A cockatoo named Peanut seems to have a bit of an identity crisis. The bird joined his family 19 years ago when he was just a baby. His owner, a man named Frances Kent, says the little bird was just a little chick who really wanted to fit in with his new family. Lucky for Peanut, his dog siblings were more than happy to teach him the ropes. Since he had dogs for siblings, he soon began acting just like them. The bird started to act like a dog and even began sounding like one too. Frances says he was copying the dogs from the beginning and when the dogs would run toward the gate to bark at people or animals passing by, Peanut would run over and do the same thing.
Frances says Peanut is a very intelligent bird, is very affectionate, but it also known to be mischievous. His owner Frances thought it was such a funny sight that he recorded Peanut and his doggy sibling’s antics recently. The video quickly went viral. The clip shows the quite confident cockatoo raising the imposing crest feathers on the top of his head to make himself seem bigger. Then, he rushes toward the gate alongside the dog and begins barking with them. Most impressively, his bark is so real that is sounds just like the other dogs—you cannot tell them apart.
Frances says Peanut is a great caregiver to the members of his pack. He acts like a mother to the family’s dogs when they arrive in the home as puppies. He still cuddles the dogs and even puts them in their place when they are misbehaving. He rules the roost, it seems! Frances says that Peanut keeps them on their toes and makes life entertaining. More than anything, he is a beloved member of the family’s “dog pack”—thanks to all that barking!


