h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Nice article, Jodan. Parakeets are good talkers. You have to watch what you say around them, though; they'll pick up words you'd prefer they didn't know.

I've had somewhat different experience with my guys, though. Two or more birds will communicate with *each other* in 'birdspeak' and will ignore you. A single bird, because it's gregarious, is more likely to want to communicate with you and will learn to speak 'human'. Same thing with a mirror; the bird thinks it's another parakeet and will interact with the mirror instead of you. (Exception: females generally ignore mirrors. Make of that what you will.)

If you want a good pet, you'll do better to avoid the pet shops and purchase your bird from a responsible breeder. The breeder's birds are much more likely to have been hand fed. They'll be well socialized and
think of themselves as little humans; they'll want to interact with you. And a responsible breeder will be available to answer questions and help you be a successful bird 'parent'. (Having said all that, there are some good pet shops out there who care about their animals. There are also some real stinkers.)

And one more item. If you want a bird only to have a talking pet, DON'T. These are living creatures, not toys, and are quite intelligent and affectionate. They also tend to be long-lived. Buy a bird if you love birds. If you only want entertainment, buy a bird video that you can put away when you lose interest.

quizzical
(willing slave to 'keets and cockatiels)

I expect it's not a good idea to combine bird and cat ownership? Are there any instances out there where caged birds and Moggy have co-existed (happily, or Cold War) without tears?

I also imagine that the larger the bird and the more vicious the beak, there are instances where things have not all gone in the cat's favour?