Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2020/09/29/parrots-who-swore-at-zoo-visitors-removed-from-public-view.html
…
5 Likes
“Gray parrots work blue.”
16 Likes
Reminds me of the (probably – but I hope not – apocryphal) story about Churchill’s macaw, who was still cursing out Hitler decades after her owner died.
8 Likes
Back in the late 90’s I did some image optimization work for a client who used a lot of images in his powerpoint presentations which was not trivial in those days. One of his images was of a chimp at the local free zoo that had learned to flip the bird at people. There were some really proud teenagers out there.
2 Likes
Maybe they were raised on episodes of Father Ted
3 Likes
I guess my feelings about this depends on whether the new situation is better or worse from the perspective of the parrots.
2 Likes
I wish them good luck with that… but I doubt it’s going to make much of a difference. African Greys are one of the smartest breeds of parrots; some have hundreds of words in their vocabularies. Those birds aren’t going to forget how to swear any time soon.
12 Likes
Given what’s been happening so far in 2020, I’ll bet those kids wouldn’t be shocked by harsh language.
11 Likes
Has any kid ever resisted the temptation to try teaching a parrot bad language?
11 Likes
My grandparents had a parrot who spoke using their southern accents. We tried to get him to say, “Kiss my grits!” Looking back, it was a missed opportunity. 
7 Likes
I’d love to have a parrot that swears!
And I suppose I’m not the only one.
2 Likes
Aw, man. I would totally visit a zoo/sanctuary with a gang of cursing parrots.
5 Likes
I’m gonna wait a couple of years and then visit that zoo. I trust by then these birds will not only have learned the vocalizations of the extant parrots - but also, in turn, the others will have also learned how to swear. The place should (hopefully) sound like a Barbary Coast drink house.
14 Likes
Hope they have someone on the staff that can help with the behavior and train them to prefer more of their natural calls. But certainly amused at the idea of a group of parrots letting a bunch of kids have it
Kids? My bird learned how to say “dammit” from my very grown father. 
I’d say there’s a fairly good chance of that happening. Birds are very social and pick up sounds from their surroundings… 
7 Likes
Take them down to Hampshire
It’s OK, humans deserve to be cursed at.
5 Likes
Squawk, Thought Police, Squawk!
5 Likes
Sweary parrots?
Sign me up for a season ticket.
4 Likes
