Do birds 'know' things?

Do your birds sense what your feeling even if you don't outwardly show it? I don't mean anything supernatural or telepathic. I mean, I've read this many, many times on posts and considered it one of those cliche things that people tend to say. That is, until I started to really pay attention and noticed curious patterns in my bird's behavior.

When I come home upset from something at work, even if I don't show it outwardly, I feel like Boomer senses it somehow?? More often than not, he is more rowdy, loud, destructive, or extra needy. Or in some instances like today, I come home feeling ill because I skipped lunch... he is very, very, very mellow.

Do you have similar experiences you can share? Are they empathic or are they just really good at picking up subtle visual and auditory cues that we don't realize we're making? Is it all just a coincidence maybe? I'd love to hear you thoughts.

I have been upset, mad, worried, sad, depressed, etc. around them many times, and they just look at me with the blank stare. I can understand if they sensed I was angry they might not want to get involved, but even when I'm downright sad, they will look at me sideways as if they think I'm a weirdo, then go about their business .

That being said, I do believe that generally speaking, yes, birds (and other animals) absolutely can sense things 'unseen'.

I have been told (I dont know if it is true) that they actually have such good eye sight that they can see the capillary action in our faces, and thus we are presenting body language that we cannot control or even see ourselves. I do notice that my birds seem to be able to understand my mood even when people don't.

I have to answer this with an emphatic 'yes'. That doesn't mean that they will always respond appropriately, however.

I had a very tough childhood and it was my parakeet 'Sammy' who got me through some of the toughest times. I cannot count the number of days I'd come home from a school day of hell and Sammy would tilt his head - he could sense it in the sound of my voice.

Birds, and all animals for that matter, respond differently to our tone of voice. Dogs can sense cancer and other dna material that we cannot necessarily. Birds, at least mine, can sense when the weather changes- all these signify that they can.

Dogs can sense fear, so too can birds. I suppose some people may be better at hiding their state of mind - but in general I find that birds are very in tune to how we feel.

Yes, absolutely.

Parrots are one of the most empathic animals on the face of this planet.

And on some levels, because so much of their "language" involves non-verbal cues that we don't even pick up on, they pick up on things we don't even notice...

Without a doubt! As animals of prey, they are extremely keen observers of their environment. Beyond noticing cues ranging from obvious to subtle, they seem to have an affinity for learning the habits of those to whom they are closely bonded.

A special set of behaviors awaits those whom the birds don't like!

RavensGryf said:

I know many people say that, but I don't feel that MY birds show empathy. I have been upset, mad, worried, sad, depressed, etc. around them many times, and they just look at me with the blank stare. I can understand if they sensed I was angry they might not want to get involved, but even when I'm downright sad, they will look at me sideways as if they think I'm a weirdo, then go about their business .

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They're sennies. You're supposed to be in touch with THEIR moodswings.

Yours don't matter!

When I went through the darkest part of my divorce, and I was seriously depressed, my sun conure, Papaya, did everything in his power to get my attention and get me to laugh...

And when that didn't work, he wiped away my tears with his beak and his tongue, and rubbed his little face against mine...

The little girl who fell in our front yard, and began crying. Tusk went out to the end of the branch directly over her head, and comforted her "in human" using the phrases I had always used with him when he was upset:

"Awww. Whatsamatter? It's okay. You're okay. Come here..."

Back injury. The first time I ever took Flexeril it really affected me. Suddenly felt woozy, and had to go lay down. The birds were all out, and I never actually put them to bed that day. The medication knocked me out for almost 18 hours.

Woke up to find that Sally had stayed up perched on my chest, and had watched over me all night. She knew something was wrong with me.

Tusk again, when I had a horrible day at work, takes one look at me, climbs down, and goes and gets a cashew and sets it down in my hand and says:

"It's okay. You're a good boy!"

Casper, the sad little plucked cockatoo that had never gone to anyone before. The day Pecker died, I was waiting for news of his condition at the rescue, just devastated. That little bird, who was deathly afraid of all things human, hopped on my arm, nestled in the crook of my elbow, and refused to leave me...

Those are just a few examples that I have personally experienced over the years. There are a lot more than that.

Scott said:

A special set of behaviors awaits those whom the birds don't like!

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You know, Papaya loved everyone. Went to everyone.

There was only ONE of Sarah's friends he outright attacked, as in dive bombed and tried to drive off...

A FEW YEARS LATER THAT SAME KID WAS CAUGHT TRYING TO SET FIRE TO THE SCHOOL...

