I want a Macaw, am in Australia / Sydney, whats involved ?

Question

Wondering, do i need a license ? Do i need to register with some sort of club ? I thought they were an exotic bird and there is something involved in order to buy one, but have seen tons being sold on the internet.

I just rang the bird vet, she advised me i dont need a license to own a Macaw parrot. The other issue is the guy selling them is actualy only selling the egg, unhatched and is located in Cameroon, Flora. Very Suss, he is selling the egg for $55, and $100 for shipping the egg with a portable incubator which i have to send back to him once its hatched. He provides a hand booklet on what to do once its hatched.... sound suss or sound like a bargain ?

Answer 1

NO NO NO!!! do not get an egg!!!
you have to have years of experience to feed a baby bird!! you have to teach it how to swallow, you have to feed it every 2 hours for a while, the food has to go down the right tube in the back of the throat, if the food is not the right temp. you will cause the crop to get infected, you could unintentionally drown it in its food,
I could go on and on!!!
please, PLEASE for the sake of the innocent little guy, get a weaned bird!!

DO NOT GO TO A PET STORE!!!
you will get a ticked off bird that is picked on prodded and ANGRY!
plus did you know that most macaws end up in a shelter, getting put down or resold?
if this is your first bird, do not assume that you can handle a macaw. i work at an aviary in georgia with TONS of surrendered birds. 650 to be exact and macaws are a large part of the population.
first consider, do you want to put up with a 3 year old for the rest of your life? thats all birds are- toddlers with beaks.
second, how much will you be at home? macaws need a lot of time to become the loving birds you see on tv doing cute tricks. if you dont dedicate yourself to it, it wont trust you and it will break your fingers or rip the flesh down to the bone.
third, if you have the time, the money and the space,
do you have children? big birds and children do not mix. thats a huge reason for macaws getting surrendered/resold. if you have the bird and decide to have another baby, what will you do if the bird rips out all the feathers on its chest or attacks you or the baby out of jealousy?
fourth, macaws can chew through a 2x4 a day, so can you provide enough toys to keep that smart little guy happy and not chewing on you?
ok, so you still want one? check a rescue/ rehabilitation center in your area! they are cheaper, often older (you dont have to will them out), and a lot of the time are GREAT birds that just got a little noisy.
try this
http://www.parrotrescuecentre.com/default.htm

if you have any questions, feel free to ask, im in school to get my degree in avian medicine and would be more than happy to assist you.
good luck!

ps, there is no liscense needed in the US, i dont know about AU

Answer 2

I have 3 parrots... and unless you are VERY experienced with birds do NOT buy an egg - I wouldn't even attempt this after 9 years of parrot ownership .. it is very very risky and the odds are the little one may die from you doing something wrong (accidentally of course)..

What I would do it go out on the Internet and find a macaw group (one in Australia) and see what there thoughts are... http://www.birdsnways.com/birds/forums.htm . go down to the macaw group - great people there..

Also, with a macaw you are going to need plenty of room for them to hang out in (looking at a 2500.00 cage at least) .. and feeding and toys are also very expensive (since they destroy them very quickly).

If you have never owned a macaw before, see if there is a bird sanctuary near you where you can go spend time with macaw and find out if this is the right bird for you.. they can live up to 95 years old so that is another thing to consider... (also they can out scream ANYTHING .... I have been deaf for days due to macaws and cockatoos)...

Now, having said that, parrots are awesome pets but they are extremely intelligent and it will be very rewarding....

good luck!

Answer 3

Call a local bird vet or animal control.
Both will know the laws, and aren't trying to sell you a bird.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE!!!
Do lots of research on these amazing animals.
They are as smart as preschool age children and need just as much attention and stimulation as a child does.
They have dietary, heat and sunlight requirements that people don't realize.
They live longer than you will.
You will have a 2 year old child for the rest of your life. Complete with screaming tantrums, biting, and destroying stuff.
Cheers.

Answer 4

If you have a pet shop around it would be the easiest way to start asking questions. Then you could take it from there.

Answer 5

I sure you would need a license to own one. They are huge parrots and unless you can provide a large flying area with branch and provide a balance diet to them, please just let them fly free.