Shy Talking African Grey

[Devin Corso]

Hi everyone! I have an African grey named Korra. I have a few questions but I want to start with one.

 

She talks really well, very clearly, and a whole lot along with noises. The problem is that when I'm in front of her cage, or when she is out on her perch she barely talks at all, and when someone else comes into the house she is completely silent. How can I teach her to talk on command, or when other people are visiting?

 

It feels pretty silly when I tell people about her wonderful talking, but than she is silent. She may be mocking me

Edited September 17, 2016 by Devin Corso

[Elvenking]

Ha....Isaac will rarely do much on command. I think unless you create a reward system around talking, they kind of just do it when they please. Which is actually how I prefer it with Isaac and the way that I think is the most respectful to him. It is kind of just nice to see when he wants to do it. They usually start opening up when they get more comfortable around people. When they first meet people, they are usually silent or stick to a few very basic sounds. That has always been my observation.

 

I am always sure to react in an exciting way when Isaac does something I like so it encourages him to do it more. What you explain is quite common.

[JeffNOK]

My Grey is pretty silent when around strangers. Once she gets to know people she talks and sings much more frequently. This is pretty typical with greys and i would not recommend trying to train her to change her behavior. You might try leaving a camera on her when you leave the room in order to capture her vocalizations. I have done that with my CAG. But, otherwise I would not worry about it or try to intervene.

[Timbersmom]

Timber is a "closet talker." He doesn't use words (though he will make sounds and whistle) often at all when we or others are in the room with him. He will talk a blue streak if we go in another room where he can't see us. I have not figured out how to encourage him to interact verbally with us. With him, he does it when HE wants to do it, not on command. I believe Elvenking gave you excellent advice though for encouraging it though.

[Inara]

Hi Devin. Our TAG, HRH Inara, talks up a storm but will clam up when we have guests unless like Timber, everyone gathers in another room. Then she can't stand to be left behind and out of the action so she will pipe up. She also likes to practice talking at least once a day by sticking her head inside of her covered water dish area where apparently the acoustics are to her liking. :D

 

From the first day she was with us, we have always responded to whatever vocalizations she makes (other than screeching on occasion -- that we ignore), and so over the last three years she has learned that we listen to her and we respond in a meaningful way to what she says. For example if she would say, "cookie" -- rather than saying to each other.. "How cute, the bird said cookie." We would respond with something like, "Wow! I like a good cookie, do you like a good cookie? I will go get you a cookie." (then I would follow through by going to get her a little tidbit). Chatting with Korra throughout the day, describing where you are going, what you are doing, and what you are seeing are all good ways to entice her to strike up conversations and learn true language skills rather than mimicking merely. Definitely find a way to answer her meaningfully when she does vocalize, even if you are out of the room and answer from that room.

 

My dearly departed CAG, Lestat, was more of a closet talker but would become a party animal when I would throw a party (hey it was in my youth -- a *lot* of Rock and Roll) and would shout, "Rock and Roll!" at the top of his lungs and spend the night dancing away. But if I just had guests over not partying, he was silent as a clam, unless startled. He never would talk directly to me, the way HRH Inara does. He would talk "around" me, and mostly in non sequiters. While HRH Inara talks to us and with us, and in a meaningful way. A lot just depends on your companion's personality.

 

There is no "one size fits all" answer unless a person wants to just trick train canned responses to canned questions. But that is not true language, it is simply mimicking and (just my humble opinion here) does a disservice by limiting true communication. And communication doesn't always have to be in *our* language. If we listen closely to our companions, they will have specific noises/sounds/whistles that they will repeatedly use for specific things or situations. Repeating those back to them to let them know that you've understood is also a good thing to do as not every Grey will choose to use a human spoken language. But since Korra appears to be one who does, just up the ante for interacting with her when she chooses to open up :)

 

Looking forward to hearing more about her - how old is she?

[Devin Corso]

Thank you everyone SO much for the suggestions. I read all of it and will apply it to her training and health.

 

Korra is 3 years old now and Yoshi (yellow-sided conure) is 6 years old.

[Acappella]

Korra is a classic closet talker. Dorian started his life in a pet store. People would come in and ask "does he talk?". He'd sit there like a little grey statue. Then they'd leave the store and he'd pipe in "does he talk, does he talk?".

[Timbersmom]

Sarcastic from the beginning Dorian was!

[Ray P]

Corky has been with all her life. She will be 16 years old in December and around us she will not shut up, but let a stranger come into our house and she becomes a clam.

However as she gets to know them from many visits to our home she will start to chime in and charm them to no end.