Question:
->This is to be added to all of the responses about Yellow-collared macaws, ->or YCM. I have a 1.5 year old YCM named Floyd. He was born with a deformed ->beak, called sciissor-beak, so has been quite pampered by me. My SO teases me ->because he chases me around the house saying HELLO until I pick him up. Ahh, obviously you haven’t read the Official Yellow Collar Macaw Blueprints, fresh from the jungles of the tropics! ycms are born with the word <HELLO!> imprinted on their tiny birdie circuit boards. it’s impossible to disable this feature – trust me, i’ve tried. :-) and about handicapped birdies, does everyone remember darry, the maroon-bellied conure whom angus debeaked 9 months ago? (darry is now missing his lower mandible). well, dr. terry, the vet at the birdie hospital, told me yesterday that he’s doing great – still tubeFed 4 times a day, still bounces the house, has bonded to her husband, etc. funny how things turn out! ->[...] ->To Barbara and Angus, I am really glad to hear the good news about the PBFD ->test. I contacted you about six months ago before I brought Floyd home ->to find out more about YCMs if you can remember that far back. yes indeed! that email was around march, right after the darry debeaking episode. i’m glad you went ahead and got that birdie! did the store cut the price? ->He is the best bird ->I have. I guess you could say that he owns me. He is very well-behaved for ->a macaw though. I take him with me to friends houses sometimes and they all ->love him. I owe you a big thank you because I never would have even ->considered ->a YCM, especially a deformed one, if I hadn’t read about the antics of Angus ->and how much you loved him. That is what stuck in my head when I thought of ->buying Floyd, so Thanks. angus and i are both flattered by your email! we’re glad you have learned about the Mysteries of Things Which Go Hello In The Night – ycm’s are certainly interesting birdies! do you think floyd’s scissorBeak has caused any negatives in his life? what about handicapped birdies in general? oh yes! (and my brother knows what i’m about to lead up to 
) i will certainly find out about handicapped birdies in the future – watch your newsreader soon! — %% The Linguistic Tongue, AT&T %% C Code. C Code Run. Run, Code, RUN! %%
Response:
This is to be added to all of the responses about Yellow-collared macaws, or YCM. I have a 1.5 year old YCM named Floyd. He was born with a deformed beak, called sciissor-beak, so has been quite pampered by me. My SO teases me because he chases me around the house saying HELLO until I pick him up. He has just finished hand-feeding. I know some of you will say "hand-feeding at 1.5 years old?!?" This was not by my choice. I tried to quit feeding him several times and he would come into the kitchen and stand in front of the refrigerator and squawk until I fed him. The vet said that I spoiled him, but because of his beak it was probably a good idea so that I knew he was getting all of the nutrition he needed. His beak has not hindered his speach or eating in any way, thank god. The vet doesn’t want to try to fix it because it isn’t REAL bad for scissor beak and the stress would probably do more harm than the beak does. Everyone has been saying how their YCMs like to grab on to their heads, beaks, feet, etc., well Floyd is no exception. He generally naps with his foot wrapped entirely around the back of his head. This is really funny to see if you have never seen a bird sit like this. You guys have also been talking about birdie showers. Floyd and my nanday conure both absolutely love the shower. I wrap a towel around my arm from shoulder to wrist and that is what they stand on. Then I just stick my hand in the shower. Floyd goes crazy: wildly flapping wings, trying to catch water in his beak, primal birdie screams, etc. He sometimes nips at me a little, but I think this is just in play because he is so excited. I have to turn the water off before I can safely pull my arm out of the shower stall or he runs up my arm and tries to bite my face. My Nanday is not quite as violent and crazy but really loves a good long shower. My other conures and cockatiels prefer a spray bottle and are terrified of the shower. So I think it depends on the bird. These other birds try to fly away as soon as I bring them into the bathroom. They only let me try once to put them in the shower, never again. To Barbara and Angus, I am really glad to hear the good news about the PBFD test. I contacted you about six months ago before I brought Floyd home to find out more about YCMs if you can remember that far back. He is the best bird I have. I guess you could say that he owns me. He is very well-behaved for a macaw though. I take him with me to friends houses sometimes and they all love him. I owe you a big thank you because I never would have even considered a YCM, especially a deformed one, if I hadn’t read about the antics of Angus and how much you loved him. That is what stuck in my head when I thought of buying Floyd, so Thanks. Mary Janosi Fermi National Accelerator Lab. Batavia, Il 60510
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