Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 2: Preparing to train your bird
• Part 2 of 2: Training your bird
• Tips

It can be fun teaching your bird to talk, even if he can only say one word. Alex the Gray Red-tailed Parrot has a vocabulary of over a hundred words, can have short conversations and even came up with his own name for almonds, "corknut." While entertaining, a bird this intelligent should never be bought alone to have a talking pet. These birds require a lot of love and attention, and they can live for decades, sometimes even outliving their owners.

To step

Part 1 of 2: Preparing to train your bird

1. Learn about your bird. Not all birds can or will speak, so the first thing to do is learn more about your bird. There is no point in teaching a bird to talk if it will only whistle back at you. Some bird species that can learn to talk are:
   • Parakeet
   • Monk parakeet
   • Amazon Parrot
   • Rose-ringed parakeet
   • Mouse parakeet
   • Noble parrot
   • Great Beo
   • Gray Red-tailed Parrot
   • Cockatiel
   • Cockatoo
2. Build a relationship with your bird. Birds capable of speaking are social animals. It's very important to develop a relationship by talking to him often so that he starts to trust you and get used to your voice. It is recommended that you spend as much time as possible with the bird for the first few months, talking to it in a calm voice.
   • Make sure to play with your bird often, every day. In the wild, these birds have many contacts in a day, and they become involved in many stimuli. These birds have evolved into group life and love to be social. Spending a lot of time with your bird can nurture a good relationship.
   EXPERT TIP

   Plan your time. As with training other animals, talking birds need short, frequent and regular training sessions. Make sure you build a plan so that you are able to give your bird the time and attention it needs to maximize its learning potential.

   • Make a schedule.
   • Limit exercise sessions to five minutes, two to five times a day.
   • Plan to work with your bird often during the day.

Part 2 of 2: Training your bird

1. Start with simple words. Your bird will likely learn simple words if you say them regularly. Choose phrases that he will likely hear from you and others often, such as:
   • Hey
   • Bye
   • Trusten
   • Your bird's name
2. Encourage behaviors that approach speech. The psychologist B.F. Skinner taught pigeons to pirouette and read by teaching them baby steps. The imitation of a tone or parts of words can be a first step in learning to imitate words. When training in steps, it is important to gradually raise the bar for your animal.
3. Hold the bird in front of your mouth when teaching it. Then you know for sure that you have the attention of your bird. The closeness will help build the relationship between you and your bird, as well as the bird to focus on the sounds you want it to make.
4. Include a friend or family member. Experiments with Red-tailed Parrots, such as the unknown Alex, show that these birds learn better when two people are involved. This is called the model / rival method, where another speaker demonstrates the desired communication, and the bird learns to speak by observing articulation in context.
   • There have even been cases where escaped birds taught wild birds to talk. This emphasizes the social nature of how birds learn to communicate.
5. Repeat certain words or sayings every time you do something with the bird. Say for example on when you lift your bird. This will teach him to associate movement with certain words.
6. Make sure your bird is enjoying it. Like a child, a bird benefits from learning with pleasure. By giving him rewards, such as treats, and engaging with your bird in a cheerful way, you encourage the bird to enjoy this new language game.
   • Rewards should be given immediately after the desired behavior. This tells the bird that it is doing something correctly.
   • Do not reward the bird when it is not talking. This will increase his desire to perform.
   • Experiment. Maybe your pet is less of a hello type and more of a howdy's. If your bird is responding well to what or how you are trying to train it, try something else.
   • Give your bird a number of sounds to produce, this will not only ensure that it is entertained, but also stimulate its brain's natural tendency to learn. Studies have shown that songbirds learn to sing in much the same way that human babies learn to talk, through babbling and vocal experimentation.
7. Consider playing recordings of words you want to teach your bird. Do this for up to 5 minutes at a time. Longer than that can cause boredom, which gives the bird undue stress.
8. Be patient. Learning abilities vary from species to species and bird to bird. Some species can start talking after just a few months, and some may take years to develop the ability to speak. Give your feathered friend time to express himself, and he will return this respect.

Tips

• Don't let your bird hear words you don't want him to mimic. Discourage unwanted expressions by simply ignoring them.
• Some species of parrots cannot, or rarely will, learn to speak, and even species known to speak have cases that never learn.
• Reward your bird for speaking or similar, even if it isn't during a training session.
• Some experts believe that parrot owners should teach their birds to talk before learning to whistle, as whistling can get in the way of learning words.
• Red-tailed parrots have a reputation for being the best of speakers.
• Be patient. Many birds can learn to speak quickly, but some may take months. Either way, teaching your bird to talk will be worth it in the end.
• Well-spoken birds will mimic many of the words they hear. Be careful what you say and what you listen to around them, as they can easily learn to curse or learn other things you don't want them to say.