₦airaland Forum

Scofield's latest 'vocabulary' addition, sound of kisses...lol

I quickly went outside the house to put an answer to the seemingly unending stream of questions flowing in my mind. The speed with which I dashed out must have startled Scofield, so he just kept mum. I didn't see any dog in sight, and I didn't observe any posture of fear in him, so I reached a hypothesis that what I heard might have come from him. After some minutes of futile waiting to see if he'd repeat it, I went inside the house so I could view him from a nearby window adjacent to his perch. "Maybe if he doesn't see me, he may repeat it", I reasoned. After few minutes of waiting, I clearly heard four dog barks coming directly from Scofield! . I was electrified with amazement. This was indeed a confirmation to me, that the long standing rumour that parrots can mimic what they hear is actually true!
From that moment till now, my 'boy' has dazzled me with his audio library. Currently without exaggeration, I believe he produces over two hundred different sounds. Some he learnt over the course of weeks, others he mastered after hearing it just once! His vocalisations include: the squeaking of doors, the cooing of doves, barking of dogs, chirping of canaries, swallows...hooting of owls, the screeching of tires, sound of swallowing eba (I believe learnt that one from yours sincerely ), wolf whistles & a few other whistle tunes I taught him, not to mention a ton of other sound combinations. I believe one question in your mind right now is "can he talk?" Well yes and no.
Yes because he has started to mimic two words "hello" and "my-boy", and no because its not yet in perfect human voice (I'll probably rate him 40%)
I find it most amusing whenever he joins me in a whistling duet (if u see us, u go laff tire ). I don't know how he understands the timing, but he just knows the tune I'm about to whistle and immediately joins me in it. Sometimes, its in synchrony other times, a cacophony...
One decision I have made is that whether he eventually mimics human speech or not, I'll not love him any less, because he's such an interesting 'fellow' .

Mimicry: naturally unnatural
As a lover of animal documentaries both on youtube and on satellite tv, I've sometimes found myself in complete disbelief after watching clips of birds displaying extraordinary feats of sound mimicry. Little did I know that I'll get to hear one myself.
If memory serves me well, I believe it all started shortly after the dawn of one morning in the month of July, I took Scofield outdoors and as was his custom, he rented the air with his whistles, and squawks (as at this time all I had heard from him were a few normal parrot vocalisations). Out of the blues, while inside the house, I heard the barking of a dog, for a minute there, my imagination ran amuck..."did Scofield just bark?", "is there a stray dog nearby?" "Could my ears be playing tricks on me?"...

Tellemall:
Whenever you trim its feathers, let us have a blow by blow picture roll.

With its feathers trimmed it can't fly all that well, but you're taking it outside and it doesn't think of flying off?

How do you cope with its beak? And the screaming?

I'll try to put the pics when Scofield voluntarily allows me to spread his wings, 'cos right now, he's still grumpy about it. He made a number of attempts to fly off, but I kept bringing him back to his perch. He instinctively decided to halt all flying attempts after a flying accident resulted in a broken beak tip and a little blood loss. The last time Scofield screamed at me was probably about four months ago. I have no fear of biting now, as I even wrestle out food from his beak when we're catching fun

kunlesufyan:
Are you a content writer? If you are not, I think you should key into it. You will be relavant there.
Anyways, WantedI had plans to get parrot for my birthday but It didnt work out.
Ill follow this thread so I can learn enough about this exotic bird before I contact Adecamp.
Nice one though

I'm not a content writer, neither do I have any intention of becoming one in the future. This thread is just for fun. You could also find some helpful articles on wikihow. Thanks for following by the way

