19 Signs Your Bird Trusts You! [Bonding With Your Bird]

There are many people around the world who have realized the pleasure of owning a pet bird. Many pet birds, like parrots, are highly intelligent and once they build trust with you, can make excellent companions. So, how do you know that your bird trusts you?

There are numerous signs that you can pick up on to determine that your bird trusts you. These include shows of affection such as cuddling, preening and grooming as well as the bird’s relaxed demeanor when you enter the room. Birds such as parrots also favor mimicking some of your own behaviors as a sign of trust.

Let’s have a look at the 19 signs that show that your bird trusts you.

1. Your Bird Is Comfortable Being Close To You

If you notice your pet bird getting close to you regularly, it means that it trusts you and feels completely safe around you. This could involve sitting on your shoulder or snuggling into your neck. These are all sure signs that you’ve built up a certain degree of trust with your bird.

2. Your Bird Preens Itself When You’re Near

In the wild, birds often preen themselves to get rid of dust and dirt and to improve the structure of their feathers. This is a perfectly natural behavior and helps the birds keep themselves clean.

However, preening does mean that the bird cannot pay attention to its environment because it’s focusing on the task at hand as preening is quite a precise task. Therefore, if your bird preens itself while you’re nearby, it signifies that the bird feels quite safe in your presence and obviously trusts you.

3. Your Bird Starts Preening You

In bird circles, mated pairs will often preen each other as a sign of affection. This behavior also shows that the two birds are comfortable with each other.

In the absence of a mate or other closely bonded bird, your pet bird may start to preen you instead.  This is a particularly strong sign that your bird trusts you and has become bonded to you.

4. Your Bird Is Completely Relaxed Around You

If your bird is in a relaxed state when it’s around you, then it feel comfortable with you and also perfectly safe. It’s not showing any signs of being over-alert or wanting to fly away. This is another sign that your bird trusts you.

5. You Observe Your Bird Hanging Upside Down

Birds will often hang upside down when they’re sleeping, eating or drinking and even when they’re playing. It’s important to note that a bird is quite vulnerable when it’s hanging upside down. Therefore, if your bird hangs upside when you’re around, it must mean that it trusts you and feels totally comfortable in your presence.

6. Your Bird Loves To Communicate With You

Birds will happily chirp, sing or even make clucking noises when they’re happy and relaxed. Therefore, if your bird communicates with you in such a way, it means that it trusts you and is quite content. Certain pet birds, such as parrots, will even mimic certain words or noises that you make. This is the bird’s way of letting you know that it trusts and likes you.

7. Your Bird Flaps Its Wings While Sitting Still

Usually a bird will do this to get some exercise but if your bird starts to flap its wings as you enter the room, it could be trying to get your attention. This is a sure sign that your bird trusts you and wants you to play.

8. Your Bird Regurgitates Its Food To Give To You

This may not sound all that pleasant, but birds will often regurgitate their food not only to feed their young but also to feed their mates. Therefore, if your bird regurgitates its food and gives it to you, see it as a sign of trust and even affection.

9. Your Bird Stretches Its Feathers As You Enter The Room

The action of stretching its feathers indicates that your bird is trying to get your attention. It means that your bird wants you to come closer and play with it. This is definitely another good sign of trust.

10. Your Parrot Bows Its Head

Bowing is a common practice employed by parrots. When your bird bows its head, it’s asking you to scratch the back of its neck. Only a bird that trusts you completely will allow you to get that close and give it a good scratch.

11. Your Bird Starts To Mimic You

Parrots are commonly known for mimicking their human owners or any other sounds that they may often hear. However, when a bird mimics any of your common words or behaviors, it means that it wants to be part of your family. You can definitely consider this a sign that your bird trusts you.

12. Your Bird Falls Asleep While Sitting On You

You probably understand that birds have to feel completely safe in their environment before they’ll go to sleep. Therefore, if you bird falls asleep while it’s sitting on you, this is definitely a sign that it trusts you completely and feels safe and secure.

13. Your Bird Wants To Play With You

Certain species of birds, like parrots, will often mouth your finger with their beaks. This is a sign that the bird wants to play with you and in turn, indicates that the bird likes and trusts you.

14. Your Bird Makes Direct Eye Contact

Just like you experience with other pet animals such as dogs and cats, direct eye contact is a sure sign of trust and even affection. Especially, if your bird looks straight at you and holds your gaze.

15. Your Bird Wags Its Tail At You

Just like dogs, birds will also wag their tail feathers when they’re happy to see you. If you see your bird move its tail up and down quickly, it’s showing you that it’s happy to be around you.

16. Your Bird’s Pupils Dilate When It Sees You

Birds have the uncanny ability to sometimes regulate the dilation of their own pupils. A dilation of a bird’s pupils could indicate a number of things such as happiness, anxiety or fear. If you know your bird is not afraid of you, then a dilation of its pupils means that it’s happy to see you.

17. Your Bird Pecks You Playfully

When birds are in the wild, they’ll often use their beaks in different ways to show both aggression and playfulness. When birds are playing with each other, they may often peck their playmate with their beak.

You’ll find that this can also happen to you where your bird playfully pecks you without causing any harm. This is definitely a sign of trust and affection.

Parrots also have a habit of wiggling their beaks from side to side and making a clucking noise with their tongue. If your bird does this in your presence, it definitely likes you.

18. Your Bird Does A Happy Dance

Birds can be quite comical in their behavior and seeing a bird dance is definitely a sight that will make you smile. The next time you enter the room or near the cage where your bird lives and see the bird doing a little dance, you can be assured that your bird is happy to see you.

19. Your Bird Follows You Around The House

Just like a dog, a bird that is let out of its cage will follow you around the house to indicate that it wants your company and wants to be around you all the time. This kind of behavior is a sure sign that your bird trusts you.

It Might Take Some Time To Build Up Trust

Always be aware that it may take some time for your bird to trust you and be totally comfortable in your presence. The important thing to remember is that you can’t rush this. If you are too forceful with your bird, you’ll destroy the likelihood of your bird ever completely trusting you.

Therefore, you want to take it slowly in the beginning and let your bird come to you. Never grab your bird forcefully with your hand. Instead, just place your finger into the cage and let the bird come to you in its own time.

Also, be careful not to do anything that will scare your bird. If you do this, a trusted bond will never be established. It’s far better to use extreme patience and reward your bird with a nice treat when it exhibits positive behavior.

Final Thoughts

When you have a pet bird as a companion, you want it to trust you and feel perfectly comfortable in your presence. In the beginning, this will take time but if you persevere, you’ll be well-rewarded for your patience.

There are many signs that you can look out for to confirm that your bird trusts you. These include being close to you, preening, communicating, and dancing happily in its cage when you enter the room.

So, next time you’re spending time with your bird, look out for some of the signs that we’ve mentioned. They’re sure indicators that your bird trusts and likes you.