Last Updated on January 28, 2024 by Carrie Stephens
Parrots yawn to stretch the muscles in their mouths and crops and to convey non-verbal messages. Sometimes, they yawn willingly, but it can be instinctive. Yawning should be occasional, not constant.
Yawning is a contagious activity for all living creatures. According to Animal Cognition, when one bird yawns, others follow suit. This means that a parrot could be imitating an owner or other pets.
They yawn to express relaxation and contentment and to show other birds they’re not a threat. Parrots frequently yawn before and after eating or preening to prepare the crop for solids.
Listen attentively when a parrot yawns, especially if it does so often. It shouldn’t emit any sound. If the parrot is gasping for breath or panting, it may have difficulty breathing through its mouth.
How Parrots Yawn
The physical act of yawning in parrots is similar to that of mammals. The bird opens its beak wide, stretches its neck and tongue, and takes in more oxygen.
A parrot’s yawn is usually soundless, unlike ours. Don’t confuse panting with yawning; they’re different activities with disparate meanings.
Parrots Yawning a Lot
All parrots will yawn occasionally, and there are numerous explanations for this behavior. This should be a sporadic action, not a constant occurrence.
Excessive yawning in parrots is cause for concern. If a parrot is yawning continuously, something may be amiss with its lifestyle or physical/emotional health.
Why Parrots Yawn
There are various reasons a parrot yawns, including:
Contagious Yawning
If you’re in a room with somebody who emits a loud, audible yawn, you’ll likely feel compelled to do the same. This happens regardless of how tired or engaged you feel.
Frontiers in Psychology claims that yawning is catching among those with whom we share strong bonds because it’s linked to the Emotional Bias Hypothesis (EBH).
As parrots form emotional bonds with humans and other birds, they may yawn when you do for the same reason. This is made likelier because parrots are natural imitators.
Relaxing and Relieving Body Tension
Another obvious explanation for yawning is the stretching and release of muscle tension. This is most common when a parrot awakens in the morning or at sunset when preparing to sleep.
Yawning and stretching the neck is a way to remove knots in the body, especially if it also stretches and expands its wings during the yawn.
Communication
Some parrots yawn as an act of nonverbal communication. This can also demonstrate to another bird that the bird harbors no ill will and won’t pose a threat.
If a parrot seeks you out and yawns in front of you repeatedly, it may be expressing affection. Sometimes, it’s trying to make you understand that it needs more sleep.
Check for other signs that a parrot is sleep-deprived, which can include:
- Aggression when approached.
- Enhanced fright responses.
- Screaming and squawking.
- Feather-destructive behavior (FDB).
- Lethargy and refusal to exercise.
Parrots may grow stressed and unhealthy if they don’t get 10–12 hours of sleep.
Improving Oral Health
Some parrots yawn to stretch their jaw muscles and prevent the beak from growing misaligned. You may also notice parrots yawning more before and after eating or using their beak to preen.
Yawning And Eating
Parrots will frequently yawn before eating. This is so the crop, where food is stored before being passed to the digestive system, is ready.
Parrots also yawn after eating to pass the food through the pharynx and esophagus into the crop. While food remains in the crop, a parrot may also yawn in readiness for regurgitation.
Regurgitation isn’t the same as vomiting. Regurgitated food will form a semi-solid liquid, usually pale yellow. This liquid comes from the crop and contains essential nutrients, especially protein and fat.
Parrots regurgitate to feed their partners and young or to show affection to others.
Yawning Following Preening
A parrot will yawn before and after preening its feathers. This process removes surface-level dust, dirt, and grime from the feathers using the beak and tongue, which are pushed into the crop.
As with eating, the parrot warms its crop with a yawn before preening. Then, it yawns to open the crop wide afterward to move everything into the digestive tract. It’ll eventually be removed as waste.
Hormonal Changes
A parrot’s body changes as it ages, partly due to an influx of hormones.
One adjustment to hormone levels can arise in female parrots entering the breeding season and preparing to lay eggs.
Captive parrots don’t need a mate to lay eggs. The eggs are unfertilized and won’t hatch, but producing and laying them will still provoke bodily changes.
If a parrot is yawning more at the onset of spring, when the days grow longer and warmer, cover the cage earlier in the day and keep her away from other birds.
Health Concerns
The parrot may not be yawning but constantly opening and closing its mouth to aid breathing.
Listen closely if you think the parrot is yawning. If it’s panting or breathing heavily, it needs help with something ailing it. Even if the yawn remains silent, there could be a medical explanation.
Foreign Objects Trapped in the Throat
If a parrot constantly yawns but no sound emerges, it may have a foreign object trapped in the throat. This could be a small food item, like a peanut, or a non-edible item a curious parrot swallowed.
Trapped objects in the throat can cause choking and make swallowing more difficult for parrots. Having this behavior investigated by a vet, who may need to remove the object.
Respiratory Infections
Parrots can get respiratory infections. If a parrot is also lethargic, reluctant to eat, and has streaming from the eyes or nose, check for wheezing when it yawns.
Common respiratory infections include psittacosis, chlamydiosis, aspergillosis, and yeast infections. A vet will diagnose the cause and prescribe medication alongside advice on lifestyle changes.
A vet may recommend more vitamin A because it’s needed for the skin cells (epithelium) that cover the respiratory tract, making parrots more vulnerable to bacteria.
The Chlamydophila bacteria are often responsible for parrot fever or chlamydiosis.
Allergies
Ensure the parrot isn’t experiencing an allergic reaction to something in its environment, which could lead to trouble breathing. It may not be yawning but gasping for breath due to an allergen.
Allergies in parrots can be provoked by foods, physical contact with items (some parrots are allergic to plastic or certain metals), or airborne allergens.
Avoid air fresheners, scented candles, Teflon-coated cookware, cigarettes, and vapes around parrots.
While all parrots yawn, this shouldn’t be a constant, regular activity. If you find a parrot yawning continuously, check for other behaviors that may point to a health or lifestyle problem.