Ultimate Birds – Pet Macaw
The trouble with keeping birds in cages is that you restrict one of their greatest abilities – flight. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have birds as pets, but let them fly free and interact with the family? That would really be the ultimate in bird keeping, and the lives of both the birds and their owners would be greatly enriched. Just like the lives of David and Jacquie Henderson. They share their home with Alex, a blue and gold Macaw, and two Eclectus parrots, Dodi and Scarlett. Eclectus Parrots
Dodi and Scarlett
Alex
Jacquie describes looking after Alex the Macaw as just like looking after an unruly toddler. He needs careful watching to prevent him getting up to mischief! Macaws must have daily attention or they may become bored, distressed, anti-social and destructive. Alex is six years old. He is very tame, highly intelligent, quite talkative, and every morning he goes into Jacquie and David’s bedroom for a cuddle. He is also allowed to fly free outside. It is amazing to watch him fly away, squealing and squawking as he dipps and glides between the trees and palms, then heads back home to Jacquie and David.
Communication
Don showed how to read signals in bird behaviour. If you see a bird in a cage and don’t know if it will bite or not, rub your index finger and thumb together just out of reach of the bird. If the bird does the same thing with its beak, you’ll know it is friendly. This movement is just like a bird handshake!