Parrot Training
No doubt you will have chosen a name for the bird by this time(names of one or two syllables are easiest for the parrot to learn) andrepetition of phrases such as: “Good Boy Jaco,” or “Pretty Boy Jaco,”can be the start of his vocabulary. (Jaco is the time-honored parrot.
Many parrot owners make the mistake of using a hit-or-miss’ approach to try to get their pets to talk. While it isn’t necessary to drill one word and not advance until the parrot has learned it perfectly, a planned and logical approach will reap greater and quicker rewards.
Make a list of the words and phrases that you say to your bird frequently. The list will probably include the phrases mentionedbefore and others such as “Supper time,” “Hello,” “Good Night,” andthe like. Since the bird will hear you say these words or phrasesfrequently without your making a conscious effort to say them, youcan further reinforce the learning experience by attempting to usethese phrases as much as possible. The only drawback to thistechnique is that the parrot may learn to say the phrases at in appropriate times.
One of the most delightful characteristics of talking birds is their ability to speak words and phrases in such a way thay they appear toactually know what they are saying. This is, of course, conditioning orsometimes just chance. The bird will say, “Good Morning,” in themorning because that’s when you say it to him. If you use thetechnique mentioned here your parrot may develop a large vocabulary but one which doesn’t make much sense in a given situation.
Do not expect your parrot to always pick up a complete word or phrase. Many times you will have to settle for only part of a word. I purchased a Scarlet Macaw who arrived with the ability to say”Butter.” When I had the opportunity to talk to his former owner, I discovered that the parrot was not expressing an interest in the high-priced spread but was calling his former master’s dog whose name was Buttercup. Parrots are also guilty of inverting or transporting parts of words or phrases. Bill, my Mealy Amazon, earned his’ name because when he gets excited he combines “Hello Boy” and”Hello Girl” to produce “Hello Bill.” He also says “Hello” whose origin is easy to figure out. The fact that my family and I laughed and made a big fuss over these cute errors reinforced the phrases and made them a constant part of his vocabulary.
In general, it is a waste of training time to teach a parrot to whistle. It is much like teaching a fish to swim. Common whistles such as the “wolf whistle” (a natural jungle cry of the African Grey which confused many GIs during World War II) are indeed a waste of time.
Teaching a simple tune, however, is possible and can be quite amusing. The best tunes to teach are those that are easily recognized. Pop Goes the Weasel and the Woody Woodpecker Song are good starts. Don’t try for all the verses and choruses and rememver that the bird will not add his own skills to those of his trainer. If the trainer whistles pooorly or cannot carry a tune, somebody else should handle the musical end of the bird’s education.
Teaching a parrot to talk requires great patience. If you are serious about training, be ready to spend about 30 minutes a day repeating words and phrases to your parrot. Thti time of day yottclmose is not important. Just pick a time that is convenient for you.You can also break the total time into several sessions.
Patience is very important because it sometimes takes weeks and perhaps even months before the fruits of the trainer’s labor are seen.
It is difficult to say how long it should take for a parrot to learn. On the average I estimate that it takes about a month to teach a new word to a parrot. However, I have had parrots that learned a new phrase in a day or so. I would say that if after eight to twelve months of trying, you haven’t succeeded, resign yourself to the fact. chat your parrot is not going to talk.
Factors for Success
The bird’s age, degree of tameness and previous vocabulary will all be important factors it the parrot’s progress. Although there are exceptions, as a genet,’ rule parrots must , taught to speak before they are months old. It also appears that tame parrots learn to speak with gmiter ease than wild birds. Thus, if a bird is mean and untameable, he is not as gut, a candidate the speech class as aFriendlier bird.
Even though it is doubtful that a parrot who is more than two years old can learn to speak, a parrot who has uttered a few words during his first two years of life can always increase his vocabulary,throughout his life. This is the reason why talking parrots are so desirable and so expensive. They ha, already proven their
Teaching a parrot to talk is basically a matter of repeating a word or phrase until it is picked up by the bird. Begin with a single phrase and stick with it until the parrot learns all or part of the phrase. However, if he doesn’t respond, introduce other words and phrases. Parrots seem to repeat some words more quickly than others.
Parrots tend to repeat those things which please them. The pleasure may lie in the sound of a particular word or phrase or he may attempt a word and then repeat it often when he notes your excited reaction to his mimicry.
I sometimes wonder who is being trained. Bill, my Yellow Naped Amazon discovered that when he calls my name loudly I come running with a treat for him. the urge to respond to an animal who is calling your name is irresistible! Of course, I realize that Bill doesn’t know that he’s saying my name but he does know that this particular sound is associated with me and also that he is rewarded when he says it.
Mechanical Aids
With the advent of inexpensive tape recorders, it is now possible to teach a parrot to talk even when no one is home. Do not make one long tape, buy an endless tape loop. This is a cassette which repeats the same message over and over again. A good quality tape loop is manufactured by TDK in one minute, three minute, six minute and longer formats. It can be purchased at any well-stocked electronic supply store.
Before making the recording, the owner should actually prepare a small script. Otherwise the loop will be filled with pauses and grunts. The recording should be made in as clear a voice as possible. The loop should not be filled; if it is, the bird will never get a moment’s peace during the day as the loop will chatter away at him constantly. A parrot should be spoken to in a normal voice. One should resist the urge to sound like a parrot, or worse, how he imagines a parrot should sound.
A number of old wives’ tales have persisted through the years regarding the techniques of teaching parrots to talk.
It is not necessary to isolate a parrot from other birds to teach him to speck. In fact, keeping him with other talking birds may actually enlarge his vocabulary because he can learn from his parrot neighbors.
With few exceptions female birds are as adept as males in learning to talk. In most species, sex bears no relationship to speaking ability. I have actually owned female parrots who spoke better than males of the same species.
Parrots do seem to prefer to emulate high pitched sounds but it is not vital that their instruction be given by women or young children.
It is of no value to cover the parrot’s cage while teaching him to speak. This is recommended by some to avoid distraction. Actually, the act of learning does not occur only when one is actively teaching the parrot, and covering the cage can itself be distracting, especially if it is not normally done. It can actually impede progress instead of helping to reach a goal.
Profanity and other rude expressions are not funny if a bird repeats them in front of children or strangers. Since such expressions are generally short and easy to say, parrots do pick them up easily. Avoiding them at the beginning is better. Attempting to get a parrot to unlearn a word or phrase is even more difficult than getting him to say it in the first place.