Watch our Baby Macaws Grow!

Written by George

Watching baby birds growing up is an amazing process, especially when they are the bigger birds like the Macaws. The babies grow up so fast and changes on a daily or weekly basis cannot be explained. Here we will try to document the changes on a weekly basis to see how much the baby is gaining in weight, see his feathers come in, try to capture the changes in personality as a whole. We hope that these pictures and videos provide you with an understanding on how a little baby bird changes into the wonderful feathered companion you have.

[Week 0] [Week 1] [Week 2] [Week 3] [Week 4] [Week 5] [Week 6] [Week 7] [Week 8] [Week 9] [Week 10]
Week 0 - Hatching
We would like to introduce you to our newest baby - a Military Macaw. After 48 hours and an assisted hatch he is finally here. We noticed the first external pip on Saturday early morning 5.00. 40 hours later, we realized that the normal piping was not happening and we decided to go in and take a peek at what is going on inside the egg. After candling to make sure we are not going to rupture any blood vessels, we opened a little bit of the shell. That is when we could clearly see that the membrane covering the embryo was so dry that he would need a lot of help to get out. Then we went into an assisted hatching mode. Afer a lot of patience and sleepless hours (for Jodie!) by God's grace, eight hours later the baby was fully hatched today morning at 3.32AM. The second baby also was an assisted hatch and was fully hatched by the next day morning 3.00 - that meant another long night for already sleep deprived mommy :)
Week 1
It is one week and both the babies seems to be growing at a very steady pace. It took a couple of days for the younger baby to get into the groove of bobbing for food. We started weighing the babies on a daily basis to make sure that they are progressing well. At seven days they are just below the 100gms and gaining like 15-20% of their body weight every day. Another noticeable thing is that they are outgrowing their little container in the brooder. The babies eyes are not yet open, but they can definitely hear our voices. If we talk to them, we can see that they turn towards you. Hopefully by next week we can see some pin feathers on the babies.
Week 2
It has been 2 wonderful weeks since the birth of these two wonderful babies. They are gaining weight at a nice pace, they are over 200 grams each and the older baby has started to show the pin feathers. We can also see the slit in their eyes, so in the next couple of days we can their eyes open. They are cute and we are all eagerly waiting for them to grow up. Their brooder mate (a Sun Conure baby) has been moved to the weaning cage, so now they are in the brooder all by themselves.
Week 3
The babies are growing up and gaining weight at a steady pace, at 20 days they are at about 400 gm mark. There is no standard weight to achieve for these babies as every baby is different and according to experienced breeders, as long as the weight gain is there, there is nothing to worry about. The pin feathers are all out and in the first glance they look like strapping turkeys - with a shovel shaped lower beak which helps with the feeding. We see them awake a little and aware of their surrounding, where as earlier they would wake up to eat and then go back to sleep. We are hoping that in the next couple of weeks real feathers will be out and they will start resembling more like a Macaw they will be when they grow up.
Week 4
Look at the coloration on the babies heads, you can clearly see the red tint on the green background. Even the tips of the wing feathers are getting the green coloration. The babies are gaining good weight and are weighing in at around 640 gms as of 28 days. We think that is a very healthy weight for the babies. They are also starting to be awake more in between feeding (ealier, they eat and then they sleep...lol). So they do get to come out to the living room and take in all the new sights and smells - soon they will be running around the lving room chasing other animals.
Week 5
The babies are growing up nicely and soon they will have to be moved to the weaning cages, where they can walk around and also try to start perching.They each now weigh in at about 800 gms which is a nice weight for their age. We think these two will grow up to be nice sized healthy birds.Look at the beautiful coloration and all the feathers that are growing in. Soon the fuzzies you see on their back will be covered with feathers. They come and play in the living room once a day and it is so cute to see them walking (or trying...lol) - next week we will take a video of them playing in the living room.
Week 6
Babies are really doing wonderful - their feathers are growing in nicely and the colors are looking more and more stunning with each passing day. They love to play and cuddle with us - they respond to our talking to them. This week we introduced fruit-blend pellets in their brooder, just so that they get used to it. We will also be putting in a perch very close to the floor and some toys for them this coming week. We want them to experience everything while growing up. Their weight gain has slowed down but still they are steadily gaining and we think they are going to be really nice sized military macaws.
Week 7
It is week 7 of the babies lives and they are just amazing. They are so attentive and responsive to you talking and doing things with them that it is just so wonderful. At this age they are finally looking like more like the birds they are going to be when they get older. They still have the down feathers as you can see from the pictures below but the nice looking green feathers with a shine are starting to cover up all those fuzzies.
Week 8
It is week 8 and this was a big week for the babies. They finally grew out of the brooder they were in and now are in a small cage, we like to call the weaning cage. The cage has paper at the bottom and have perches so low that if the babies fall off the perch they are not going to get injured. The lower perch encourages to explore and find out that they can actually perch on the branch and do not have to stand on the bottom of the cage all the time. The cage also has some toys so they are used to seeing them and also play with them. We also start offering them soft foods like veggies and fruits cut up in small pieces. They have already started to play with them as you can see from the video - they are not so sure what to do, but they are slowly getting there.
Week 9
It is week 9 and the babies are already growing bigger than the weaning cages they are in. So from next week onwards you will be able see them in a different cage, with more room to flap around and also practice those climbing skills that are so vital to the babies. They are already perching wonderfully, a little unsteady when trying to balance on one leg and scratch their heads with the other. They have started to dive into the soft foods we offer them everyday. We do not think they are eating any, but we do find their beaks are all dirty exploring the veggies and fruits. All the fuzzies on babies are all covered up by nice feathers. Now we have to wait for their tails to grow longer.
Week 10
Week 10 is here and the babies are in their new cage. The cage is so nice and thanks should go to 'Kurt and Monica from Vermont' for this cage. The babies have 2 levels of perches and within a couple of days both the babies were happily perching on the top one. We also have Sam (our pet Blue and Gold) trying to help with the parenting duties. She is so sweet, tries to feed the babies and preen then all nice and clean. Even though we trust her, we do not leave her with the babies unattended (Just in case!). The babies have started to communicate with oohs and aahs and also some noices which we think is a nice start to the words! This week we had Jeda's (the younger baby) parents (Kurt and Monica) with us on Saturday. It was so nice to have them here playing with both the babies.