Dear Parrot Lover,

Training your parrot to whistle is about the same as training your parrot to talk. The main ingredient in this so-called secret recipe is simple repetition. Generally speaking, in the wild, parrots are extremely social creatures and love to communicate with each other by making a variety of different chirps and squawks. This innate desire doesn’t just go away because your parrot is raised in a home.

Instead, it will be up to you as your parrot’s flock leader, to continue to emulate your parrot’s natural surroundings. This can be done by socializing your parrot at a young age and teaching him certain socially-approved skills such as obeying commands and even talking.

But not every parrot owner desires a parrot that talks. In these cases, parrots can be taught how to whistle instead. The great thing here, is that it is oftentimes easier for a parrot to learn to whistle before he learns to talk. And once a parrot has become comfortable with whistling and is confident of his new skills as a whistler, he will whistle as a means of communication with you.

There are five simple steps to training your parrot to whistle:

1. Create a safe space for your parrot in which you can be guaranteed to have his undivided attention. This goes the same for you: make sure that your parrot has your undivided attention as well. No distractions. This chosen space should be quiet with no interference from televisions, radios, or other household pets and family members.

2. Once your parrot has settled down in the safe space you have created, make sure that you make eye contact with him to hold his attention. Whistle your chosen tune while maintaining eye contact with your parrot. It is quite crucial that your parrot immediately understands that you are attempting to direct your whistle to him, i.e. that you are communicating with your parrot via this unique sound.

3. All parrots learn best when their training is repeated to them. This holds especially true with training your parrot to whistle. You must repeat the chosen tune over and over again. Make sure you are repeating the whistle using the same tones all the time.

4. Once your training session is over for the day, continue whistling the tune whenever you can, especially when you are interacting with your parrot. When your parrot is confident enough, he will then attempt to repeat the whistle by himself.

5. Now you are ready to teach your parrot to associate your chosen whistle with a chosen activity. Before you give your parrot a treat next time, whistle your chosen whistle. Over time your parrot will recognize that whenever he hears that whistle, he will get a wonderful treat from you.

Noisy Birds!

Birds just like chatting

Click here for the exciting details of this ‘Real Speech’ System

Parrots and other bird species love to talk and make a variety of noises. It comes quite naturally to them as a form of communication both with other birds and with humans. While this can become an annoying habit sometimes, particularly if your bird begins to vocalize loudly for attention, it can also be a great way to communicate and bond with your bird.

Birds use sounds to communicate with other flock members. It helps them locate members of the same flock, and parent birds communicate with baby birds using unique sounds. In the absence of other birds your pet bird will want to attempt to communicate with you too, and he may attempt to mimic words or sounds you make in a similar way he would with other birds.

Click here to learn more about how birds communicate with one another

Not every bird is alike

Some species of birds are more naturally inclined for certain types of noises. For example, many think that the cockatiel is a natural for singing and whistling which means they are excellent at repeating different tunes they might hear. Amazon parrots and African Greys are well known for their ability to repeat words and some can even sing with words included. They often develop larger vocabularies because of this natural inclination.

Click here to learn what birds are the best talkers

Teaching birds to vocalize

Teaching your bird to speak is often one of the first things someone wants to do with their pet bird. It’s a neat trick and can be a fun bonding experience too. It can also be a gateway to wanting to train your bird to do other things.

There are a few things to consider:

1. Be realistic in your goals. Consider what type of bird you have and start with something easy that comes more naturally for your bird species.

2. Make it fun and easy. Training isn’t supposed to be hard! Keep training very simple for your bird and always keep it positive.

3. Reward any attempts your bird makes. It might not be the full whistling song or words you expected, but your bird is trying so be sure to reward any of these attempts. He’ll get there!

Read more training tips for your bird

Regards,
Nathalie Roberts

Dear Parrot Lover,

One of the most integral components of breeding parrots, is understanding the importance of proper avian pediatric examinations. Whether you are a new parrot breeder, or a seasoned aviculturist, you should get into a daily habit of conducting thorough physical examinations for every baby bird that is in your nursery.

Don’t feel intimated by this, because doing physical exams is quite easy once you know what to do and it only takes a few short minutes. Doing baby bird exams daily will help you to keep accurate breeding and health records for each baby in your flock. By doing exams every day you will more easily recognize any kind of abnormality or illness and will then be able to take the baby bird to an Avian certified vet for proper treatment. It is especially important to know that the sooner an abnormality in a baby bird is discovered, the quicker it will be for the baby bird to recover.

Each morning, before receiving their feeding and on an empty crop, every baby bird should be weighed. The weight must be measured in grams and recorded. Remember to keep the baby parrot as warm as possible. Neonates that only have a few down feathers are not able to thermos-regulate themselves and they will catch a chill very quickly. Here’s a tip: keep the baby bird on a heating pad during your physical examination.

Take notes regarding the texture and color of the baby bird’s skin. Skin that is too pale could be a sign of anemia, polyoma virus or chilling. Study the musculoskeletal system and size of the bird’s beak and head in relations to its body. Check for straightness and symmetry and/or healed fractures. Depending on the age and species of the baby bird, its internal organs might be visible through its skin, such as the liver and lungs.

Next examine the baby bird’s eyes for any swelling or discharge. Depending on the species of parrot, the eyes will be fully open sometime 10 to 28 days after hatching. Don’t forget to examine the ears and nares as well. There should be no discharge at all. The baby’s crop should be checked for proper movement and existence of any foreign body. The consistency and volume of any contents within the crop should also be palpated.

Lastly, make sure that the baby parrot has a normal feeding response by carefully stroking its beak. If the baby bird is sick or just cold, it will either have a week feeding response or none at all.

The Best, Fittest Bird

Creating the best nutrition for your bird

Become An Expert On Parrot Care Health!

We all know the expression you are what you eat. Food is at the heart of nutrition and health for all of us. A bird who doesn’t have the proper diet can suffer from illnesses and even have an early death.

The reason most pet birds suffer poor nutrition is a diet based heavily in seeds. Seeds should really only represent a small portion of a bird’s diet, maybe about 10%. Half of his diet should consist of nutritionally complete bird pellets, and the remaining portion should be fresh items like fruits and vegetables.

Click here to learn more about feeding your pet bird

Stress plays a role in disease too

Stress plays a large role in making your bird susceptible to disease. Stress causes the body to release hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, but persistent stress never allows the body to return to normal levels, instead always staying elevated. These hormones, in small doses, have a natural purpose in situations like avoiding a predator, but long-term elevated levels are not good for a bird.

Chronic stress can have a large impact on mental health and can lead to behavioral issues like depression, feather plucking, anxiety, etc. It can also greatly impact your bird’s health. Chronic stress is linked to a greater likelihood of disease as well as heart and digestive problems.

Click here to learn more about bird diseases

How to keep your bird healthy

Dr. Joel Murphy is an avian veterinarian with over 21 years of clinical veterinarian experience from The Animal & Bird Medical Center of Palm Harbor. He’s seen many pet birds with health problems that could have been prevented or reversed with good nutrition and stress avoidance. Now he’s sharing this knowledge in his e-book How to Care for Your Pet Bird.

This book is perfect for the new bird owner or even the more experienced one. You’ll find 22 chapters full of information on just about every bird care subject that you could think of such as nutrition, illness, emergencies, general proper bird care, selecting a veterinarian, and more. No more worries about an unhealthy bird!

Click here to view to read about How to Care for Your Pet Bird

Regards, Nathalie Roberts