Can anyone recommend tablet games for parrots? (I swear I used to be normal)

[IlexCassine]

Hi all, not a "toy" per se but definitely enrichment! Ever since going down a rabbit hole with Parrot Kindergarten, I've been adding enrichment activities to an old Samsung tablet for my Amazon to enjoy. Some apps we currently have:

-CommBoards: the adaptive communication app used by Ellie the talking cockatoo and her sisters at Parrot Kindergarten. I have my criticisms for sure but overall it's been super cool teaching Mido to select words to tell me what he wants to do or eat! Free version is USELESS, so unfortunately you have to buy it but at least it's a one time purchase.

-BabyBalloons: This game is just what it sounds like. Human infants can slap at colored balloons to their heart's content to pop them. This was fun enough, but there are also Shapes and Colors modes where you have to hunt for specific kind of balloon. Mido LOVES learning colors and shapes with flash cards, so reinforcing them with a fun, easy balloon game is super fun! Free with ads.

-Piano Kids: I got this free (with ads) app so he could plonk around on a keyboard and make noises. This is mildly entertaining, but he gets bored or overwhelmed quickly. HOWEVER, there are a ton of other games in this app. There is a very simple drawing app built into it, so he can press colors and doodle with his tongue all over a "canvas," as well as a game we call Feed the Cat. It has a little cartoon cat you have to feed fruits and veggies from a conveyor belt by pressing the correct color of button. You had Mido at "colors." Bunch of other games of varying quality and difficulty on this app, but those are the most parrot-appropriate that I've found.

Has anyone else taught their birds to use a touch screen for enrichment, and are there any particular apps you enjoy? We'd love to try new stuff! It just has to be very simple so lil' man doesn't get too overwhelmed trying to learn. Most baby stuff is a hit.

 

[rheashard2]

I think thats great. Never considered this form of parrot/entertainmet & learning. Will have to give this thought.

 

[onamom]

My girls love “Baloon Pop”! Kids drawing apps are also fun.

 

[Vampiric_Conure]

OH, I wish I knew the name of the app some folks I knew on FB used. It was a drawing app for kids. Their conures LOVED chasing the bugs on the screen and learning colors.

 

[wrench13]

My Amazon is not too interested in screen games. Salty is too adept at cheating with most games, digital or otherwise. He does better at logic tests. We have collection of small animal figures, and bell, ball, baby, bone, and many other small figures and toys, about 30 or so. One of his nightly training exercises is to retrieve the named object out of a line up of 8 of these. When he is in a good mood for training, his success rate is 100%. We are working towards dumping the whole mess of the little things into a pile, instead of a line up of just 8, and then have him root thru the pile to retrieve the named object.

He can also pick the Kings out of a deck of cards, plays a real toy piano and sings and is learning to ride a parrot bicycle.
[IMG alt="IlexCassine"]https://www.parrotforums.com/data/avatars/m/50/50819.jpg?1754476753[/IMG] PLease, tell us, what is your training or learning regime? Timing, length etc of your sessions with Midori!

IlexCassine​

 

[rheashard2]

I'm following this too. Who knows, Nameliss maybe interested too.

 

[nkrbkr]

Me too.

 

[rheashard2]

Been looking into this. Tablet has to be safe with a high degree of touch sensitivity. I looked into this because my curiosity is now high. So what type of tablet is recommended? Holidays with Black Friday and cheap prices are just around the corner. Found a site (requires membership) that offers apps specific for parrots. Even some digital studies with parrots. I'd like to get a tablet to experiment with before making a commitment. Suggestions?

 

[rheashard2]

This is one site I found. I know nothing about it.

Parrot’s Tablet Training Course – Parrot Kindergarten Members

members.parrotkindergarten.com

 

[IlexCassine]

Been looking into this. Tablet has to be safe with a high degree of touch sensitivity. I looked into this because my curiosity is now high. So what type of tablet is recommended? Holidays with Black Friday and cheap prices are just around the corner. Found a site (requires membership) that offers apps specific for parrots. Even some digital studies with parrots. I'd like to get a tablet to experiment with before making a commitment. Suggestions?

Parrot Kindergarten recommends Galaxy Tab 8 tablets I think? Amazon Fire tablets are also supposed to be decent. And yes, get a nice toddler tablet case, the kind with multiple handles if you can, and be prepared to redirect frequently from gnawing on it.

 

[IlexCassine]

My Amazon is not too interested in screen games. Salty is too adept at cheating with most games, digital or otherwise. He does better at logic tests. We have collection of small animal figures, and bell, ball, baby, bone, and many other small figures and toys, about 30 or so. One of his nightly training exercises is to retrieve the named object out of a line up of 8 of these. When he is in a good mood for training, his success rate is 100%. We are working towards dumping the whole mess of the little things into a pile, instead of a line up of just 8, and then have him root thru the pile to retrieve the named object.

He can also pick the Kings out of a deck of cards, plays a real toy piano and sings and is learning to ride a parrot bicycle.
[IMG alt="IlexCassine"]https://www.parrotforums.com/data/avatars/m/50/50819.jpg?1754476753[/IMG] PLease, tell us, what is your training or learning regime? Timing, length etc of your sessions with Midori!

IlexCassine​

What a smarty pants! That's awesome! What on earth does a parrot bicycle look like?

For Midori, I often wait for him to seem interested in me or bored of being by himself, and then I bring out the tablet to ask if he wants to do anything. Especially if he's honking up a storm and making the dog howl -- that's a pretty good sign he wants some enrichment.

He learned to do pressure touches on the tablet as the first skill once he wasn't scared of it anymore. You make a dot on whatever sketchpad app you have downloaded and direct them to touch the dot so that you (and the bird) can see a new mark being added to the screen. Dot, reward, dot, reward, on and on until they're enthusiastic about touching the screen for treats. Then you can teach them fun stuff!

Any time we learn something new, it's about 5-15 minute lessons. We'll do two or three of those throughout the day almost every day as enrichment. I find that once he learns something (how to pop balloons on a screen, or pick out colors from a line up of colored pencils, or whatever), he will request it with the button for that activity on his comm board CONSTANTLY. I think he gets excited about gaining confidence in a new skill!

I personally don't wait until he's hungry to train him as some people do, just because he's always so motivated for treats (sunflower seeds or tiny pieces of almond) and to do something fun. Others may have better luck with that technique though.