My Parrot, My Friend

[Freedomoflight]

A book I was reading (as mentioned in another post) said that children, whether "young adults" (age 18) teenagers, or newlyweds shouldnt own birds. That was my first qualm with this book, giving as I do not agree... as long as the young adult is responsible, he/she should have the chance to own one. OK.
Second qualm- book stated that ANYONE who adopts a secondhand bird should seek immediate "proffesional help" or else they will fail miserably, and scar the bird for life, because secondhand birds come with a lot of baggage. Yeah, well, isnt that driving a lot of people from adoptiing secondhand birds? Goodness, my precious Higgins is a secondhand bird, and I wouldnt trade him for the world.
3rd- They say that " Do not be deluded into thinking that a hand reared parrot will be a wonderful, responsive companion throughout its life. Nothing could be further from the truth."
What the heck is that supposed to mean? Sure, a parrot is go through maturity, but that doesnt mean that it isnt still going to be a wonderful companion.
The book also recommends, when the bird is misbehaving, to tap the bird on the beak, and tell it no. How is that gonna help you, and what message is that gonna convey to the bird? I mean, if you tap a bird on the beak, you are just asking for a bite...
Sorry, but I just has to post this, its been bugging me. Anyone got any comments?
BTW, the book is My Parrot, My Friend- Bonnie Monroe Doane

[My Kiwi]

Sounds like she has had some bad experiences with birds to me !

[Monica]

First: Teens or even people in their early 20's may not be fully able to pay for a bird and it's care. Often times they may also be busy working or with school... Yes, some should get the chance, as there are some great young adults out there who take wonderful care of their birds!


Second: A secondhand bird is not always a bad bird.... Some birds are just confused and misunderstood. One thing you never want to allow your 13 year old child to have is a medium sized bird that plucks, mutilates, screams, bites, and is a total terror! A child that young would hardly know what to do! Amazinginly enough, I was able to pull through! And in the least bit, she's a great bird, even only if with me! She's not very cuddly, but I am able to handle her, trim her beak, and she loves kisses! On average though, people who take in birds via a relative or a friend, and that they've never had a bird before, often times may find themselves in over their heads and may rehome the bird once again.

Third: The quote is actually true. Even handraised birds can be wild and "untame-able" before they reach adulthood, which can be caused by a lack of handling, or even from abuse. Of course there may be other reasons as well, and there are even birds who are the sweetest dolls in the world, then all of a sudden they lash out and bite! There is no guarantee that a bird will be sweet for life if it was raised by humans. Though then again there are many out there that are just sweet throughout their entire lives! Casey was handraised from day one, and she's about 4 years old now, going on 5 in several months! She's always been sweet with me and loves attention!

Fourth: You are right, that touching a bird on it's beak may result in a bird biting... With Noel, when I was first doing step ups with her, I'd occasionally grab her beak (not forcefully, just with my fingers), tell her no firmly, then proceed. When she stepped up good she received kisses! Did I mention she loves kisses? I once had a female budgie named Storm Cloud... and she fit the name well! She was a vicious girl and enjoyed getting her fair shair of blood! I ended up making it a game out of touching her beak (yeah, negative, I know! But I didn't then!). I'd try to touch her beak without getting bitten, and just try to touch it with one finger for as long as I could... Well, over time of doing this, she actually stopped biting and I was allowed to put my finger on her beak for several seconds! After that she never really had a reason to bite, as she was desensitized to it. In truth, if this is not done "correctly", it can indeed bring out negative results which means that the bird may learn to bite, or even bite harder as it CAN be a form of teasing. But if done in the right way, it can be a form of teaching.


The book was, if I am correct, published in 1995 so some things are more "old knowledge" and may not be quite up to "date" with new things... I can't really say for sure though as I haven't read it myself.

[Alyce Johnson]

I bought a book on how to train your parrot by this same woman. I'm glad to know that I shouldnt take everything she says as the gospel truth.

I bought the book because it had a detailed discussion of types of biting & what could be causing it (dominance, need for attention etc) and most importantly, how to tell the difference, and how to work with each type of behavior, since the bite is really only the symptom of the problem, when you really think about it.

I have found that part of her book very helpful, but I thought in the book I have that she specifically cautioned against tapping on the beak (I could be wrong). In this book that I have, she says to give a biting (or screaming) parrot a 10 min time out, and to time it, as after 10 mins the parrot is likely not to associate the punishment (separation from it's flock) with the misdeed. I've used that one with good effect a couple of times on my macaw. It doesnt seem to work on my green cheek, though.

Thanks for posting this as I will now take whatever I read of hers with a larger grain of salt than usual.

[Lori L]

Ah, me thinks you should RETURN that book, it is inaccurate and buy purchasing it only further adds to it's credibility

[Freedomoflight]

Dont worry- this book is going right back to the bookstore shelf were it belongs!