The only other guy he ever acted that way towards was a homeless person on one of our evening walks... absolutely upset being anywhere near this guy.

SALLY used to go "BIG BIRD" on my ex-wife any time she raised her voice to me. My ex was afraid of her, and Sally has always been super bonded and extremely protective of me. Whenever she sensed that my ex was upsetting me, BIG BIRD - open wings, trance like state, poised to attack...

THERE WAS A REASON MY EX WAS AFRAID OF HER. SHE HAD BEEN A BITER, AND SHE WAS PREPARED TO ATTACK MY EX IF SHE DIDN'T BACK OFF... (Guess which bird I took with me when I went to pick up my kid?!) Kept those nasty exchanges to an absolute minimum.

In some ways, Sally not only taught Demitre and Inca to behave, she also "trained" my ex to be cordial.

I have to say...absolutely YES. Of course some parrots/pets are more in tune than others.

I know all my fids sense my moods/feelings and act accordingly. If I am particularly tired or not feeling well when I get home...that is normally a very vocal time as they are all excited to see me. However, if I say...mommy is gonna take a rest and curl up on the couch ..they all get very quiet for me and next thing I know...we are all napping.

Charlie, our little cockatiel I saved from a TERRIBLE place...he always knows when I'm feeling sad or lonely and he will say, out of the blue...I love you! Followed by Kiss kiss kiss! Which sounds more like... I La chewww! Kiss kiss kiss! And then he makes the kissing sounds.

Also, think for a moment about a plucker...often times their reason for plucking is due to an emotional imbalance or trauma.

I would think that plucking wouldn't be a problem for some parrots if they simply didn't sense things.

Instead in my experience with all my pets, horses, dogs, birds and yes...even cats...(ha-ha) they have emotions, feelings a sense of bonding and commitment.

Birdman666 said:

RavensGryf said:

I know many people say that, but I don't feel that MY birds show empathy. I have been upset, mad, worried, sad, depressed, etc. around them many times, and they just look at me with the blank stare. I can understand if they sensed I was angry they might not want to get involved, but even when I'm downright sad, they will look at me sideways as if they think I'm a weirdo, then go about their business .

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They're sennies. You're supposed to be in touch with THEIR moodswings.

Yours don't matter!

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Well, Sennie relatives... same thing lol. Pionus is like that too.

No, but I never doubt the empathic capability of birds and other animals regardless of how "mine" seem to act. I believe animals have a much stronger 'sense' than humans, to read the environment, people, and animals, when it is not always apparent to us.

Scott said:

A special set of behaviors awaits those whom the birds don't like!

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Yep, Skittles for whatever reason does not like one of my neighbors. I've no idea why - but he just thinks she's evil.

We had a strange storm come through last year. it was evening and we were hearing the thunder. Saw the lightning and just waited on the thunder. I went over to shut the blinds on Sheldon window as the thunder came (lightning scares him) But the thunder rolled on and on and on and on.. I was starting to doubt it was thunder. I collected up Sheldon, sat on a chair with my daughter and tried to stay calm. After it finally ended I realized I had Sheldon on my knee and I was lightly stroking his head. he sat very still and quiet, It was almost erry how quiet he was... sensing our worry.
Yes, I do believe they can sense our emotions and react accordingly. I work with horses and I have to be really careful on what attitude I bring to the barn.

I have no idea, but I do know that one time I was feeling a bit glum, my GCC calmly walked over and bit my face.

It was not awesome.

When I'm sad or upset or just don't feel good, Harley is very protective of me. Gets aggressive towards anyone who comes near me. And II start crying he licks my tears away. I've also noticed that he can sense when my headaches are coming on before I know it. He gets all cuddly and quiet and we hunker down together.

So. That being said. Absolutely they can sense things even if we try to hide it.

Grenage said:

I have no idea, but I do know that one time I was feeling a bit glum, my GCC calmly walked over and bit my face.

It was not awesome.

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Haha! Hilarious post, thanks for sharing.

All the responses were great. Good to see people having similar observations. I'm glad it didn't degenerate into mysticism and fantasy. With that I mean, I've read posts and articles suggesting that birds can read our color or aura. Nothing against it but I don't know how to even prove that. Who knows though, humans used to think the earth was flat.

I like the explanation that our birds are so observant of every gesture, tone of voice and minute visual changes in their humans.

What do you mean "used to think the earth was flat"? There are still people out there who think velcro is "in". haha.

I think it's also fun to try to read their body language. I am amazed sometimes at how transparent Skittles truly is. He probably thinks "hey, I don't need to beat around the bush or be coy, I just need to look cute and daddy will obey".