About Macaw's droppings.

That poop looks pretty normal to me! Macaws tend to be messy poopers, and I find it is usually more runny that other species.

As for diet, I would highly recommend getting away from seeds and putting him/her on a pelleted diet. There are many good ones out there, but I am quite fond of lefeber and harrisons. They can be a bit more expensive, but I generally find you feed less and it lasts quite a while.

Supplementing with fruits and veggies is best, and you can even offer things like whole nuts (walnuts, almonds, pecans, etc). You don't want to give too many nuts as they are high in fat, but a few with a meal is perfectly ok. Cheerios also make awesome treats, and they are relatively low in calories.

I would hold back on the cooked meats, as it is much higher in protein than needed if they are on a pelleted diet. In fact, pelleted diets often have quite a bit of protein in them, so that is why it is so important to supplement the diet with fresh foods.

Pasta is very high in carbs, and not such a great thing. It can lead to obesity and really doesn't offer much nutrition wise. Things like sunflower seeds are EXTREMELY high in fat, and can really do some organ damage over time.

Getting a bird to switch to a new diet is not always easy, and I recommend doing it very slowly. Start by mixing in some pellets with the diet he/she I eating now. Over time, slowly increase the amount of pellets. Parrots need to know that what they are being offered is food and they will not eat it if they don't know what it is. I do recommend measuring the food so that you can gauge whether or not the parrot is eating it (Or you can see if there are crumbs in the bottom of the dish).

Drache gave some great advice. There are also tons of great parrot recipes online for veggie goodies! If you are on facebook, I recommend "liking" Bird Tricks. They have awesome articles about pet parrot care, and they often post parrot recipes. You can also ask questions and get wonderful responses.

As for behavior, handling the bird is great for both the bird's mental health and your own! The only thing I caution new owners about is letting the bird on your shoulder. Many birds tend to get emotional every now and then (Especially during the spring) and you just never know when they will have a bad day. With a large parrot, eventually an owner will get bit. Allowing a parrot on your shoulder can definitely increase the risk of a bite to your face. Even the best birds in the world can get spooked or upset, and their target is usually the first thing in their reach, which may be their beloved owner. Another tip is to read about sexual behavior in birds and try to limit these behaviors when interacting wit the bird. Many times owners can unknowingly exhibit "flirty" behaviors towards their bird, and this can lead to an unhealthy relationship between bird and owner.

If you would like to get your bird sexed, there are some great resources that you can send a feather to and have them sexed. It's usually about $15 or $20 and is extremely accurate.

Thank you for all your help, chickerdoodle!

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Yes, I will. Thank you!

I will get lefeber and harrisons next time. I was checking out them 2 days ago,but I didn't buy.
They look yummy. LOL


He loves some certain kind of foods that contain a lot of fat.... As you said, It is difficult to change his diet...


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I have a question about his behavior. His name is Macawly.
Macawly fell off the top of the stand when I started dust the ceiling because he was FRIGHTEN. Oh my goodness, I felt terrible yet.
( I was not close to him when I was dusting. )

Then I noticed that he is very scared of any sticks.
Every parrots are like that?


Macawly is 4 years old and have only one owner. I see Macawly gets upset and out of control couple times a day.
I sense when he started to be crazy, so I walk away and wait until he is calm.
I don't let him to climb up my shoulder, that making me feel unsafe.

Today, He wanted me to pet his head and neck, that makes me happy. He also like to stay on my arm a lot...
Then I had trouble when I let him go back to his place. He didn't want to get off me.
Do you have any techniques to return him to his place.

When he screams head off, I turn around and show my back to him until he is clam.
I ignore and walk away when he uses bad words... like SHUT UP , SHUT UP that his favorite? word.

I got a sample kit from http://www.avianbiotech.com/ for feather sexing.

Do you think that is enough to test for that?



I am gonna contact with the company now anyway... My husband thinks that are not enough...

I was under the impression that you needed large feathers that have a small amount of tissue/blood sample inside the quill that they can use for testing. I am not sure that down feathers will be enough.

Thank you for your response, Drache!

I got the answer from the company that I have to pluck 3 feathers from her chest. hmmm.. That is tough for me...



Anyway, I have more question!

I figured out how to send him back home. I bring him to the ladder and he grabs the ladder with his beak to climb up and let me go.

This is my concern:

1, He is very unstable! He easily slips off the plastic pipe that my husband made a stand for him. He also lose balance by some movement sometimes.
He eats and drinks well. He is vocal and active, but he is shaky when he is on our arm.

You may have answered this already, but how old is he? If he is still a baby that might account for his instability.

Drache, No, I haven't.

He is 4 years old. He is really shaky... but he can perch to sleep perfectly.
I think that he has anxiety so that he lose balance to fall when he get nervous by sounds.( big sounds and sticks )

Ah, sorry for not answering right away! Classes have been insane this week! I promise I will get back to you and answer all your questions this weekend when I get a bit of down time!