Baby is an African Grey Parrot.
Baby has been a member of our family for many years.
Originally, my dad had Baby at his house. My dad had another African Grey at the same time that absolutely loved him. Baby did not. Baby would scream at my dad, snap at him, and get really mouthy. Of course this behavior, quite often, led to rather colorful, inappropriate words coming out of my dad’s mouth. In turn, Baby started using the same language, in a voice that sounded identical to my dad’s voice. I do have to say it was rather confusing & a bit amusing to hear from another room, being as it sounded like my dad was cussing and arguing with himself.
One day, my dad figured enough was enough, the bird was never going to get along with him. Being as Baby liked me, he came to live with my family.
I am happy to say, over the years Baby has only used the colorful language a handful of times. Those few times were odd, because it sounded like my dad was in there cussing.
While he no longer cusses, Baby is quite mouthy and often tries to be involved with conversations. He also seems to know when we say something embarrassing and hope no one noticed. Of course, those embarrassing moments are ones that Baby sits there and laughs at us.
Some examples of the daily things that come out of Baby’s beak include: yelling for my sons when dinner is ready, telling my daughters to “sit down & be quiet” if he thinks they are arguing, and calling out for my daughter, by her name, to tell her that he wants “a drink” or wants to “eat”. He also likes to call the cats, by name, telling them to “come here”, even though he knows they are not suppose to be around him. This behavior is followed by cackling laughter & telling the cats “NO!” if they approach his cage. Many times he will say various things when we are talking. Yes, the comments he makes logically fit the conversation. Baby also likes to sing bits of various songs.
Of course, Baby is a parrot so there are times that he sits there screaming and squawking. The funny part is he will often follow these high pitched squawks with comments such as “Baby, be quiet!“, “Baby, stop!“, or “Shut up, Baby!“. After yelling at himself, he usually sits there and laughs.
Baby is a smart bird. He typically has quite a bit to interject into conversations (whether we want his input or not). He knows us all by name and tells us “I love you“. Baby likes to laugh – laugh at himself, laugh at us, and just sit there laughing, making us wonder what’s so funny. I guess he thinks he is a comedian.