Lost Parrot Recites Address for Safe Return Home

After getting lost, a Japanese parrot named Yosuke shared his name and address for a safe return to his family.

By Kathryn Hawkins. Posted on May 21 2008

African Grey Parrots are pretty much the coolest pets ever, as far as we’re concerned (though the mini-pig can’t be far behind). They can talk, sing, dance, imitate phone calls, and even do basic math. And if they happen to get lost, no worries: They can recite their own names and addresses to find their way back home.

At least that’s what happened in the case of Yosuke, an African Grey from Tokyo, Japan, who flew out of his owners’ house and got lost. Two weeks ago, police rescued the frightened bird from a roof in a Tokyo suburb, but he didn’t make a peep. Without any tag or tracking device, the police had no way to discover where Yosuke lived, and decided to leave him in a veterinary hospital for safekeeping.

Yosuke may have kept mum with the cops, but as soon as he met a veterinarian at the hospital, he was ready to open up. “I’m Mr. Yosuke Nakamura,” he said as introduction –followed by his full home address.

“We checked the address, and what do you know, a Nakamura family really lived there. So we told them we’ve found Yosuke,” Shinjiro Uemura, the policeman who found Yosuke, told The Associated Press.

The Nakamuras were relieved that Yosuke had remembered the lesson they’d taught him, but it seems he had some suspicions about opening up to the police. “I tried to be friendly and talked to him, but he completely ignored me,” said Uemura.

Filed under: Animals and Pets, General Interest, Weird,

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