Dear BirdTalk,
I’m writing about your Parrot Psychology article ‘Stubborn Meyer’s.’ My remarks below address issues that have much more influence on my Meyer’s behavior than do any of the factors discussed in the Parrot Psychology article.

My 12 yr old Meyer’s is as stubborn as anyone else in our household. I bought Sapphire for my son, but the bird decided he liked me. [I bought a grey for myself but she decided she liked my son.] Sapphire snuggles when he chooses to snuggle, bites me when I don’t respect his body language, tips his head when he wants it scratched, asks for a drink from the faucet, goes poop on demand, and follows me around the house (flying). Sapphire recognizes flock behavior and accepts being part of a flock. Thus, when I put our lovebird and 4 cockatiels back in their cages he is willing to go home too. Some of the birds go home on a finger, some on a dowel; Sapphire hops on a fabric mitt. If I break the rules, Sapphire will bite me for my misbehavior. Pressing to get him on my finger when he only wants his head scratched is one of many such infractions.

My birds have looong memories. They remember what they love and what they like. When they don’t get these things they become depressed or hostile…just like we humans do. It would be hard to imagine life without having something to look forward to. Birds also like predictable schedules. So predictable love, predictable food, predictable treatment is necessary for a happy bird.

Meyer’s Screaming Behavior: Sapphire screams when my son is here. Sapphire and the cockatiels and our grey all have special greetings for my daughter, who hasn’t lived at home for years. Sapphire is quiet when the TV is on or when I’m quiet in the bedroom. In the morning when I say good morning, he screams to let me know he is awake too. Later in the day, when he rings his bell, I try to reliably go over to his cage and ask what he wants. Typically he just wants me to say hi. If he reverts to perpetual screaming I ignore him and he quits.

I cannot speak for all Meyer’s, but my experience with Sapphire makes me believe that Meyer’s need love and reliability just as any family member.