Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I got my blue and gold 2 weeks ago and was told he was 13 weeks old, he was still being hand fed once a day so I was sent home with some formula. Well the first couple of days he would take it from me then after a few min he would runaway me me as if he did not want it anymore, he is eating zupreem pellets and a mix of seed and fruits, I took he to a local pet store for a nail clip and they told me there is no way that he should be off hand feeding formula and said macaws generally wean between 6-7 moths of age, but when I try to still feed him he refuses it and runs or flies away from me. Any advise would be great
Thanks

He shouldn't be weaned by this age but birds do wean at many different ages. Since you say he is eating at least some on his own, can you tell if his crop is both getting filled by the food he eats and then also emptying completely at some point? If his crop is not filling completely (stretching out so you can see it is full but not overextended) then he definitely still needs to be handfed. If the crop is not emptying regularly (at least once fully a day before refilling) Then his crop may be partially impacted and he will need a vet, this can also make them act not hungry. As far as to if he is not eating enough you will need to partially restrain him while feeding. Hold him securely but not too tightly, place a hand at the back of his neck area to keep him from leaving. Also which way are you handfeeding him; syringe, gavage, cup, spoon and which way was he fed before? This can also make a big difference. We always used the spoon (cup) method depending on type of birds (cup on macaw) and had great luck with that, it resembled more closely the feel of a beak to imitate natural feeding. If he has been gavage fed it keeps them from learning when to eat and how much or when they are full. Many have good luck with syringe feeding but again it depends on "how" you syringe feed. Are you squirting it directly into the back of the beak (towards the crop) or into the front of the beak where he has to actually swallow and to a degree eat on his own?

Sorry for all the questions but having more info can help get better answers