01/22/2026
Naming Animals - A story from my book, When Animals Speak.
My first cockatiel friend was given to me, fancy wrought iron cage and all, in October 1982 by a client who was tired of battling with him in angry screaming matches at three in the morning. The woman's life was full of stress, and she didn't want to try to handle the problem with him. She asked if I would take him. I agreed, and home he came. He disliked the name Pishta, which she had given him, so I asked him what name he wanted. He gave me an image of a moving carousel with colorful, wooden horses going up and down. I thought, "Carousel?" He said no, and gave me the image again. I got the concept of turning, with the name Pirouette. That was it! In a few weeks, he was saying his name, after never talking aloud before, as well as "You're terrific," which I had said to him to shift the formerly contentious relationship with humans to a positive note. He never screamed angrily again at three in the morning or at any other time. He lived talking, dancing, and singing for 22 years. Discover more about the book at https://animaltalk.net/Products/Books/
