Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi,

I have a 1 1/2 old grey cockatiel and a 4 month old grey cockatiel. How do I go about training them to talk. My 1 1/2 old cockatiel says a few things... "pretty bird", he wistles the first verse from the Beatles song HEY JUDE, and he used to say "come here" and his name, "Baby" but he seems to have stopped talking. How do I go about training both of them to talk?

Thanks

There is no set way to train them to talk, different things work better for different birds. The main thing is repetition and talking to them constantly. Some cockatiels will never say more than a couple words while others may have quite an extensive vocabulary. While males usually seem more likely to talk even they won't always say much. They are more apt to have a wide variety of whistles. You could try using a tape recorder and recording whistles or words. Some birds will learn by this method but others seem to ignore the mechanical repetition. If you wish your bird to say, "Goodnight" (or another word or phrase). Make sure you always use this same word every time it is appropriate. Don't keep changing from goodnight to nighty night to time for bed, etc. Keep it simple and repetitive. When they do say something or whistle, offer lots of praise and possibly a reward like a favorite treat or some "cuddle time". Just don't be too disappointed in them if they never learn more than a song or a few words.