What’s wrong, Monty?

Around May 2019, Monty was around 9 months old and this was before Merlin. We noticed Monty started acting very different. He would bob his head and make weird grudge noises. He didn’t have much of an appetite and low energy. It started to scare us! We thought he was getting sick as those were all unhealthy symptoms.

Monty has always been around all kinds of animals as a baby. He was always such a happy chicken around others. So we had to test a theory - we brought Monty to Alban’s parents’ house in the countryside where there’s lots of other animals in the house and right away - his symptoms all went away.

Macaws often gather in flocks. This doesn’t mean if you have one, then you need to get another. Most macaws will make their owners a part of their flock. It just so happens for Monty that his flock was much much bigger at a younger age. He had always been around 5 dogs, 4 birds, a bunny, and lots of people on a regular basis. As the weather changed so did our lifestyle. We didn’t travel or visit family as much. This made Monty very sad, he needed something more than just toys and training.

Monty & Pebbles (sun conure friend)

Monty was lonely at home with us as an only child. Even though we gave him plenty of love, he really wanted a constant friend by his side. Monty used to spend lots of time at grandma’s house and became best friends with a puppy named Bailey. He loves chasing her and she loves to sniff him. They would run around together and play tug-o-war (we all know who wins..)

Bailey & Monty

“Well, aren’t you afraid that the dogs will hurt the birds???”

These dogs have been around birds their entire lives so they see the birds as friends, not food. They’re super gentle and you can see how they interact with each other in our videos.

We decided to look for a new friend for him and Merlin came into the picture. We got Merlin from our trainer friend. Although we were hesitant at first because ONE macaw was hard enough, and now TWO? Were we really ready?

The moment Merlin came home with us, Monty has been the most doting big brother ever (most of the time anyway) He loves to clean Merlin, they’re attached at the wing, and they will fly and scream for each other.

They’re both super active and always full of energy. They love competing for our love and always has to be next to each other. As for the mess well of course it doubled. But to be honest, it really is like having children. Your first one will always be a struggle but when the second one comes you can juggle them with ease.

Bonus video of Monty playing with Bailey