hyacinth macaw parrot

[jasperk]

has anyone ever had one of these birds. and are they good pets.

[lovemyGreys]

The hyacinth macaw is considered to be one of the endangered species of the macaws due to the over collection of people wanting to keep them as pets.If you can find one it will come with a very high price tag,in the UK they can sell for £7000 upwards & they don't come up for sale very often. personally any hyacinths should go into a breeding programme as opposed to being kept for a pet to ensure this amazing bird doesn't disappear forever.

Any macaw is not for the beginner & needs an experienced & knowledgeable owner .<br><br>Post edited by: lovemyGreys, at: 2008/07/19 12:57

[siobha9]

I think if you hadnt heard of them, it is safe to assume they aren't the pet for you They are incredibly strong, and can actually break the welds on their cages with their beak. Imagine what they could do to your finger if they haven't been trained properly! They are also so big I imagine getting proper exercise for them would be a huge problem (pun intended:) )

[spookyhurst]

There was a beautiful Hyacinth Macaw at a bird fair I went to. He was for sale for $10,000. Magnificent bird! I got to hold him (my arm was barely big enough for him to perch on). He was totally into another guy standing there though, and could care less about me .

 

I think Hyacinths need a special diet too. I seem to recall reading that people tend to mess up their diet by feeding them the wrong foods.

[nims]

Hi,

 

Hyacinth macaws are native to south america and one of the largest species of macaws and dont know therr own strength. The are an endangered species and can no longer be imported and breeding programs have been set up to help. However they are the most laid back and gentle of all macaws and look extremely beautiful.

[jasperk]

i hade heard of these birds and thought they were gourgous. then i saw one on craigs list for 500.00 that was the reason i asked

[Tari]

500.00 oh that has to be a scam.

[kittykittykitty]

I saw a National Geographic film on them. They are very rare and breath-taking in their beauty. I did not see any when we were on the Amazon however.

[BMustee]

They need a high fat diet, with most of the diet being nuts like Brazil, almond, and Macadamia. They sell for about $10,000 in the US give or take a little. A friend of mine has one that he got when the bird was 5 and got a deal on it...$8,000. I care for a set of breeders at the store and they are not for a person that can't put up with a lot of noise. They actually scare the other birds soetimes because of how loud they are. If you saw one up for $500 it is a scam...no one would ever sell a Hyacinth that cheap. Also, if you can't afford the $10,000 price tag you can not afford the up-keep on them. They will need a new cage on a regular basis...and not some rinky-dink cage, but an indoor aviary sized cage. Toys are another thing, Zeus my friends with take a cow bell and under 5 minutes it will be a little crumpled ball of metal. What a grey would go through in a month or two a Hyacinth would go through in a week or less. That adds up fast.

[Lyric]

I agree with the others, if it was only $500 it isn't for real.

These are magnificent birds but definitely only for a highly experienced bird owner- someone who can provide all the proper care and deal with a high maintenance bird.

[PrettyPax]

These birds certainly are impressive and gorgeous. I too was bummed when I saw that they were priced at $10,000 and up. Seeing one for sale for $500.00 is way too good to be true.

[oppie]

Hi,

 

I agree, it's a scam. In addition, I'm very weary about getting birds off of Craig's List. I tried to find an Eclectus on there, and I the ones I found either had never been seen by a vet, or, when it really came down to it, the people really didn't want to sell.

 

Ralph

[SchroedersJen]

A good friend of mine has a Hy. She is a sweet, loving bird, but expensive to maintain. She goes through custom stainless cages at a rate of 1 per every 18 months, so they bought one and had a welder weld the joints and bolts in place. That cage, plus labor cost $3,000. It is 3 years old and they have had the welder come out for spot repairs every year. Grooming a hy costs about 30 bucks every 3 months, food is about 200 a month and toys a whopping 400 dollars a month. I doubt the 500 dollar hy was legit. Perhaps they intended to type 5000, but still, that is cheap. In the Lake Forest branch of Omars Exotic Birds they have a pair selling for 18,000. Princess is also LOUD, my friend was sued by her neighbors after filing 5 noise complaints with the police. They ended up hiring a contractor to put sonex foam in the walls to keep noise down. These are "quiet birds" in that they dont make loud noise as often as a cockatoo, but their lungs are HUGE. When she wanted to be heard, she was....and it was too much. If you can get past the noise and money, she is a great bird. She is friendly, smart, was easy for her owner to train and is a loving member of the family...errrr flock. While you could certainly spend less on upkeep, I am of the general oppinion that a pet owner has a responsibility to do EVERYTHING possible to keep their pet happy. If you cant afford it, don't get the animal.

[dhorje]

I believe $500 is for the carcass of a hyacinth.

In my country it is sold for more than USD18K.

[Tycos_mom]

I've seen that ad many times on the web over the years and it is definatly a scam. I think the Hy's are the most magnificant bird in the world next to the Bald Eagle but both birds are way way to much bird for me. Lovley to look at but would never want to own one unless I was a multi million aire and could buy a dozen or so pairs for breeding so they could be returned back to the wild for the next generation to enjoy other than that I'll stick to my Grey's and other mid to small size birds. They keep me plenty happy.

[PitSoulja]

I beg to differ on the cages. I'll be totally honest don't get a metal cage for a bird that big if you ever got one. The rescue I volunteered at went through 15 cages, And usually the biggest ones you could get which was about $2,000 a pop for stainless steel. This was before they decided to try an Acrylic bird cage. And that was the best thing they ever did. The bird was kept warm, it was also properly ventilated. And there was a special drop door for the grate at the bottom so the inside could be cleaned. Was well worth the $2,500 spent on it. Their diets are palm nuts and are utterly devistating to the bank account but there are other nuts that they can eat that are just as good if you need an alternative. Almonds, Walnuts, and other big nuts. Keep in mind they have to have a rather large fat content their metabolism is extremely high. Although the ones that I worked around were moderately loud. No screaching or anything but when they spoke it was as if someone was in the same room yelling at you. The words I hear the most were Give me a Nut, and Shower. And once in awhile Cage clean. but yes they are extremely strong, and for god's sake always trim the nails almost every week I still have a scar from when one went through my arm. You can have popeye forearms and they'll still go in. Being a large guy myself I was shocked. So keep them trimmed.

 

Also for the one poster who went to the Amazon, There really arn't that many left in the wild. About 300 population counted for. But yes expensive price tag. 10,000 to $15,000