Do Cockatoo's Make Good Pets?

[BirdEE]

I think I would really like to foster a cockatoo someday?
In a few years maybe. I'm still just working my way through the doorway of the bird world.

I always wanted to be a foster parent.. I was a preschool teacher and a CASA, and I had really good bonds with some of the kids no one else seemed to click with. The kinds of kids that might throw themselves on the floor screaming because their shoe wasn't tied the right way. Fits never bothered me and finally finding a way to work through them was so immensely rewarding.
I really wanted to be able to put my heart and training into helping a kid who got a bad shot.
But my SO .. he used to work in juvenile corrections.. he picked up a different perspective than I did. He's not as comfortable or passionate about the idea. We might do it someday, but not until we are older.

Helping out one of these amazing birds instead would really satisfy my heart, I think.

Sounds like you might have what it takes haha. Instead of shoes not being tired right though, it’s food not being made right. Not made right? On the floor it goes. I like green melon not watermelon. On the floor it goes. They also have a serve lack of patients. When they want something they want it NOW. I was just outside tonight and I hear through the screen door “DAAAAAADDDD. WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! COME HERRRRRE”. Over and over again

 

[Wthensler]

We've had our M2 Miss Coco over 10 years now, we got her as a baby.

She's probably towards the end of the spectrum of a Too. Well adjusted, not violent at all, sweet, loving, social, humorous. Gets very little cage time because she rarely gets into trouble. My wife can rule her 100%.

But - she's also picky (wants gourmet food all the time, manipulative, spoiled, launches unprovoked kamakazi attacks on me (never my wife), overly demanding at times, LOUD, and unpredictable.

 

[Elysian]

I hear through the screen door “DAAAAAADDDD. WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! COME HERRRRRE”. Over and over again

I know 'toos are capable of a lot of context - does yours *actually* say all that? Did you have to teach him/her to call you "dad"?

 

[BirdEE]

I know 'toos are capable of a lot of context - does yours *actually* say all that? Did you have to teach him/her to call you "dad"?

Sorry I missed this. Yes he absolutely says all of that. Albeit he screams or babbles more than he talks in short sentences. But he does talk everyday. If he didn’t I would assume something was wrong with him. And no, I didn’t teach him to call me Dad. He picked that up on his own with my daughter calling me dad In fact I haven’t taught him to say anything. Everything he knows he has picked up by himself. He has some words he says alllllll the time. “Come here” and “Hi Casper” are used daily and very frequently. He also comes himself a good boy a lot. A lot of people like to say “if I had a parrot I would teach him to say xxxxxx” but the problem is, they only say what they want to. And that’s if they even decide to talk human language at all. The funniest is if he hears a bang outside or something that startles him he sometimes will yell “What the heck was that, Dad!” Which he picked up “what the heck” from my wife because she always says that and I’m assuming he picked up the “what was that” because we say that sometimes if our dog perks up from a noise.

But yes, they will learn the context to use the words as you’ve probably picked up. It’s common place now so I don’t usually think twice that I’m having small conversations with a bird. But yeah. They absolutely know the context to use their words. Obviously they probably don’t know what “Hi” actually means, but they know when to use it.

He also says things less frequently. He knows how to say “I love you” and “bye”. But rarely says either.

Tonight he had a stressful night though because we had a couple family members over and he typically gets a little stressed when a lot of people are around, and his daily routine is broken. So he screamed quite a bit. But it’s funny, because he knows he’s acting ridiculous. After screaming you might get a “Hiiiiiii”. It’s like he realizes he had a Dr. Jekyll moment or something haha. Then immediately after they walked out of the door and said bye. He yells “I WANT DAD!” “I LOVE DAD!!!” “COME HERE DAD!” So I took him into a quiet room with me for a little bit.



They’re quite the characters.

 

[Elysian]

That is amazing!! I expected short sentences but not the adaptable language and consciousness of adding his specific name for you when appropriate. Wow.

 

[BirdEE]

That is amazing!! I expected short sentences but not the adaptable language and consciousness of adding his specific name for you when appropriate. Wow.

Yeah my wife always says “Say mom!” But he has no interest in that haha.

Now I’m sure they don’t know what “love you” actually means. He just knows I say that to him when I put him to bed.I always says “Love you buddy”. And he picked it up. He knows that when he says “come here” sometimes he gets picked up so he uses that frequently.

It’s really amazing actually how they recognize the context to say words. cassiesdad’s male umbrella Milton carries on small conversations all the time. Read some of his threads. They’re great.

He will also be the first to tell you they can be turds as well.