Quintin, our Quaker Parrot, kept lifting up his foot to me when I said “hi”. I think he’s waving back at me. He’s gotten pretty entertaining!

Here’s his current vocabulary (he’s just over a year old) :

• Hi
• Kiss Kiss (the words)
• Kiss Kiss (the noise)
• Muuuah
• Whaddaya say?
• Good Boy
• Yeah.
• Pretty bird
• Pretty PRETTY bird
• AaaaCHOO!
• Bless you!
• Thank you!
• Ha ha ha!
• You’re funny!
• Tickle tickle?
• Arf! (he barks like the puppy)
• Cat call (the whistle)
• Purr (the sound)
• Pllllllbt (the sound)

Not too bad for a baby bird, huh? Right now I’m working on “good morning” and “love you”. He rambles on at the television, too - some of his words aren’t totally distinct so I don’t really know what they are. He’s so awesome, I absolutely love having him around and I can’t imagine not having a bird now. (Thumps my husband for making me wait so long.)

We were at the pet store last weekend and they had about 6 African Gray parrots, two of them were still so young that they weren’t afraid of people yet. (The more they’re exposed to passers by that don’t know how to handle birds, the more scared/agressive they become.) Catie and I picked two of the snuggliest parrots and it was hard to put them down when it was time to leave, and believe me I would have taken one home but those beauties cost a minimum of $1200 just for the bird, their cages start at around $300. Yikes! They’re totally worth it, and I’ll get one eventually, when the timing is right.

If you’re considering a parrot, I really would recommend starting out with a hand fed baby Quaker (and here’s a great web resource on Quakers). They’re sweet and loving, cuddly and talkative without being obnoxious and loud. There are a few varieties, too - I initially wanted the Blue Quaker, but Catie ultimately chose because he’s her bird and will go with her when she leaves the nest, too.