talking

[ony]

hi guys..i am new here..my african grey doesnt talk to me or to anyone..but when he is left alone on his stand he talks alot almost evrything i tried to teach him..so please help me out with this..thanks

[Joyvke]

Django tends to talk alot more if he is by himself or at least when he thinks he is. Or when there's visitors he usually have himself heard. I don't know if you can teach him how to be vocal when you're around, I guess they will do so when they're ready maybe?

[Inara]

Hi Ony, and welcome. It's great that your companion is chatting and learning. We'd all love to know more about him. The Introduction thread is a great place to land and to introduce yourself and your bird and to tell us the story of how the two of you came to be together.

 

Many birds will talk up a storm while alone, and it is natural for them to practice talking off and on during the day also. Some are very shy about talking when a camera in view or when sitting upon their humans, etc. My Inara was like that and still talks a lot when in her cage. She does now talk a lot with me when she is on my arm, knee or shoulder, and when she is very near to me. I used to carry lots of tiny bits of treats in my pocket, and whenever she was on me or near me and would make *any* sound, I would give her a tiny bit of treat and tell her that was good. She began to learn that it was OK to make noise near me, and eventually this progressed to words, and now she's a chatterbox and will say things directly to me, to my husband and to the dog.

 

When we have guests, they usually bring their dogs, so Inara goes back into her cage. She, like Joyvke's Django will join in the conversation and make herself heard from her cage while our guests are talking. It is natural for parrots to join in the noise level of the house, as they are very social. You might also notice your companion being more noisy during the early morning and late afternoon, which is what they do in nature. Those might be a couple times of day for you to plan some vocal interaction time.

 

In any event, don't worry if your bird doesn't talk when you're around. Just keep talking to him, and being a good companion. They all just do things in their own way and their own time.

[judygram]

Ony, you have a closet talker, some greys are like this in that they don't like to talk in front of people even their bonded owner, you will just have to accept this for there is nothing you can do to make him talk in front of you.

[aerial.2000]

I agree with the closet talker, but dont get discouraged ... still make sure you talk to him and/or explain things you are doing while doing them perhaps that will encourge your baby to talk back to you. I guess Im lucky Marco talks anytime, all the time, if im there or not, if the cams on or not, shes just chill like that.

[Talon]

Ony, How long have you had your grey? IT may just be too early for him to feel comfortable enough around you to talk. Greys don't like to say a word until they feel that are confident enough to say it right. They can practice when they think you can't see or hear them, and in front of you will be quiet.

[kins2321@yahoo.com]

Excellent point Talon made. They want to be confident, as well as do best practicing on their own. Nothing wrong though, acknowledging that you hear them. Sophie and I practiced many words with the wall separating us. We also had many games that we played without seeing each other. Sophie's favorite to this day. Nancy