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Manual of Parrot Behavior
This authoritative reference, the first of its kind, is a necessary addition to the library of any practitioner or behaviorist who sees avain companion animals. Because of their beauty, intelligence, playfulness and ability in mimicry, parrots are the most widely kept companion birds. It is estimated that more than half of the psittacine cases presented to clinicians are the result of behavioral problems-problems inherent to captivity. Bringing together a host of international experts on avian behavior, Manual of Parrot Behavior explores the many facets of psittacine behavior, both normal and abnormal. The book not only provides readers with a solid understanding of the basic principles of psittacine behavior but also offers useful techniques of diagnosis and treatment for specific problems.
- GenresBirds
352 pages, Hardcover
First published June 12, 2006
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November 22, 2014
This is a collection of articles by different authors, avian veterinarians, behaviourists, scientists and aviculturists, and was a very interesting read. It has a lot of information on parrots (from their physiology to their behaviour); the articles range from more scientific, to more about parrot behaviour in various situations (often describing various experiments). It also offers, either explicitly or more implicitly, what I understood as an insight into the varying attitudes different specialists have towards captivity and the pet industry (regarding parrots), as well as some either explicit or implicit information on parrot owners, breeders, veterinarians and specialists who deal in parrot welfare.
There are also several chapters addressed to bird owners who want to have a better understanding of their birds and want some advice and explanations of some forms of behaviour and how to prevent or change them – based on some reviews on amazon, many bird owners found this helpful. I think the book can be enjoyed by people with varying degrees of familiarity with parrots - not only by bird owners and enthusiasts, but also by people who know very little about them but are interested in science, animals and perhaps even human nature.
I went into this book with an open mind and without any intention to confirm some pre-existing bias either against or for bird owners or parrot pets/companions or captivity, or any kind of animal activist agenda. Although I've never owned or taken care of a bird myself, I've met a few bird owners whose birds appeared to be happy and healthy the few times I saw them - but then I barely knew anything about parrots.
The book can be read from many different angles – personally, the whole book, no matter the attitudes and beliefs of some authors, revealed that parrot captivity and in particular parrot “companionship” is associated with some extremely disturbing behaviours in parrots, and some equally disturbing and unbelievable attitudes of their human keepers/“companions” and some behaviourists.
To mention a few “abnormal” behaviours associated with pet parrots and/or parrots in captivity (some quite common, others more sporadic) - chronic egg laying, mate trauma (injuring or killing of a mate), “phobic” behaviours, feather damaging behaviour, self-mutilation, abnormal sexual and habitat imprinting which possibly leads to a whole range of abnormal behaviour - and the list goes on.
I found the chapters on how to “correct” parrot behaviour to make the birds “more suitable companions” by encouraging or discouraging particular behaviour particularly offensive and disturbing. Many discouraged behaviours seemed to be most natural to parrots in the wild, and others seemed to be more suitable for the owners while drastically changing the parrots natural life patterns. Various methods of changing undesirable behaviour were talked about – ranging from behaviour modification and conditioning, to using different kinds of medication (there is a chapter on drugs sometimes used to alter birds' behaviour) – whichever method is used seems to require the help of various specialists who often need to be consulted on a regular basis because many of the mentioned problems are long term ones.
The book can be read in so many different ways that it managed to appeal to some bird owners while at the same time managing to make me suspicious of bird owners (both those who have done their research and those who have not bothered to) and behaviour-correctors and their motives. I learned a lot about parrots and now see them as beautiful, intelligent, interesting, and wild birds (that in my opinion should be treated as such).
I obviously enjoyed the book and recommend it!
There are also several chapters addressed to bird owners who want to have a better understanding of their birds and want some advice and explanations of some forms of behaviour and how to prevent or change them – based on some reviews on amazon, many bird owners found this helpful. I think the book can be enjoyed by people with varying degrees of familiarity with parrots - not only by bird owners and enthusiasts, but also by people who know very little about them but are interested in science, animals and perhaps even human nature.
I went into this book with an open mind and without any intention to confirm some pre-existing bias either against or for bird owners or parrot pets/companions or captivity, or any kind of animal activist agenda. Although I've never owned or taken care of a bird myself, I've met a few bird owners whose birds appeared to be happy and healthy the few times I saw them - but then I barely knew anything about parrots.
The book can be read from many different angles – personally, the whole book, no matter the attitudes and beliefs of some authors, revealed that parrot captivity and in particular parrot “companionship” is associated with some extremely disturbing behaviours in parrots, and some equally disturbing and unbelievable attitudes of their human keepers/“companions” and some behaviourists.
To mention a few “abnormal” behaviours associated with pet parrots and/or parrots in captivity (some quite common, others more sporadic) - chronic egg laying, mate trauma (injuring or killing of a mate), “phobic” behaviours, feather damaging behaviour, self-mutilation, abnormal sexual and habitat imprinting which possibly leads to a whole range of abnormal behaviour - and the list goes on.
I found the chapters on how to “correct” parrot behaviour to make the birds “more suitable companions” by encouraging or discouraging particular behaviour particularly offensive and disturbing. Many discouraged behaviours seemed to be most natural to parrots in the wild, and others seemed to be more suitable for the owners while drastically changing the parrots natural life patterns. Various methods of changing undesirable behaviour were talked about – ranging from behaviour modification and conditioning, to using different kinds of medication (there is a chapter on drugs sometimes used to alter birds' behaviour) – whichever method is used seems to require the help of various specialists who often need to be consulted on a regular basis because many of the mentioned problems are long term ones.
The book can be read in so many different ways that it managed to appeal to some bird owners while at the same time managing to make me suspicious of bird owners (both those who have done their research and those who have not bothered to) and behaviour-correctors and their motives. I learned a lot about parrots and now see them as beautiful, intelligent, interesting, and wild birds (that in my opinion should be treated as such).
I obviously enjoyed the book and recommend it!
Displaying 1 of 1 review