Medieval Parrots

[iknowwhatiknow]

Someone on one of the other forums I visit posted this link, which I thought was quite funny. It's sourced from the writings of Pliny the Elder, Isodore of Seville and Sir John Mandeville, and gives the medieval explanation of the parrot:

The parrot is a bird found in India that can be taught to speak like a man. It learns better when it is young, but if it will not learn one must hit it over the head with an iron bar. It can say ave (a greeting) by nature, but must be taught all other words. Its beak is so hard that if the parrot falls from a height it can break its fall with its beak. Parrots are colored green with a purple-red collar; they hate the rain because the water makes their colors appear ugly. There are two kinds of parrot: the kind with three toes have a mean disposition, but the ones with six toes are gentle.

http://bestiary.ca/beasts/beast235.htm

So, if your parrot is being a grumpy feather-butt - it's probably because you failed to check the number of toes when you took them in.

[entrancedbymyGCC]

<BANG!>

Sorry, that was the sound of my head exploding....

Please tell me there is an equivalent for parrots to Xenophon for horses... that actually knew how to work WITH the creature and understood its nature.

[iknowwhatiknow]

The Horse description, in case you're curious:

Horses are lively and high-spirited. They are happy in fields, can smell war, are provoked to race by a voice, are called to battle by the sound of the trumpet, grieve when defeated and exult when victorious. Some horses can recognize an enemy in battle and attack by biting. Some recognize only their masters and will allow no other to ride them. Only the horse weeps and grieves for its dead or dying master. Mares are sometimes impregnated by the west wind. There are three kinds of horses: noble, good for battle and work; common, good for carrying burdens but not for riding; and hybrids, born from a mixture of two kinds.

[rebeccaturpeinen]

HAHA!!!

hit it over the head with an iron bar???? my Joey doesnt speak.... will that hit a voice into him??? poor little thing.... he wont like that... but atleast then he can TELL me that he doesnt like that