Over the weekend, we babysat a parrot. Despite early success at befriending him, it turns out the bird hates me. It sounds silly, I know, but it really hurt my feelings. After all, I’m pretty good with smart, sensitive animals, right?
Wrong.
On the first day, he happily took sunflower seeds that I handed him. He let me pet him behind the head, and he seemed genuinely excited to see me.
On the second day, I got over confident and tried to get him to climb onto my ungloved hand. He bit me. Later when I tried to pet him, he tried to bite me again.
On the third day, he seemed genuinely crabby. So, I grabbed the glove used to handle him, just in case, and he dove at my head — flapping, squawking, the whole bit.
I just don’t get it. When I’d enter the room, he’d scamper down off his perch. He’d sit at a level I could reach, then turn his head and fluff his feathers, which we were told indicates he wants to be rubbed. But, when I’d rub the back of his neck gently, he’d still turn and snap at me.
As time went on, he’d make a b-line for his cage and climb inside, where he’d proceed to rub his beak on one of many items inside, like he was sharpening a blade for a fight.
I gave up trying to touch him, but I was very worried that he was lonely, so I would sit and talk to him.
But, I honestly don’t think he cared. Birds like this, I’m now told, tend to prefer one gender over another. This one likes men/boys … not women. He became a completely different bird when his teenaged owner came to pick him up. If beaks can smile, he was smiling.
So, maybe he was just worried or lonely or grumpy. I’d like to think that, but I have my doubts.
Trained as a traditional journalist and based in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, USA, I'm a full-time freelance writer for magazines, websites, and private clients. My areas of specialty include everything in the lifestyles arena, including health and home, personal finance and other consumer interests, relationships and trends, people and business profiles ... and, of course, all things pet related.
I don't just love dogs. I need them in my life. Seriously.
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