrot. Say if you have had plenty of experience hand rearing budgies, conures, cockatiels, love-birds why do alexandrine breeders try to re-enforce the higher level of difficulty compared to any other breed?


And so you breed and hand rear alexandrine's, and its no different to any other bird you have hand raised, and same methods apply, just often different diets (feeding mixes).
Now all over again, your told “its difficult to hand rear a macaw, you better off having someone elses as its far to difficult and its not like hand rearing other birds?....


Am I missing something here? Besides minor adjustments, sometimes in temperature, humidity, feed timing (which one can obtain the knowledge from online within minutes) can someone please tell me what it is that makes the macaw so much harder to hand raise than other birds? Is it simply due to the price tag? Or is it because all breeders feel their methods are “unique” and you are not capable. You can hand raise/care for an injured joey (which requires constant feeds, a child whos completley disabled and unable to communicate, isnt toilet trained, and cannot walk, you can hand rear budgies, weiros, cockatiels conures, but still your ability will be questions by another breeder.


Iv been told the same thing by different breeders yet none have answered my question. Most breeders, (more-so in australia) seem to have some complex mindset that they are above and beyond others for their knowledge and “expertise” in hand rearing, yet each one will provide different answers to basic questions.




While its good to get advise from someone who has over 15+ macaws and breeds for profit, and questions are always directed towards them, but asking them direct personality questions regarding behaviour changes in hand reared / raised birds after breeding seems pointless. How would this bulk breeder have the time to give their “tame hand reared pair” 24/7 attention after breeding? I see others in the forums have said that two hand raised, friendly tame birds can remain friendly and tame after the breeding period is over (sure they have slight behaviour changes during breeding season) but are they forever changed? Four australian breeders iv spoken to had different opinions. The ones with more than one set, claimed once they breed, they will no longer be tame, despite being hand raised. I know this is not the case for alexandrines and weiro's through my own personal experience...but are macaws really that different? Or am I asking people who clearly dont give their birds enough dedication?


(BTW I managed to achieve and maintain friendly tamed birds by having a free roam house with open nest box. I dont cage my birds, I breed only one type at a time. Sure its hard work cleaning, and lots of stuff gets destroyed, but its how I believe I should live with birds, in co-existence, not in ownership)

 

[JerseyWendy]

The more people you talk to, the more opinions you will get.

I can tell you that there IS a huge difference in hand feeding a Cockatiel, Amazon vs. a Macaw. The difference is that most big macs have quite a strong feeding response. I mean scary strong. They bob their heads quite rigorously, additionally may flap their growing wings, often resulting in carrying more formula on their plumage than in their crop. Remember, a growing big mac baby is QUITE the handful. While it would be easy to cup a hand over a cockatiel baby or even over an Amazon, one hand alone won't cup a big mac and hold him still. However, and this is merely my opinion, if you've successfully hand reared other baby birds, you could certainly take on a big mac baby as long as you have some confidence. Many big macs are slow weaners, I'm sure you were aware of this. Some wean as quickly as 4-5 months, while others (like GWs) can take 9 months, and Hys may take a year.

As for breeding big macs, pet birds don't make good breeders. Macaws can breed any time during the year, they don't have 'set' times like Amazons, for example.

A good pair of breeding macs won't be cuddly. :54: No, they won't rip your head off, but they will certainly not want your attention over their mate's. And a pair on eggs may very well TRY and take your head off. :52: This has nothing to do with not giving them enough attention - it's just the way it is.

 

[SilverSage]

Every person has a different experience and will give advice based on what has worked for them.

I have hand fed:
Budgies
Cockatiels
Green cheeked conures
Indian Ringnecks
A blue and gold macaw.

They are all different. Feeding the macaw was very different than the IRNs that's for sure. Super strong feeding reflex, for one thing, as well as the unparalleled ability to fling more formula in one move than all the other babies in their whole lives, just due to the size of the beak, but the real kicker is the length of time it takes to abundance wean a macaw. The one referenced here took over 10 months to wean.

And isn't it illegal to sell unweaned babies in Australia?

 

[SilverSage]

I should mention though, other than the extreme length of time for weaning, I find budgies to be the hardest I have raised personally

 

[StephenAndKyleigh]

I've gone through the entire weaning process with a big mac and have raised a cockatiel and sun conure for a friend. I've also fed a CAG, DYH, and a budgie. They were all very different. They were all very different and would require practice and research before taking them home or committing to raise for another person. A good breeder just wants to make sure the bird will be safe and properly cared for when it leaves their hands. I would be cautious to whom the birds go to as well.

Its nothing to take personal.

 

[thekarens]

Wendy is spot on with everything she said.

 

[nibbler]

Thank you so very much for replying and giving me the information i was after. I do think the fact that macaws take longer to wean is a good thing and a bad thing, as while i have all the time in the world (i have anxiety and dont leave the house, only for school runs) i love the dedication and commitment it takes. reminds me of being a mum - demanding but satisfying. but i guess this extra time would make it difficult seeing your chick leave for their new home. Also i never really considered the size during feeding which is an excellent point. I assumed the smaller the bird, the more difficult to feed, but i guess they all start out around the same size for the first few days. I admit when first feeding the alex - having being used to cockatiels, budgies, conures, and other smaller parrots it was a bit of a suprise. I wouldnt say negative, i just assumed fiercly hungry hahaha. But thats when i switched from a bent mental spoon to a a softer plastic/silicon type teat with a slight u-shape. due to the extra force and strength, hearing the beak smack against the spoon viciously just didnt sound right. With the smaller birds, they are happy to take from the area which flows from the end of the bent spoon, so having them constantly "hit" the spoon with force wasn't an issue. So im guessing it would be like the surprising strength of the Alex i experienced but times this by 10. I should probably watch some you-tube videos to get a good idea.

I Have read previously that the first 24-48hours of an egg being laid the temperature and environment have to be perfect, so i prefer for the mum to stay with her eggs for 3-5 days before removing from the nest... is this ok with macaws?

Also 1 breeder has told me the humidity during the egg incubation period is crucial. but having looked at 7 different blogs, advice boards and doccuments from various avianrist, avian vets, and breeding specialists (all regarding the macaw, or mentioning the macaw specifically) some say lower humidity 40-50% then another 50-60% and another saying 60-65%. I assumed you worked out the humidity by weighing the egg to get the appropriate number, which may require daily adjustments. i said i would start at 40-50% and was told its wrong. She is an expert and has raised hundreds of macaws so while i dont doubt her, i find it all conflicting with many other experts. Do you just go by what you know, and instinct?