One of the biggest reasons that people love having a pet bird is because many of them can be trained to talk. But even if your bird can talk, they may not be able to tell to how they’re actually feeling.

The most important way to hear what your bird is trying to tell you is to listen to their body language. The way they move, or don’t move, their body will let you know right away what they’re thinking.

One of the best reasons to be able to listen to their body language is to avoid a bite. Birds can, and will, bite when they get really scared. The other reason is to get them to trust you so you can train them. Some birds take a while to feel ok about letting you hold and pet them.

Frightened birds will try to make themselves invisible by becoming as thin as they can. They will stand as tall as they can and look straight ahead, not moving their eyes at all. This wouldn’t be a good time to reach into the cage and try to pick your pet bird up!

The best thing to do is to get down lower than your bird, close your eyes and speak to them very softly. Birds feel comfortable and relaxed when they are higher than anyone else.

An angry bird will be moving his head back and forth and their pupils in their eyes will get super tiny. He could also be squawking really loud, leaning a little bit forward [ready to attack] and puff up his feathers. Best to just let him calm down, but try to find out what made him angry so it doesn’t happen again.

An excited bird looks like an angry bird but his head will go up and down, instead of side to side. Your feathered buddy might be excited because he’s happy, not mad. It’s still best to let him calm down before you try to hold him.

A relaxed, happy bird will be sitting on his perch and have one leg tucked up under him.