Scarlet Macaw

His scientific name is Ara Macao. To you and me, he is better known as the Scarlet Macaw - a beautiful South American parrot. Scarlet Macaws can be kept as caged companions,but watch out for those beaks. These birds are known to have a biting problem.

How can something so pretty want to bite you? Easy, the Scarlet Macaw has a very large, sharp beak. Macaws are the largest parrots kept in cages. They can be as large as three feet long and come in a variety of vibrant reds, yellows, blues, and greens. The Scarlet Macaw is awash with scarlet hues interrupted by deep blue, yellow and a bit of green.

Scarlet Macaws are highly intelligent birds and talented escape artists. An experienced bird person will find them a worthy companion. I must warn you _ they are sassy. Hence, the biting problem comes in.

Such a strong willed bird will use biting to get its way with its owner. If your macaw's beak looks threatening, believe it! Those powerful beaks can give a nasty bite. Proper training is one way to teach your bird that biting is not polite.

While on the subject of birds behaving badly, owners should not follow suit. If your macaw bites you, don't lash out at him. It is tempting to curse at him or grab his beak. Both of these actions can set dangerous precedents in the bird/owner relationship.

First, if your Scarlet Macaw is a fair talker, now you've just created another problem to deal with. Grabbing his beak can be seen by your bird as a sign of aggression. The last thing either of you needs, or wants, is to turn into adversaries.

So, take a step back, find some antiseptic and a bandage, and think about your next move. What were you about to do when your Scarlet took its pound of flesh? Birds see biting as a natural behavior. In the wild, they use biting as a form of self-defense against predators. Your bird could have felt threatened.

On the other hand, a parrot can act like a child. He may use biting to get what he wants from you. As long as you did not threaten or frighten you macaw in any way, he is probably testing you.

In that case, perform the same task again. It sounds gaga, but you macaw has to know that biting is wrong to get his way. Show him that you are not intimidated.

Don't give him what he wants until he cooperates. When he nips at your hand because he wants to get out of the cage on your arm, keep offering your hand. If he still won't come, walk away and ignore him for a few minutes. Go back and offer your hand again. Keep repeating this until he gets the picture.

Give you Scarlet Macaw some new chew toys. If he's distracted by biting on them, maybe he'll behave better. Watch his diet too. Favoring one veggie over another could cause him to nip at you when you give him food that is not what he wanted. At each feeding, you can give him a few more carrots and a bit less lettuce, but don't change the current food dish. That would be a sign that nipping worked and it doesn't.

Patience, persistence, and lots and lots of lave are required to stop your Scarlet Macaw from biting. Take special care to ensure you're rewarding and reacting to the right behaviors, the wanted behaviors, and ignore the unwanted behaviors. Otherwise, they'll turn into habits before you can say "ouch"!