Scofield's intelligence
As the days go by, I see a level of intelligence in my bird that sometimes leaves me awestruck. He displays this intelligence in numerous ways. Right now, he understands the connotations of a few words. Some of which are: "groundnut", "banana", "corn", "banga", "bye-bye"...he also responds to some commands like: "come on" (walk up to me), "step-up" (step unto my hand), "up" (I'm about to pick you up and flip you over on your back), "poop" (drop some weight from your rear end lol), "give me a kiss" (lightly peck my nose with your beak), "shhhh" (stop what you're doing or about to do)... When I am a few feet from him and I hold out my fist and call out his favourite food (which recently has become shelled groundnut), the speed with which he runs to me is quite different from when I mention other foods or ask him to come to me. As surprising as it may sound, whenever I call his name (even when I'm outside his line of sight), he responds with a squawk. I'm still unsure if he understands the concept of a name, but his constant reply seem to indicate that he does.
For weeks now, he rarely poops when in the cage, rather, when he needs to, he makes a special call to get my attention. When he sees me from afar off, or hears my voice, he repeatledly whistles a particular tone (that sounds like wheuu...) as if to say "welcome". When I tell him "goodnight" just before lights out, he replies with another whistle tone. When I'm walking away away from him, he whistles a popular whistle tone I taught him (the common whistle people make when trying to call a person or a trained animal- something sounding like wheuu-whee) as if to say he doesn't want me to go just yet. Whenever he sees me eating, he makes a whining sound (almost identical to that of dogs) while smacking his beak indicating that he wants what I'm having.
Sometimes, when I say "step up" and he's not in the mood to step unto my hand, he whistles a tone that I have come to understand as his way of saying "no", and when I repeat the command in a stern voice, he slowly lifts up one foot after the other onto my hand while grumbling with a low volume growl...lol (talk about a stubborn 'boy')
Few weeks back, while he was outside chirping away, I observed that dark clouds were gathering indicative of an approaching rain, so I walked up to his outdoor perch and told him to step up, he growled at me, as if to say he didn't want to go in just yet, so I decided to let him be (prior to this time, I had tried every trick in the book to shower him but up till now, he would shriek at me if I sprayed even a drop of water on him, so I wanted to see if he would shriek at the cloud or something ). As the rain drizzled, I was surprised to hear him call out to me-with squawks and whistles, while shaking his head repeatedly. Though I was just a short distance from him I refused to go pick him up. After about five minutes, I observed he was getting drenched, so I went to him, told him to step up him up (he growled a little before he stepped up) after which I took him to his cage. Later that day, I went to pick him up and his reaction surprised me. He growled angrily and pretty loudly too. This left me quite perplexed. "What could be wrong?", "Why is he growling?" I reasoned to myself. It took a while before it suddenly dawned on me that Scofield was still ruminating over my deliberate act of not picking him up when he was in distress. For a minute there, I thought this could not possibly be the case, afterall does it not sound too complex for an animal to be able to show signs of aggression towards a person for indirectly causing an unpleasant situation because of his/her inaction? Yet, despite how unnatural it appears, Scofield's action proved to me that he understands the concept of cause and effect.

booqee:
How is the bird not even tempted to fly away, whenever he watches other bird outside flying in all their glorious freedom..

From the pics, i know u clipped the wings but it still seem to me like it is still sufficient enough to fly around.. so is it that you trained him not to fly from home..

Abeg i dey gbadun this ur diary...

Right now, the best he can fly is around 10 feet, but I've observed a recent growth of new feathers so I'm clipping him soon. I initially intended training him to fly, but I changed my mind when I weighed the risks of predators, getting lost, or even being hunted down by street kids

Explorers, how you get these facts still beats my imagination. Nice work

nonut:
You know the wings grow back? If it's not too attached to you, it can fly away and that's bye bye to your 30k and other expenses you incurred since you got it.

Thanks for your comment, its coming very timely!

rumenase:
blackbelly Abeg I take all the witch for my village take beg yu come and continue

Hahaha...don't worry, I'll post a new update soon

This just brought back memories of my final year project. These rats can sabi bite if not properly handled. They look cute though[url][/url]

Retiredflirt:
Interesting read, Ive always loved pets and had a couple growing up. Which specie actually talk & pls how do you clip d wings to prevent it getting away.. do u clip it permanently of periodically?

The number of parrot species that talk are numerous, but among the best include: Amazon parrots, ring neck parakeets, macaws, budgerigars, African grey parrots...but the most accessible in west Africa are the African Grey's and the ring neck parakeets. Concerning the clipping, I can't say much abt that 'cos I haven't done one myself. I bought my parrot already clipped

toms55:
@blackbelly , I suggest you should get a trampoline instead. you should be able yo get cheap ones around probably like an old used banner , you will just be washing with water ni shikena instead of spending money on newspapers

Thanks for this superb advice, I'll check for it ASAP

adecamp:
Op this your story sweet o lol. Nice to see you and Scoffield getting well

Oga boss u dey here? Greetings

ejosamson:
pls bro I would like to have one parrot too.how much is it nd pls I'll like u to drop ur contact or better still dis is mine 08036195918 thanks nd God bless

Ejosamson Send Me A Pm

More

Scofield getting a head scratch

Scofield bowing for a head scratch

LilMarley, i kept rabbits for a few years too, made some small cash from it. The smell if rabbit can be very unpleasant.

If the producers of tissue papers gave prizes for their most frequent customers, I think by now I would have been on their payroll. Infact, if I were to give advice to intending parrot owners who would want their birds to run free within the house, the first advice will be to buy tissue papers; LOTS OF IT!
Time would fail me to narrate all the episodes of Scofield pooing at awkward moments, pooing on my clothes, pooing on furnitures, pooing at the wrong place and so on .
At some point, I began to do research about various methods of litter-training pets and almost all the advice I found did not work for Scofield. If you think litter training a dog or a cat takes time, then my friend you have no idea what it means to litter-train a bird!
Months after making the decision to let Scofield outside every morning, I observed one funny trait. Whenever I dropped him on his outdoor perch, the first thing he'd do is take two steps backwards, lower his rear end, wiggle his red tail and drop a big poo, followed by a coo of contentment. I figured that I might as well say "poop" just before he actually poops as a way of making him associate the word "poop" with his 'toilet business'.
Guess what Two weeks later, whenever I intended to place him on my shoulders, or any furniture, all I had to do was hold him out over an appropriate place and say "poop" after which he empties his bowel before allowing him roam free. Though I still have to calculate his 'safe period', but I'm positive that I'm very close to fully solving the poop puzzle!

