Do Macaws Make Good Pets?

In this post, we are going to discuss macaws and cover many topics to answer the question ‘do macaws make good pets?’ if macaws make good pets and what you need to know before deciding to get one.

Macaws are among the most beautiful and colorful birds in the world. They are also one of my favorite types of parrots to talk about! If you’ve ever seen a macaw, you will likely agree that they look more like flying art pieces rather than birds!

Let’s get right into it!

The Costs Of A Macaw

The initial cost of owning a macaw is the least of your worries. Once you buy one, food and fresh fruit/vegetables are going to be expensive too.

The initial cost is going to be nothing compared to absolutely everything you are going to have to pay for over the next 60 to 80 years of your life. 

It’s not just the upfront fee either – toys need replacing often as well or else they’ll chew through their perches out of boredom and get into trouble when someone tries holding them for whatever reason.

You need to have a few coins spare if you are buying one of these beautiful birds.

It is very common for people to buy a pet bird and then neglect it due to the lack of knowledge on how they should be cared for.

These poor birds are often neglected, which can lead them into plucking out their feathers or getting really stressed because in all honesty-they’ve had ten homes within 10 years.

So, if you really want one please consider adopting one from a rescue center rather than buying at any breeder.

Macaws Are Indeed Noisy Birds!

Macaws are very loud birds. If you have grumpy neighbors, they are going to hate you for it.

The macaw squawk is very loud a piercing. Macaws are extremely loud birds and the sound of their squawks will be heard from far away. Of course, if you have no neighbors or live in a large house this will not be an issue.

Macaws Need Space

Macaws are big birds. That means you need a big cage or aviary or a large enough spare room in your home.

They require a lot of space to be comfortable and happy. If you plan on buying one of these beauties just to shove him in a cage, don’t.

Some macaw owners choose to net their entire backyard, so they can go outside and hang out with their bird. This of course is a huge comitment.

It is very important to make sure you have enough space for your macaw, or else they will become stressed and suffer from feather-picking (which will be discussed later in the post).

Macaws Are Very Intelligent!

Macaws are extremely intelligent birds, their intelligence even exceeds that of parrotlets. A macaw can easily learn to mimic you and will also be able to learn almost any trick.

To do this requires a lot of time and effort with training as you will need to be very consistent.

Macaws Need A Lot Of Socializing

When you have a pet macaw, it’s crucial to spend time with it every day. They require an enormous amount of care and attention because they are so intelligent and also because you are their sole companions.

If you choose your own horse or work from your home, you will not have any issues dedicating time to your bird. However, if you need to go out of the home for work, school or anything else like a holiday, you will have to hire a pet sitter or get someone to care for your macaw in your absence.

You might need to check your bird into a proper bird hotel and that’s probably going to cost you as much as a plane ticket to wherever you are going!

If you have a social life, be prepared for that to suffer!

Macaw Food

Before you go out and buy yourself a macaw, it’s important to know what they should be eating. If we had known this before getting our macaw I wouldn’t have had him on a diet of just seeds and been at risk of suffering from fatty liver disease or just dying!

We learned eventually from the bird community and forums that birds need fresh fruit and vegetables in addition to seeds for their diet.

You need to make sure you are buying foods like almonds and walnuts for your macaw. They also love tropical fruit like watermelon, apples, bananas, etc. Even the normal fruits available to everybody like apples and oranges.

Every day we go shopping for food. We visit organic places and buy about 15 types of fruit and vegetables each week. He absolutely loves it along with pellets as treats, which we have completely cut seeds out of his diet that he used to eat before but loved.

So ensure you can keep your pantry stocked with fresh fruits and vegetables! You can also try feeding them cooked parrot meals as a treat! We find our macaw loves these Bird Street Parrot Food Packs!

Macaws Have To Be Trimmed Regularly!

When we adopted our macaw he had already been clipped a few times by his previous owner. They just used clippers on him to trim his wings, tail and beak. I later found out that this is not proper practice for clipping birds!

And this is why they can get infections in their wings and other areas that it’s not normal for them to be clipped with the use of clippers.

Macaws need to be trimmed professionally at least once a year by an avian veterinarian. This will ensure they are healthy and safe when flying around.

Macaws Can Be Very Desrtuctive

The destructiveness of macaws will likely impact the cost factor, too. You are going to need to fix everything or buy everything new in your home. It’s not a question if they will destroy things or not, it’s just how much they are going to destroy.

Door frames, carpets, beds, anything you can think of are going to be destroyed. This is just the nature of macaws.

They have large powerful beaks and feet that they use to explore their environment with so there is nothing that a Macaw won’t take apart if it brings them fun!

Macaws Love To Fly (I Mean…They ARE Birds!)

These birds fly, they actually fly. I don’t know why people go out there wanting a bird that flies. Then want to clip his wings so he can’t fly.

There are so many animals that don’t fly – why not stick with one of those? Just a thought!

I know many people say “It’s for his own safety. I love my bird too much. I don’t want him to fly away.”

In an effort to keep him from escaping, we’ve been training our pet bird so he stays in one area of the house by teaching him commands.

That Was The Not So Good, Here Is The Good

Getting a macaw means you will have a friend for life. They are super intelligent, loving pets that will likely be a part of your family forever because they live for so long!

They have their own personality and are really fun to play with and love on. Macaws can get pretty affectionate if they are handled regularly. Our macaw has been known to sit on the end of our bed before bedtime and watch us.

There are lots of videos online if you can’t believe a bird can love you! We have been connected with our pet bird since we brought him home. He is just like one of the family to us and part of our regular life now.