50 Year Old Rescued Cockatoo Barks Like a Dog

A 50 year old Goffin’s cockatoo named Grumpy thinks he’s truly the man of the house and barks like a dog.

Woman raised this bird like a baby. Now he’s 50 years old.

Grumpy’s devoted human, Linda, adopted Grumpy from her brother in 1988 after a breeder decided to get rid of his birds. Linda’s husband didn’t want any pets, but Linda won the coin toss, and Grumpy came home with them. It took quite a while for Grumpy to be comfortable around humans. Nevertheless, Linda persisted, and eventually, Grumpy felt safe in his new home. And Linda treated him like a baby.

Since then, Grumpy has seen a lot of changes in the household, whether he likes it or not.

After seven years I had a baby and I couldn’t give him very much time. …he finally let my husband touch him and that’s after seven years. Now when I go away he will let my husband handle him when I’m at home, I’m his first choice. …My son is now 23 years old. He tries to drive my son out of the house, He’ll try to swoop him and he’ll scream at him. Sometimes he flies at my husband but we understand that he’s a wild animal we still love him.

Grumpy is allowed to fly around the house, which is good for his health.

Grumpy is in his 50’s. He loves his flying. His flying has a major impact on his heart health and longevity. According to one source, his expected life expectancy is 26 years. So is Grumpy doing well for an old guy?

Lori Dorn
Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.