So You Think You Want a Parrot
I read a social media post that went something like this; “I love scarlet macaws. I want to find one. I want one that is young, friendly, trained, and talks. Can anyone help me get one?” I appreciate the wanting part, parrots are intriguing, and mesmerizing when they use their full personality to get your attention. I really do appreciate that yearning.
What you need to know about Companion Parrots.
- Entering the world of companion parrots with a grocery list of personality traits like you’d enter a grocery store with an ingredients list for lasagna, is a recipe for disaster. And the parrot will pay the price.
- This is about knowing yourself, first. Taking that knowledge and making a list of who you are honestly, and then searching for a companion relationship based on THAT list.
What a parrot is, and is not.
- A parrot will not learn language if you are too busy coming and going to teach him. (He may not care to in the first place)
- A parrot will not be friendly if you are leaving him behind for weekend trips and nights out. A parrot cannot provide personality traits like a light switch provides illumination.
- The age of a parrot does not guarantee anything about a parrot except its age.
- Rescue vs purchased baby does not guarantee a successful relationship with a parrot.
- A parrot isn’t trained. A parrot is taught through time invested via trust built on a relationship.
- Wanting a parrot based on looks alone leaves out 99.9% of what a parrot is inside a relationship. You don’t choose a parrot like you purchase a pair of shoes.
You choose a companion, who is a parrot, like you choose a friend. We all chose the people we are most like, and who mostly do what we like to do. Every parrot is an individual with a simple core truth based on their breed. What comes from the core is potential that creates the friend we end up with in our companion parrot relationship.
Our Kirby is an Indian Ringneck Parakeet. Most say IRNs aren’t friendly. They are standoffish and trust slowly. Nippy and flighty. They don’t like to be handled much, and they fight other birds. But Kirby doesn’t know that. He only knows what he’s learned inside his flock and from his relationship with me.
Kirby is clingy, fearless, feisty, opinionated, loyal, loving, talkative, patient (not around food), silly, humorous and totally dedicated to me, and my shoulder. He loves to take naps with me when I finally sit still.
You will get what you give to your companion parrot. Give the right stuff and you will be out-gifted every day.
Take the time to visit rescues near you, you may not have to worry about all that choosing. A companion parrot may just choose you. Volunteer at a local rescue. Spend some time getting to know what and who companion parrots really are, I highly recommend being chosen.
The Art of the FlockCall — Creating Your Successful Companion Parrot Lifestyle
