Lefty, was raised from a young enough age that he ignores other birds and is more in tune to humans than birds.  About the time he started flying, before we started clipping his wings, he started to exhibit a higher degree of independence and we had trouble catching him within the house.  We started clipping his wings because we were afraid for his safety especially with the ceiling fans on.  I had been under the assumption that if he had gotten out of the house at that stage, he would have flown off.  Nowadays, Lefty often goes outside of the house, through the doggy door.  Once outside, he keeps a low profile in the shrubs surrounding the house.  He would be easy prey for the neighborhood cats were it not for our dogs and enclosed yard.  I guess you could say he has full walking/hopping capability but does not take a walk.

I believe by Lefty's wings being trimmed this keeps his relationship with my wife somewhere between parent/child and mate/companion.  Lefty has about a 30 word vocabulary that includes the names of our three sons and the dogs names.  He also sings a four lined "good morning Lefty" song my wife sang to him every morning.  He mimics sounds like the ringing telephone and my wife gargling after brushing her teeth. The only thing we were unable to do was to house train him.  We were making progress when he was very young but lost the battle and eventually gave up.  His frequent pooping is about the only negative thing about him.

Lefty entertains himself in a variety of ways.  In the morning he listens and talk to the wild birds outside.  There is a wild mynah that comes up to our bedroom window where Lefty hangs out and calls out to Lefty in typical mynah squawks to which Lefty answers with his Good morning Lefty Lefty song, dog names, telephone rings and other assorted sounds and whistles that he has picked up.  It almost appears as though they are conversing in different languages.
He also does a wonderful high pitched warble of the Japanese White Eyed rice bird. Lefty does not seem to be interested in TV or radio probably because he can go where he wants.  He entertains himself by getting into everything he is not supposed to and being curious about anything and everything.  This is his hunting/feeding instinct coming into play. In the wild, Mynahs are constantly hunting for food.  Similarly, even though he is well fed, Lefty cannot overcome the urge to look into and probe into any nook or cranny that he comes across.  In Hawaii, we have a word "Niele" (pronounced Nee-eh'-lay), which means nosy - this describes Lefty to a tee.

Here are observations about mynahs which I have obtained from Lefty On bonding: 
The younger they are, the stronger the bond. The more handling they receive the better the bond.  Other mynahs in the household will interfere with human bonding.  Lefty does not respond to other mynahs.  I think he believes he is either human
or dog.

On talking: 
Mynahs are natural mimics, if they are around you a lot, they will eventually copy you.  Lefty seems to repeat words/phrases that carry more emotion such as when my wife scolds the dogs for coming in with muddy feet.  Other than that, repetition is the key.  Lefty did not say anything for the first six months until the phone rang one morning and he copied the ring. That seemed to break him out of his shell and from then on he was very vocal.

Lefty is very much in tune with the others in the family.  He seems to know when my wife is about to trim his wings/nails. He is very difficult to catch and screams bloody murder until we finish.  He is often on the ground amongst the dogs and is very adept at dodging their feet.

Mynahs are excellent hunters with unbelievable eyesight and reflexes.  Lefty can catch flies in flight and will pickup any shining object that catch his attention even from across the room.  We had to cover our fish tank because Lefty will eat guppies out of the tank.  You must be particularly careful with fish hooks and sewing needles.  Once he grabs on to these objects he will be very difficult to catch.  Mynahs in the wild are the same way - when one gets some food or other object coveted by others, the chase is on.

I think the biggest factor in Lefty's assimilation into our family is the fact that he is free to go where he wants in the house.  He often follows my wife around the house as she does her housework and greets us as happily as the dogs do when we come home after being away.  If you can put up with the mess, you will be rewarded with a wonderful pet, family member and companion.

I suspect that if a mynah does not talk, it is not the fault of the mynah but rather the lack of interaction or exposure to humans and human speech.  When I was growing up, one of my friends had  an Indian Hill mynah.  He was kept in a cage in their outside patio. Try as we might, we could not get him to talk; he was however, a good whistler.  About twenty years ago my nephew found a baby mynah that had fallen out of his nest.  For the first year of his life he was raised in their house much like we subsequently did with Lefty.  Vern became a prolific talker and an expert mimic.  After he started to fly, he became more independent, hard to control and catch and was soon relegated to a cage outside the house.  He did not pick up new words but started to imitate common outdoor sounds like other birds and the sound of the neighbor starting his car in the morning.  Vern also had the ability to mimic conversations between my brother and my niece using their respective voices.

Lefty went through a period of time where he was overly possessive of my wife's time and attention.   He would peck her feet a lot especially went we returned home after going somewhere.   He acted as if he was punishing her for leaving him at home.  He also would not let her out of his sight and followed her throughout the house.   My wife had to physically fend him off during his attacks and they got into some heated battles.   As anyone who has one knows, Mynahs are very feisty and combative birds.  My wife had to resort to chasing him away from her whenever he came around her.   Lefty  has come to realize that she was not his mate and although he is still close to her, is now more independent.

Since we got Lefty, my wife and I enjoy observing mynahs in the wild.  They are gregarious and never alone.  At a minimum, mynahs are always in pairs.  We have seen mynahs trying to wake their mate even after the mate has died.  Similarly, Lefty wakes my wife up every morning by talking, singing, whistling and biting her nose when his sounds fail to do the job.  He gets up with the sun and is ready to go.  Wild mynahs get up and start their never ending search for food.  Lefty eats as soon as he is up but still feels that he has to go somewhere and that my wife has to be with him whether she is ready or not.  He has bonded with my wife and follows her wherever she goes.  When my wife is away from the house, Lefty will use the rest of us for companionship until she returns.

Feb 1, 2003 update:
We came home this afternoon to find Lefty outside at the front door instead of being inside the front gate alongside the dogs. His mouth was open indicating he was overheated or excited. He died in my wife's arms as we were speeding him to the vet for an emergency visit. He had no outward signs of injuries and was his usual loquacious, rascal self when we left this morning. I think he got trampled by one of the dogs as they ran out to the gate. We will miss his antics and chatter and the dogs will have one less voice scolding them. Kathy and everyone of you were a such a big help when we first go him. I have learned a lot and feel a kinship with all the mynah owners on this forum. I'll visit this site every once in a while just to see how everyone is doing. Aloha and Mahalo, Wayne.

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