 |
| Congo African Grey Parrot |
Where else to rant about my obsession than here in this lovely blog?
The African Grey Parrot has, in recent years, grown in popularity as a pet. To aviculturalists, they are the perfect combination of "beauty and intelligence". Beautiful, because of the grey/white plumage, the perfect black beak, the playful looking eyes and the signature scarlet tail feathers. Intelligence, because of their amazing mimicking abilities, being able to talk perfectly, mimicking all sounds it hears, including microwaves and ovens, dogs and cats... everything it likes. But they don't just mimic...
According to studies conducted by a Ms. Irene Pepperberg with Alex, an African Grey who passed away in 2007 at age 31 (and still young!), these birds have the intellect to grasp abstract ideas, such as zero, know enough vocabulary to communicate effectively with humans, know colors, numbers, and concepts such as bigger, smaller, more or less. Household pet Greys have also been known to understand logical cause-and-effect. For example, when the phone rings, humans will jump up and immediately bulldoze toward it. When Greys see this, they learn and...RING RING RING! The human then jumps up to answer the phone that they soon learn, never rang. Instead, their Grey is staring expectedly at them while they ring their voice away. Effective way to grab human's attention, check.
One thing I have to say about this video: Alex is not the smartest African Grey ever. In fact, it was highly likely he was a very ordinary Grey. Dr. Pepperberg had driven to a random pet store and had the pet owner randomly pick one for her. Such an extensive vocabulary is not from intelligence but loads and loads of attention.
 |
| "I just pooped on your floor =D" |
You haven't heard the other side of the story.
There are several things to watch out for before adopting one of these amazing birds. For one thing, they aren't listed under for advanced bird pet owners only for nothing.
Please observe the beak... notice the sharp curve of the upper beak capable of reducing your fingers to a painfully bloody mess. Greys WILL bite you if they don't trust you. And it WILL hurt if they do. That beak screams Keep away from (raucous) Children.
Age: African Greys, when taken very well care of, will live to a ripe old age. That is...oh, 60 years? That being said, they are a VERY long term responsibility. Do not adopt a Grey unless you are absolutely sure you can provide for it. Your children will probably inherit your companion.
Poop Patrol: Poop is pretty messy work. I know this first-hand...
Voice: Lots of fun when they are mimicking you and talking to you and asking "Want some water" when they want it from you. Not at 3 am.
Attention-freaks: African Greys want your attention. All the time. They don't understand that you have a life to attend to and that your boss wants that proposal done the next morning. For all they care, your life is all about them. So go pick up that toy and lets start playing! And please, clean up that mess I made on your couple hundred dollar rug, please and thank you.
Note: when not given enough attention, Greys have been known to develop psychological problems, screaming and plucking their own feathers (a sure sign of stress in a bird).
Toys: Because Greys are so intelligent, they require an extensive amount of stuff to keep them occupied and entertained. This could be a number of things, but puzzles and chew toys tend to keep them occupied for a long time. To make sure your priceless porcelain artifacts do not become the next toy of their desire, please provide toys that they can otherwise destroy. And speaking of destroy...
Chewing: Greys LOVE to chew. Like young dogs need to have chew toys, Greys must also have chew toys. They love to chew and will destroy anything in their chewable path. So...it's essential to have something for them to chew always. A number of toys for birds have colorful wood blocks that they can chew to their hearts desire as well chewable treats for them to satisfy their chewing and hunger.
Kids?: Owners of African Greys have often made the comparison between having an African Grey to having a two year old. For all the years that they live. So unless you want more kids, or unless you have intentions of having one, an African Grey might be a tad too much.
All the above really begs the question then...Why would you EVER want an African Grey?
Short answer is, you tell me. Long answer is: Why do we love children?
 |
| Alex, then 28 |
Before you ask me, wha...? Let's think about this for a minute. Kids are a real handful. They're noisy, they poop, they're messy, they obviously need tonnes of attention. In short, they can drive you nuts. Although I have never had children and it's questionable I can ever handle having any, my mother often told me how she misses my sister and me being young. Everywhere, we see parents, blood and adopted, who coo and love and just can't get enough of their kids. Sure, every now and again, they will drive you crazy for the sake of that toy they can't get. And they aren't likely to understand that mommy and daddy can't afford it. But, for whatever reason, through whatever paradox and whatever miracle it took, we still love kids.
Parrots are obviously different. They're birds, for one thing. But they're also loving, sweet, entertaining and, let's face it, so gawd damn CUTE. And parrots, like children, can be disciplined. They can be toilet-trained (yea I know, I was surprised too), they learn exceedingly well, they can be taught what to chew and what not to chew, they can be discouraged to scream and be loud in general. You can cuddle them (and they love it), you can pet them, you can play with them.
First of all, of course, you have to gain their trust.
But once you get past that and once you make certain that all resources are sufficient to properly care for this bird, like children, you may find yourself thinking to yourself at the end: It was all worth it.
No comments:
Post a Comment