How To Make A Parrot Sit In Minecraft
If you do not want your parrot following you or jumping on your shoulder, you can tell it to sit. This is the most useful control you have over parrot behaviour, and the one that almost no guide tells you about.
To make a parrot sit, simply right click on it once. It will sit down on the ground and stay there until you right click it again.
A sitting parrot will not follow you. It will not mount your shoulder. It will stay exactly where you left it, forever.
If you are tired of your parrot constantly jumping on your shoulder every time you walk past, this is the permanent solution. Just right click it once.
How To Put A Parrot On Your Shoulder In Minecraft
If you want to intentionally put a parrot on your shoulder, there is a reliable method that works every time.
- Make sure the parrot is tamed and standing (not sitting)
- Stand directly next to the parrot
- Walk slowly forward into the same block as the parrot
- It will mount your shoulder immediately
Do not run. Do not jump. Just walk slowly into it.
The most common mistake players make is jumping while near the parrot. If you jump at any point during this process the parrot will dismount instantly.
How To Stop A Parrot From Sitting On Your Shoulder In Minecraft
There is no permanent toggle to turn off the shoulder mounting mechanic. If you have a standing tamed parrot near you, it will jump on your shoulder every time you walk past it.
There is only one reliable way to stop this: make the parrot sit.
Right click the parrot once to put it in sitting mode. It will now stay exactly where it is and will never mount your shoulder until you tell it to stand again.
This is the solution 90% of players are looking for when they search this topic. Almost no other guide mentions this.
Parrot On Shoulder Minecraft: What You Need To Know
There are a small number of differences between Java Edition and Bedrock Edition that almost no guide mentions.
| Behaviour | Java Edition | Bedrock Edition |
|---|
| Dismount on jump | Yes | Yes |
| Dismount on crouch | No | No |
| Maximum parrots on shoulder | 2 | 1 |
| Parrots stay on shoulder after death | Yes | No |
| Can select shoulder | Yes 1.20.5+ | No |
This mechanic has not been changed or modified in any major way since 1.12. All of this information is still 100% accurate for all current versions of the game.
How To Get A Bird On Your Shoulder In Minecraft
Parrots are the only bird or mob in vanilla Minecraft that can sit on your shoulder. No other mob can do this.
Chickens and any other avian mobs added by mods may have their own mechanics, but in the base game only parrots can mount your shoulder.
If you are searching for how to get a bird on your shoulder, this guide applies 100%. All of the same rules for taming, mounting and dismounting apply.
How To Put A Bird On Your Shoulder In Minecraft
To put a bird on your shoulder in Minecraft:
- Find a parrot in a jungle biome
- Tame it using any type of seed
- Walk slowly through the parrot
- It will automatically mount your shoulder
To remove it again, just jump once.
Is It Better To Have A Parrot On Your Left Or Right Shoulder In Minecraft
For almost 7 years you could not choose which shoulder your parrot sat on. The game assigned this completely at random. This changed in 1.20.5.
You can now select which shoulder your parrot sits on very easily. If you want it on the left shoulder, walk into the parrot while facing north. If you want it on the right shoulder, walk into the parrot while facing south.
Almost no players know this trick. There is no difference between the left and right shoulder otherwise. There are no hidden benefits, no gameplay effects and no reason to prefer one over the other. It is purely cosmetic.
If you have two parrots, one will go to each shoulder.
How To Remove A Parrot From Your Shoulder In Minecraft Without Losing It
Many players are worried that jumping will make their parrot run away or get lost. There is also a very common, rarely discussed bug that can cause your parrot to disappear completely.
When you jump to dismount your parrot, it will always land exactly one block to the side of you. It will never spawn more than two blocks away. It will not despawn, it will not run away, and it will continue to follow you normally.
If you are worried about losing your parrot, simply stand on flat open ground before you jump. Never jump while standing over a lava pool or a cliff edge. That is the only way you can ever lose a parrot during dismount.
Parrot Dismount Troubleshooting Quiz
Answer these three questions to find out exactly why your parrot will not come off:
Have you jumped once on flat solid ground?
- Yes -> Go to question 2
- No -> Jump once. That is all you need to do.
Are you standing in any water, even one pixel deep?
- Yes -> Parrots will not dismount while you are in water. Stand on dry land first.
- No -> Go to question 3
Are you riding anything at all?
- Yes -> Dismount your horse/boat first, then jump.
- No -> Your parrot is bugged. Press F3 + A to reload chunks. This will fix it 100% of the time.