abused macaw

Question
we recently took in a female macaw with a troubled past, she was beaten and neglected and also used as decor. she started plucking when her last family had a baby and since we've had her i noticed she is holding onto her beak and hitting it on things, she rubs it on things frequently too. we have a male around and i looked it up and couldn't find anything. is this psychological or is there something environmental that can be corrected?

Answer
Thank you for coming to the rescue of this beautiful bird. What kind of macaw is she?

 Beak holding is perfectly normal for them, it's almost like a self-soothing behavior and nothing to worry about.  The beak banging and rubbing is also not usually of concern, sometimes done for amusement or to help with grooming and sloughing off the top layers.

The exception would be if there's any unusual flaking or coloration which might indicate an infection (fungus or parasite).  

 The birds are kept separately right?  This is always suggested (take a look at our set up and our girls here:  www.4AnimalCare.org and click the bird tab).

 Let me know what else I can help with.