as a parent deserving of being honored by their children in accordance with the ten commandments, much can be learned from proper parroting.
why parrots? parrots are smarter than your young children! there are estimates that parrots can possess the intelligence of a 4 1/2 year old human. in addition, they have all the trappings of young children. observation of parrots and their interactions with humans can be enlightening to those unfamiliar with parenting.
after finishing this post, if you are interested, it is recommended that you venture on to youtube and watch parrot or cockatoo videos. you will be surprised. they may lead you to the following observations:
parrots can be playful. they want to play with their human counterparts.
they can be demanding. they want humans to do things for them. there are many examples in which they are demanding attention.
they are curious. they want to observe human behavior. they will often sit on a human’s shoulder and keenly be attuned as to what the human is doing.
they are clever. there is a video of one parrot simulating a dog’s bark for the purposes of tormenting the family’s pet dog.
science support parrots’ exceptional level of intelligence. studies have shown that parrots have cognitive abilities rivaling great apes and 4 year olds. apnews. african grey parrots can easily outperform young children on certain tests, including one that measures understanding of volume. harvard
there is a downside, however, with respect to parrot intelligence. the improper care and handling of parrots can lead to sad results. they can suffer emotionally, they can act out in bad behavior and they can engage in self-mutilation.
observing positive human parrot interaction can help with human-human parenting. successful human parrot relations involve the parrots getting a lot of attention and interaction. further, they like to engage in communication. parrots need toys and objects for play and stimulation.
how does this translate to human parenting?
parents need to understand that children communicate in order to receive responses. thus, parents should respond to communication attempts.
parents need to understand that children are curious and want to discover the world. parents need to allow for this to occur in a safe manner, ie in a baby proofed room.
parents need to understand that the consequences of improper stimulation and engagement can lead to bad behavior and the lack of intellectual and emotional development. thus, making sure that there are stimulating toy and objects available is important.
be weill!!
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