What is a best way of making my parrot to talk apart from whistling?

Answer 1

Most pet stores sell CD's that can teach your parrot to talk. That way you don't have to repeat the same word 10,000X...

Answer 2

You have to train it to talk. Put it in a room where people are often talking, so that it hears more spoken words. You can also talk to it, or, better yet, set up a computer or some other machine to repeat certain words over and over again to the parrot. The best time to directly say things to a parrot (or run the machine) is during the evening; going to sleep afterwards will help the parrot remember the lesson better.

Don't worry, the first words are the hardest. It might take several weeks before the parrot learns its first word. However, after that things speed up as the parrot catches on, and at peak capacity the parrot can learn a new word every few days. At that point, there's a good chance it will even start saying things it just overheard, without you instructing it to!

You can also read these for more information:
http://www.2ndchance.info/parrottalk.htm
http://www.lafeber.com/Lafeber-Library/Articles/wright/talk.asp
http://wvwv.essortment.com/howtoteachbi_rdne.htm

Answer 3

This question has been almost completely answered. I am, however disappointed with north79004487 and desi who stated that birds merely "Mimic".
While this is true in many cases, this is not true in every case.
Someone mentioned Dr. Irene Pepperberg, a researcher at Harvard University, and MIT.
Her approximately 30 year project of learning about cognitive and communicative abilities in Grey Parrots rocked the world of science when she scientifically proved that African Greys can and do mean exactly what they say when they are trained using the Model-Rival technique...a "show and ask" process using 2 people along with the bird being trained.
It is highly effective, and the videotapes of ALEX, a 30 year old Congo African Grey Parrot using speech to answer questions correctly involving counting to 7, shape, color, what things are made of and the names of things will absolutely slay you!
Some websites:

http://www.pbs.org/saf/1201/video/watchonline.htm

http://www.alexfoundation.org/

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-07/bu-agp070805.php

These sites will explain a lot of the work already done and will give you some insight into the possibilities and abilities of parrots.

There is another interesting website:

http://www.sheldrake.org/nkisi/

I don't know what to make of this one, but this particular parrot actually has conversations with his owner, Amy.
Jane Goodall paid a visit to her parrot N'Kisi and this little guy blew her mind. I'm impressed with this parrot's abilities. Listen to the tape and decide for yourself.
All of this information is out there on the Web. How certain bits of "legend", "folklore", and "Someone told me..." remain to be thought of as fact, are beyond me.
It's so important to do your homework and learn about the very creatures that you share your life with. The very device you are currently sitting in front of: your computer, is the single greatest teaching device you will ever have in your home. It contains a dictionary, a Thesaurus, several complete Encyclopedias, scientific papers, essays, research, as well as access to millions of books.
I rarely post an answer without a reference.
I take the responsibility of answering these questions seriously as this is a a wonderful website with unbelievable potential.

Answer 4

Parrots don't really "talk" as much as they immitate the sounds they hear over and over. Parrots have been known to imitate the ringing of a phone when they were kept in a busy home office. They can also imitate a barking dog, the sound of a hammer hitting a nail and all manner of wild birds. If you repeat a short phrase over and over, the bird will eventually get it and start trying to mimmick the sound.

Your best bet is to say one phrase to your bird every time you see it, talk to it or are in the area. Be careful of what you pick as the phrase because you will hear it at perhaps the most inopportune times. For example, "Get Lost, Bozo" is not a good thing to teach your parrot to say if you frequently entertain. Your guests will think that's what YOU say when they aren't around.

Some good ones that encourage others to think your bird really can talk and is aware of everything going on around him are:
"Whatcha doin'?"
"Who's that?"
"I See You"
"Not again!"
"Dinner time?"
"Call 9-1-1!"
"Who said that?"
"Not tonight, dear."
"Close the door!"

Once your bird masters ONE short phrase, you can start working on another one. He won't forget the first one. You keep working on one short phrase at a time and then move on. That's how you build his vocabulary until he will start saying the phrases at random whenever he pleases.

It's best to work with ONE bird at a time. If your bird has a friend, he would rather chat in his own language with another bird. But - once he is talking, that is the time to get another bird. The second bird will learn from the first one. On that same note, if you have the oppotunity to buy a bird that already talks, then buy it. The talking bird will teach the one you already have. Then you'll have 2 voices asking you, "Whatcha doin?" It gets old. Choose the phrase carefully.

Answer 5

Parrots absolutely can talk! Do a search for Irene Pepperberg and Alex on the Net and you will see that she has done research that shows that parrots can understand and use language appropriately! Anyone who has lived with a parrot can tell you that, too!

At any rate, you cannot "make" your parrot talk. They have to want to. All I can suggest is that you make your bird a part of the family, spend a lot of time with it, and talk to it as much as possible. Talk to it as if it were a small child and can understand. Tell it the names of its food, say good morning and good night, explain what you are doing when around it. Keep your bird healthy and happy with a roomy cage, plenty of toys, and a good diet. It goes without saying that a sick or unhappy bird will not likely want to talk.

Some birds never learn to talk while others are just dynamos who never stop learning new words! You can maximize your chances of success but ultimately, the bird has to decide to talk and the bird will only learn the words/phases that it likes. Please love your bird for who he/she is regardless of talking ability.

Answer 6

For the person above that said...parrots don't talk they immitate..you must have never lived with a parrot in your home and had it around much or else you'd see that theyoften know exactly what they are saying and say it on purpose at the right time. Yes they immitate what they hear..but they also can say exactly what they intend. I can tell you LOADS of stories about my african grey and my eclectus parrots that prove it.
My african grey was once sitting on the shower curtain rod in the bathroom when my son came in to use the restroom. That bird looked down at him and said.."jeremiah go poop". That is NOT immitating. He KNEW what he was saying and more so..he KNEW what my son was doing. I have tons of stories just like that. Parrots are amazing.

But yes...repitition...you have to repeat things over and over and over again.

Answer 7

I have heard to definitely avoid whistling to the bird at this stage because it's easiest for them to mimick whistles and it will make it much more difficult to get then to learn the spoken word.

Other than that, follow the advice of others here and just let you bird hear words over and over (whether spoken or recorded).

BTW, what kind of parrot is it as some are much more adept at learning to speak tha others?

Answer 8

in my esperience, it depends on the age of the bird, as i start repeating her name or his name, this is with an african grey, also they need to hear things, words, sounds, phone ring, to mimic this, or a machine at times to say the word or sing, talking to the bird, make it fun to u and the bird just train a couple times a day and when u talk to the bird always talk to her by saying his/her name and then what u want to say.Patience is the key and just make it fun and not tiring, some will talk some may not, most greys do.cockatiels some do, and whistles are fun too

Answer 9

WELL IT DEPENDS FIRST OF ALL WHAT TYPE OF PARROT YOU HAVE. NOT ALL PARROTS WILL TALK. WE HAD A SENEGAL THAT SAID 2 WORDS AND THE REST WAS TRICKS.

CONURES ARE MORE PLAYFUL THAN TALKERS AS WELL AS COCKATIELS ARE MORE WHISTLERS. ESPECIALLY THE MALES.

JUST REMEMBER TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT YOUR SPECIES OF PARROT TO SEE HOW LIKELY IT CAN LEARN SPEECH AND WHAT THEY RECOMMEND FOR THAT TYPE FOR LEARNING TRICKS.

Answer 10

I leave the TV on for mine and he watches music shows, but my husband left it on a hispanic station one day and he now speaks spanish, but I don't know what he is saying. Usually after hearing something three to four times he can repeat it. He is a quaker.