African Grey Parrots

Lesson 4: The Fun Begins!

Tips on Talking and Training

If you are like me, one of the reasons you chose an African Grey Parrot is because of their talking ability. When people ask me how I taught my parrot to talk, I tell them I didn’t, he taught himself. I mentioned earlier that I was told my bird might not talk so I had no high hopes or expectations. I wanted him to talk but if he hadn’t I sincerely believe I would have loved him just as much. Most people think that parrots just mimic the sounds around them and that is a basically true statement although I am constantly amazed by their unexplained comprehension and intelligence. My bird can speak in my voice and in the voices of several family members. As a matter of fact I can have a conversation with someone and sometimes hear it repeated from the corner bird cage mimicking both voices. Greys repeat what they want to repeat. There is no ‘training’ them to say things on demand. I have had moments when friends visit my house and I am telling them how well my parrot talks and they are all excited, expecting to hear great things from this marvelous bird. Generally when this situation occurs my grey sits quietly on the perch and looks at me and the visitors as if to say, “Who, me? I’m just a bird.”

One of the most surprising things is the grey’s ability to size up situations and make appropriate comments. You can actually hold a mini conversation with some of these winged wonders. And they listen so well. My grey never seems to be bored with my voice. He can also mimic the morning rooster, the coffee pot, the peacock, the dog, the cat, and the can opener. He can whistle a number of tunes and likes to sing but I discourage that (it’s the one thing he doesn’t do well).

Your grey should have begun his training in the first six months of his life. That is when they learn most of their survival techniques and how to relate to their world. One of the first and essential skills to teach your new bird is the ‘step up’ practice. This not only serves as a basis for other training tricks it teaches your grey to trust you. Step up can be from perch to hand, hand to hand or other combinations. The bird should be taught to step up on a perch from inside its cage. At least I think this is the best practice. Putting your hand in an adult bird’s cage is not always a wise move. You are on his turf and he might decide that’s not to his liking. Hold the perch near the bird’s feet and just a little above so it has to step up to sit on the perch. Encourage the action with words. Once the bird is on the perch, remove it from the cage and extend your hand the same way you did the perch telling the bird to step up. It will soon learn to step on your hand. Practice this often but always be mindful of that quick sharp beak. Never be distracted by something else when you are training a bird.

There are many other tricks your bird can learn like lying on its back, playing pee-a-boo, hanging upside down and much more. A good site to explore for training videos and lessons on teaching your parrot is http://www.parrottricktraining.com/.

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