To my surprise, I've gotten asked a lot "How do you tell when your parrot is about to go to the bathroom?" and I guess I never realized that I knew this, but I do and in a lot of my videos you see me move my bird before he/she goes. It's a valid question so along with the video above (feel free to leave comments on how YOU tell with your own bird). I wanted to write it in text format too, along with photos. Being able to tell when your bird is going to poop pretty much is a clear body language sign you need to learn how to read. If your bird is on you, he will feel heavier and move in ways that you'll begin to recognize as needing or about to poop. With smaller birds it can be harder to tell because they don't weigh as much so you may not recognize the weight change. For demonstration, I will use a picture of a medium sized bird, it's only fair, right?  

Photo by Jamieleigh Location: Macon, GA About to poop: Galah "Bandit" 

I would just like to point out that I didn't mean to take this right before Bandit was pooping... it just sort of happened that way. When Dave saw this picture he knew right away! "Hey!" he said, "He's about to poop! Why would you take a picture of that?!"

The signs that Bandit is showing is the poofyness of his body. Most birds poof up right before letting one go. Especially around their butts. All the feathers go out, and the posture of the butt - well, the tail goes up to allow for the drop of weight and and rest of the body pushes outward to help in the ease of it all. 

Okay, I feel gross talking about this.

Article by Jamieleigh Womach. She has been working with parrots and toucans since the age of 17. She isn’t homeless but is home less than she prefers to be. She travels the world with her husband, daughter, and a flockful of parrots whom she shares the stage with.