Parrots aren’t always thought of as affectionate, but they’re very social and loving animals. Parrots like preening their owners as much as they enjoy being preened by same-species birds.
Pet parrots preen bonded humans because that’s how they show care and attention toward favored flockmates. Preening removes dirt, dust, debris, bugs, and ectoparasites from your hair.
Some birds can get over-enthusiastic with their preening activity, which can cause discomfort due to their sharp, pointy beaks. If so, move your hair out of the way or wear a hat to discourage preening.
What Does It Mean When A Parrot Grooms You?
Parrots preen people to show they care. If a parrot chews on your hair, ears, nose, skin, or clothes, it’s trying to keep your ‘feathers’ healthy, clean, and well-organized.
Preening is how parrots clean and maintain their feathers. Sometimes, a bird will transfer these techniques to their owner’s hair. However, parrots only preen humans they’ve bonded with closely.
What Makes The Human-Parrot Bond So Strong?
According to AFA Watchbird Magazine, most parrots are devoted to specific human companions, forming enduring friendships. Some parrot-human relationships last an entire lifetime.
While it can sometimes be unnatural for parrots to develop a strong bond with humans, it’ll happen when parrots are separated from a flock of same-species birds.
Parrots recognize that humans provide abundant food, protection from threats, and care and attention, so they reward this devotion with companionship and affection.
Parrots and humans may bond well together because parrots can imitate human speech. Parrots find imitating English words fun, while humans relate better to those who speak their language.
How To Bond With A Parrot
You must nurture the relationship to reach a stage where a parrot wants to preen you. Doing so is essential to creating a lifelong companionship with a parrot, which takes time.
To commence the bonding process, follow these simple steps:
Sharing tasty and nutritious food is an effective way of inviting a parrot to join your flock. Wild parrots regurgitate food for each other, so sharing food shows care about the parrot.
Handling
Parrots are wary of everything. Human-parrot interaction isn’t natural, so you must earn a bird’s trust.
To do so, desensitize the parrot to your presence by sitting near it and talking to it regularly. Do things together to create a routine and make the parrot feel more comfortable.
Don’t make sudden moves, and speak softly. In time, you’ll be able to handle the parrot. Rescued or rehomed parrots may need more time, so don’t be concerned if the bonding process is slow.
Grooming
Once a parrot feels comfortable around you, it may preen you. Before this happens, try petting the parrot. Grooming and petting allow a parrot to accept you and become more accustomed to handling.
Start by gently rubbing the back of its head, being sure to move in the same direction as the feathers. It’ll be painful if you run your hand against the grain of the feathers.
How To Tell If A Parrot Likes You
Preening isn’t the only sign that a parrot is comfortable in your company. Parrots are intelligent creatures capable of showing their favorite humans diverse emotions.
Each parrot has a unique personality and will show its love in different ways, but the following are the most common signs that a parrot trusts you:
Kissing
While parrots don’t have mouths to kiss you, they can administer a gentle peck.
This usually involves them placing their beak against your cheek or lips. A gentle nibble sometimes accompanies the parrot’s kiss. Sometimes parrots use their tongues to lick their owners.
Parrots can mimic human speech and sounds by modifying the air that flows over the syrinx to make certain noises. Therefore, some parrots make kissing sounds as they peck you with their beak.
Kissing a parrot isn’t healthy due to the risk of getting psittacosis (parrot fever). According to BMC Infectious Diseases, psittacines are among the most commonly affected by the disease.
Snuggling
Some parrots are cuddlier than others. Cockatoos, cockatiels, and macaw breeds, in particular, enjoy snuggling up to their owners.
Parrots looking for affection will tuck their head and back into your neck, hair, and clothing and may stay there temporarily once they’re comfortable.
However, sometimes snuggling can sexually stimulate your parrot. If a parrot sees you as a mate, it’ll display signs of jealousy and aggression toward people/animals it sees as competition.
It may also regurgitate its food for you or press its rear against your body. If a parrot does this regularly, avoid stroking the full length of the body and underneath the wings.
Nipping
Aggressive biting is a sign the parrot is anxious or stressed. However, if a parrot gives you a gentle nip, it’s comfortable around you and wants to be more loving.
This is reserved for people parrots value the most. However, this affection can turn to jealousy, especially if it needs to compete with other birds, people, or pets for your attention.
If a parrot bites too hard, it may be tired, stressed, sick, or injured.
Singing, Talking, Or Whistling
Parrots are vocal creatures, making different sounds with associated meanings.
Squeaking and squealing signify distress while whistling and singing show love and affection. Singing indicates that a parrot is happy and tapping into positive memories it wants to share with you.
Parrots also chatter and click their tongues when content. If you hear these sounds in a parrot’s presence, it almost certainly feels bonded with you.
Regurgitating Food
Pair-bonded parrots regurgitate food for one another, especially males. Regurgitating food is among the ways males prove they’ll make good partners and providers.
While this may seem unpleasant from a human perspective, it’s a natural courting behavior between parrots. It’s common for parrots to regurgitate on people they like as a sign of love.
By strengthening your bond with a parrot, you can encourage it to preen you just as it would another parrot. However, establishing trust with a parrot takes time and dedication.
