Multiple Macaws

[lostcause13]

Hey all,
So I have a question for the macaw owning community, specifically about owning multiple macaws. I'm a person who enjoys variety, and quite frankly if I could own several species of smaller parrots as well as several macaws, several hawks and even an eagle I'd be the happiest guy in the world. There's obvious reasons owning multiple macaws is difficult not the least of which is their cost (both of the birds themselves and of upkeep). That being said, I would like to propose a scenario for the group.

Is it possible for a married couple, both with full time jobs and wanting kids within lets say five years to properly care for two macaws, and perhaps even a smaller parrot a few years farther down the line? Or is this something that is better waited for when I'm retired, kids are grown etc. (assuming financially these people could handle such a task, obviously a different discussion)

 

[sonja]

It all depends on your priorities. Working in rescue, I see so, so many animals dumped when people have kids. But, of course, it is completely possible to keep your pets when you have kids. Or move. Or switch jobs. Some people just choose not to do it. Yes, it's more work, expense and sometimes hassle. But, to me, it is part of the commitment of taking in an animal.

So, in short, yes, it's completely possible as long as you make them one of the priorities in your life. Macaws, or any live animals, are not to be shunned aside when they become inconvenient. Are you ready to make that commitment for the rest of your life? Only you know that answer.

 

[Merlee]

Life would be much easier if any children you have are of school age before getting large birds. I had 3 kids and was a stay at home mom. Adding a bird to the pot during my children's early years would have been stressful for all.

 

[Pinkbirdy]

Sure I think 2 Macaws are doable !! Have a house ,I would have kids first [not easy with newborns].Macaws are not as hard as you think if your ready for them . Out of my 12 birds [my macaw ] is the best behaved.

 

[MikeyTN]

It is something you need to think hard on. Especially with little kids! Macaw can easier rip a child's fingers!

 

[FreedomAndForgiven]

I have seen, and heard a lot of stories, and birds that the people got the bird or birds, and then decided to have kids so the bird was not getting the attnetion it used to and ended up becoming a plucker or aggressive. Whatever attention you give the bird before you have kids you need to be able to give it the same after the kids are born or it can put a lot of stress on them. My wife, and have 2 macaws, 4 Tiels, and a Goffin Cockatoo. Our sons are 8 & 13, and I have a hard time imagining what it would be like taking care of 2 macaws with a baby. I have a rescue that was neglected, never abuse, but just never got any real attention. It is sad to see just what not getting enough attention does to these amazing birds or all of a sudden they're not getting the amount of attention that they used to. It is sad, and most of those birds end up getting rehomed, rescued, and/or pluckers. If you're planning on having children in the future more so the near future I would not recommend a macaw.

 

[csperkins3]

I think it is possible but I wanted to add my input from a different perspective.
I recently (about 6 weeks ago) purchased a blue and gold macaw from a person that was having a second baby and couldn't take care of the bird any longer and didn't want to bring another baby into the situation. What I have now learned through experience is that the bird is very traumatized by babies. I know this because my daughter is currently living with me with her baby. The bird gets extremely upset when the baby cries and will scream at the top of her lungs which upsets the baby and makes him scream. If the baby is in the same room with her she will start screaming and wake the baby. She is very unhappy that there is a baby in the house and at times she will cry like a baby. I cannot tell you how upset she is when the baby cries.
This is thankfully a temporary situation and my youngest is 14. I do not know what the bird went through where she was, I only know that they had a baby and this bird is very upset by babies. All I am saying is please consider how hard it will be for all of you when you do have children. I am sure it has worked very well for some and I am only dealing with the trauma from a situation that was not good for the bird.
That does not mean that it would not work for you. I am only telling you this because this is my experience. It doesn't always work out.
Lucky for me I got an amazing bird but that doesn't take away the upset she goes through when she is around a baby.

 

[JerseyWendy]

I, too, believe it IS possible to do this. This is how I would do it: Either rescue 2 macaws that already know each other and get along, or get 2 just weaned youngsters at the same time, so that the macaws don't solely rely on you for entertainment, but also have each other. I would still house them separately, but during playtime they can spend time together and/or with you.

I would also recommend you get 2 of the same sex to hopefully prevent the whole mating thing - unless you are planning on breeding them down the line.

 

[lostcause13]

I, too, believe it IS possible to do this. This is how I would do it: Either rescue 2 macaws that already know each other and get along, or get 2 just weaned youngsters at the same time, so that the macaws don't solely rely on you for entertainment, but also have each other. I would still house them separately, but during playtime they can spend time together and/or with you.

I would also recommend you get 2 of the same sex to hopefully prevent the whole mating thing - unless you are planning on breeding them down the line.

Thanks, that's an invaluable piece of advice and I did wonder about them entertaining each other being a possibility that could also make the potential for the family being gone easier on them as well. I've gotten a lot of good advice from this thread, it makes me wonder though because one macaw I want is significantly more expensive than the other breed so getting them at the same time would be difficult. (I want a blue/Gold and Buffon's Macaw)

 

[ShellyBorg]

I have a friend who had a 5 year old mac when she found out she was pregnant. Up to this point she did not think she could have kids so she had no plans for children. She started out treating the mac as any older sibling and show videos and talked about it. She even had a baby doll that she used as a trainer for how to act around the child. Her mac was involved in everything baby. When the baby came he was so happy he jumped around the room like a deranged bunny! LOL As the baby grow he had "jobs", putting the dipper in the trash was a favorite. When it can to solid foods the mac went back into hand feeding mod and she ended up feeding them in side by side high chairs. talk about food flinging!
This worked for her because she never put the bird second. Did lots of pretraining and was on her toes all the time! She has told me she would never do it again. it was just to hard. Nothing like a crying baby in one arm and a crying mac in the other at 3 am.

 

[mde1962]

We own a Green Wing Macaw and a Blue & Gold Macaw and have one child at home who is 13. I think that if our child was younger it would be very stressful having multiple Macaws. Macaws require a lot of one on one / socialization time which means they need to be out of the cage and actively participating in family activities AT LEAST 2 hours per day. Whether it be on play stands in the Family room where you watch television or in the kitchen while you're doing the dishes or just sitting in your lap getting their heads scratched they need and want to interact with you. We all know how small children can be, especially when we are not looking and a Macaw can take a finger off in an instant. So with that being said I would really think about having small children around Macaws if they are not supervised.
You have to think, When you get up in the morning the children need to be tended to, ie teeth brushed, fed, ready for daycare or school. Well guess what when a Macaw wakes up in the morning it needs to be tended to as well, but there is a difference. A Macaw can let out a eardrum shattering scream if it feels it is being shorted on time and attention so needless to say in our home the Macaws come first. Our Green Wing is three months old and still on hand feeding so he needs to come first.
Well to sum it up You CAN have small children and multiple Macaws but you really need time..