Many owners have asked us how is the best way to teach their bird to talk and we are happy to provide what works for us. There are three things that help train your bird to talk:
- repetition
- emotion
- reward
Have you ever found that your birds pick up phrases and words that have never been specifically said to them but have been said around the household (like yelling out your children’s name)? We have found over the years that teaching a bird to talk is not so much about repeating the same words over and over only, but to say them to the bird in an emotional way (such as excited or yelling). That is why so many birds pick up the names of children, pets and the occasional bad word because they hear these words yelled repeatedly throughout the day.
Likewise, when specifically trying to teach a new word or phrase to your bird, it is more likely that they will learn it sooner if you repeat the phrase every time you see the bird (or when you want him/her to say it) in an excited voice and offer a treat when they successfully say the phrase.
Buddy, our hand raised Quaker is a fantastic talker and we have used the same principles to teach him to say a wide range of phrases and words along with being able to answer questions when asked. Any time someone asks him “Is Buddy a good boy?” he responds with quickly bobbing his head up and down saying “yeah!!”. The same can be said about his girlfriend, Bubbles. Any time someone says “Kisses” she quickly runs over to Buddy saying “Kisses”, makes kissing sounds and gives Buddy a kiss!
We have found a video that further explains the principles above that really do work when you want to teach your bird to talk.