Timneh Grey's Baby Behavior and Talking Delay

[Cara.Olivier]

My Timneh Grey is 7 months old. He was fully weaned around 14 weeks and is on a balanced diet of pellets, fruits, and vegetables. However, he still displays baby-like behavior whenever a mug is around, especially the one I used during his formula feedings. I can’t make coffee without him getting excited as soon as the kettle boils or I grab a mug. He’s never had coffee but always tries to sneak a sip. Is this normal behavior for his age?

Also, he hasn’t started talking yet. I’ve read that Timneh Greys typically begin talking around 6 months, but he only whistles. Should I be concerned that he’s not talking yet? Is there anything I can do to encourage him to talk?

 

[wrench13]

You must remember that each parrot is a bird unto themselves. Individuals. While most Greys may be talking by 6 months, some are late bloomers, some learn earlier - and some African Greys never talk at all! THey are like human babies. Each progresses at thier own pace, so dont worry about that.

As far as the baby behavior, its not a worry. IN fact many owners of parrots will feed some formula once in a while, like 3 times a year. ITs good for them and if you have to administer meds some time, its much easier to get them swallowed if mixed with baby parrot formula. My 9 yr old Amazon starts gulping like a chick and makes baby noises when we give him some formula!

 

[MichelleC]

You must remember that each parrot is a bird unto themselves. Individuals. While most Greys may be talking by 6 months, some are late bloomers, some learn earlier - and some African Greys never talk at all! THey are like human babies. Each progresses at thier own pace, so dont worry about that.

As far as the baby behavior, its not a worry. IN fact many owners of parrots will feed some formula once in a while, like 3 times a year. ITs good for them and if you have to administer meds some time, its much easier to get them swallowed if mixed with baby parrot formula. My 9 yr old Amazon starts gulping like a chick and makes baby noises when we give him some formula!

that's a great idea on giving formula periodically for meds! Thank you, good one

 

[MichelleC]

My Timneh Grey is 7 months old. He was fully weaned around 14 weeks and is on a balanced diet of pellets, fruits, and vegetables. However, he still displays baby-like behavior whenever a mug is around, especially the one I used during his formula feedings. I can’t make coffee without him getting excited as soon as the kettle boils or I grab a mug. He’s never had coffee but always tries to sneak a sip. Is this normal behavior for his age?

Also, he hasn’t started talking yet. I’ve read that Timneh Greys typically begin talking around 6 months, but he only whistles. Should I be concerned that he’s not talking yet? Is there anything I can do to encourage him to talk?

Hey there, I have an 18 month old CAG and she baby honked and head bobbed until she was 10 months old. She started saying some words at about 11 months but is still practicing. I would say just keep talking to him like a toddler and maybe he will talk and maybe he won't. It depends if he chooses to

 

[Botsari]

Once again Greys, both Congo and Timneh, typically don’t talk AT ALL the first year after hatching. Lots of noise, but no mimicry. This is NOT like most other parrots, and supposedly has to do with the unique neurodevelopment of the speech centers in their brains. Then the switch flips on and they typically go from nothing to talking non stop VERY quickly - usually it is a matter of just a few months. But starting to actually talk at 10 months is a bit precocious. And it is not out of the question for the switch not to flip for a year and a half in some Greys. I mentioned in another post that my 4 month old would occasionally say a few words he had learned from the breeder. “Hi” and “Hello”. I have some experience with the development of their talking and I thought (like a typical father) that he must be a genius. LOL. But of course, no. He didn’t say those words much, and never said anything else until the 10th or 11th month, exactly like all the rest of the Greys I have known. For different Greys it may be a bit earlier or a bit later but do not expect them to start really ramping up until they are about a year old.

From long experience I know that Greys, and I assume most parrots have their individual obsessions, both positive and negative, but it is always really hard for me to draw a cause and effect relationship. My younger grey has also always been obsessed by my making coffee. He especially get excited when I foam the milk. Baby behavior definitely extends strongly until they are sexually mature (3-4 years) and after that it gets mixed in with adult behaviors. Begging for food in many bird species, not just parrots, get turned into mating behavior later on with the lowered front of the body, the raised head, and the flipping of slightly open wings being very similar. And of course they feed each other as adults. So certain types of baby behavior may float to the surface much, much later on. And it is normal. I’ve suppressed the desire to draw analogous comparisons to human adult behavior and baby behavior - just too easy.