Adopted Scarlett Macaw and African Grey

Question
I have had a quaker for many years and he is a total sweetheart. However a few months ago a friend of mine came across a girl who was selling many parrots for extremely cheap. Turns out they were her fathers and after he passed away she was trying to make a quick buck. I agreed to go with my pal to help her pick out a healthy parrot as soon as I seen the poor guys my heart sank. There were beautiful macaws, eclectus, cockatoos and greys housed in small pet carriers in a house with no electricity with the temp about 101 degrees. It never really wanted another bird but i figured I had the resources and would take what I could. So I angrilly shelled out the cash and took what i could afford that day and brough home a scarlet Macaw and a african gray. The african grey was in a cage so small it had rubbed all of his feathers off the top of his head. both were thin (thankfully gaining weight now) and extremely agressive/finicky/scared. It was obvious that they had been mistreated so my question is...do you have any tips on dealing with such agressive birds?. I don't really ever expect them to be hand tame. And I dont mind the macaw screaming I think he has earned the right to be a real bird, but i feel like some socialization would do them good and I really dont feel right about toweling them in order to get them away from their cages to start training/taming. they get to both spend plenty of time outside their cages daily (pretty much all day) and they have human interaction for at least 4-5 hours a day I know this is a lengthy entry for you but I am just looking for some tips or anything alternative I can do to make them more comfortable and trusting of me...

Answer
I'm glad you were able to save a couple of them :) I would also report them to your local animal control. It's illegal to keep birds in these conditions. Well, "second-hand" birds are always pretty difficult just because of all the baggage they bring with them. Scarlet macaws can be TERRIBLE, but once they start to calm down, they really tame easily. African grays can be VERY difficult, though. It's so much easier to tame a mistreated bird rather than a neglected one because the bird can tell the difference between people so they don't mistrust EVERYONE, just certain people, but when they're neglected, they don't even have the basic trust for humans that abused birds have. You will have to work very slowly with these birds. First, go to the vet and get a FULL workup including PDD and PBFD blood work. You don't want to accidentally pass a terrible disease to your birds, or other birds (you touch your birds, then go to a store and touch someone else's birds). Then find a treat that the birds like that is kind of large (to save your fingers, just in case). My birds love cashews, banana pieces, and other fruits. Feed the bird treats at different times every day (if you do it at the same time, it's considered a meal and not a treat and they will expect it at that time forever) and when the birds seem very comfortable with you, reach one hand up by their head (don't pet the wings yet. It's easier for them to spin their head around and bite when your hand is on their back versus on top of their head or neck) but DON'T PET YET. Just leave it there. This will get used to your hand close to their head. If at any point they try to bite, drop the treat (or take it away) and don't give them any more treats or attention for at least 45 minutes to 1 hour. Then go back and try again. I know you don't expect them to be hand tame, but they will be happiest once they're part of your "flock" or family, and the best way for them to feel included is to have you pet them and include them in daily activities (give them their dinner at the same time as your dinner, etc). African greys really can be tricky, and you may need to find alternate ways to interact with him, but try taming him first. If you want to email me at all (I respond more reliably to email because I don't get the allexperts emails usually) feel free. My email can be found on my website http://www.cockatootrainer.com/ and there are other articles on that site that can help you with your birds.