UK Wildlife Park Rehabilitates Potty-Mouthed Parrots

If like most (myself included), you’re probably hooked on all those funny animal videos that seem to rule social media these days. From dolled-up pooches to mischievous cats, heroic feats, and animal rescues… I’m up for anything that can make me smile, laugh, or go aww… and hit share.

Full disclosure: I’m also a sucker for any clip that includes naughty wildlife, pet mishaps, and those wayward outbursts emitted from potty-mouthed parrots. To be honest those targeted expletives coming from the beaks of our fine feathered friends are so perfectly articulated one has to question their validity.

However, not only are these brazen birds the real deal, but they also pose a problem for owners who have to explain away their pet’s propensity for four-letter words. You see, unlike a toddler who can pick up and repeat words and phrases, a parrot must be taught and it all requires patience and training. That’s because they have the physical ability to speak but not the cognitive ability to learn the connotation of what they’re speaking. So, all eyes turn to Polly’s owner when he/she spits out a string of cuss words just as company arrives.

Now, with the average Cockatoo living up to 70 years and a Macaw not far behind at 50 or 60 years, you may be starting to understand why teaching your parrot all those naughty words, isn’t such a great idea. They may well be with you into your golden years… swearing like a sailor at the most inopportune times and making them hard to re-home when the time comes. Not so funny anymore, right?

That’s where an organization in England steps into the picture. The Lincolnshire Wildlife Park is trying to rehabilitate a group of five African Gray parrots that were donated to them back in 2020. The troublesome flock was actually identified as being seriously potty-mouthed during the relocation process. According to Lincolnshire Chief Executive, Steve Nichols, “When we came to move them, the language that came out of their carrying boxes was phenomenal, really bad. Not normal swear words. These were proper expletives.”

Named Eric, Jade, Billy, Tyson, and Elsie, the fowl-talking parrots were initially displayed with warning signs to the public, then removed from viewing altogether within days of arrival due to their propensity to swear at visitors. And because parrots are so adept at mimicking sounds, they actually swore in both male and female voices, then laughed after cussing – something that likely happened when living in their original homes, the park is suggesting.

So, what to do? The birds were ultimately isolated from the Park’s existing parrot flock to prevent their profanity-laced vocabulary from being picked up by others. However recently, the park has introduced 92 of their non-swearing parrots to the group, hoping natural peer pressure will help “upgrade” the fowl-mouthed birds’ vocabulary. And if the reverse happens and the 92 birds start adding a little spice to their language skills? Nichols confirms “It’s going to turn into an adult aviary,”.