Never do anything that threatens or scares a bird. Parrots are prey animals and are quick to become suspicious if they feel threatened. Sudden and quick movements will often alarm a bird. It's one reason that many birds become anxious or agitated around small children.
 

It's a good idea to establish boundaries from the beginning by letting the bird know you are in charge. This can be done by keeping the bird at chest level and frequent use of the "up" command. If the bird should try to establish itself as the flock leader, don't allow yourself to become intimidated. Birds are very smart and will pick up on this quickly. Once a bird knows it has the upper hand, it becomes more difficult for you to regain control.
 

A healthy bird is a happy bird. Proper nutrition is essential to maintaining good health. An all seed diet will eventually lead to illness. Therefore, be sure and feed a well balanced diet consisting of a variety of healthy foods. The importance of a good diet cannot be stressed enough.
 

A fairly regular routine of playtime, feeding time and rest time gives the bird a sense of security. Neglected birds may become depressed and possibly ill while overindulged birds may develop bad habits. It's important to strike a balance and consistency works best. A bird that is caged for days or weeks at a time will begin to resent attempts at social interaction and become apprehensive at being removed from it's secure confines. On the other hand, a bird that is overindulged and allowed to have free run of the house will resent being caged and may display it's displeasure through screaming or plucking. The bird needs to know how to amuse itself when caged as well as enjoy it's social time.
 

Baby birds often go through a "teething" stage sometimes referred to as the "terrible two's". Birds are very inquisitive and because they use their beaks to explore different textures and substances, they will sometimes clamp down a little too hard on human body parts. This should not be mistaken as aggressive behavior. A bird will usually outgrow this over time and it's important to know how to handle this phase of development. Don't overreact if the bird gets a little rough but rather try to distract it. Offer the bird a hand held toy or popsicle stick to chew on and try to keep your finger out of it's mouth. You can also try using the "up" command to ladder the bird from hand to hand. As a last resort, quickly drop your arm, without dropping the bird, or rock your hand from side to side in an earthquake move. The bird will become distracted by having to maintain it's balance and will eventually get the message.
 

Know your bird's mood. Most birds will give a signal that they are about to bite. If you suspect your bird may bite, leave it alone for the time being. It may be that the bird is busy eating, engrossed in playing with a toy or just tired and is resting. It's important to know that every bird has the potential to bite and at some point probably will. If you are bitten, look at the event objectively and try to ascertain what provoked it. You will be better equipped to avoid being bitten the next time.
 

Vocalization is a bird's natural form of communication and most birds do vocalize at certain times of the day. Normal vocalization usually occurs in the early morning and late afternoon. A bird may also scream for other reasons such as being hungry or not let out of it's cage on time. The overindulged or spoiled parrot can get into the bad habit of screaming for attention.  This behavior should not be encouraged. It's best not to remove a screaming bird from it's cage but rather wait until it's quiet. Birds thrive on drama and screaming back at the bird will only prove to elevate the decibel level. Try to ignore the screaming for a time. If this doesn't work, try moving the bird and cage to another room away from household activity until it quiets down. Birds do make noise, some more than others, and those sensitive to sound should make sure that they can handle the level of noise a particular species can produce prior to purchase.
 

One of the most appealing things about some parrots is their ability to talk. Talking ability depends on the particular species and the individual bird's desire to learn. Birds love high pitched voices like those of women and children. I have a rather high pitched voice and I raise it to an even higher level when talking to my birds. The majority of my birds do talk and sing. I find repetition is the key to getting a bird to talk. I repeat a particular phrase or word over and over and over again. I've sung "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" countless times. It's a rather long song and my Yellow Crown Amazon, Hector, is able to sing it from beginning to end. He sings four different songs in their entirety and has taught several of my other birds to sing bits and pieces of his favorite songs.

To begin teaching your bird to talk, try greeting it or associating a particular word or phrase with an activity. I have a bird that says, "Hi, guy" when he sees me and another that says, "See you later" when I walk away. Several of my birds will also stick their faces in their food bowls once fed and say "Mmmm, good". A favorite television program left on sometimes works. I inherited another bird that watched a lot of Sesame Street and called everyone "Big Bird". Tape cassettes or CD's that constantly play and repeat phrases can also be helpful. Some birds take longer to talk than others so be patient.