Animal Rentals Blog

ANIMAL RENTALS very own “PIWACKETT” the SCARLET MACAW thoroughly enjoyed the Southern hospitality offered from the students of the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH ALABAMA in Mobile, AL on January 14, 2015. Along with Chi-Chi the Chinchilla, Sahara the Fennec Fox, Cuddles the Tarantula and other members of the renowned “Mindy’s Menagerie”, the afternoon was filled with fun, education and of course many “selfies”.

ANIMAL RENTALS is firm in their belief that only by offering people the extraordinary chance to interact with exotic animals in a personal manner, can they foster the caring for and the conservation of our world’s animal kingdom.

My friend Ruby the African Grey Parrot is the smartest bird in the world.  Well, at least she thinks that she is.  Dad says that African Greys are geniuses.  They understand what they are saying and can even put ideas and sentences together.  Some birds simply repeat words that they hear just to get attention, but Ruby and her relatives can ask for things and tell humans what they feel and think.  Dad even says that some African Grey Parrots are smarter than some monkeys.  But I’m sure he wasn’t talking about me!

I think Ruby is definitely smart, but she’s also kind of a party pooper.  I mean, many of my exotic animal friends here at Animal Rentals are much more fun.  I like to run and jump and get excited about everything.  Piwackett the Scarlet Macaw likes to talk and yell and dance.  Sahara the Fennec Fox likes to chase the ball and roll around and wrestle.  But Ruby thinks it is silly to be loud and wild and spend too much time playing.  All she likes to do is learn and think.  She says that is that is called being an intellectual.  Ruby likes to use big words that most of the rest of us don’t understand.   I say that is called being annoying!  Ha!

Even though Ruby doesn’t play much, she can actually still be fun to be around.  She teaches us new words sometimes, and she once made up a trick that is really funny…she does an impersonation of a Thanksgiving turkey where she lies perfectly still on her back – like she is going to be served for dinner.  She can lay there without moving for a really long time!  She still does that trick, and the people that meet Ruby at our Animal Shows or College Entertainment events love it.

So who do you think is smarter, monkeys or African Grey Parrots?  You know what my vote is!  What is the smartest animal you’ve ever met?  What kinds of things did they do to make you think they were so smart?  What kind of animal do your friends think is the smartest?  Let us know in the comments below!

It’s hardly ever quiet at my house.  Dad says he never gets any peace and quiet with me and all of my other animal friends around.  But I think that the noisiest ones in the whole house are the parrots.  Birds are loud!  Luckily they are very funny too, which makes them great company for me and dad.

One of my friends that lives and works with us is a Scarlet Macaw named Piwackett.  He is a big, beautiful bird with a really long tail.  He always looks like he is dressed in fine jewels, because his feathers are red, green, blue and yellow.  One of his special jobs is in the parrots and pirates show, where he gets to stroll around on the shoulder of a pirate and talk to all sorts of interesting people at parties and fairs and other events.  He even gets to ride on a pirate ship, which is really cool!

Piwackett is really funny and he talks all the time.  In fact, sometimes I wish he wouldn’t talk so much!  But people love to hear him talk and laugh.  Some people think he is very snooty, because he laughs in a very snobbish “ha, ha, ha” way.  But he is actually very friendly and he really likes when people pet and hold him.  He loves attention, and if you ignore him he will keep talking until you talk back to him.

Piwackett also likes to dance.  When he really likes a song, he will lift up his wings, bob head head around, and shuffle his feet from side to side.  He is a very good dancer and sometimes he makes us all jump up and dance around with him.  It’s really fun!  So even though he is loud, sometimes it is really great to have him around.

Have you ever talked to a bird?  What did you say?  What did he say?