The Basics:

A Hollywood animation specialist couldn’t have created a bird as impressive to behold as the big and strong Hyacinth Macaw. This majestic bird has vivid cobalt blue plumage covering all of its body, save for its brilliant yellow eye ring and curved patch of yellow below its sharp and powerful gray-black beak. It’s wingspan is an awe-inspiring 4’. In nature, Macaws live in flocks of up to 30 birds, relying on their cooperation and communication to help them avoid predators like snakes and birds of prey. As social animals, they must be provided with attention and interaction from their human companions. They're very intelligent birds, and they enjoy examining objects (especially new and unusual things) from different angles. This quality makes Macaws fun pets to watch and interact with, but it also can lead them to trouble if they aren't supervised outside the cage.

Cage:

The large and powerful Hyacinth Macaw needs a big, sturdy cage. A minimum cage size of 5’ long by 4’ wide by 6’ high is required for a Hyacinth Macaw. Space between the bars should be no more than 1.5”. Standard metal cages will not do for a Hyacinth Macaw, since his powerful beak will chew through the welds. Wrought iron or heavy duty stainless steel with double welds are recommend cage materials. The cage should be checked regularly to ensure there are no weaknesses, and bars smaller than 3 mm are not recommended.

CAUTION

In most cases, more space is more desirable for birds. However, when increasing the size of a Hyacinth Macaw’s cage, the bird’s human companion must be careful to maintain a safe (narrow) space between the bars. The bars of a cage have to be narrow enough to prevent a bird from sticking his head in between. Bars that are spaced too far apart for the bird’s size can result in serious and even fatal injuries.

Positioning The Cage:

Where to put a Hyacinth Macaw’s cage in the home will often be determined by where there is room, given the size of the housing that this big bird requires. However, the cage should never be kept in an isolated area, since this friendly, intelligent bird requires regular human interaction to maintain its happiness. Ideally, the cage should be positioned in an area that is normally busy with family activity, yet still affords the macaw a feeling of security. Good examples of such areas are an alcove off the family room, or the corner of a recreation room. The cage should never be positioned in areas of direct sunlight, or in the direct path of drafts from heating and air conditioning units. The kitchen is also off-limits for a Hyacinth Macaw’s cage since the smoke and fumes (especially from nonstick cookware) can cause serious, even fata,l problems.

Playthings:

Curious, intelligent birds, Hyacinth Macaws need many interesting and colorful toys, made especially with their strong beaks and size in mind. The Hyacinth Macaw should be provided with a varied selection of wooden toys to chew on; this can help prevent overgrowth of the beak. A highly intelligent bird, the Hyacinth Macaw enjoys solving intricate puzzle-type toys. A play gym is necessary for the time Hyacinth Macaws require outside of their cages. A proper play gym, with many perches and toys, will help keep them, and their beaks, busy and away from furniture.  Hyacinth Macaws enjoy learning (and showing off) tricks; many have learned to ride parrot bicycles and push parrot wheel barrels.

Perches:

A Hyacinth Macaw needs to have a variety of perches with different diameters, and made from different materials. Perches should be around 2” thick. In addition to providing the bird with an area for standing, they help keep his beak and nails trim. A perch should be placed in front of, but not above, food and water dishes.

Play Time Outside The Cage:

Hyacinth Macaws require time outside of their cage and ample opportunities to socialize with their human owners. Given the strength and power of this bird, and its tendency to become destructive if bored, the Hyacinth Macaw should always be under supervision when it is out of the cage.

Grooming:

Consult veterinarian or literature about trimming nails and possibly flight feathers.

Bathing:

Provide shallow bowl or tub for supervised bath and mist bird. Use chlorine-free water for bath and misting. Water must be lukewarm to room temperature. Remove bath when finished. Most Macaws love to splash around in a lukewarm bath.

Diet:

The Hyacinth Macaw’s diet differs from that of most other parrots, because it needs more fats and carbohydrates and less protein.  The Hyacinth Macaw should have a daily serving of nuts, such as macadamia nuts, brazil nuts, walnuts, peanuts, pecans and coconuts. Vegetables such as sweet potatoes and leafy greens, and fruits like apples and kiwi, should be offered to provide essential vitamins. Fruits and vegetables should be rinsed, dried and cut into appropriately sized pieces before being offered to this bird. Low protein pellets formulated for this species, though not the foundation of the Hyacinth Macaw’s diet, should always be available to supplement the diet. Provide additional calcium i.e. cuttlebone during egg laying. Clean, fresh, chlorine-free water should also always be available.

A Note About Water:

All water given to birds for drinking, as well as water used for misting, soaking or bathing must be 100% free of chlorine and heavy metals.  (Not all home water filtration systems remove 100% of the chlorine and heavy metals from tap water, so check your system's specifications before using it to filter water for your pet.) We recommend that you use unflavored bottled drinking water or bottled natural spring water and never untreated tap water. Do not use distilled water, which can cause severe medical problems, since it lacks minerals that are essential to important body functions.