Emotion-The Key to Birds Being Companion Animals

How much friendship, companionship or affection can be expected from pet birds?

What we're really interested in is determining birds' emotional capacity.

Birds demonstrate happiness, fear, aggression, jealousy, appeasement, defensiveness, nervousness and loneliness.

Most importantly birds can love people. Radiating from this affection comes the desire to perform, entertain and relate to their owners. Thus they sing, talk, mimic, dance, play, do tricks and display.

The next time you approach a frightened, nervous, hostile bird-possibly angry-remember that the pendulum of emotions swings in both directions. They have feelings just as strong in the opposite direction. A bird that shows anger can have just as an intense love. Unpleasant characteristics can be surpassed by pleasant ones.