Our George of the jungle is an African Grey parrot. He is black, grey, and white with a red tail. African Greys are the largest parrots in Africa. That's where George's ancestors are from, the rain forests of Central Africa. George, however, is not 'wild-caught' but was hatched in North America. Unfortunately, some criminals try to catch and smuggle parrots. When I moved George from Canada to the US, I had to go through a long process (four months) to bring him across the border legally. People would say they'd just let him loose on the border and lure him across with seeds. By the end of the four months, I was nearly ready to try this approach!! I had to get an export permit from Ottawa and an import permit from Virginia (Fish and Games). You need to fill out several forms for each. I then needed an appointment at the border with a Fish and Games agent. I could not cross the usual border I cross but had to go way out of the way to Sweet Grass, as that is where the only Fish and Games border agent is in Montana. Was I done now? Nope. Then I had to take George (at the border) to a vet who also worked for Fish and Games. Ken and I made the long trek with two vehicles, George and five dogs. But that's for another story!
African Greys are the best talkers in the parrot world and are considered the most intelligent. Researchers suggest they have the intelligence of a five-year-old. I suppose we could get into a discussion about which five-year-old, but I won't. African Greys are unique talkers in that other parrots mimic, but African Greys also understand what they are saying and make appropriate comments. They can put together words to form their own sentences or phrases and even mimic every sound known to man! They can distinguish shapes and colors and numbers and letters. I have not tried any of that with George but have no doubt he is capable.
Now you know the facts, I will regale you with some of the perks and drawbacks to owning such a parrot as George of the Jungle. They can hear you say something once, and it's ingrained in their memory. You dart a look, hoping he hasn't heard you, but his beady eyes are trained on you. You wait days and weeks, and your slip is never repeated. No, he is waiting for just the right moment when it comes out!! He recognizes each dog and will call them or admonish them. " Settle down, Santan!" just as I am about to say the same, George does it for me. When he sees the dogs getting restless, he asks them," Do you wanna go out?" Sometimes this is just A-ok, but at other times, like when I'm trying to sleep, and he invites the dogs to go out, it is not. If I am up in the night sometimes, I hear this whisper coming from his cage. "What's the matter?" This prompts me to whisper back, 'Nothing, George, go back to sleep." "Ok," he responds. To further illustrate how he knows when to use sentences or phrases, my one dog was very sick some time ago, and as I was kneeling beside my dog, I could hear George inquiring, "What's the matter?'
George will rattle his seed bowl when he wants something--bang, bang, bang. So irritating. I was trying to do something a couple of weeks ago, and the banging started. "Stop the banging, George," I yelled. Bang, bang, bang, bang. Furious, I erupted from the chair and hustled over to his cage. I began removing his bowl. "Stop that! "he yells. I keep on putting my hand in to remove the darn bowl. "Get out of here, "he yells again. I nimbly remove the bowl (when a parrot is mad, one must
be nimble to avoid bloodshed.) As I stalk away, all triumphant, poor George screams--well----a word that rhymes with duck. Like I said before, their conversation is appropriate to the occasion.
When he sees us getting ready for bed, he says, " Good night George." If you don't turn lights off as quickly as he would like, he then yells, "GOOD NIGHT GEORGE!" In the evenings, he wants to watch TV with us. At appropriate times he howls with laughter. It sounds like another human in the room. His laugh is so infectious it gets us laughing more. By the way, he has several laughs at his disposal, unlike our solitary, boring one.
He whines and barks like the dogs--not just one dog but all of them with their different sounds. He meows like a cat. He can also sound like a cat growling and about to fight. We think he must have overheard one outside. If he wants attention, he says, "hello" loudly. - till you reply. He rings like a phone. In front of George, Ken noted that he always knew George and not the phone as George only rang once. Wrong move, Ken. Now George rings several times. Lots of running for the phone. If you call someone, you hear George saying, "Hello?". He sometimes carries on parallel conversations as you are trying to have one yourself. Very distracting. There are many numbers involved when he has his conversations, ' 8, 5, 22, etc. "We have no idea where he got these numbers, and they differ from time to time. He also has a variety of phone voices. One sounds like a shady character with a gruff voice. Where is that from? Possibly TV? We don't know. He whistles many songs, "Bridge Over River Kwai" is a favorite. Did I tell you he coughs and sneezes? He does a perfect imitation of someone (a man) with a head cold. He sneezes and sneezes and then says, with a plugged nose, " son of a ---".!
George will dance with you bobbing up and down to the music. As he bobs, he sometimes says, "woo woo!" He loves music and enjoys cartoons in the morning. George gets out of his cage but must be babysat when he is out as parrots are notoriously bad for furniture and, in fact, anything chewable. They are avid chewers. Any toy you buy for them lasts a short time.
George participates in our mealtimes. For breakfast, he enjoys a smackeral of peanut butter toast. At lunch, I try to give a piece of fruit or something nutritious but admit to giving him part of a plain cookie in the afternoon. At supper, he enjoys bits of potato or vegetables. At night, while watching TV, George also gets snacks. (Inappropriate parrot sizes, of course.) If you give George a treat, he makes a big kissing sound--smack! He realizes this shows his appreciation. If you open a pop can in the kitchen, George makes the top popping sound and then the trickle of the beverage. George's main food is, of course, seeds. I have to import his seeds from Canada. I have tried other brands, and he gets quite angry and won't eat. So, every visit to Canada, I bring back two huge bags of George's special seeds that are only made in Canada. Only made in Canada, you say? Sadly, yes.
George is so like a child in many ways, and you start to treat him like one. The other day, Ken complained a show George was watching was too violent. So, the channel had to be changed. ". Little House on the Prairie," Ken considers appropriate. I wish I could have people come in and enjoy George the way we do but here, he has another characteristic of children that most parents will recognize. " Suzy, tell Aunty the poem you memorized." Suzy remains silent and edges away. Thus it is with George. He senses when he is being asked to perform and gives you a blank stare. We have learned if we want George to let loose, we go into another room or carry on as usual, and then you get to hear the real George.
George is a character, always evolving and continually entertaining. We love him dearly!! George, at 33, is definitely part of the family! Owning a parrot is not for everyone. They are very messy and loud. People who own parrots will tell you the question is not if your parrot will bite; it's when. Anyone charmed with this story and thinking maybe a parrot is for them, do some research first and think long and hard. Parrots live very long lives so getting one is a lifelong commitment. This message was brought to you by the Denning family zoo.
