Thomas and I have occasionally thought about adding another severe macaw to our house. Are we nuts? Quite possibly, but there is sound reasoning behind this thought, but also behind our decision not to add to our current flock.
Rocky is so devoted to Thomas that it can be overwhelming at times. What if we could find a severe macaw that would bond with Rocky? The two of them could live happily together while still having interactions with us. The idea is very tempting.
However, the reality is that it's unlikely we'd be able to find an appropriate match. Parrots are individuals, and what are the chances that a macaw we brought home would bond with Rocky? Slim. I had hopes of my caiques bonding, and they ignore each other. With our luck, any severe macaw we brought home would bond with Thomas also, exacerbating the problem!
A few months ago, we were shopping and saw a stuffed scarlet macaw on the clearance table. For $1, we thought we'd give it a try to see how Rocky might react to a friend (partly in jest as obviously a reaction to a stuffed animal is different from a real one!)
Based on his reaction, it's a good thing we never tried to introduce another macaw to our house!
The noises in the background are generally what my house is like during waking hours. Calypso is squealing (he's taking a bath), Beeps and the greys are beeping. The only noise Rocky made was a quick vomit sound near the end.
Also, he is attacking this toy mostly as displacement behavior since I approached his cage. Every once in a while you see that he stops to make sure that I'm still there and watching him. If I weren't there, he would have stopped.
He really enjoys doing this. He'll often come near me and then attack the nearest soft item while looking at me. When he knows I'm upstairs alone, he climbs the stairs, pulls a piece of dirty laundry through the holes in our laundry basket, and then attacks it while watching me. He'll do this even if Thomas is home and Rocky could spend time with his favorite person instead.
He fascinates me. If he dislikes me so much, why go through so much trouble to seek me out? Just stay away! He's been calling my name more often and screaming when I leave the room. Thomas says he wants his whole flock together, which does appear to be the case even though he doesn't like me. The most dysfunctional relationship I have is with a macaw!
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3 comments:
I think Rocky takes great pleasure in being a bully. "See this shirt? This is what I'M GOING TO DO TO YOU! MWHA HA HA!"
Conner has a stuffed penguin about his size. It's covered in food on top. I think he uses it like a plate and is not feeding it, but sometimes I wonder. He's so gentle with the penguin...in stark contrast to Rocky.
He can be quite the bully. On more than one occasion I've mentioned to Thomas that it's like I'm the prey animal in that relationship :)
How interesting about Connor! I've seen Rocky be gentle to some of his toys and to Thomas, so I know it's possible, but not when I'm around, apparently!
My mom has a blue and gold macaw. He's crazy jealous. She has a pillow with a picture of a macaw on it. If mom pets the pillow, he'll freak out and attack the pillow viciously, like Rocky in the video.
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