White Cockatoo Barks Like A Dog At The Dog Park

You have probably heard of the talking cockatoo. In fact, most of the bigger birds can imitate sounds and phrases they hear most often in their household. Take Einstein the talking parrot for example. That bird is so advanced in his communication skills, he can ask for his favorite snacks, like popcorn and pizza, he can shower his owner with affectionate word of love, he can even sing nursery rhymes.

Not all parrots are like good old Einstein, but most of them are able to imitate the sounds of other animals. And if they have grown accustomed to another animal in the house, they will most certainly learn their language in order to communicate with it!

For example, check out sweet Brandy here. She is but a distant relative to Einstein and she has been living with her humans for the past 31 years. When they brought home Chou Chou the pooch, the bird gave her best shot at learning the dog’s language, because this is a new member of the family and communication is a must. The two have been housemates for the last two years as Chou Chou has been around and Brandy has become a sort of expert in dog language.

Whenever Brandy wants to get attention from her housemate, she approaches the dog carefully and smacks her beak. When that doesn’t work, she takes communication to a whole new level - she barks at Chou Chou! We can’t say whether or not Chou Chou understands Brandy’s bark. But they seem to get along just fine for now! Adorable!

We don’t know whether this cockatoo has a canine friend to share the house with, but Violet sure knows the language alright. Why wouldn’t she, since she has been spending enough time at the dog park as it is!

Visitors at Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village were in for quite a surprise when they spotted Violet, propped up on a bench, crest feathers flailed and barking at a poor, unsuspecting dog. We can’t tell who is more confused at the barking bird, the people or the pooch! The big white bird started barking at the fluffy dog as soon as she laid eyes on it. 'Woof! Woof! Ruff! Ruff! Ruff!' she barks.

Whether it was the fact that she, too, was attached to a leash herself, or maybe it was the overall concentration of canines in the area that made Violet suddenly change roles and turn from a flying bird to a barking dog. Everyone else in the park seems to get a solid laugh out of her performance. The dog, however, doesn’t move a whisker. It just sits there, gawking at the weird-looking creature that sounds like a dog but looks nothing like one. What is her problem?

Why do cockatoos do that? Well, there is a perfectly solid and scientifically explained reason behind it. According to Michael Schindlinger, an assistant professor of biology at Lesley University, it is a cockatoo’s way of showing off their mimicry skills to other individuals. "Imitative vocal learning is also a reliable social display of neural functions — requiring good hearing, memory and muscle control for sound production — that may be under consideration by a potential mate or ally," Prof. Schindlinger wrote in Scientific American.

Well, that makes a lot more sense!