Most macaws are now endangered in the wild with six species already extinct. The biggest problems threatening the macaw population has been the rapid pace of deforestation and the illegal capture of these exotic birds to sell as pets.
A parakeet is a term for any of a large number of unrelated small to medium sized parrot species that generally have long tail feathers.
The most frequently seen in the pet trade are large, colorful macaws such as scarlet macaws, blue and gold macaws, military macaws, and hyacinth macaws. Mini macaws are harder to find, but include species such as the yellow-necked, noble, and Hahn’s macaws.
Macaw parrots are known to have lifespan ranging from 30 to 50 years, but some have been said to have reached 100 years. Mini macaws have a lifespan at the lower end of this range, while a large, healthy macaw can be expected to live 50 years or more with good nutrition and care.
Some of the macaw species are popularly known for their impressive size. The largest parrot in length and wingspan is the hyacinth macaw. In general, the largest species range from about 20 inches (military macaws) to 42 inches (hyacinth macaws), including the long tail. Mini macaws are more manageable at 10-20 inches long.
They are usually noisy, since in nature their voices need to travel long distances. This makes macaws very demanding birds to have as a domestic pet. They have a fairly good ability to mimic speech (i.e. their talking parrot), although probably not as clearly as Amazons and African Gray.
Macaws eat nuts, seeds, fruits, and sometimes insects. As pets, they should start with pellet foods as the basis of the diet and supplemented with a wide range of fresh and healthy foods such as cereals, vegetables, fruits, etc. The granules can make up 25 to 50 percent of the diet, but the seeds should not make up more than 10 percent of the diet as they are too high in fat. Walnuts are a nice treat, in moderation. If your local pet store cannot provide all of your bird supplies, the Internet will be a good source.
Macaws need a large, strong cage, so be prepared to make a significant investment. Small macaws can be kept in bird cages the size of the Amazon (24 “x36” x48 “). However, larger macaws need a bird cage of at least 36” x48 “x60” and the cage must be strong enough to withstand the force of its beak. of macaws.
All species of macaws have large and very powerful beaks, and large macaws are capable of destroying household furniture and can potentially cause considerable harm to both children and adults. Therefore, a stainless steel cage is a good investment.
Pet macaws thrive on frequent interaction and attention from their owners, and the lack of this can lead to mental and physical suffering. A wide variety of wooden toys or untreated pieces of wood should be provided to chew on. Toys that need to be taken apart for a treat are also a good choice, as are hanging toys and climbing toys as long as they are safe.