Birds on the Couch: The Bird Shrink's Guide to Keeping Polly from Going Crackers and You Out of the Cuckoo's Nest

by Ruth Hanessian, Gwendolyn Bounds

Owners of America's 18.5 million talking birds will welcome the sane advice and snappy humor of longtime pet shop owner and "bird shrink" Ruth Hanessian.Talking birds who swear like sailors, peck at the family dog, or bite the hand that (literally) feeds them are about to get a quick course in behavior modification. Ruth incorporates techniques from her bird psychology workshops to deal with ornithological personality disorders from obsession and depression to delusions about their position in the family pecking order.

With clever drawings, opening quotes from famous psychoanalysts, and witty chapter headings including "That Tyson Bird" (about the all-too-common problem of biting) and "The Woody and Tweety Complex" (on bird love, sex, and romance), Birds on the Couch is filled with simple, easy-to-follow advice from a woman who can not only talk to the animals, she can get them talking back to you -- without driving you crackers.

Genres: Birds, Animals, Nonfiction

149 pages, Hardcover

First published June 9, 1998

Reviews

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have had plenty of animal psychology in college and now have two cockateals so a lot of this book is not new to me but it is great for a beginner. Great insight into why birds do what they do and how to keep them from driving you up the wall.

[David Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Birds on the Couch: The Bird Shrink’s Guide to Keeping Polly From Going Crackers and You Out of the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ruth Hanessian (Crown 1998) (636.58). This is a practical guide to understanding and modifying the behaviors of companion birds. Fascinating! My rating: 7/10, finished 2/4/2010.

[Selima Aberman · Rating 5 out of 5]

it is funny and realistic--a good synopsis on bird behavior