Age limit and learning new stuff???

CaseynCasper · Apr 4, 2013

Hi--

I was recently told that a 26 year old Umbrella Cockatoo is too old to learn anything new.

My immediate response was, "bologna! Any reasonably healthy animal can learn at any age!"

So what's the truth? Can a 26 year old Cockatoo learn new things or has he aged beyond the ability to learn new commands/tricks/habits/etc?

SandyBee · Apr 4, 2013

I agree with you, my amazon is 35 and learns new things.
It takes a little extra work because he is set in some of his ways.

MonicaMc · Apr 4, 2013

If you know dog training, then you know that any animal is never "too old"!

My mitred conure should be 19 this year, and although he may not learn as quickly as a younger bird, he has learned new things!

ruffledfeathers · Apr 4, 2013

yeah, i agree. in that respect they aren't any different from any other animal, humans included!

Featheredsamurai · Apr 4, 2013

Rosie is very smart and learns super fast, and she's 20+ years old. Whoever told you that doesn't know birds

antoinette · Apr 4, 2013

The saying goes.... "you can teach old dogs new tricks"
It requires a little patience, and lots of love

I taught Mishka's girlfriend Jessie (an African Grey) to talk when she was 16 years old. Unfortunately she went to Rainbow Heaven in Feb 2012.

94lt1 · Apr 4, 2013

My wife would tell you that it depends on the animal... Like me... She says I'm hopeless

lol..

Seriously though.. Our amazon is 20 and she learns really fast... Our macaw is 26 and he's always been slow to learn.. It depends on the animal.

Kiwibird · Apr 4, 2013

They learn faster when they are younger, but they can still learn new things as they age. It just takes a little more time and dedication to teach an older bird, especially when it's an entirely new concept for them (they do get stuck in their ways). Cockatoos are highly intelligent and inquisitive birds, so if you want to train your new buddy, go for it! It may take him a little longer than a juvenile, but it will happen eventually.

Wanted to add, my dad has had his Goffin cockatoo for 40 years, and he still picks up new things all the time, and is one of the smartest birds I have ever met.

CaseynCasper · Apr 4, 2013

Thanks everyone! It's nice to know that my instincts are good. My little Quaker (age 15) has never taken to tricks and such, not even as a juvenile, so he abides happily with little training other than the basics: step up, calm down, etc. Casper, on the other hand, strikes me as the sort who needs training as a stress reducer and intellectual activity. I'd hate to think he were incapable of learning now, given he has another 60+/- years left to live.

I don't want to assume that what works for my Siberian will translate directly to Casper and end up setting Casper back, hence my concern.

MonicaMc · Apr 4, 2013

I'd also recommend to look into training Casper how to fly as well as foraging. Flight especially if Casper has any bad behaviors (i.e. screaming or feather destructive behaviors) or if he's overweight. Heck, you could even do some of that with foraging!

Good Bird Inc Parrot Training Talk

ruffledfeathers · Apr 4, 2013

CaseynCasper-funny how you said Casper strikes you as one who NEEDS training. That is like my one dog. Sometimes people think it's funny that i have one dog who learned tricks but i never 'bothered' to teach the others anything beyond basic stuff all polite dogs know. I thought "you didn't know Pinto as a pup!! he was a 'bad' puppy!" hahaha I tried to channel all that energy Pinto has into something good. The more complex their nature, the more they NEED training and thrive on it.

WannaBeAParrot · Apr 4, 2013

My observation with Pritti is that can and does still learn things,but that interest And attention span is what seems decreased.

CaseynCasper · Apr 4, 2013

ruffledfeathers said:
CaseynCasper-funny how you said Casper strikes you as one who NEEDS training. That is like my one dog. Sometimes people think it's funny that i have one dog who learned tricks but i never 'bothered' to teach the others anything beyond basic stuff all polite dogs know. I thought "you didn't know Pinto as a pup!! he was a 'bad' puppy!" hahaha I tried to channel all that energy Pinto has into something good. The more complex their nature, the more they NEED training and thrive on it.

That's been my experience as well. The more complex and intelligent the creature, the more jobs (s)he needs to keep out of trouble! If Sarah weren't trained she would be a terror. I haven't spent a whole lot of time with Casper yet but based on what I've seen, he needs something to do with his brain and his energy. Thanks for letting me know I'm not the only person who thinks that way.

CaseynCasper · Apr 4, 2013

WannaBeAParrot said:
My observation with Pritti is that can and does still learn things,but that interest And attention span is what seems decreased.

That makes sense but at 26, Casper is still fairly young. I can't imagine he's declined that much after a bit over 1/4th of his lifespan. If so, that would be sad. But if he can learn, he will, I'll see to that.

Thank you!

Jtbirds · Apr 6, 2013

As stated it is animal to animal I have mostly older birds and sme learn quickly and some learn slow. I taught a very old amazon how to do a lot of tricks and accept certain things. They are never to old to learn it just depends on the speed then. But hey even baby birds vary in speed of learning some are faster then others

JerseyWendy · Apr 7, 2013

CaseynCasper said:
That makes sense but at 26, Casper is still fairly young. I can't imagine he's declined that much after a bit over 1/4th of his lifespan. If so, that would be sad. But if he can learn, he will, I'll see to that. Thank you!

HA! Casper is much younger than I, so I'd say the sky is the limit.

And even I learn new tricks...but it does require lots of treats. :30:

Jennamilito · Apr 17, 2013

I think my bird is around 30 years old, and he is a RL Amazon. He doesn't know any tricks or training... where do I start?

MonicaMc · Apr 18, 2013

Either conditioning the bird to a clicker, or teaching target.

My cousin (haven't met in person) I think has a great blog on The Magic "8" Tricks
Bird Whisperer of Las Vegas

There are a lot of resources out there for clicker training and positive reinforcement. I really enjoy Barbara Heidenreich's material, as well as Karen Pryor and Melinda Johnson, just to name a few.

chippy · Jun 1, 2013

No one, human, bird or animal, is EVER too old to learn, IMO. It might take more effort as they age, but the brain is a wonderful, ever-evolving thing

Age limit and learning new stuff???

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