Then you begin to ask yourself "na which kind wahala I go take my money buy so?"

You raise your head up only to see your parrot going about his business as if to say "wetin concern me"

Scenario 3
You're doing cage and room cleaning and after taking out the soiled newspapers and mopping up the floor, you turn around to quickly get fresh newspapers and seconds before you spread it, you hear your worst nightmare SPRAAT! on the clean floor. You look down and what you see makes you tell yourself "I will not cry"

Scenario 2
Imagine picking up your parrot from its cage in the room, for a routine morning outdoor visit, and just when you're walking past the sitting room you hear SPRAAT!!! You look down on the tiled floor only to find something big and greenish scattered all over the place I believe you'll be like " kuku kill me"

The 'wicket' bird just wiggles its tail and be looking at you like

Then your neighbours will be like "ah, ah, its just a bird, leave the poor thing alone"

Imagine trying to show-off your pet parrot to friends, neighbours and passersby by placing it on your shoulders (probably striking a pose for your fans in your designer shirt ) and all of a sudden when you expect him to be in his best behaviour, he lowers his tail and drop a warm watery pile of poop on your shoulder.
You'll be like "lemme just kill this bird

Litter training a bird?
All new pet owners would agree with me that one of the most challenging problems we face is POOP PROBLEM. If you think chickens poop often, then my friend, you have no idea what parrot owners go through, because for parrots, poop business is serious business! A happy parrot can poop as often as every 10-15 minutes...eeewww!
I'll try to recreate some of my worst scenarios with parrot poop so you really understand what I mean

freezyprinzy:
I don't want to get it because of your story I love parrots

If that is the case it would be worthwhile 4 u 2 get one. It'll make yur life more fun

Jayned don't worry I'll create a special diary for the hairdo so as not to derail this thread
Rumenase, no derailing allowed.
Freezyprinzy don't get a parrot just because you're smiling while reading my thread 'cos there'll be times when you'd become very upset with the bird and I'll not be there to cheer u up. #hardTruth

For the first time in over three months, he made absolutely no effort to restrain me it was as though he froze for a moment there. This got me really confused. Is this not the same parrot that would push my hands off before I even got the chance to touch even a strand of feather? How can this be? Could he be sick or something? In my disbelief, I moved my finger upwards towards his neck and still no reaction, that was when it struck me that I've hit jackpot! Hurray!!! finally I can touch my pet! (Who celebrates being able to touch their pet ?). I went on to give him him a head and neck scratch just like I had seen some folks do to their parrots on YouTube. In fact that night, I went to bed feeling like Eddy Murphy in Dr Dolittle . In my mind "mehnn, tomorrow, I'm going to give Scofield all the neck scratches he has been missing for the past three months" .
6:30am the next morning, I was already at Scofield's cage to execute my plans, but to my utter surprise, the bird no even send me, all the time I tried to touch him, he'll just turn around to face his beak towards my hand in an attempt to push it off, all he wanted was his routine morning outdoor visit. I began to wonder, "what has come over him?" "Why the sudden change?" Throughout the day it was nearly impossible to get him to allow me even touch his feathers. I came up with a plan to re-enact the previous night's experience and see the outcome and as I had anticipated, his reaction was positive. It was at this point I confirmed a theory that Scofield was most docile and pasive in dim light, just when he was preparing to sleep. The next couple of nights saw me having neck scratching sessions with Scofield. As I scratched, I'd repeat the phrase "head scratch" severally to him. Over the next few days, when ever I said the phrase to him, he'd just bow his head and fluff his neck feathers so I could give him a rub. It became obvious that he enjoyed this activity so much that at certain times, he'd just close his eyes and enjoy the neck massage. Talk about a very relaxed and happy parrot

Scofield: one day one trouble miracle
In everyone lies a desire to love and be loved and this desire has made some of us to elevate some animals to the status of pets.
A whole lot of my view about birds changed since I got Scofield. Behind that beautifully decorated plumage lies a personality with likes, dislikes, desire for attention...and I have found this to be especially true for 'my boy', Scofield.
Mid July, I was ushered into the friend-zone of my bird and it all started one evening probably minutes past 7pm. The light in the room was a bit dim, and I was about to say my occasional "good night" to Scofield before turning off the lights when a thought came to me " why not try and touch him before turning off the light?"
P.S as at this time, Scofield's stand concerning touching on any part of his plumage was quite clear, DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!!! The best you could get was only the scaly feet and he would even occasionally push your fingers off with his beak).
I walked slowly towards his cage and reached out my fingers to touch his back. His next reaction was one that changed my entire philosophy of him...